Why do you run into fires? Help with a paper

[Guest]

Im a student writting a paper on this subject and i need to ask:

why do you run into burning buildings when everyone else is running out?

Please include your :

Name (however you would like to be called)

Fire department/s you belong too

Brief explanation

Explanation will be quoted!

Thanks you for all the help in advance

[AS702 0]

I've asked myself that too..

I haven't come up with an answer yet..

Sometimes you're just born into it..

[Guest]

I've asked myself that too..

I haven't come up with an answer yet..

Sometimes you're just born into it..

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ok ok ,anyone else help me out ?

[Jybehofd 85]

Why do you run into burning buildings when everyone else is running out? This has to be one of the hardest questions for any person to answer. Why do we do what we do?? Well most people will tell you they do it because they enjoy doing it, like the rush of the action, or just like the challenges that come along with it. But me personally I have no clue why, but I am drawn to it. It might have something to do with me being in a bad car accident when I was a teenager and feel like repaying and helping the community that helped me. I was the first one in my family to join the volunteer department, then my father, my mother and then finally my younger brother. Now it has become something of a family thing. I have asked them this question when they joined my father said the typical father thing “he is not going in with out me”. When I asked my mother (she is just an emt) “You and dad are having fun, and it looks like fun too”. When I asked my brother he said “why not, I am not going to be the odd one out”. Granted my family is really close. But I can’t explain why they all joined or even figure it out. But what I do find amazing is how great everyone in my department works and plays together. Its like we were all made to be together by some unknown bond. I am sorry if this sounds really vague or an unclear answer but it is.

Brian Fleming “Moose”

Armonk FD

[Guest]

Why do you run into burning buildings when everyone else is running out?  This has to be one of the hardest questions for any person to answer. Why do we do what we do?? Well most people will tell you they do it because they enjoy doing it, like the rush of the action, or just like the challenges that come along with it.  But me personally I have no clue why, but I am drawn to it.  It might have something to do with me being in a bad car accident when I was a teenager and feel like repaying and helping the community that helped me. I was the first one in my family to join the volunteer department, then my father, my mother and then finally my younger brother. Now it has become something of a family thing.  I have asked them this question when they joined my father said the typical father thing “he is not going in with out meâ€.  When I asked my mother (she is just an emt) “You and dad are having fun, and it looks like fun tooâ€.  When I asked my brother he said “why not, I am not going to be the odd one outâ€.  Granted my family is really close.  But I can’t explain why they all joined or even figure it out.  But what I do find amazing is how great everyone in my department works and plays together. Its like we were all made to be together by some unknown bond.  I am sorry if this sounds really vague or an unclear answer but it is.

Brian Fleming “Mooseâ€

Armonk FD

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That was good made some good points, that will be used ! thank you very much

keep them coming!

[ohbdow1 6]

It’s definitely a calling. Why do some people come to be School Teachers, Priests, and Police Officers? They don’t do it for money, they don’t do it for fame, they do it because it will make a difference, they do it because deep down in the part of your soul it makes you, you. The same for a Fire Fighter, it describes the person, whether it be as a Volunteer or as a Career FF. If you train well at the beginning of your journey to become a Fire Fighter then someday along the way you will make a difference. It could be saving a life or, protecting property or as simple as brining the home owner a photograph that could never be replaced out of that burning building. Imagine the feeling that you would have when you give that child whose house is in ruins the stuffed animal they sleep with every night. To the making of a Fire Fighter goes many years…..to the desire to be a Fire Fighter, it is born with you.

A simple Public Servant

[Guest]

Imagine the feeling that you would have when you give that child whose house is in ruins the stuffed animal they sleep with every night.  To the making of a Fire Fighter goes many years…..to the desire to be a Fire Fighter, it is born with you.

A simple Public Servant

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Im an Explorer but the reason why I want to progress in the service is.....well, ohbdow1 made it pretty clear (Both Parts). But also one of my Grandfathers was a FF and one was a PO. So now my brother is a Cop and im the next to carry on the FF'ing in the family.

Now, I dont know if thats going to help you with your paper but thats where im coming from. Hope it helps you out.

-Chris

Edited September 12, 2006 by NRFDTL11Buff

[Guest SQUADco119]

Hmmmmm? Well first off i would hope that the major reason we all do the job is to protect lives and property. Everyone has a a bunch of reasons that differ from one another but for the most part we all say the same thing ,to help people, the adrenaline rush, you get to ride on a big truck with lights and sirens on it, the brother/sisterhood, born to do the job, its fun. Whatever drives me you or any other firefighter out there isnt what counts what counts is that we do it some dont even know why but they do it. Its amazing no matter how stressed i get with my firehouse and department i just cant seem to ever turn my pager off to not go away on vacation without thinking about what calls i missed after every call i replay it in my head, when im at work ill daydream about size up how i can better myself as a frefighter. No matter what it just seems like im stuck as a firefighter and you know what im ok with that. Sometimes you wonder atleast me anyway is it rerally woth it? You know the stress, putting your life on the line for someone else etc hbell yeah it is. All the time we put in is all worth when the pager goes off and you get to help someone whatever the call or task may be not only that, you get to do with a bunch of great guys who love doing it to. Its kinda funny i here guys at the firehouse including myself say i hate this place sometimes its so stressfull but you know what i have never said or heard any firefighter say before, that they hate the job. Thats what its all about loving what you do and bygod o ilove what i do.

