There is no doubt the acts of Firefighter Dan Santos were truly the selfless deeds of a hero and deserve all of the praise that comes from placing another`s life before one`s own. I take issue with Bill Manning`s criticism of safety in the fire service.
Fire Engineering states on its cover that it has been “Training the Fire Service for 120 Years,” but has the editor learned anything from those 120 years of training? Valor and heroism are hallmarks of the fire service, but should they be held up as the only light to guide a firefighter`s action at the scene of an emergency? Safety does have a place in the fire service, and it does not need to run afoul of our primary mission.
Just as traffic lights at school crossings are memorials to dead children, so are safety rules memorials to dead or injured firefighters. The first thing I was taught as a new firefighter during essentials was “think.” Size-up is more than “How big is the building?” and “Where is the fire?” It is also “What is the risk involved?” and “What is the benefit?” Would I have opted to jump after the woman as did Firefighter Santos? No, I freely admit to lacking the intestinal fortitude required to jump 130 feet into a river. Does this make me a coward unworthy of claiming fire service affiliation? I do not think that it would any more than pausing to don an SCBA before entering a fire building to effect a rescue, but would Manning accuse me of shirking my duty because I took the time to act safely? Our job, whether it is career or volunteer, is more than just getting in there and putting the fire out; people and resources must be managed and accounted for so that any risk taken on behalf of another is minimized.
Safety and courage are not mutually exclusive, and both have places in the fire service. Discretion is the better part of valor, and I personally would rather go to a medal ceremony than a funeral service.
Edward Bradley
Lieutenant
Valley Cottage (NY) Fire Department
