STATter 911

Nice grab. I hope fire departments around the country play this video every time the mayor gets a genius idea to cut trucks.
 

Great job Columbus Division Of Fire.Once again a team operation.
 

Nice post, Dave. That indeed was in Columbus, Ohio. Most of the responding units came from Station 1, located downtown.

http://columbusfire.8m.com/station1.html

http://columbusfire.8m.com/home.html
 

Nice work boys. And to the guy in khakis and a polo throwing a ladder - give him a raise!
 

I was the tillerman that took the vid.We were having our Station Christmas party when then run came in. We were right in the middle of driving our Santa around our station on the turntable for the kids to see. The kids never saw poor Santa driven past them that fast before. I have that on video also (very funny). Thats why I happened to have a camera in hand for the the fire. When we arrived their was no reports of anyone trapped. We got lucky. Thanks for watchin, Chasefire Columbus Fire Sta #1 1unit
 

Some probably won't like to hear what I have to say here, but I have to say that I find myself personally disturbed watching this video. My problem comes about because of the 15 to 30 seconds that I estimate the tillerman spent adjusting the camera.

Yes, I have to agree that this is a great video. For the most part the camera is positioned perfectly to capture the action taking place. And it seems to be that taking the time to set up the video probably had no effect on the overall outcome of the fire. And what you end up with is a great video for use in training.

However, what about the what ifs? I am disturbed because it seems like more and more videos are being taken not by bystanders, but by firefighters being counted on by the public. Did anyone think it seemed strange to see athletes in the closing Olympic ceremonies whipping out their cameras to take videos? However, while that may or may not be appropriate, no lives or property were at stake.

I think the fire service needs some discussion on how much amatuer video by FFs is appropriate on a fire scene. I have to admit that I also consider myself an amateur photographer. I am one of the few on my department who has worn a helmet cam and I try to carry a camera for after the fact still shots. So I do recognize the desire and importance of taking photographs and videos at fire incidents.

However, returning to this incident, this video does a great job of showing how things can turn in a hurry. Arriving on the scene, things look pretty mellow, like a run of the mill fire with only moderate smoke showing. However, approximately just over 1 minute later, you have firemen literally trapped on the second floor with fire running up the stairs and blocking their exit.

Yes, there appears that there were already truck men on the scene doing a search, etc. But what if this was a slightly different incident and the ariel really had to be raised to vent the roof and interior men were counting on a vent. Or what if there was a delay getting water and the men on the second floor needed to be rescued on side C via a ground ladder? Any chance this tillerman might have been the person assigned to do that? Would a 15 to 30 second delay made any difference? And don't forget we work in pairs so a second FF is also being held up. Or what if there were people waiting at windows for a rescue? I doubt this person would have fiddled with the camera. That's an easy call to make, but what if there were additional unconscious victims that needed to be dragged out from the second floor? And why is there a civilian or improperly dressed FF raising a ladder?

With a dozen plus men on a fire scene, one guy taking an extra half minute usually is inconsequential. But not always. What if one of the men providing the initial handline had delayed for that time to grab photos? Would it have meant anything to the firemen up on the second floor or the victim being rescued? The point is that on the fireground everyone is counting on everyone else. This video can't demonstrate that any clearer than showing how the second floor men were counting on the nozzleman to control and extinguish the first floor fire.

So how long of a time out is appropriate to stop to grab a shot for posterity? I probably don't have a problem with taking 5 seconds to start a helmet cam, but depending on how serious the incident is, and how close one arrives to the start of it probably affects how easily one can take a photo time out. I think one needs to ask is it being selfish to your brothers or to the public to stop and take pictures?

Earlier this year, there was a NIOSH line of duty death report, where a FF died in a collapse, that showed a fireground picture taken very early on in the incident, by a firefighter. As in this instance, I couldn't
help but wonder whether that firefighter's actions might have had any impact to the incident. By stopping to take photos, one should be deciding that doing that is more important than any other action one might take on the fireground. So I guess my point is that one needs to be asking that question, and the answer should be yes before stopping for photos.

In any case, these comments should not detract from the overall excellent job done by all involved on this scene. Kudos to an outstanding rescue and extinguishment.