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Basic Rules to be a Better Firefighter
By Barry Daskal
Published: July 3, 2009
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It’s in the nature of firefighters to want to learn all that they can and be the best they can be. One of our most popular sayings in the fire service training community is, “when you think you know everything about the fire service, it is time to get out”. The fire service is built on a strong foundation of pride and tradition. Each generation of firefighter passes along what they have learned and mentors the current generation who will in turn pass it on to the ones who follow them. Along those lines I will share with you some of the best tips I have and some of the best ones I have learned from the RANT.
Wear all you gear properly
This mean buckles clasped, flaps down, collars up, hoods on and the biggest one to get thorough our heads, chinstrap in place. As I have written before in Fire Engineering losing your helmet not only endangers you, but impedes the entire fireground evolution and places your life and any possible disability benefits at risk. Learn to work with all your gear on, especially your gloves. Drilling and practicing without your gloves leaves you at a tremendous disadvantage when “showtime” comes. This is equally as true with EMS training.
Always carry at least 1 door chock and a flashlight
The most common use for chocks is holding doors open. They are also used to retard the flow of water through a sprinkler head until the shutoff valves can be closed. The worst time to realize you don’t have a chock is when you need one. Really, they cost pennies, if you can spring for the $100.00 LED’s you can buy a 2”x 4” and cut it up. There is a common misnomer on flashlights. Recently a new firefighter in my department asked me why I carry a flashlight. He told me that the Chief at the fire academy told them not to use one. I assumed a simple clarification was all that was required. The use of a flashlight during the pre-control phase, especially while trying to locate the main body of fire is generally not recommended. This is to enable you to find the fire quicker without the light “reflecting back” at you due to the smoke. You are more apt to see the glow of the fire. It’s similar to using the high beams on your car in the fog. Where a flashlight is best used is during your primary search for life. It not only illuminates the area directly in front of you as you search but your partner at the doorway can use their light as a beacon to return you to your point of entrance. It also gives many a psychological comfort of not being in complete darkness.
NEVER GIVE UP YOUR TOOLS!!!
If there is a job that needs to be done, you will be the one to do it. We learn by doing. Experience is our best teacher. It is one thing to observe, it is another to do. The only exception to this rule is upon being relieved by another firefighter and you are exiting the fire building.
Be confident in your abilities, yet always willing to learn and use constructive criticism to your advantage
Ask questions and learn all that you can. This goes with the adage, “when you think you know everything about the fire service, it is time to get out”. A man learns more from his mistakes than he does from his success. Much of success is luck. A famous quote by Oscar Wilde is, “experience is the name we give to our mistakes”. Don’t be afraid to speak up and ask questions. There truly are no stupid questions in the fire service, yet many firefighters are afraid to speak up. I find this especially true in the 5-10 year experience range. These are the guys that when they don’t know something are afraid to ask because they believe inside it is something they just should know with their amount of time in the fire service. Someone else will likely have the same question or you may generate a discussion that may lead to greater understanding amongst all the assembled members.
Always give 100%
This is the easiest way to say do your best. Whether you succeed at what you are doing or not at least you know you did your best. On the fireground this applies to the important as well as the mundane tasks. Performing a search or moving a handline requires determination and skill. Pulling ceilings and opening walls requires determination, strength and stamina. Both require maximum effort. Your brother and sister firefighters will know the effort you are putting in. Just as importantly you will know inside the effort you put in.
You should have the desire to be the first one through the front door and the last one out
Notice I said desire not to actually be. The desire is from having pride. Seeing the work that needs to be done and wanting to be the one who does it. We want to prove we are good firefighters and that our company is the best on the fireground... however, we are in the golden age of firefighter life safety and nowhere is this more evident then in the task of firefighter rehabilitation. For some bizarre reason this is seen as controversial that we may be limiting the time a member may operate on the fireground. We are not supermen. We are mere mortals. If firefighters not going back to work after rehab saves just one brother or sister from dying then it is worth it.
Share what you learn
That is what this article is all about. This is not things that I have “made-up.” These are tips, thoughts and tricks either I developed or that were shared with me. This is how we become the firefighters we are.
Don’t get tunnel vision
Take the time to observe the things others may have missed. Complacency kills. Actually take the time to see all SIX sides of the fire problem. All four sides around the fire building and above and below the fire floor. Don’t get off the rig, look at the front, maybe glance at the side(s) and head for the front door. Investigation into numerous firefighter fatalities shows that not performing a proper size-up has contributed to firefighter line of duty deaths.
Have pride
As a ladder company officer my first few months were spent developing programs and ideas that were intended to instill pride in my company and to convince them that we were the best ladder company in the county. I truly believed that. I wanted them to believe it. I knew there was no task we couldn’t perform, no fireground mission we couldn’t carry out. My goal was that after I was gone as Captain, that esprit de corps would remain. This was displaying company pride.
Training, Training, Training
At my job above the exit doors to the training grounds at our fire academy is the inscription, “through these doors walk the best trained aircraft rescue firefighters in the world”…Believe that credo in your firehouse. Ever time you roll out for work call, practice or drill; whatever you call it; be prepared to give 100% when you drill and make the best of that time. A volunteer firefighter in a combination fire department south of us suffered severe burns after falling through the floor at a house fire. Fortunately he did a full size-up before entering the structure and had his bearings when he landed in the basement. He crawled toward a window he had seen and raised himself up, performed a quick escape maneuver and got out with his life. There is no other explanation to his survival than his training. When things go bad sometimes our training may be all we have to fall back on.
It’s not about credit, points, politics, or personalities. It’s about helping our community and going home safely to our families. That says it all. Never forget that.
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