There is always debate in the fire service. Maybe it's about the last fire we responded to, debating how we could have operationally done a better job. Sometimes, arguments go on for years. These stories are told and retold, like George Washington cutting down the cherry tree. Whether or not it occurred is not the issue; what's meaningful is that over 200 years later, the story is still being talked about.
Almost every jurisdiction in the American fire service must abide by state and federal rules and regulations. Some are very strict and exacting; some are not. How about all the courses you have had to take so far in your career - Firefighter 1, 2, 3. Fire Officer, Incident Command, NIMS, Bloodborne Pathogens, Right to Know, Hazardous Materials, Confined Space and a host of others? Nearly all of them came about because something bad happened to somebody, so change, better education and certification were required. Every month, accompanying this editorial is the number of firefighters killed in the line of duty so far this year. Something bad happened to every one of them. I recently saw a compilation of Near-Miss Reporting forms. The pile of printed copies was quite thick. Plenty of nearly deadly incidents continue to happen across the country every day for a wide variety of reasons. One of my best friends says that whenever a chief tells him to be safe while operating on the fireground or at an emergency incident, he thinks to himself that if he wanted to be safe, he would have stayed home in his living room. He knows there are inherent dangers while performing the job of a firefighter.
How many times have you heard about a firefighter being injured in a vacant building? I remember retired FDNY Deputy Chief and Firehouse® Contributing Editor Vincent Dunn remarking that a vacant building is worth about $15,000 in used bricks. A young firefighter was injured and had to retire on disability. The cost to the city was in the millions, based on the life expectancy of the firefighter. When the South Bronx was burning, people would ask, why don't you just let the buildings burn to the ground? Exposures were one concern, keeping firefighters tied up was another factor when they were needed elsewhere, especially where there was a genuine life hazard to others. With today's economy and many businesses going out of business, what are we saving by risking so much to save so little?
Do you remember the auto dealership fire in Hackensack, NJ, on July 1, 1988, in which five firefighters were killed when the truss roof over the service garage and showroom collapsed? For years after the fire, an auto dealership sold cars on the site. Today, there are plans to build condominiums there. In New York, after 12 firefighters were killed in a collapse of a drug store in 1966, first a vacant lot existed until a 30-plus-story high-rise was erected on the site. Today, only a brass plaque hangs on the wall of a first-floor store. In Worcester, MA, a new firehouse was built on the site of the vacant refrigerated warehouse where six firefighters gave their lives in 1999. Life goes on for everyone else.
We have heard about seatbelts until it is coming out of our ears. Still, how many of you wear seatbelts when you respond and return from alarms? Now, apparatus manufacturers are mandated to install devices in new rigs to signal who is wearing seatbelts and who is not. The current National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards saw to that. Since the rank-and-file would not take care of the problem, it was legislated for us. How many accidents does it take before we slow down and use caution while responding to, operating at and returning from alarms?
There was a recent injury and death of a 92-year-old firefighter in New Jersey. No one would question the dedication that firefighter had, but isn't there a way to recruit younger members? Now, state legislators want to require medical exams for all firefighters. It's not a bad idea to make sure every firefighter is healthy enough to perform the job. But another incident has brought about change from someone looking at the fire service. At the recent trial involving the Black Sunday fire in the Bronx, NY, where six firefighters were forced to jump out a fifth-floor window because illegal partitions sealed off the fire escape, defense lawyers asked serious questions about the fire operations. They were doing their job for their clients. We all know that at incidents not everything goes according to plan. Sometimes, there are better ways of mitigating an incident. Sometimes, it's out of our hands. There are plenty of things we can change for the better, if we put our minds to it. If we don't, someone else will change things for us.
For comments, ideas and suggestions, please contact us at [email protected].
