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BY BOBBY HALTON |
Every now and then, you get a letter from a friend that makes you stop and reflect on how good you really have it and how much others are struggling every day just to get by, just to make ends meet. It’s more apparent in the city of Detroit than anywhere else in our great nation that electing incompetent leadership, instituting flawed policies, and tolerating gross negligence can destroy even the greatest of cities. Once one of the gems in America-a place that produced the greatest automobiles in the world, had one of the most vibrant and electric populations, and gave us unparalleled beauty in music and art-it is now struggling to survive, struggling to provide its citizens with the most basic of services.
I am just a firefighter, not a social scientist and certainly not a politician, proudly just a firefighter; that’s what made this letter so much more painful to read. It was written by a good friend, a proud and incredibly capable firefighter who every day matches his wits and capabilities with some of the most deadly fires in America side-by-side with some of the most competent and dedicated firefighters in America. My friend is doing battle in the city of Detroit, or what is left of Detroit. Here’s what he wrote:
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As everyone knows, the city of Detroit is and has been in some hard times. The Fire Department has once again had someone steal equipment off of a rig while the firefighters were battling a fire. These issues just never end, and it’s frustrating as a firefighter not having the proper equipment to do the job that we all signed up to do. I am asking every one of you, my fire service friends, to see if you could help us out with something. The Jaws of Life power unit for our Hurst tools was stolen off the rig while we were at a fire. This East Side squad along I-94 is one of only six rigs in the city that has Jaws on it to protect the citizens of Detroit and the metro Detroit people who travel through the city to work or are out for a night on the town. Also, on the West Side, we have another squad that does not have any power unit for its set of Jaws; so right now, there are only four sets of Jaws of Life for the entire city. God forbid anyone gets hurt and needs our assistance and we cannot help due to the underequipped rigs that we currently are faced with. If anyone has a small generator, that also would solve this problem; the squad has a hydraulic setup on the rig with cord reels but no way to power it because the PTO does not work on the rig, but we could make it work with a generator. If you could send this [message] out to your friends also and see if they, too, may have something in their reserve that could help, please do. |
It took great humility, grace, and courage to write this letter. It took the heart of a firefighter. We know that it will take a lot of hard work; a lot of struggle; and blood, sweat, and tears to bring back Detroit. But Detroit will come back. We understand that it won’t be easy and it won’t happen overnight, but Detroit will come back. We understand that things are going to have to change. Detroit will need new leadership. Detroit will have to dig in and cry those tears, sweat that sweat, and blister her hands until they bleed, but that’s what that town is all about. That’s how Detroit got great in the first place-through blood, sweat, and tears.
What can we do for Detroit? How can we help Detroit help herself? We can begin by making sure that these incredibly passionate brothers and sisters working on the streets of that struggling city have the tools they need. We should demand that they get involved in the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program for the tools they so desperately need. They are not asking for extras or nice-to-haves; they are asking for necessities. We should demand that the new leadership of that city be held accountable for budgeting and managing effectively to make sure that these firefighters are outfitted correctly, equipped adequately, and protected while they are doing their jobs.
We should demand that the leadership of the Detroit Fire Department be the most capable and competent firefighters America and Detroit have to offer. Hopefully, that leadership will open up the possibility that those of you who have solid fireground, fireground management, and administrative experience can apply for those chief officer positions when they become available. There are many great ex-chiefs in America today who could do America and Detroit proud by lending their expertise to that city.
In the short term, every fire department in America that has excess equipment should be working inside the system to try to supply this great American fire department with the tools it needs. The city of Detroit needs to set up immediately a donation acceptance system that can identify and filter the equipment necessary to get the basic tools back into the hands of Detroit’s Bravest. This project needs to be expedited by the management of Detroit. Anything less would be immoral.
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