A recent EMS run in suburban Atlanta, GA, turned into anything but normal. A resident who called in a request for an ambulance took five firefighters hostage and held them at gunpoint when they entered the structure after responding with an engine company and an ambulance. One firefighter was released to move the apparatus from the front of the house. After issuing demands for several hours, the gunman was killed by police. The firefighters suffered minor injuries. Apparently, the gunman called in the medical run knowing firefighters would not be armed. Last year in New York State, two responding firefighters were shot and killed after they arrived on the scene of a house fire when a gunman had started and when they took shelter, the gunman was hiding right near them. We respond to millions of EMS calls nationwide every year. Hopefully, these are isolated incidents, but please exercise extreme caution.
Recently, social media had a role to play in resignations, suspensions and investigations among fire personnel. Maybe someone sent out information that seemed inappropriate. Maybe someone held a grudge. Maybe someone sent information to a newspaper at an inopportune time.
For the past several years in Firehouse® Magazine and at Firehouse Expo and Firehouse World, we have conducted numerous seminars regarding social media – “a blessing or a curse?” We also have presented classes titled “You Can’t Make This Stuff Up” straight out of courtrooms and timely seminars we called “Chief, I Was Never So Surprised When…”
The vast majority of the people in the fire and EMS community play by the rules, do what is right and abide by what they are told to do. But a story in a newspaper about official misconduct can lead to even more bad press. People have a right to say whatever they want to, as long as they play by the rules and don’t cause harm to others. I would never tell anyone what to say or how to feel; as long as it doesn’t bother me, they can do whatever they want to do. But when there is a problem and you were the cause because you said or did something out of line that went out on the Internet, all you have to do is look in the mirror. Common sense!
We want to pay tribute to three good friends/chiefs who are making news. Syracuse, NY, Fire Chief Mark McLees has retired. Mark has written articles and taught classes for us, has served as judge in our Heroism Awards program and was there for us in the beginning when we first came up with the idea for reporting about close calls. Fire Chief Richie Bowers is retiring from Montgomery County, MD, and is going to be the fire chief in Fairfax County, VA. Richie also has written and spoken for us, and has been named to numerous boards of inquiry dealing with firefighter line-of-duty deaths. The Congressional Fire Services Institute’s Board of Directors has selected Chief Ron Siarnicki, executive director of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, as the recipient of the 2013 CFSI/Motorola Solutions Mason Lankford Fire Service Leadership Award. The presentation will take place at the 25th Annual National Fire and Emergency Services Dinner on May 9 in Washington, D.C. Congratulations to all.
TO BECOME AN ORGAN DONOR, SEE www.organdonor.gov & CHECK YOUR STATE’S REGULATIONS
17
2013 firefighter line-of-duty deaths at press time
879
2013 civilian fire fatalities at press time
For comments and suggestions, please contact us at [email protected].
