CT Volunteer Firefighter Accused of Setting 3 Fires

[Guest]

GROTON, Conn. (AP) - A volunteer firefighter is accused of setting three fires.

Article

[irishfire2491 24]

All I Got to say is Thank You Mr. Celtruda What a JackA$$

Another Black EYE

[Future Fireman 4]

Grrrrrr......These type of guys make me sick. :angry:

Mike

[DonMoose 3]

All I Got to say is Thank You Mr. Celtruda What a JackA$$

Another Black EYE

Yessir, yet another probationary firefighter looking to be a hero.

On a side note...Maybe I'm mistaken...(or don't remember w/e it is) I thought these types of threads were not longer allowed/kosher?

Oh well, should be a good conversation thread.

Edited August 28, 2008 by DonMoose

[JFLYNN 681]

Yessir, yet another probationary firefighter looking to be a hero.

On a side note...Maybe I'm mistaken...(or don't remember w/e it is) I thought these types of threads were not longer allowed/kosher?

Oh well, should be a good conversation thread.

Why would "these types of threads no longer be allowed/kosher"???

[xfirefighter484x 234]

Why would "these types of threads no longer be allowed/kosher"???

Probably referring to the policy of posting unrelated personal problems. This story is permissible, as it directly relates to the duties of a FF.

Read more on this policy through the link provided below:

http://www.emtbravo.net/index.php?showtopic=26668

[DonMoose 3]

Probably referring to the policy of posting unrelated personal problems. This story is permissible, as it directly relates to the duties of a FF.

Read more on this policy through the link provided below:

http://www.emtbravo.net/index.php?showtopic=26668

Ahhh, thank you. My mistake.

[IzzyEng4 427]

I know several members from Mystic Fire and they are really fuming about this. Once again some YAN-KO kid pulled moronic move. By what I have heard also is that he was a "problem child" right after he started his probie period and they were looking to can him.

Hopefully they get through this.

[xfirefighter484x 234]

Ahhh, thank you. My mistake.

Not a problem at all. Just glad some people are actually taking notice of the new policies, and trying to abide by them!

[E58RET 24]

Was this idiot "working"n the MysticFD or was he a vollie . There is a distiction that needs to be clarified!

[xfirefighter484x 234]

Was this idiot "working"n the MysticFD or was he a vollie . There is a distiction that needs to be clarified!

From the first posting:

GROTON, Conn. (AP) - A volunteer firefighter is accused of setting three fires.

I fail to see what difference it makes. The article itself states "a volunteer firefighter". Regardless, sadly, a member in our profession of "protecting and saving life and property" felt it more necessary to cause destruction for self-glorification/gratification.

You can "work" in the capacity as a volunteer, but then again, whether it be an editorial, or news article, news agencies have a way of misrepresenting things.

[SageVigiles 1,194]

Why E58, do career firefighters not set fires? Firefighter arson is not SOLELY a volunteer phenomenon. More volunteers get arrested for it because there are more volunteers than career guys out there, so I'll be willing to bet the averages are close to even.

[irishfire2491 24]

Lets not make this Volly vs Paid because everyone that does the training are CALLED Firefighters and anyone that sets Fires to damage Property or Place FF at Risk are called IDIOTS and JackA$$ in my books. I Don't See the Difference Who you really are.

[ex-commish 490]

Was this idiot "working"n the MysticFD or was he a vollie . There is a distiction that needs to be clarified!

What would any distinction matter. Regardless of his status he should hang and hang hard.

[bifd09 0]

Unfortunately, this is not the first time this has happened, nor will it be the last. I know of at least one ff (a chief) who was convicted of burning down a friend's barn ... and after a few years in jail, he actually approached the department and asked to rejoin it.

It points to the need for a better screening process for both vollies and career firefighters. It might be a simple matter to check if an applicant has been convicted of arson or another crime but the critical question is how can a fire dept reliably screen its applicants to assure they're not going to become arsonists?

[FFPCogs 863]

First off I have been paid to fight fires in a contract capacity, but I am a volunteer FF... so theres no bias here.

One possible reason why career fire dept.s are not AS plagued by arsonists in the ranks is many require psycological exams as part of the hiring process. Many volunteer dept's are not in a position financially to "test" every applicant. This does not mean career FFs are better, only that their resources prior to active service generally provide a better "look" at a candidate.

Sadly this phenomenon has and will continue to plague the fire service. There is no way to ensure that EVERY FF is not a potential arsonist, this is one area where by circumstance we are mostly reacitive. But Dept.'s paid and especially volunteer must scutinize their membership and address any unusual occurences, such as an increase in false alrms, dumpster fires, ect. The arsonist FF usually follows a pattern of escalating incidents, so vigilance can help stop it before it gets out of hand. We can't afford the luxury of thinking "this can't happen here".

With any luck this guy will get the punishment he deserves, the treatment he needs and someday move on to live a productive life...away form any firehouse.

Cogs

Edited August 30, 2008 by FFPCogs

[Bnechis 3,961]

One possible reason why career fire dept.s are not AS plagued by arsonists in the ranks is many require psycological exams as part of the hiring process. Many volunteer dept's are not in a position financially to "test" every applicant. This does not mean career FFs are better, only that their resources prior to active service generally provide a better "look" at a candidate.

Other reasons include: Age, Supply & Demand and Activity level.

Age:Probationary Career FF's are generally much older, with more responsabilities (homes, families, etc.). Our average age in probie school is between 28 and 34. A majority of vol. probies are still teens.

S&D. How many VFD's are in a position to turn away potential members? How many career depts have a long waiting list (often with 100's of applicants). When we screen potential new ff's the law requires we interview 3 people for every 1 position.

When you do 100's or 1000's of calls you are less likely to be looking for excitement.

[Remember585 815]

All I know is I had to do a double take. I thought it said Croton - then realized it was Groton.

Phew!

All kidding aside, fire starting firefighters is more of a problem in volunteer departments because members JOIN looking for social acceptance or to be cast in that "Hero's spotlight." Sadly, many times, they have to create incidents to make themselves look good, and this sometimes turns into them lighting fires. Paid departments have a testing procedure which usually includes a psych test to help weed out the nut jobs.