Department’s Photo Van Aids in Media Relations At Low Cost
—photo by the author.
Many fire departments have come to realize the importance of public and media relations to the success of their mission. That’s the good news. The bad news is that today’s budgets seldom contain the funds to help develop such activities. Yet, an innovative and successful program in operation in Dade County, Fla., was established with minimal funding and maximum enterprise.
In 1977, Stu Kaufman, the public information officer for the Metro-Dade Fire and Rescue Service, established a media advisory committee to the fire chief, consisting of representatives of Miami area newspapers, TV and radio stations, along with fire fighting personnel.
Three changes
Three steps were taken as a result of recommendations from the first meeting with Metro Fire Chief Ed Donaldson.
All interested media representatives were allowed to purchase a pager, and the fire department provided the service. Since most media people do not have the time or inclination to listen to a scanner, this has proven to be very successful. All major fire and rescue incidents are announced over the system. Since all media people purchase their own pagers, this program is carried out at almost no expense to the department, while benefits have been many.
The department also set up a class at the fire college to provide comprehensive orientation to help media people better understand the problems and language of the fire service. Smoke training with the use of SCBAs was included to provide a realistic demonstration of what it’s like for a fire fighter and fire victim in the actual fire situation. Sixty-five media people went through that first fire college, with over 200 completing it since. Again, this program has been at minimal cost to the department.
The most complex suggestion to come out of the meeting was to operate a photo van providing on-scene media support. The initial idea was for the van to be a focal point for the media for briefings and interviews, and eliminate some of the confusion that crops up on the scene of incidents.
Top-level support
To implement a program like this, the crucial ingedient was an innovative and forward-thinking fire chief who was unafraid to attempt something new and had the ability to muster the needed support and resources. Donaldson filled that description perfectly.
So the next problem was to find someone experienced in the department who had the ability to communicate technical information through words and pictures. Most important, however, was someone who had extra hours a week to give.
Luckily, that man existed. John Carroll, 29, has been a fire fighter for eight years. He had been taking photos for the department on a volunteer basis while on rescue unit assignment, so he was excited about the concept. To him it was more than a job.
It was decided to establish the mobile photo lab under the training division, providing audiovisual support for training and mobile command for the media on fire and rescue incidents.
Finding a vehicle
The next thing was finding a suitable vehicle. It was no small problem at a time when money was scarce even for essential fire fighting apparatus.
This is where ingenuity took over. A 1975 Dodge van ambulance had been determined to be unsafe for continued use as a rescue unit, after a long and useful life as Rescue 19, so it was assigned to the photo lab. Ironically, Carroll had driven Rescue 19, so they were back together again.
Carroll did all the conversion work at his home, scrounging parts and spending $60 out of his pocket the first year.
For the first eight months of operation, his own darkroom equipment was used in the van. Three days after completion, the first use of the mobile darkroom was on a major fatality auto accident in the Everglades. Pictures were made on the scene and processed for the medical examiner to see the original position of the bodies. Since then, trial and error has produced a very sophisticated unit.
Mobile photo lab is really an inadequate name for this rig because it has proven to be so much more. Carroll is a registered paramedic and carries trauma and cardiac kits and oxygen. He is also a certified diver and carries full diving gear. Of course, he is also a fire fighter and carries turnout gear and SCBA. He is a one-man tactical unit as he roves the county, a valuable extra man in many situations.
The only new items purchased for the van were an enlarger and still camera package. All other items carried on the van were in existence in other divisions of the department but in most cases were not being used to their potential.
Besides the gear and equipment mentioned, the van carries a Probe-Eye, an explosion meter, a super 8 movie unit with sound, a facsimile transmitter, portable lighting equipment, a TV monitor and full communications capabilities for all the fire departments in Dade County.
Media support
Supplies are carried for any media people who might be caught short on the scene of an accident. Pads, pens, batteries and video tapes are available. The media are given use of the darkroom, and a large bulletin board is carried for posting information and onscene briefing of the media, keeping them away from the mobile command post where the tactical operations are handled.
All media are given access to Carroll’s still photos and videotapes of incidents they may have missed, sometimes opting to use his material rather than send their own people out. Carroll has supplied videotapes to all three national TV networks.
The less-expensive type of videotaping equipment is carried on the van, which works fine for shooting training tapes. Broadcast quality is obtained when the tapes are duped by the TV stations and networks onto their own systems.
Carroll is also a skydiver and pilot with his own plane. During the May 1980 riots in Miami, he shot aerial photography of the riot areas from police helicopters for study by fire, police and the governor’s office.
Upgrading planned
The van’s abilities are always being upgraded, with future plans calling for the mounting of a camera platform on the roof and radio communications with all the media stations in the county.
Carroll’s wife, who is with the Dade County police communications division, fully supports his extra efforts-—a necessity since he is on 24-hour call, seven days a week. Donaldson recognized this support and gave Mrs. Carroll her own helmet and jump suit, and a radio designation of Staff 11A (John’s radio identity is Staff 11).
Because of the dedication of Carroll, and the support of Donaldson, and the help of Kaufman, the mobile photo lab has proven to be a highly successful program which has greatly benefited both the Metro-Dade Fire and Rescue Service and Miami area media. The results were achieved with minimum funding and maximum effort.
Any departments wanting further information can contact Carroll or Kaufman at Metro-Dade County Fire and Rescue Service headquarters, 6000 S.W. 87th Ave., Miami, Fla. 33173. They will be putting together an information packet, including photos and color slides, that will be available at a nominal cost, with proceeds going to the local fire buff organization.
