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Daniel Whitmire
Professor Arnold
UWRT 1101-051
1 September 2014
Literacy Essay
As I was out mountain biking with my friends, I had finished and was waiting at
the trailhead for the rest of my group to finish. When I realized too much time had passed
by for them to still be on the trail, I rode back up to see what had happened. Finding my
friend, Taylor on the ground holding his arm with the bone protruding out was the
moment at which I knew I wanted to become literate in helping others. Fire fighting is
one of the most important jobs on the face of this Earth because not only do we have to
know how to save victims trapped in their inflamed homes, but much of the time we
respond to car accidents where the fire engines are the first to arrive at the scene, even
before the EMS, which is why it is important for firefighters to stabilize victims and get
them ready for transport. These reasons, especially because of what happened to my
friend, Taylor, are why I chose to become literate in firefighting.
Much of the time was spent learning about how the fire department functions. As
the department receives a call from the dispatcher, I use to wonder how good the
information was; but based upon the questions the dispatcher receives from the caller the
fire department is able to get a good visualization of what is going on. If there is need for
more information, then there is a program that all the fire engines have called, MCT. This
program collects all previous notes about the residence, such as if they have responded to
a call there prior to this incident, or even is a police officer has responded to the residence
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before. All this information is stored on this single program, and there is no shortage of
need to know answers. With learning about of any officer of the law has been sent to a
residence or not, its good to have a close relationship with law enforcement. At our fire
department, we do have that close relationship, where we have cookouts with state
troopers, or the police department. This keeps us a close-knit community, and able to rely
on one another when need be. This very effective relationship does come at a price. Much
of the time when a firefighter doesnt have his turn out gear on he can resemble law
enforcement with the black shoes, black pants, and the blue shirt. The radio on the hip
can also be mistaken for a gun in its holster, especially is the person is intoxicated. This
misunderstanding leads to citizens wanting to fight us because they dont want to go to
jail for public intoxication; but often all we want to do is help the person get to where
they need to be without contacting the police. A major aspect of how we function as a fire
department are the restrictions we have when helping where there is a gunshot, stabbing,
or assault report. We stage away from the scene and wait for the police to arrive, and
defuse the situation. But no matter how dangerous, hazardous, or menial the call might
be, we always respond to every call and the only time we cancel a call is when the
dispatcher says to. So with the basic information of how we function, a lot of people
wonder, what are the requirements for the job? For the department I work at, I was
required to take, and pass firefighter 1403 classes, pass a physical agilities test, pass
different medical scenarios, become at least a basic EMT, and then finish it all of with an
interview with the fire chief at the department where you want the job. Once accepted,
the week starts off with vehicle maintenance, ladder and hoses testing, and through the
day, issue burn permits; do car seat checks; and service fire hydrants every spring, in
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addition to going around to local schools to help spread and promote fire safety, all while
responding to calls through the day and night. Though this seems like a lot, perks of the
job is that we only work nine to ten times a month, which allows extra time to be with
family, and a second job for extra income. Something ironic when I joined the station is
that if you live in the area of which the department responds to calls, the taxes you pay
goes towards your own salary, so you basically pay yourself. But all of this is just a
preview of how I became literate in firefighting.
Like the name entitles, firefighting, a lot is required to learn about fighting fires of
all different natures; the dangers that fire pose to the fire men, and how the fire
department approaches the scene of a fire, along with determining the cause. Most homes
that do go up in flames are singlewide, one-story homes. This is due to the fact that most
are older models and have few fire retardants built into the structure itself. When
responding, a tanker and a rescue truck are taken. All the tanker does primarily is carry
water; around 2,000 gallons of it. The rescue truck holds around 1,500 gallons, along
with all of the equipment needed. But when departing for a scene, there is a chance that
there will be another call somewhere else, so in that case there is a system called, mutual
aid. Mutual aid will come from the nearest fire district if that district is on a call. This is
why it isnt unusual to find a fire truck from a different county in your county. But once
the fire department leaves to a call, a TAC truck will go as well. The TAC truck we have
is a Chevrolet Suburban that the fire chief will drive to get to the scene first since it is a
lot smaller and easier to navigate through traffic and scope out the whole situation. The
main goals when responding to a fire are: personal safety, saving victims lives, protecting
property, and lastly, protecting the environment surrounding the fire. Backdrafts and
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flashovers are two big things that we have to look out for when approaching a fire. When
a building has been set on fire and smoke rises up, the smoke has nowhere to go, and it is
a mixture of all kinds of unburned fuels. When the smoke has nowhere to escape, and the
whole room, or building is full top to bottom with smoke and a fire source ignites all of it,
a bomb goes off. If a firefighter is in the building at this time, there is no survival rate due
to shrapnel and internal bleeding. There is only one way to tell if a backdraft is going to
happen, and that is to look at the windows. If there is smoke seeping out of the cracks,
and is being sucked back in, there will a backdraft. The second, less threatening situation
is a flashover. In a flashover, the smoke has a place to go, but unburned chemicals from
the smoke are on the walls and ceiling, so that when those are ignited, the room or
building becomes an instant 900-degree oven. This has higher survival rate since a
firemans gear can protect him for a very short time. Though the facemask will more than
likely melt, he or she might be able to run for safety. Whilst becoming literate in
firefighting through my 1403 classes, these two problems were always addressed no
matter what other topic we were learning about. There are three stages to a fire. The first
of which is the incipient burn, which is when the fire department is contacted; and could
still be put out by the homeowners. The second is the free burn, which is when the
engines arrive, then the decay, where it is still smoldering and salvaging can take place.
