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Volunteer Fire Chief Suspended over YouTube Response Videos
A fire chief in this small town was suspended in 2007 over posting his personal car responses to emergencies on YouTube. In the wake of the video postings, the entire department was actually locked out from responding and mutual aid covered the town for one week. The social media aspect of liability is a hot topic today in the fire service. Many here have debated the "freedom of speech" aspect of their videos. What do you guys think?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QffHLMvaoqg&feature=related
In my opinion, when we are acting as a member of any department, paid, call or volunteer, everything is property of the town. I have known some department's to create social media policies, that clearly spell out everything you do, everything to photograph or video is property of the town and can't be released. This includes the newer helmet camera. Which in reality does reduce the town's overall liability from potential lawsuits.
I looked further and found a longer version of the original response video, it was about 9 minutes long. The call was for a medical emergency, child injured, actually mutual aid to another town. The video is for the most part uneventful, but one poster in the YouTube comments was quick to point out these comments...
Ed20298 says: The author comments about how this video isn't interesting, but it is you just have to look. Speed of travel is interesting. There's a section of I-95 that a measure mile is completed in 39 seconds, translation 92 mph. Plus on this video there is a 5.8 mile section of this video that is completed in 4 m 55 s. Average speed: 71mph, and its visable that there's slowing down for corners. With that said 75-80 is obtained during sections of this travel. Thats criminal speed in a "personal vehicle"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qOMHvpmbQo
So from simply a liability reduction standpoint, did the town manager see a different view of liability when a future accident happens. Lawyers and their team are paid alot of money to do research to support a case. Would an accident case with recorded video evidence of pre-exisiting driving habits be liability?
Just curious... Whats FFN's take on this matter?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by WestPhilly on
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I don't know if he should have been suspended for posting a boring 9:36 video of nothing but driving, but I should probably be piss-tested for watching it.
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By all means, slow down. But we don't typically suspend guys for driving too fast. (Habitual offenders, that's different.) Why was he suspended?
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Dude, you need something!
Is there never a legitimate reason for a volly to respond in a p.o.v. with lights and sirens? My understanding is that it's actually required in some states, irrespective of traffic or time of day.
Aren't some of "youse vollies" OK guys?
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Permalink Reply by FETC on
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WP - Video 1 said because he was told to stop posting his videos on the internet... but who knows for sure. I am using this as a tool to open up dialogue.
You see in officer development classes I ask, if you had a person who had a known drinking problem, and you did nothing about it. When he gets into a DUI accident while responding in a POV, do you now have greater liability? Or in another case, a firefighter who had been arrested / convicted for assualt and battery and then has an altercation with a person while on a call?
I know the video is boring WP, its just a platform to discuss liability....
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FETC,
I'm good with that. But I can't miss an opportunity to get in a wisecrack.
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I know that......... anxiously awaiting the Goddess and Jack/DT to chime in.
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So Mike, it is stated he was informed to stop posting before. My point is to look at it from the administrators point and possibly learn. In the officer development classes I teach, I will ask if you had a person who had a known drinking problem, and you did nothing about it. When he gets into a DUI accident while responding in a POV, do you now have greater liability? Or how about in a different case, a firefighter who had been arrested / convicted for assualt and battery and then has an altercation with a person while on a call?
This probably has a few issues alone, the possible previous orders and then the speed? As you know, even fire chiefs have bosses too. What is your thoughts?
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Permalink Reply by Michael Meadows on
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Capt. where I'm from we only issue pagers to newbies. Once you get checked off to drive a truck you lose the pager and get issued a handheld. So I'm an a**hole for carrying the only way to hear a call thru wal-mart? I don't think so. So I'm a jerk because sometimes I wear a t-shirt that I got from the Southeastern Kentucky Firefighters Association fire school or from my local dept? I don't really care what others think and don't brag but hey the shirt was free for attending the school so why not wear it? And if this one guy makes you ashamed to admit that you are a vollie firefighter than why are you still one? There are dumb people in all walks of life. And there are people who are proud of what they do and will wear things that make them stand out. Should those people just sit down and shut up too because they are proud to be brickmasons, concrete workers, truck drivers, etc? No I don't think they do. But hey that's just my opinion and you know what they say about opinions...........
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Permalink Reply by Paul Montpetit on
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Stupid gets what stupid deserves.....This moron should NOT be an Officer let alone a Chief. How can he supervise people if he cannot supervise himself..? He should not have been suspended...he should have been terminated...booted...tossed out on his ass....adios amigo......bye-bye......think I made my point....."Lead by example" My ass
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Paul,
What exactly is he being terminated for?
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Watch the video
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