Letters to the Editor
DEPARTMENTS
Smoking Ban
Alexandria, Va.
In response to Lauren Selden’s article “Civil Libertarian Questions Chief’s Right to Ban Smoking” in the August issue of Fire Engineering, I would like to offer a counter argument in support of the City of Alexandria.
As a condition of initial and continuing employment for newly hired fire fighters, the no smoking regulation need only be reasonable. Chief Rule appears ready to defend the reasonableness of the regulation on medical grounds with appropriate expert testimony. The applicant may have a right to smoke. The applicant, however, does not have a right to employment. In acknowledging and accepting the no smoking requirement to become a city fire fighter, the applicant does so freely. To subsequently violate that condition of employment is to violate the contractual obligation the applicant has assumed. The city after supporting the allegation with a preponderance of the evidence and affording due process is certainly justified in terminating the employee.
In deciding a similar question on residency requirements, the U. S. Supreme Court ruled that a city may require fire fighters to reside within certain limits without violating the fire fighter’s first amendment freedom. The similarity of the questions and outcome seems inescapable.
Thomas G. Daly
Apparatus Accidents
Walnut Creek, Calif.
Captain McDonald’s story about the collision of Engine 14 was well told, and it is a miracle, as well as a tribute to good discipline of the men, that everyone survived. The captain asks, “What can we learn from this accident?” and then tells how the proper use of seat belts and riding inside the cab protected the men.
To this I would add, taking a line from TV sleuth Columbo, “One more thing. . .” It is not good to run a red light at 45 mph, even though it may be sanctioned by state and local codes. The whole anecdote demonstrates the unwisdom of relying on the flashing light, a siren (or two sirens) and the momentum of a very heavy vehicle to get through an intersection.
A defensive driving routine would have got Engine 14 to the fire on time, such as shifting down and reducing speed to 25 or 20 mph to clear the red signal light.
Unfortunately, there is no way to get people to turn off their car radio or stereo while waiting for the light to change, and the background noise inside the car is hard to overcome with one siren or even two.
Can we agree that the all-important goal is to get the fire fighters and their apparatus to the fire? If so, this ought to determine how the driver is instructed about intersections.
John Morris
Consultant
Safety and Fire Protection
Arson Issue
Wantagh, N.Y.:
The August issue of Fire Engineering with its focus on arson detection and investigation was truly outstanding. As a fire fighter in a suburban Long Island, N.Y., fire department where arson has not presented itself as a major problem as yet, the arson-centered articles have proven useful in aiding our department personnel to recognize indications that a fire may have been deliberately set.
Though we have full-time county fire marshals to thoroughly investigate suspicious fires, early recognition of possible arson by our personnel at the scene helps to preserve evidence for the marshal—evidence that may have otherwise been destroyed during overhauling operations.
It is my hope that Fire Engineering will continue to print articles concerning arson detection and investigation, enabling all fire fighters to develop a basic knowledge of the arson problem and how to recognize and effectively investigate this heinous crime that increases the risk of injury or death to a fire fighter’s already hazardous profession while increasing the insurance premiums to the public
Joseph T. Cieslewicz