Typically dispatch can tell how the fire began based upon the questions they ask, but
usually a fireman can tell for insurance purposes. Usually you can tell where the origin of
the fire started and smell gas if it was intentionally set in order to collect money or it was
vandalism.

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Much of the work that us, as firefighters do, couldnt be done without all of the
equipment that we have access to. As I leave the fire station, I have to be able to don my
gear quickly. The first of many steps is to hop into my boots, and around the boots are my
trousers, which I then pull up, then pull on my coat. As I am in route to the scene, I put
on my fire hood making sure my gloves are in an easily accessible location. While in the
seat, there is an oxygen tank fitted into the seat, where I can put my arms through the
straps and pull a lever to pull it out of the seat and get out of the fire engine. Once Im
out, I can then check my gauges, regulator, and turn on the PASS system. From there, all
thats left to do is put on my mask, gloves, and grab a piece of equipment. The self
contained breathing apparatus, or SCBA that we use on our face has a regulator for air
flow, and a small hood that tells me how much air I have left in the tank. The air masks
that we use are positive pressure sensor masks. This means that as you take in a breath,
the mask realizes there is a difference in pressure inside the mask, and will send in more
air until the pressure is back where it was. This allows us to conserve the oxygen in the
tank, further allowing us to be inside the building longer without coming out for another
tank. Another great technological advance is the PASS system, or the Personal Alert
Safety System. If a firefighter doesnt move within thirty second, there is an alarm that
goes off, which is louder than any fire alarm made. So this is why if there is a group of
firefighters in a huddle, and they are all shacking their pack, its to keep the alarm from
going off. Once the alarm goes off, it is the duty of the RIT, or Rapid Intervention Team
to go in, and pull out the down firefighter. This team was created here in North Carolina
after the death of firefighter, Captain Jeff Bowen, and I am a member of my hometown
RIT for our fire department
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Out of the estimated thirty million calls that fire departments respond to each year
in the United States, twenty million are medical related situations. While learning to be a
firefighter, I had to pass various medical scenarios, and become a basic EMT. While I
took these classes, there were two operations in which I was highly curious of. The first
of which is how to run an intravenous line (IV) for medical scenarios. Step one of many
steps is to get a rubber band to go around the arm if the vein isnt clearly visible. Next, is
to find the vein and use alcohol to clean the area. As this is done, there needs to be a flush
and a hub nearby to flush out the vein. Inserting the needle at approximately a 45-degree
angle insures that the needle goes up the vein, rather than through it. Once entering the
vein I can feel a pop, indicating entry to the vein. Next, I will slowly pull out the needle
and slowly slide up the catheter simultaneously. When complete, I can screw the flush
and hub that I had nearby to the catheter and flush the vein out with saline. Finally, I am
able to unscrew, remove the rubber band, and tape what is left to the patients arm to
insure it doesnt move around during transport. This is a very important skill to learn so
that as soon as the ambulance arrives, they are able to immediately administer drugs to
the patient. The second most important trade I learned was intubation. Intubation is
essential if the victim isnt breathing. To begin, it is up to the person who is performing
the procedure to choose whether they want to use a Mac, or a Mil. A Mac and a Mil are
essentially metal instruments used for lifting up the throat to find the victims vocal cords.
The difference is that a Mac has a curved head, while the Mil is shaped at a ninety-degree
angle. I personally find the Mac to be more useful since it more closely resembles the
shape of a throat. When I was first learning how to do this, I continually hit the teeth of
the dummy, which is a big no, no. As the trainer seemed to be getting upset, the fire chief
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came in, and told him that if he is so good at it, why doesnt he show us on himself? In
response, he did try it, and ended up throwing up. This wasnt only a good show, but a
good point. If someone is faking not breathing, they will throw up, and magically start
breathing again. But anyways, after grasping the Mac in my right hand, and tilting the
dummys head back, I scoop down, and lift up the tongue to find the vocal cords. Once
the vocal cords are found, I can then insert the stylus into the vocal cords, pull out the
stylus, and pump up the cuff with 10cc of air so that if the patient wakes up and throws
up, it wont go into their lungs. After this is all done, I can attach whatever breathing
apparatus I want to in order to push and pull air in the lungs. I myself have never had to
perform either of these tasks, but I know that if I ever have to, I will be able to perform
the tasks.
So in the end, these firefighters are the most important to us. People may never
realize how special firemen and women can be to us, whether it is rescuing us from out of
home engulfed in flames, or out of a car that was involved in an accident. Fire fighters
must be able to use their equipment efficiently to save victims in medical scenarios and
or burning homes. Knowing what to use in certain locations and having the medical
background to stabilize patients is also very important since often we are the first to
arrive to a scene is also an important tool of the trade. So all men are created equal, but I
chose to walk through the fire and flames to become one of the heroes at the end of the
day, but we just call ourselves firefighters.