No really "dumb things" that i've heard at a fire scene. The dumbest thing i've seen was a probie set up a ladder for outside venting right in front of the window. He then broke the window and was engulfed in smoke. I mean, common sence to me would be to not stand in front of the window.
Ah the joys of probies!!! Theres never enough stories about the foolish things some probies do. On a side note, if the probies get enough training, situations like that wouldn't happen as often. He's lucky the room didn't flash on him, or the smoke would have been flame, and this could be a death story
Here's one for ya. A call was dispatched for CPR in progress. A BLS crew was dispatched from the closest station and the closest ALS crew was dipatched as well. The BLS crew gets on scene first, of course, and everyone waits for a pt. update from them. After a few minutes with nothing from the crew, dispatch calls to them and asks them what they have....to which they respond "we have a driver and an OIC" (officer in charge)....WTF??? GREAT....THANKS....N HOW ABOUT THE PT, MORON!!!! Ahhh, the counties finest...lol.
OK,, I am gonna throw this one at you..
I lost a cieling hook on a structure fire,, A message was sent to all companies on the call to return said hook to the truck if found..
A certain engine company called and said that they were holding the hook for ransom... I had to deliver two half gallons of ice cream to there station and I would recieve the hook.
I blew it off,, They ( persistant idiots),, kept on me with pictures of the hook,, e-mails, phone calls etc....
So,, I purchase two half gallons of high dollar cream,,,, take one out of the freezer and run the container under warm water,, the ice cream slides out in perfect form onto a plate,, I slice cream in half and insert a rubber (new one not used,, for safety.) put both pieces back into carton and re-freeze.
Later that shift we deliver the booty to the kidnapers,,, We have a few laughs and recieved our hook,,,, Laughing as we drove away.........
To this day, We have not heard a thing about the cream,, as a matter of fact,, that certain engine company doesn't say very much to us at all,,, Hell they won't even look at us!!!!
Don't think they will hold anything for ransom again!! HA!!!!!
I have three kids, daughters age 7 and 5 and son 3. Our daycare provider is a firefighter wife and told us anytime I needed to respond and I had the kids by myself, just call and she would take them if she was home since she lives on my way to the station. One morning my wife had left early for a meeting and I was getting breakfast for the kids who were still in their pajamas. The tones dropped for an injury accident, I told the kids to get their shoes on, I called the sitter and she said bring them right over. I put our dog in his kennel and when I got back to the room, the girls were out the door waiting at the car and my 3 year old son was standing in the middle of the living room, NAKED! He didn't want to wear his pajamas outside. Needless to say, we have practiced how to get ready fast for a fire call since them. :)
Have one for you. About month ago the county went though and change our eng.#'s sq. #'s tanker's # and so on.. Well a local fire dept. was responding to a call, and the driver could not remeber what eng # he was suppose to say so instead he responded BIG RED ENG. LEAVING THE BUILDING...It was great..
On the Serious MVA on a major road through our town: We had the whole street blocked off with apparatus, tow trucks police cars etc. One of the guys working for DPW to direct traffic just outside the scene reported the following conversation with a town resident:
DPW: Make a right sir.
Resident: I can't get through there? I have to get to the pool.
DPW: well the road is closed you'll have to go another way.
Resident: I have to go this way, it's the only way I know how to get there
DPW how long have you lived in town?
Resident: 16 years
DPW:and you only know one way to the pool!?
With that the resident rolled up his window and drove away...we still don't know if he ever made it tooo the pool.
We had a working fire at a projects assisting another stationand was told to evacuate the apartment even though the apartments we seperated the shared on long attic. well we get to a apartment that no one answers so we yell fire department and pop the door we walk into the bedroom yelling fire department the whole way and there is this couple going at it. the man looks over his shoulder at us and says "this building may be on fire but she is hot and i ain't leaving till we're done come back in five minutes." so you had a couple of speechless and confused firemen standing there not knowing what to say or do.
This one in June, "Car fire I-10 around the 56 mile marker" so we're right around the 53 when we hit the smoke and I hear over the radio "S.O. do you have a make/model of the car" I had a Bill Engvall moment and couldn't contain myself... I grabbed the mic and said "yeah they told me the one thats on fire"
This one in May... this one pissed me off more than it made me laugh.
We got a structure about 2am-ish partially involved, flames though the roof fire in the whole attic. I pull the first engine in and get out and suit up, my passenger (a former chief of 11 years) takes the pump. We grabbed the hydrant about a block down on the way in, get it all hooked up then I go off with the entry team. About 10-15 minutes go by and I hear a sound, the sound that puts a bit of worry into any entry team. You know that lovely sounding GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR of the primer pump. (Reminder - We're hooked to a hydrant) Primer pulls 30psi MAX, Our worst hydrant is no less than 45psi. Dee DeDEEEE!