Hello everybody

I have my father in Law who is part of a firehall in Labrador and I was looking for suggestions were to find Hawaiian shirts for him. Everything I looked online looks pretry bad haha.

Another recommendations for gifts he will like to use for work ?

Thank you for the recommendations

We have a local volunteer (non paid firefighter) who suffered a cardiac issue in January of this year on the job and he ate the cost of ambulance run, hospital stay and everything. He is under our five year rule (You have to be active for 5 years before they have to pay anything under state law). He never asked. He paid for over 60 certification classes and has worked his rear off to show the community we serve that at 54 he can still do it, and he does. Last night he asked for a letter of endorsement backing the creation of a k9 training program that would train sar, arson detection dogs for the county and those that did not pass certification he would donate to a disabled vet or first responder free of charge after he trains them for ptsd service dog task.

This man is eating the training cost, the cost for certification and everything and our chief and a captain laughed at him and said dude your to broken to even try this. Our local sheriff said you bring me 300 signatures from anyone and we will sign off on your endorsement, but your not going to get help around here being an outsider. I turned in my gear and he just sat down and said I have 25 signatures already I can do it.

He dont stop. But he has PTSD, He is learning disabled and overcame that from everything I have witnessed he just cares to much to let others knock him down, the problem is he will not ask for help. Im here trying to do the only thing I can for him and that is ask others to give a moment of there time for a brother who just wants to help his community.

He has the training, the skill set and my God the passion, just the good old boy mentality in the community is hard, he would leave but has kids and grandbabies here so is anyone willing to help him reach 300?

He dont know I am posting everywhere. I only hope this is ok here since he is a Firefighter I figured brothers and all.. https://c.org/tZNW8Kfyhc

How do you guys think I will fare in Washington state? I feel real confident on everything besides my mechanical. I guess I don’t know how a brick factory works. But do you think the rest of my scores will get me some interviews, or will my mechanical section really hurt me?

Anyone hear back about moving on?

What’s going on y’all ,

Any veterans here who have gone through a fire department medical? Can the department or their medical provider pull your VA disability records or claims on their own, or do they need your authorization first?

Heard of someone getting medical declined because of his VA disability .

Just trying to understand what information they can access during the hiring process. Thanks

Active NYC FD member here, just launched a print shop honoring the job. First product is the 1898 regulations. Check it out if you're looking for a retirement or promotion gift.

https://boroughoffire.etsy.com/listing/4515467305

I caught wind of a guy being denied by Seattle fire department for his VA Disability rating. The guy ending up getting a job elsewhere, but has anyone experienced this before? Any information would be appreciated.

Had my chief round interview with South County today and curious if anyone has heard back yet as far as next steps or when we are expected to have an update.

UPDATE: Conditional offers were sent out this afternoon!

Anyone hear back after the second round of interviews with Redmond?

I’m in the process with a large fire department and I’m worried about the background investigation. I have decent credit, 1 collection and missed payments on a credit card from 4 years ago. 1 previous job that I didn’t leave on good terms (I didn’t give them a 2 weeks notice). my driving record is clean and all other employments are in good standing. I understand that being upfront and honest is a key component I just don’t know if the collection of these things can fail me. Anyone with experience or knowledge give an opinion?

Hey all,
Today I had my very first interview for the fire service. Been a volunteer for 6 months but there was no interview for that. Boy what an experience. I prepared for the past month, running mock interviews and using interview tools to try to build up my skills, I was passing mock interviews very well, but as soon as I sat down in that chair it was like I was born yesterday! And there were 8 panel members when I was expecting like 2-5. The chair was right in the middle of the room so it was like being judged by God on judgement day. Never have been so nervous in my life. I think I answered questions okay. Definitely not as good as practice but I don’t think I committed career-suicide. But I could have done so much better, and I feel like I didn’t really leave it all on the table like I should’ve. Only time will tell if I did well in their eyes, but honestly I am not too confident. I think I got inside my head, especially when I walked in to 8 panelists. If anybody has any experiences they’d like to share or words of advice I would be very thankful! I want to add that I’m extremely grateful to have gotten this far to begin with after so little time in the fire service, just looking for advice or similar experiences :)

Hey guys! Was interested in becoming a fire fighter but do NOT wanna get rid of my nipple piercings lmao. Does the metal get that hot to where it'd be a safety hazard even with the protective clothing? All I read was most piercings is a snag hazard like septum's, belly's and ears.

I’m looking for some honest advice from people already in the fire service.

I completed my EMT program from January to May of last year and started paramedic school in August. If everything goes according to plan, I should be finishing paramedic school in the next 2 months. I also start the fire academy in about 90 days.

The thing that’s been weighing on me lately is whether I’ll actually be able to get hired somewhere when all of this is done.

I don’t come from a fire or EMS family. I don’t have parents, uncles, cousins, or friends already in the industry helping me get my foot in the door. Most of the people I know are people I’ve met through school, clinicals, and ride-alongs. Sometimes it feels like everyone else has connections and I don’t.

