Two college students took a tour in the Fire Department with an assistant chief in St.
Johnsbury, Vermont, Saturday afternoon.
Mark
LaRose, an assistant chief working in the Fire Department for over a third of
his life, gave Julia and I a tour talking about the Fire Department’s history,
facilities, and his personal experience.
The
Fire department was established on October 31, 1843, with the first house
company called “The Torrent.” The department has processed five separate
volunteer companies through the town during several decades. Currently, there
are 10 full-time employees and 20 paid on-call fire fighters.
The building has two floors, the top floor has
both the working area and the bedrooms, and the bottom floor has three fire
trucks. LaRose showed a place with some comfortable sofas and a television
where they usually relax and hang out. Normally, they go to work, have lunch in
the kitchen, then watching the news on the sofa, and do their daily work.
LaRose showed his room, which is shared with
his co-workers. On the wall, several photos present the strong and close
relationships between him and his colleagues of thirty years.
“Fire fighters are like brothers,”
LaRose said.
When LaRose was pointing to the big and black
alarm surrounded by the photos, he mentioned that the alarm brought a loud
sound not only in the daytime, but during the night. He also said that he tried
to sleep when the alarm rings during the early morning when it isn’t his
responsibility. He would like it if the alarm didn’t ring during the entire
day.
LaRose then leaded the tour walking down to
the first floor and started introducing three different fire trucks, Engine
one, Rescue two and the ladder fire truck, also called The Tower.
Engine One contains 12.5 gallons water and
Rescue Two has more efficient fire equipment for rescue purposes like vehicle
rescue.
I was curious about what fire fighters need to
wear on the fire call, so I asked LaRose for the information. He turned to me
and asked with a smile on his face, “Do you want to try the uniform on?”
The uniform was too large for me to wear and
it was heavy as well. I also put the helmet on and the oxygen bottle on my
back. It took a long time for me to put all the equipment on, and finally, I
seemed like a real fire fighter with a poorly-fitting uniform.
In addition, before I tried it on, I thought
it was easy and convenient for fire fighters to rescue. However, it was beyond
my imagination. It was difficult for me to walk and to run. What’s more, it is
also hot with it on.
According to this experience, I thought that
under a high-stressful, serious and hot situation, fire fighters need to not
only wear heavy and uncomfortable uniforms but to protect themselves as well.
Also, they try their best to solve the problem and save lives.
“It is our responsibility, and it is our job,”
LaRose said.