[Guest]

Hmmmmm? Well first off i would hope that the major reason we all do the job is to protect lives and property. Everyone has a a bunch of reasons that differ from one another but for the most part we all say the same thing ,to help people, the adrenaline rush, you get to ride on a big truck with lights and sirens on it, the brother/sisterhood, born to do the job, its fun. Whatever drives me you or any other firefighter out there isnt what counts what counts is that we do it some dont even know why but they do it. Its amazing no matter how stressed i get with my firehouse and department i just cant seem to ever turn my pager off to not go away on vacation without thinking about what calls i missed after every call i replay it in my head, when im at work ill daydream about size up how i can better myself as a frefighter. No matter what it just seems like im stuck as a firefighter and you know what im ok with that. Sometimes you wonder atleast me anyway is it rerally woth it? You know the stress, putting your life on the line for someone else etc hbell yeah it is. All the time we put in is all worth  when the pager goes off and you get to help someone whatever the call or task may be not only that, you get to do with a bunch of great guys who love doing it to. Its kinda funny i here guys at the firehouse including myself say i hate this place sometimes its so stressfull but you know what i have never said or heard any firefighter say before, that they hate the job. Thats what its all about loving what you do and bygod o ilove what i do.

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thanks alot to everyone who has posted I can now write the rest of this paper !

also SQUADco119 do you have a name I could call you by and your fire department?

[Guest]

Im a student writting a paper on this subject and i need to ask:

why do you run into burning buildings when everyone else is running out?

Please include your :

Name  (however you would like to be called)

Fire department/s you belong too

Brief explanation

Explanation will be quoted!

Thanks you for all the help in advance

←

you picked a good time to ask. Yesterday caused me to "philosophize" that exact question. Heres a little of what i came up with. Most of it is just a longwinded way of saying what others already have. Its a little rough still, but if you are like me, this project is due tomorrow and you need immediate help.

Why do firefighters run into a burning building when everyone else is running out? Why did those 343 run into the twin towers? Is it just because it is a job or is it something more? Our chosen profession (career and volunteer are both professionals at their jobs) is much more than just a job, it is truly a calling. Most people can go through the motions of being a firefighter. Showing up to drills and meetings, maybe sweeping glass of a highway after a car accident, but when that structure fire tones out at 2 am its a different story. What kind of person will run in to check for those small children who may be trapped? Strongwillled, adventurer, reckloose, servant, are only a few of the adjectives that can be used to describe this person. These are traits that have permeated throughout America’s history and can be attributed to some of our greatest heroes. There are perks to the job, such as riding a big fire truck with lights and sirens, finding yourself in new and challenging situations each day, and that certain satisfaction of knowing that you made a difference in some ones life. Those reasons are quite liberating but they don’t help us understand why anyone in their right mind would go into a burning building. The ethos of firefighting is full of intangibles that relate to family, camaraderie, and pride.

Many firefighters are born into the profession. Their parents, uncles, grandparents, brothers, and sisters may all belong. The spirit of firefighting is easily passed from generation to generation. As it grows as part of the identity of the individual, it grows to define a family. I am sure that if a poll of firefighters was ever conducted, more than half would have a family history in the fire service. Seeing your father dash out during dinner to make a difference can heavily influence young children to have a great desire to emulate that example.

Firefighting is one of the quintessential professions of America. From the early beginnings with Benjamin Franklin to the FDNY, what many claim to be the most elite firefighting organization the world has ever seen, strong men and women put their lives on the line each and everyday so that others may live. Heroes from our past inspire today’s firefighters to their feats of greatness. Nobody wants think that they are letting down the traditions set by those who have gone before. To do so would not only shame them that day, but leave a black mark on their house for years to come. This sense of history grows until the entire group is steeped in a special kind of dignity. Firefighters understand that to know where they are going, they must look to their past.

There is a certain pride and nobility that comes with deciding to risk your life everyday for complete strangers. A special brotherhood forms that is incomprehensible to most outsiders. With the exception of the military and the police (both noble professions), it is nearly impossible to find elsewhere in society. It may be that they are seeking a thrill, to prove something, or just have an appreciation for fellow mankind that brings them to firefighting, but it is this bond that keeps them coming back for more danger and excitement. To be a part of a privileged few who know that no matter what happens, your friends will be there for you, to know that they will make a superhuman effort to save you if you become trapped, and do the same for any victim, has special appeal to firefighters. The communal sacrifice of sweat and blood only draws firefighters tighter together. Firefighters become closer than family, they become comrades in arms, a special bond that transcends race, age, and religion.

