When I was 6, I came home from school to find fire trucks, an ambulance, and a police car at my house. I had no idea what was going on, and I was scared. My house had caught fire with my mom, brother and sister inside. My dad was at work when it started.

It was an electrical fire caused by shoddy work from the electrician/landlord that had worked on the house. All my family was able to get out without being hurt thank God, but when the fire was out, many of our belongings were gone, and the rest were damaged by the smoke and fire despite the efforts of the firemen. They tried very hard that day to get the fire out fast and for that, we thank them.

We ended up living in a hotel behind my parents shop for about 6 months. I saw how hard it was on my mom and dad to get things back to normal. That was a hard time for my family, but in the end I truly believe that those experiences in my life made me who I am today.

Although I have not been able to live out my dream as a smokejumper yet, I still have hope. I am trying to do my part in whatever way I can. I proudly support the National Park System, and I donate to all the fire departments I can. I know it is not much, but every little bit does make a difference.

I had an experience in the Navy where we had a boiler room fire that was rolling the paint off the walls outside the space. I was nozzleman on the number one hose which was the first in. Upon entry to the space, the fire team leader’s mask seal melted to his face. I had to turn over the nozzle and pull him out of the space. This was probably the most rush I have ever felt. It was like I had a power that I had never experienced before. As soon as he was out of the space, I was back in with my team.

Trauma calls look dramatic but they are ‘no-brainers’ (sometimes literally). You just splint the twisted stuff, plug the holes, start an IV or two, immobilize the back, and most important, don’t delay getting them to the Trauma Center. Sometimes you decompress the chest but that’s just jamming a needle through the ribcage.

It was in WV and was just starting to snow on Christmas Eve 2000. There was a major structure fire and at least 3 departments had responded. I was a flight nurse at the time. The structure started to collapse and 4 firefighters (inside looking for two people who were not there) were caught when the ceiling burning fell on them. When we received the initial call I did not know that the victims I would be treating were firefighters, the silent heroes.

Upon arriving on scene we flew 2 out immediately. I treated the most severe - a 25 yr old 1st year rookie that who was burned over 60 % of his body with 2nd degree burns. We took him to West Penn Burn Center, one of the best.

The Christmas miracle was that the 4 firefighters all made it. Everyone on duty in the surrounding departments spent that night after the fire as a family, being there for each other.

All firefighters are unsung heroes who are respected for what they do.

I’m a total permanent disabled volunteer firefighter from NY.

I was struck by a car while I was directing traffic to a fire back in 1972. Both legs, my back broken numerous internal injuries, in a coma for three and a half months, fractured skull. Yet I was only classified partial disabled. It wasn’t until twenty years later through the magic of the MRI, the Doctors discovered I suffered a traumatic brain injury from my original 1972 accident. Now I am classified as total permanent disabled from the Volunteer firefighters Benefit Law of New York State. I get $400.00 per week from workers comp.

My interest is that every volunteer firefighter make sure they have enough disability insurance.

When I was 17 years old I wanted to help my community and follow in my family’s footsteps by joining the Volunteer fire dept.

This was in 1972, six months later I was struck by a car. The current disability benefits that most state’s provide their volunteer firefighters to put it bluntly, SUCK, big time! You have to fight and fill out forms for any medical treatment your Doctor reccommends for you. Even though you are classified as total permanent disabled by workers’ compensation.

The system treats you like you’re trying to rip them off. I wanted to help my community when I was 17, now I’m forced to live a life of poverty and I have to beg for everything.

Nobody should have to go through this. Please consider writing about how important it is for volunteer firefighters to make sure they have disability insurance. Nobody is indistructable!!!

I am a Fire and Emergency Services Photographer, so over the years I have accompanied my department on a wide variety of incidents. One of the most memorable was a garage/shop fire a few years ago. When we arrived, there were flames showing from a cargo trailer behind the shop, with extension into the shop.

