need some advice on this. Its a serious matter....

To make a long story short I am considering leaving the fire service. Its not under my free will, I love the job and still get that feeling from helping people. However, lately one of our members has been making it hard for me to do my duties at Lt.
On Sunday morning aroung 3:30am we had a house fire. Upon arival to the station I hoped out and there were 2 guys out front getting their gear on. One of them was running his mouth. He was yelling that we were taking to long to get there and get ready. He went on to yell that he was glad it wasn't his house and that we are a joke. I asked him to quiet down two times and he continued to yell. At this point I am tring to hear the size up from a unit that just went on location and I am ready to call our engine in service (I was driving). In order to get some quiet I yelled at the man to shut his f&$king mouth so we could hear the radio and each other. (I knew it was wrong but it worked, he was quiet at this point and I got the needed info). The next day he went to the police chief and fire chief and made a complant on it. (I knew he would). Today I was given 30 days out and striped of Lt.
This guy and I have had a few run-ins before. He likes to say that its a race issue. (he pulls this every time he has a problem). I would like to say this, I am not a raceist person...I can prove this due to my job. I am a shop Foreman. I have people of ALL colors working for me and we all get along just fine. There has never been a problem like this with anyone else.
All this said, He has been gunning for me for the two years he has been around this station. I get no backing from the rest of the dept because they all want to stay clear of the guy. They are afraid of him. What are your thoughts on this? I'm lost here. thanks -Matt

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Permalink Reply by Jerod on January 20, 2009 at 5:33pm

matt,

simple question. are you in this to please this guy, or are you in this to help out your community? don't let anyone get under your skin. if he is lower ranked than you, he should listen to what you say. if he doesn't, then you write him up or tell your superior to write him up. if that doesn't work go higher to your chief.

just remember, it's better to get there 20 secs later, safe, alive and ready to handle the situation than to hurry up and never get there at all.

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Permalink Reply by Marshall Flick on January 20, 2009 at 5:44pm

Matt,
Do not quit. You quit, he wins. fight fire with fire.

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Permalink Reply by Capt.Alex Arnold on January 20, 2009 at 5:53pm

I am very sad to see this. I am going to play just a little bit of DA (Devils Advocate) just because I don't know both sides. It sounds like there is an underlying issue in that house. I say this for the fact that you are an officer and your guys didn't come to back you. That is not a good sign, personnaly. The number one thing that I am constantly reminding my crews is this, It is not our emergency. We cannot mitigate the emergency if we don't get there. So don't make it my emergency. There is no need to rush. We work constantly (at least we should be) to meet certain time requorements ie PPE and SCBA drills. We practice setting up, pulling hose,etc. We do not practice driving in an emergency mode. Sadly, every year we loose a number of FFs due to bad driving. Anywho back to you.... Don't let this guy get to you. You quitting is a victory for him. Stay onboard, continue to bring quality service and mentorship to your community. If this guy is half the arse whole he puts on then he well find his way out the door soon enough. Quitting or moving to a different dept. will only place a band aid on the situation. There are ARSE WHOLES in every dept. Don't give in! Be safe and learn something new today.

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Permalink Reply by BillySFCVFD on January 20, 2009 at 5:59pm

I concur don't quit. Regroup and use what you learned from this to make things better. The other guy it seems doesn't think sometimes when he is making noise but his comments that time is of the essence when responding proves that he is dedicated and jerk for the way he displayed it. Show him the white flag and talk it out, he must know when he was wrong. If that doesn't work you did what you could. Don't let the citizens in your area be the real victims. Keep the faith brother and good luck. TCSS

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Permalink Reply by Matthew Cosgrove on January 20, 2009 at 6:01pm

Thak all of you for the words of encoragement. With all that said I guess there is no fixing anything by leaving. I will continue on.
Last year I ran almost 200 first aid calls by myself. (first responder). It wouldn't be right to punish the people who I have served for a long time just because of this one guy. You are all right, we arn't here for the 1 guy...we are here for thr public.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Montpetit on January 20, 2009 at 6:02pm

Its a case of BULLSHIT...see, I said it....Don't quit...if you do he wins....Take this to the Chief and if that doesn't work go over his head....As I see it you did nothing wrong....you did your job...don't let this moron force you out...If anything he should have been written up/suspended for insubordination....Stay safe and always Keep the Faith.....Paul

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Permalink Reply by Matthew Cosgrove on January 20, 2009 at 6:06pm

The chief is the one afraid of a lawsuit. He always has and always will side with this guy. I will stay on after my 30 days... Thanks man.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Burks on January 20, 2009 at 6:09pm

As an officer you should have acted on the spot. You should have told him to go home. point blank. I have sent people home from a scene that did not want to do what they were told. And later he was dismissed from the dept. With no chance of ever coming back. I have also sent one home when everyone was getting to the station for a grass fire. She said she didnt want to drive the utility truck ( small uhaul size) and I sent her home. It is my thoughts that if someone has this kind of attitude before getting to a call, what is going to happen during the call. It is a big safety issue. If your mind is not on the task at hand someone could be hurt or worse you could end up with a loss of a firefighter..

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Permalink Reply by Joe Stoltz on January 20, 2009 at 6:29pm

I don't know how long this joker has been in the fire service, but it sounds to me like he has what we call an "adrenaline switch." Everything can be fine, but when a call come in the chemicals take over and a person gets loud, starts barking orders and literally panting. Basically, they are out of control.

I think this is a lack of experience/maturity/focus on the business at hand.

I don't know that I would have done anything differently. Well, I would have probably yelled STFU with the radio transmitting, for all the world to hear...

I would discuss this behavior with the Chief, if you haven't already. It might help to have a 3 way conversation with the member, reminding him that he should STFU and LISTEN rather than run his mouth at such a critical moment. Calmness will keep him alive in future incidents; if he stays the way he is, he's liable to kill himself or someone else by complaining when he should be listening.

Above all - don't give up. Take a 30 day break, and come back in raring to go. There are too many people who may benefit from your service to have their fates jeopardized by some asshole.

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Permalink Reply by candy on January 20, 2009 at 7:02pm

If You quit your letting this person get exactly what he wants!! I Say hang in there!!! This other person is the person that should be leaving because he's nothing but a trouble maker and a hero wanna be!! He is someone who should NOT be in the fire service!