Through this, firefighting infuses itself with the blood. Firefighting grows from "just something to do", to a hobby, to a profession, then in its highest form, it becomes you. When this highest of ideals is reached, everyday actions become governed by self-improvement as a firefighter. Thoughts constantly stray to know if you are missing something. Could I have helped? Could I have done it better? Did I miss a chance to grow with my brothers? By this point, it is nearly impossible for that firefighter to explain to others why he does it. They just do.

Proud to be a Marine, Firefighter, and an American

[Guest]

Its a little rough still, but if you are like me, this project is due tomorrow and you need immediate help.

Right I do !

I was hoping for one more persons point of view thanks alot for your time and help

Edited September 13, 2006 by jdmferiodrvr45

[Guest]

We do what we do, that being what most do quite oppositely, because it's our nature. It's not something easily explained with great detail. We help those who can't help themselves. We try to preserve the decimation of ones lively possessions, and of their lives. Our task is simple in it's content, but literally difficult to endure. We manage. Some say it's following family tradition. Others, like myself, we just do it, it's what we live for.

B. Reichlin

Mountain Lodge Fire Company

Salisbury Mills Fire District

Orange County, NY

[Guest Rich DD]

I run in because of the obvious. So that a life may be saved. But beyond the life are the objects that bring living purpose. In that home are objects that deseve to be saved. Their first coutch, or the pictures that have grown through the years as did their family.

Their pet snake, or their pet dog.

It maybe the first plate their daughter made for them in school.

Why I run in? Because every business have people attached to their walls like pictures on the walls of a home. The owner may have spent many years building on his business that supports him self or his/her family.

A-side from that.... its the employees who maybe trapped. And if they aren't trapped they still have a job. A job that depends on the buliding it-self and the equipment inside.

Why do I run in?... its easy. The people who depend on me for their lives need me too.

Richard Deldonna,

Little Egg Harbor Fire District #2

Edited September 13, 2006 by Rich DD

[uvfd67 0]

Heres the way I see it were all in it to help in a time of need whatever that is. I do this to just be there to help my friends and neighbors and thats why I love doing it. You may never get thanked for what you did and more than likely were gonna get belittled but in the long run it works out for the best because when you get up to those pearly gates lord willing that its a long time from now that were all gonna be asked what did you do to help your fellow man. All i can say to that is i tried my best to help.

Mike Murphy

Union Vale Fire Co.

and Rescue squad

Union Vale N.Y.

[Guest]

Heres the way I see it were all in it to help in a time of need whatever that is. I do this to just be there to help my friends and neighbors and thats why I love doing it. You may never get thanked for what you did and more than likely were gonna get belittled but in the long run it works out for the best because when you get up to those pearly gates lord willing that its a long time from now that were all gonna be asked what did you do to help your fellow man. All i can say to that is i tried my best to help.

Mike Murphy

Union Vale Fire Co.

and Rescue squad

Union Vale N.Y.

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Thanks to everyone for all there help !this is also a good way to see what other memebers are in this field for - thanks again !

Edited September 13, 2006 by jdmferiodrvr45

[res6cue 67]

It was just something I was born into and have never, ever wanted to be anything other than a firefighter. My uncle (retired BC, FDNY) would take me to his house in da Bronx (E68/L49) all the time when I was growing up. I mean, I was so young when he first started taking me that I was literally in diapers. From the time I could walk, I was already climbing all over the rigs. I was fascinated by the sights and sounds and smells. To this day, the smell of diesel fuel just brings me right back to being 4 years old and standing next to the wheels of the rig and realizing I was just barely taller than them. He used to sneak me out on runs with them and take me out to the beach every summer for the company picnic. I grew up around firefighters and I was hooked from the word go. I'm sure I had a sense of the good they were doing even from a very young age, but that became very clear once I became a firefighter myself.

Chris

Hillcrest FD

[Guest alsfirefighter]

I know its a paraphrase, but I don't run into burning buildings, I walk. Many of my colleagues I work with, walk, the students I teach, I preach to walk.

Why. I walk to take it all in. The personal size up, to take that last breath of fresh open air, in case its my last. To see the engine laying in and the aerial being raised. Someday I'll be too old to see it and do it. Why do we do it. Because its the greatest job on the planet. I tell that to everyone whom wants to do this for a career. You do it because most people won't, you do it knowing in the back of your mind people need you. The guy next to you needs you and don't let anyone kill you, you also do it in the back of your mind a little, for yourself.