The owner was acting oddly, so the Sheriff’s Department was called to assist. When they arrived, they asked if he had been drinking, and he answered that he had just smoked ‘a little weed.
We quickly knocked down the visible fire, and upon entry into the trailer found a large number of potted plants. The TIC cameras kept indicating a heat source in the walls of the shop, but when they went inside the shop, there was no sign of fire - only the same camera readings from both sides of the walls. It was finally determined that there was a false wall in the shop and when we opened the wall, we found a long, narrow room containing a large marijuana growing operation. The overloaded electrical circuits used for the operation had caused the fire.

Due to the large amounts involved, ATF agents were called in, and when they searched the house, they found an additional operation filling the basement. It turned out to be an amusing call for everyone involved.

I spent 10 years as a Chief Officer in Northern California. One of my duties was to supervise the County Arson Unit. On one hot summer day in the year following the post 9-11 terrorist attacks, I was dispatched to assist in the investigation of a river bottom wildland fire on the Stanislaus River. When I arrived I found my duty investigator and an investigator from CDF working the area where the fire was first observed by witnesses. As we searched the area we came upon a small black plastic box with flashing LED lights on it. It was partially damaged by the fire and looked like a possible high tech timing device.

Being fully trained in terrorist threats, and intending to live beyond our shift, we backed away from the device and continued to observe it from behind a vehicle. About that time the Incident Commander called on the radio and wanted to know if we had a cause. I told him we were working on a significant development and that I would face-to-face with him in a few minutes.

Just as I got off the radio one of the local firefighters walked up and asked what we were looking at. When we pointed out the device with the flashing LED’s he said, “looks like someone lost their boat GPS.” Seems our suspicious device was a melted, early model boating GPS disfigured by flames.

After we got done laughing, I was reminded that I promised the IC a face-to-face to discuss a “significant development.” I knew that I couldn’t admit to getting wound up about melted plastic and we started trying to come up with an idea. About that time I looked down on the ground and saw a broken letter opener shaped like a Samurai sword. I promptly placed the 3 inches of broken letter opener in an evidence envelope and filled out the collection information. Then knowing that the area was famous for the number of squirrels, I headed for the incident command post.

When I pulled up, the IC himself a former Fire Marshal, looked at the evidence envelope and then at me. When he asked what we found for a cause, I looked him right in the eye, pulled out the broken letter opener, handed it to him to look at, and with a straight face told him we found the cause. “Ninja Squirrels must have hit a rock during sword practice. Caused a spark, caught the dry grass on fire and …” The IC who had heard almost everything in his 30 years in the fire service just smiled and shook his head.

I was at a fire in northern California about 8 to 9 years ago. I was running a saw and my captain instructed me to cut up some limbs from a half burned tree. I walked up to the limbs that were on the ground and asked my captain what the pink flagging is. He says “dont worry about it”.

I cut 1 branch and pull it to the side and up from the ground come meat bees. They shoot out like it was a cartoon. I throw the saw down and start backing up. The bees come right at me. I try to swat one and it bites me on the eye brow right under my glasses. I turn around and run and the bees bite me 2 times in the back of the head.
The funny part was my captain was yelling at me because I threw the saw down and left it. Later that day the crew and my captain had to laugh about it . I was on a really good crew.

This is a rescue call in the early 90s . We were at a very busy station in rescue and fire calls. This call happened late at night at about one or two in the morning . We were running calls all day and night from bullshit to real rescues. The call came in as man standing by car at the railroad tracks . When we arrived on scene the man was standing behind the car facing the trunk .

I was the junior of the three man crew on rescue. My crew members told me to get out of the truck to see why he called rescue. When I approach the man and asked about his problem, he did not respond. As I got closer I noticed blood around the bottom of his legs. I asked the man what was wrong and he stated the had closed the car trunk with his genitals in the trunk and threw away the keys .

I went back to rescue truck to tell my crew members and they could not believe me . So they got out of to check him out. When I asked him why he did this, he stated that he was mad at his girlfriend . W e had to call out the hazmat truck because they had more tools to cut open the trunk. I started an IV on him and asked the man if he was in a lot of pain. He stated no. I thought he was a nuts but I guess you would have to be nuts to do what he did.

We opened the trunk open in about an hour. Nobody could believe that this man had done this to himself . He was taken to hospital and up to the ER. It turned out this was his second time to do this.

Just remember that this is not the thing you do to get even with girlfriend .

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