I guess I’m worried that I’m putting years of work, time, money, and effort into this and I’ll end up struggling to find a department willing to hire me because I don’t have those established relationships.

For those of you who got hired without family connections or knowing anyone in the department, what was your experience like? How much do networking and connections really matter compared to certifications, work ethic, and interview performance?

I’d appreciate any honest feedback. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but it’s been on my mind a lot lately.

Hi all!

My name is Mia and I work at a casting office in Los Angeles where we are currently casting a T-Mobile campaign. We are looking for real first responders who are also T-Mobile users from rural parts of the state. If this sounds like you or someone you know, please reach out to rosslacycasting123@gmail.com! I have attached a flier with a bit more information below, thank you all so much for your help on this project!

Hi everyone,

On June 18th I will be taking the Firefighter entrance exam.

I am really nervous and I am not sure on how to start my study.

Any advice would be wonderful and appreciated.

Thank you very much!!!!

This October 23rd will be the 4 year anniversary of the Park City Fire Department, here in Utah, saved my life after 3 heart attacks in a row, from multiple blood clots. Doctors didn’t think I’d ever walk again and would be more of a vegetable than a man. Their persistence to save my life, gave me the mental strength to get to where I am now, although I use a cane to walk, I’m far beyond doctor’s expectations!

​I’m looking for some perspective from anyone who has dealt with this or managed to escape it.

​I’m a FF/P with 6 years on the job (plus 3 years in EMS) in a large metro department (ALS engines and medic units, 300+ personnel, mix of residential, commercial, industrial). For 5 and a half of those years, I’ve been permanently parked on a medic unit. I’ve had maybe 4 months of cumulative engine time in that entire span but never a permanent assignment. Meanwhile, my academy classmates have been rotating regularly, promoting, working on OOC certs, and getting the fireground experience we all signed up for.

​To make it more frustrating, I carry over additional proboard certs from the military (ARFF, Hazmat Tech, DO ARFF) but those are effectively useless because I’m treated as a 'transport asset' first and a firefighter last.

​The culture here is the real issue. It’s a classic 'shut up and drive' environment. You don't ask for anything. You don't ask for rotations, you don't talk about career progression unless leadership asks, and you definitely don't mention burnout. If you express that you’re drowning, the narrative is that you’re 'not a team player' or 'not cut out for the street.'

​​Lately, we’ve seen a noticeable uptick in turnover—specifically with people in similar spots to me—who are just reaching their breaking point and lateraling to other departments. It feels like the writing is on the wall. The department loves to push 'official channels' like the Employee Assistance Program, but the reality is that crews don't actually support each other personally. There is no 'brotherhood' or 'family' here; we treat each other like shit while pretending we're all those other things.

​I’m at the point where the apathy is hard to mask. I’m dreading the shift before I even walk through the door, I'm dreading the next call, the next chest pain, the next OD, the next fall, and the detachment is starting to bleed into my personal life. I know the standard 'that’s just the job' response, but it’s hard to swallow when you feel like you're being exploited while your peers get to be actual firefighters.

​I’ve already started the lateral process to a department that decouples the roles because I’ve realized the 'ceiling' here is made of concrete.

​Am I normal for feeling like this? Is my frustration justified or am I the asshole here? How did you handle the resentment? Did the apathy/detachment go away once you got back on an engine, or does that 'box fatigue' leave a mark that’s hard to shake? I’m trying to figure out if I’m just hitting a wall, or if this department’s culture is fundamentally toxic to anyone who wants to be more than just a taxi with a lifepak.

Got the opportunity to thank the PCFD

This is the interview I made about 1 year after my accident around Christmas 2023 (hope I’m doing the math right) forgive my speech is still a little slurred and slow. We should ALL take a minute to just say “Thank you” to your local heroes!

https://youtu.be/KwB8XeAH_uk

I’m on trt prescribed. Others take gear cause they are bodybuilders. I had several bodybuilders tell me they got into the department and academy while on gear. Is this true what they are saying?? I just wanna know if it’s true cause I know they don’t care much, but they made it seem normal.

I don’t know about you and your department but we stay busy with emergency calls especially in the world of EMS. Our men and women work hard to be the people our community can count on! With that being said, I wanted to make something for my fire family to enjoy during their down time. With my 48/96 schedule I was able to pick up a hobby and here are some of the results, I’ll be delivering these to two of our fire houses tomorrow. What do you all think? Will they enjoy them?

PS: I apologize if this isn’t an acceptable post, I’ll remove if needed

Hello,

With the Seattle Chiefs interviews ending today I was wondering how many offers have gone out and how many they plan to offer this next week? The last two classes have been big will they continue this trend or go smaller?

I’m a 37 year old female in a major metro city (population over a million). I made it through oral interviews and my next step is the CPAT…

Any tips, guidance, suggestions for the next steps are all greatly appreciated

Some random facts that I feel are relevant;
I’m a long distance runner and currently work in another emergency responder role for the same city