Politics & Government

Firefighters' Jobs Don't Stop When the Day is Slow

There is a lot more to firefighting than the adrenaline pumping, life-saving work; some tasks are mundane.

I spent Thursday afternoon at the Channahon Fire Protection District. I was excited to go out on a call. But, the reporters curse that accompanied me at my followed me again to the fire department. Between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., give or take, there were no calls to the Channahon Fire Protection District, station one. None. Right before I was going to leave, I heard the tones. But, the call was on the far east side of the village; station two responded.

So, despite being on hand for hours, I did not get the rush of jumping in a fire truck or ambulance to see first-hand what kind of work these first-responders do. What I did get to see, though, is the work that goes on behind the scenes.

Firefighter/paramedics in Channahon work 24-hour shifts. They are on from 7 a.m. to 7 a.m. the next morning and then have 48 hours off. In that time, in addition to responding to calls, they have to take care of the firehouse, which is their home during their shift.

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"If the grass needs to get cut, you cut the grass," Channahon Fire Lt. Jake Randich said. "Especially with us living here, you want to maintain it like it's your personal home."

To further prove that fact, the firefighters on shift Sept. 27 made me lunch, like they do every day. Someone makes lunch and dinner and someone else cleans up the mess. They are a family.

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In addition to running the firehouse, firefighter/paramedics are responsible for fire inspections within the district and they spend a lot of time training. In fact, after I left Sept. 27, the firefighters were headed to the to run a training session for the employees.

I chose to work at the Channahon Fire Prevention District for October because Fire Prevention Week is the second week in October. Oct. 9 began fire prevention week for 2011 and the Channahon Fire Protection District has an open house planned from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 15. A fire demonstration, safety house and blood pressure checks will be available. Probably the most popular attraction is the Snorkel lift, which will be available for rides.

Fire calls falling, but education still needed

Channahon Fire Protection District averages between 1,000 and 1,100 calls per year. This year may seem like it was busier than usual, with a , a and an accident that required to an area hospital, likely having lost his leg. But, the district is about on par for calls.

"We're on pace for 1,100 again," Channahon Fire Lt. Matt Skole said. "For a while we were slow - good for everyone else, bad for us."

While they are on pace this year, the difference as the years go on is that less and less calls are for actual fires. The calls around the district are mostly for medical assistance or for accidents. In some ways, though, it's not any different for those who answer the call.

"In critical times, you still have to be able to think quickly," Skole said. "A lot of times people say they're sorry for calling, but that's why we're here."

Editor's Note: This story has been updated. The original version gave the wrong shift hours. We regret the error.


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