When responding to a fire, most firefighters would not expect a small avalanche as a peril though it is hard to see how the danger was not obvious for this firefighter. Nevertheless, he went to rescue people in the fire and his colleagues ultimately rescued a child. The firefighter is thankfully doing well and was close to falling four stories after the hit.
The firefighter was enormously fortunate to have fallen in a way that caught his foot in the ladder.
Looking at the video, I am not sure what the firefighters could have done since time was of the essence to save people.
Firefighters are different and special kind of folk no matter where you go. May he have a swift and complete recovery.
That fire truck looks like the antiques we here see in parades.
I was a volunteer firefighter for about 7 years. When you get the call you go. When you see the hazard you size up the situation and if there is a chance you can make a difference you do it.
Paul, Volunteer firefighters are the backbone of fire protection in Wi. Very dedicated to fighting fires and to drinking mass quantities of beer afterward.
As a former part-time firefighter he on the frozen tundra I can tell you that we discussed the hazards presented by large snow loads every winter.
The bulk of the discussion was how to approach ventilation when it is very treacherous on a slopped roof. But ladder approaches under snow/ice conditions got mentioned. SOmetimes in the excitement of the arrival crews can forget the simple stuff though
Seems like that was really bad luck on the timing.
Firefighters are generally one of the most duty bound of any government agency….. But hey, not bad for generally 8 days which amount to either 24 to 48 hour work weeks…..
Remarkable story and video. Those firefighters deserve a lot more pay for the danger that they encounter every day.
That call had everything from fire to ice. Classic. Firefighters rock!
better than getting hit in the face with a wiener.
pete, Take your OCD meds..you’re obsessing on weiners in the face.
AY – not sure where you are but here part-time, on-call means you have to be on a pager 24×7. Generally you have to make a certain percentage of calls (65% in my old dept) or you get dropped.
Full time guys around here work 24 on, 24 off for two weeks with the third week off, 168 hours every 3 weeks so its no light load.
Frankly,
That’s one of the most gruesome jobs around. The firefighters I’ve known work 48 hours which is 2 full days a week. That leaves for 5 days off a week. If the back up 2/48s they end up doing 4 out of 14 days every two weeks… Again, I’ll say it’s a most gruesome job. Thanks for your insight.