Fire Chief

There was an article in The Washington Post of significance to those of you who need to and want to influence people. Even though the environment is changing, the mechanics of connecting has not changed much. What has changed is the speed by which it operates.

In March, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study that examined the duty specific risk of death from coronary heart disease among on-duty firefighters in the United States. The study looked at data from 1994 to 2004, as well as estimates of time spent at fires and other emergencies from 17 metropolitan fire departments. A similar study released in May by the Center for Disease Control concluded that firefighting duties were associated with a risk of death from coronary heart disease that was 10 to 100 times greater than the risk from the non-emergency duties of the general public.

Chicago Fire Department’s retired chief of special operations, John Eversole, died Sunday evening at the age of 62. Nationally and internationally referred to as the “Chief of Hazmat,” Eversole was a visionary who fought endlessly for better, safer conditions for firefighters. Everyone looked up to John, and not just because he was taller than most.

Earlier this month I wrote about how Greensburg, Kan., was wiped out by a tornado. Many readers responded and offered donations and services. The Kansas State Fire Marshal’s office has sent FIRE CHIEF a list of items that the Greensburg Fire Department needs.

Many of us in the American fire service have been placing a great deal of emphasis on safety for many years now; witness most recently the now-annual Stand Down for Safety, Dr. Burt Clark’s campaigns for firefighter mayday procedures and the National Fire Service Seat Belt Pledge. But how many of us think about safety away from the job?

When was the last time you tapped the resources of one of the major fire service organizations to help answer a difficult question? Four times this year I have gone to the research sections or the expert personnel of several fire service agencies to help with answers to difficult questions. These have ranged from questions on the lighting package and visibility standard for a new aerial ladder on order, to data on the reliability of home smoke alarms when asked to comment to the media “on the record.”

The U.S. Fire Administration has “advocacy” as one of the key words in its description. A search for the word “advocacy” on the USFA Web site yields 82 hits, indicating that advocacy is a core principle within the USFA’s mission.

Of course I know that you’re smarter than a fifth-grader (though some of the questions on that TV quiz show have raised some doubts about myself), but can you answer a few simple questions that have come up in conversations over the past two weeks on the road? I’m on a quest for some honest answers.

Back in 2000 I had the good fortune to represent my department at FDIC in Indianapolis. It was my first time attending that fire service conference, and like thousands of others I was not disappointed. The vast array of educational presentations — not to mention the awesome number of vendor displays of the latest in emergency response technology — was overwhelming to say the least.

Fire protection professionals have been working for nearly 30 years to promote the installation of residential fire sprinklers in U.S. homes. It is the one way to reduce home fire risk, short of actually preventing fires from starting. Teamed with smoke alarms, residential sprinklers nearly eliminate fire deaths in homes. Only those who are intimate with the fire are at risk.