Chief Officer That Won't Let Member's Drive

What do you think of a Chief that won't let anyone below him drive a pumper, ladder truck or rescue squad? We are talking from Assit Chief on down?
We have career personnel of consiting of career officer and three firefighters around the clock. If they take a unit on a call no one else can drive another unit unless its a ambulance or smaller unit, so a backup pumper or the other units sit.
The chief is the only volunteer that drive those units, but he is always in his chief's vehicle if a call comes in.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kyle Smith on June 23, 2009 at 2:05pm

He should be trainning others on driving So it's one thing he hasn't have to worry about I thank chief or Asst. Chiefs should get to the loc. of the call to size it up, BUT if they are haveing probloms gitting trucks out they should makesure it's gitting out.

Permalink Reply by ashfire on June 24, 2009 at 10:13am

One thing I do know is that Chief's including Assit, Deputy and captains according to bylaws and SOPs have to have class a or b drivers license and the required classes to be in elected to those positions and be a driver. Anyone else if they want to be a driver of a pumper, truck or squad have to go through a county driving class, take a county or state classes in pumps, truck ops and heavy rescue classes to drive those vehicles and then have to be evaluated to be a driver.
Most stations around us have regular drivers like we did years ago but we have been stifled by our chief for drivers.
If we have a big fire we just wait for a transfered company to come in and fillin and hope members can ride with them or take the ambulance and smaller units if its our first due. If its not our first due we don't go and the fillin goes.

Permalink Reply by Kirk D. Baughman on June 25, 2009 at 12:35am

this is so crazy i have never would belive anyone would be crazy like this. what does the members on the deparment think about this? does the members know were tools are on the truck or are they running around with their heads cut off? i think you should be on the dept. for a few months and put in training hours and know how to pump the truck before you drive it.

Permalink Reply by ashfire on June 25, 2009 at 7:35pm

I can tell you. Any oppsition that would be there disappeared over the years and what members are there dares to not challenge.

Permalink Reply by Bobby on July 16, 2009 at 3:59pm

If this is a combined dept then i would start with the chain of command to include the city council with your complaints and worries, when this goes unanswered then I would leave the dept and the community since it is obvious that the chief officers don't care if they have the back up that most depts would love to have. If it is in the bylaws that you have a CDL and the dept doesn't want to help you get it then it makes me wander if they even want to train you?!

Permalink Reply by ashfire on July 19, 2009 at 8:47pm

Just to let you know the president and BOD have said that we get those that can drive turn over to drive or the chief will be suspended from operations

Permalink Reply by chris jarvis on July 25, 2009 at 12:03am

thats BS, if you have EVOC and trained then roll them, seems to me you need to vote his ass out!

Permalink Reply by Holly on August 6, 2009 at 11:59pm

This makes absolutely no sense to me. So long as other members have the training and (if required) documented hours driving the truck then there is no reason he shouldn't allow it.

Permalink Reply by David Wilson on August 10, 2009 at 11:43am

How do your fires get put out if no one hows up to drive the rig. If your chief responds in a command rig and no one else can drive a engine or pumper what does he do fght it with a fire extinguisher. In our district all our fire fhter are evaluated by their station captains as to whether they can operate the equipment. And then at a certain point they have to take a EVAP class where they are then qualified to operate all fire apperatus that we have. I am one of the intructors that teaches the tender operators because these trucks weigh over 60000 lbs loaded. Some of these do require a class A cdl but our EVAP class does qualify firefighers to operate after they go through a forty hour class with me ad let me tell you my class is'nt easy by any means. All my tenders have 13 speed road ranger transsmissions.

Permalink Reply by Kevin Thompson on August 11, 2009 at 8:57pm

I agree.

Permalink Reply by Chief Michael Neudorf on August 17, 2009 at 12:57am

I don’t know why if the firefighter meets all the SOG why you guys are not rolling the trucks out, I want my trucks there as sone as I can get them moving myself. It don’t make sense to me.

Permalink Reply by Beastfire2009 on August 17, 2009 at 4:06am