Gordon Graham
Category: Fire Service
Gordon Graham here with Today’s Tip from Lexipol. Today’s Tip is for fire service personnel, and it has to do with knowing your response district.
Whether you’re a probationary firefighter on your first duty assignment or a seasoned veteran at a new company, knowing your response district is your responsibility. You need to know street names, street numbering breaks, occupancies, and construction types. And don’t forget all manner of special hazards like rail lines and interstates. Knowing your response district means looking at everything with a critical eye, whether you’re out on inspection or shopping for dinner.
In the fire service, what you don’t know CAN hurt you, and it might even kill you.
Say you notice extension cords strung from a second-floor window to a boarded up third-floor window. What does that say to you? What about substantial construction work happening with no visible permits? Think back to FDNY’s Black Sunday. The Bronx building had apartments that were unlawfully subdivided. Maybe you notice the old carriage house in the rear yard has a mailbox and utility service drops. Or a two-family house now has three or four mailboxes. These are subtle indicators something has changed.
It’s not uncommon to find former stores converted into illegal places of public assembly. Think about the Happy Land Social Club fire or the Ghost Ship fire. You may not notice anything when passing by during the day. But driving by at 0200 could reveal the building in full operation.
What should you do if you notice something out of place? Let someone know what you saw: the company officer, the battalion chief, or whoever is next in your chain of command. After that, make a note to yourself. Think about what you would do if you pulled up to a fire or other emergency. In the fire service, what you don’t know CAN hurt you, and it might even kill you. Always be alert, be aware, and know your response area.
And that’s Today’s Tip from Lexipol. Until next time, Gordon Graham signing off.
