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I might be on to something with this....what do you think?
Ok, so from looking at the replies, it's not just me. Looks like I might be on to something here. So, I'm sure your looking for rules #3 now right? Let's just start with a few sayings I heard as I "grew up" in the fire service. Now please understand, ALL of these saying I have heard at some point in my career. Sometimes is was from someone else, sometimes it was from my our mouth. If you've ever heard any of theses, please raise your hand.
"The fire had a head start." "We had to go get the truck then respond." "We don't have all the people we need."
Rule #3: The fire ALWAYS has a head start!!!!
They don't call (with slurried speech & drunk) and say hhheeyyy, I am soooo dddrruunnnnkkk. I'm going to light this cigarette and pass out on the bed here and drop this thing on the floor. I should have one heck of a fire going in about 10 minutes or so...you guys will probably want to start heading this way.
The fire ALWAYS has a head start, I don't carry a magic fair wand on the truck and wave it around when I get there and put the house just back like it was. I know the fire has burned up part of the house....my question to you is this....what did you do when you got there. My shift was an aggressive shift, guys would come in and say, "Ya'll had a fire last night? How much did you save?" Our answer was always the same...."there's as much standing now as there was when we got there." I'm not sayin you should go in ever fire, but you should not turn every structure fire into a brush fire (you know after it goes to the ground and the grass catches up). Did you draw a line in the dirt and say....it will NOT get any worse than this. We will hold it to that room or maybe...we'll save this end cause that end is burnt up. So yea, it has a head start, what are you doin once you get there?
You had to go get the truck???.....how else were you expecting to put it out? Were you going to go there in a POV and piss on it? We know you need the pumper....and yes we know you have to go get it, but please see rule 3, what did you do once you got there?
Rule #4: If you don't have enough people......CALL MORE. You see that's the 2nd reason the dispatchers are there. They are there to call you and then......duh.....call more folks if you need it. So don't give me that crap...not if you want to cop up to the real reason you don't want to call them. I know, I know...but dude, they are inbreeders over there at ABC dept. They don't know anything....I mean let me tell you about this one time.
You know what, you might be right, they might be sister kissin, goat molesting, buck toothed inbreeders and you may be God's gift to the fire service. So let me ask you this........if you're so good and they are so bad, when was the last time you offered to help them? And the room goes silent...always does.
When was the last time you invited ABC FD over for a training session...now I don't mean you go up and say "Hey, you inbreeder want to come let us teach you something." If you do that I hope they punch you in the mouth. If you go let them know you are having a training meeting on pumping and see if they want to come over and they pop of at you then no big deal. You tried.
So now what's your excuse about not having enough help? Ok, so that's enough toe steppin for now...rule#5 coming soon. If you guys agree, please let me know, cause I think I might be on to something here.
"The fire had a head start." "We had to go get the truck then respond." "We don't have all the people we need."
Rule #3: The fire ALWAYS has a head start!!!!
They don't call (with slurried speech & drunk) and say hhheeyyy, I am soooo dddrruunnnnkkk. I'm going to light this cigarette and pass out on the bed here and drop this thing on the floor. I should have one heck of a fire going in about 10 minutes or so...you guys will probably want to start heading this way.
The fire ALWAYS has a head start, I don't carry a magic fair wand on the truck and wave it around when I get there and put the house just back like it was. I know the fire has burned up part of the house....my question to you is this....what did you do when you got there. My shift was an aggressive shift, guys would come in and say, "Ya'll had a fire last night? How much did you save?" Our answer was always the same...."there's as much standing now as there was when we got there." I'm not sayin you should go in ever fire, but you should not turn every structure fire into a brush fire (you know after it goes to the ground and the grass catches up). Did you draw a line in the dirt and say....it will NOT get any worse than this. We will hold it to that room or maybe...we'll save this end cause that end is burnt up. So yea, it has a head start, what are you doin once you get there?
You had to go get the truck???.....how else were you expecting to put it out? Were you going to go there in a POV and piss on it? We know you need the pumper....and yes we know you have to go get it, but please see rule 3, what did you do once you got there?
Rule #4: If you don't have enough people......CALL MORE. You see that's the 2nd reason the dispatchers are there. They are there to call you and then......duh.....call more folks if you need it. So don't give me that crap...not if you want to cop up to the real reason you don't want to call them. I know, I know...but dude, they are inbreeders over there at ABC dept. They don't know anything....I mean let me tell you about this one time.
You know what, you might be right, they might be sister kissin, goat molesting, buck toothed inbreeders and you may be God's gift to the fire service. So let me ask you this........if you're so good and they are so bad, when was the last time you offered to help them? And the room goes silent...always does.
