storm419

WPFD right now has 134 firefighters on the line compared to 169 about 10 years ago. The rescue at headquarters is in service 24/7/365, and is one of only two fully staffed rescue companies in Westchester County, the other being Yonkers. Right now we run bare bones across the board, 3 men on each rig (engines, ladders & the rescue) with a fourth man going to the ladders or rescue depending on availability. That means if Ladder 34 is open and one man calls in sick, has a personal day or comp day/vacation, then the rig is shut down and the 2 remaining FF's (or LT) are sent to be the fourth man on either L-32, TL-6, or R-88 at the DC's discretion. During the summer months especially, L-34 is shut down entirely and we ride 3 across the board, filling vacancies with OT. The city will not fill vacancies on 34 with OT, they brown it out, leaving the entire south side of the city without a ladder. The next nearest ladder is 32 and if that is tied up at an alarm, it's TL-6 which is about 10-12 minutes from L-34's first due area. If they were to shut down the rescue and man L-34, you'd just be shuffling responsibility mainly on L-32's shoulders which would pick up about 1,300 alarms per year on top of the 1,500 it already takes.

I saw plenty of Boston guys walking around with beer, and plenty of our senior men with 20+ years telling stories of LODD funerals that seemed to pan out exactly like this one. Now I understand the problem with the selfie craze and the "look at me" mentality that plagues social media, and i agree, its a disgrace. And anyone taking pictures of a procession while they should be standing at hand salute should be shot. But don't sit there and say drinking is a new issue or problem in the fire service, and that drinking hasn't been a HUGE part of LODD funerals for years. Just today I heard a story of our last LODD funeral 20 years ago and the mountain of kegs the union provided in a parking lot behind one of our houses, and how a group of FDNY guys who were there but had to work that night liberated one of the kegs....to take to work with them. Sounds to me like a lot of vollies sounding off here with delusions of grandeur. But this is reality. And to be honest, if I were to die in the line of duty I'd want my brothers and a whole shitload of guys I never met before to get together, drink, party and send me off the right way, laughing, smiling and celebrating my life and sacrifice. I'm sure my family would understand, at least I hope they would. Now I'll probably catch flak on here for my opinion and statements but that's ok, just chalk it up to youthful arrogance and case in point of what's wrong with the fire service these days. But I know my job, I love my job, I respect my job, and honor those who've fallen and come before me, but I also understand the culture, we're not Boy Scouts. If the public cant understand that, they can go screw. Not many people have what it takes to run into a burning building not knowing if they'll make it out alive. Don't kid yourselves.

Yes, as many people have said before, if it gets to the point that your shirt/pants are melting to your skin, you've got much bigger problems. No question. However, it then becomes the difference of a cotton shirt burning and flaking off, or doctors having to peel and cut out the polyester from your skin, making an already terrible situation that much worse. Food for thought.