We have recently started giving our Junior FFs pagers, the older ones. They can't respond to calls with blue light or get directly involved in emergency operations.
And, we also have the "NO PAGERS IN SCHOOL" policy.
I am the only cadet to be issued a pager. When I was starting as a cadet I was the only one at our dept, and it helped that I have been around the firehouse my whole life.
as a jr. member issuing pagers can have a plus but also a bad side to it. In our dept. we issue the jr. members pagers only after they have completed a FF-1 class or an emt class. Which also means that you arnt able to have a pager untill you are at least 16. Being under the age of 16 and not having your FF-1 or your emt there isnt much you can do on a call besides watch so there is no point to have a pager. But they also have by-laws such as they cant drive any faster or take a personal vechile to the scene. Plus issuing a pager only after you have finished one of the classes gives the jr. members something to look forward and makes them want to take the class.
my post doesnt allow pagers and we dont have badges. What we get is a t-shirt with our post info on it and with parental consent we can go on ride alongs but only if ben there long enough and show your good enough for live calls instead of the fake ones we do in the training tower.
Permalink Reply by Erik on September 17, 2008 at 12:47pm
While our station doesn't, a neighboring station does. We've had issues with cadets (our version of explorers) walking around in their cadet uniform, pager blaring, wearing turnout gear to school (he was "breaking it in"... right... lol). If you prove yourself though (help with station duties, come by a lot, show a genuine interest in learning, etc.) and demonstrated you weren't going to be a whacker (having your pager on in class at maximum volume, wearing said turnout coat to school, etc.) the chief would probably allow one to be issued.
Not coming down on young kids... we all went through that phase (though to varying extremes) at one point or another. I'd rather see a cadet overly enthusiastic as opposed to apathetic, after all.
anybody under 18 cant go on calls but if ur older than 18 u can if u have ur basic classes. our dept. gives us a pager, a handheld radio, and a moble radio that goes in ur pov
I have been on two depts that have issued out pagers and radios to me. Now that I am with the city of Asheville, we are not given them. I believe in our case with the dept being a career fire dept, the firefighters only have radios while they are on shift, so it's suitable in our case. Badges are still in question for us, we just recently in the last year just got our post going strong again so uniforms are now a topic which may follow with badges but not garunteed.