When was the last time you invited ABC FD over for a training session...now I don't mean you go up and say "Hey, you inbreeder want to come let us teach you something." If you do that I hope they punch you in the mouth. If you go let them know you are having a training meeting on pumping and see if they want to come over and they pop of at you then no big deal. You tried.
So now what's your excuse about not having enough help? Ok, so that's enough toe steppin for now...rule#5 coming soon. If you guys agree, please let me know, cause I think I might be on to something here.
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Comment by ROOKIELZ on November 14, 2008 at 6:20pm
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As much as I agree with the points made above, there is one thing that should probably be pointed out.
Occasionally; and I mean just that, occasionally, you will interface with a department that has different SOG's or ideals from yours. Obviously, it is in the best interest of all to get this ironed out in advance but that takes time and effort by both departments.
In the meantime, you may be faced with a fire that requires invoking mutual aid with that department. This is where things can go ugly fast.
For example, we interface with a few departments that allow their members to try and overrun our members on-scene instead of working together. They will try to wrestle the line from our members or tell our Chief how they think it should be done. They know some good tactics and have seen fire, are not afraid to get in there and get it done. They just do not want to go on the line with us, in spite of mutual training. They know we have our ducks in a row, they just seem happier to take over and do it themselves. That is not what we are asking. We are asking them to get on the line WITH us; and work WITH us. There are one or two that think it is OK to go do things themselves without assignment so accountability is a tough job. Sometimes it becomes more of a united nations negotiation for the Officers in BOTH departments. If that isn't missing the point what is?
Or another department that showed up and stood back (hey they showed up like they were asked!), let us work our tails off and let youngsters climb all over their pumper (I presume in the name of customer relations?) but only one or two of their members actually assisted us. Thank GOD for those few good "men." By the good fortune of the helmet cam, we can prove to our local municipality why we hesitate to call these folks when we need extra hands.
It isn't so much snobbery, a sense of our own self-importance or wanting to hog the scene.
It is a question of making what you have work for you the most effectively. The actions of some members of the above departments are not working effectively for whatever reason.
A fire just isn't the place to find that out.
I don't know about the rest of you, but if my crew (I say my but I am just a line FF) is working their tails off on a job, I want to know that the folks that are there to help us are just as committted. I am not wanting to see that they are busy playing with the local kids when I am calling for a tool, need another person on the line with me, or I am on my knees due to exhaustion. I want them alert and ready for action; paying attention to the scene and lining up for assignments; no moaning about having to go on a line with this or that person unless there are critical issues at stake. As long as the skillset is there and all are paying attention what difference does it make? We should, every member, be there for the right reasons.
And now for the public perception.
Just last night a woman from my work brought another woman to our door to help to get her flat tire pumped up. She did that because, well, we are firefighters and we help people right?
Well, yes and no. We help people when they need it but we shouldn't do it by undercutting the tow truck drivers, tire shops, local roadside assist folks. Sometimes local folks don't want to hear that. They will only hear that the FF doesn't want to help them. They generally don't hear that it isn't smart for us to step on another bonafide business' toes. I know this is a different scenario to what folks expect from a fire department on the scene of thier loss BUT it is out there. It is a tricky spot to be in, too.
The point I am trying to make is that now that there is an unwritten perception that we are the folks who can and will "save" you from your situation. It may or may not be what the individual needs to hear. Public education about what, how and why we do can go a long way to helping the public understand just what it is their fire department does. Worse, sometimes we have to educate ourselves about what it is that we do, how and why.
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Comment by Ralene on November 14, 2008 at 10:03am
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Yep I too agree. We deal with #3 more so with the public too. But we do get it from other ff too. We have some larger dept that have lit prob with man power compared to our vol dept issues. But u know what we put our gear on the same way. We have to be in this together or someone is going to get hurt. With the public explaining to them why it took so long for us to get there has it's pros and cons. For the most part explaing that we all come from our homes and at 2am most of us r sound asleep then haveing to get to the station and in our gear on the trucks and to their house can't be done in 30 sec usually helps. For the most part they don't realize that we r not sitting at the station waiting for the call to go out. That we r normal ppl like them and have lives too. Sometimes it doesn't matter what we say their house is gone and we are to blame and all that can be said is how sorry we are, and try to save what we can.
As for asking for help, our closest mutual aid is 15 miles away and the next is 30 depending on what direction u go. So calling early is a must. Get them rolling your way and if need be cancel them in route or stage them. U can never have too much help but u r in trouble when u don't have enough. Don't wait to call them when it is too late. i would rather have some one ask why we called in stead of y we didn't.
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