Three would-be firemen lugging a cooler, beach towels and suntan lotion established a beachhead. : Job Seekers Set Up Camp in Burbank

Outside Burbank City Hall on Tuesday, it looked like a male casting call for one of those fun-in-the-sun surfing movies.

But instead, about 50 young men, many bare-chested and in swimsuits, were stretched out on lawn chairs waiting to obtain applications for 10 to 15 firefighter vacancies in Burbank. The city expects as many as 2,000 people to apply for the jobs today, but it is only accepting the first 1,000 forms that are completed.

The line for applications began forming Monday evening when three would-be firemen lugging a cooler, beach towels and suntan lotion established a beachhead. That triggered a chain reaction. Others who had been cruising Olive Avenue to make sure no one would get the jump on them began showing up.

Small Traffic Jam

The gathering caused a small traffic jam as motorists slowed to soak up the scenery. Apparently, the applicants even caused one fender-bender by a car of rubbernecks.

“Most of the people out here are good, healthy all-American types,” said Steve Briggs, a 25-year-old from Northridge, who was working on an already impressive tan.

Many of the applicants were immersed in firefighter manuals, the equivalent of a Graduate Record Examination review book for persons who aspire to put out fires.

What is happening in Burbank has become commonplace across Southern California when fire departments announce openings. Unemployment, a low turnover rate and good pay has made getting into the firefighting field extremely competitive.

“There are very few job openings in the greater Los Angeles area,” said Capt. Bill Sanders of the Burbank Fire Department.

Mass of Applications

The Los Angeles Fire Department, for instance, receives 10,000 cards each year from people who are interested in becoming firefighters. At the most, the department, which receives applicants from as far away as Florida, hires 160 a year.

More than economics has contributed to the popularity of firefighting, fire officials say. “There is a romantic allure to it, to be one of the local heroes,” Sanders said.

To hear many of the Burbank applicants tell it, they have wanted to be firemen since they were children. Many said they were attracted by the excitement and potential danger.

“Every day is a new challenge, an adventure,” said Brett Olson, a 22-year-old triathlete from Newport Beach, who trains six hours a day for his sport, which encompasses swimming, running and bicycling great distances.

Some of the Burbank applicants, many of whom are in their early 20s, have made a career of trying to get into a fire station. Besides buying preparatory manuals, they have enrolled in college fire science classes. And they meet each other in lines time after time when departments announce openings.

Briggs, a studio worker, has applied to every fire department from Santa Barbara to San Diego in the past 3 1/2 years.

“People ask me all the time, ‘Why do you want to be a firefighter when you can work in studios and television?’ But it’s exciting.”