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Last Answer on June 29, 2022

I am considering joining the local VFD in about 4 years when I'm 17. From your experience, between being a FF and an EMT, which one might be better suited for a teenager still in high school?
Thank you.

Asked by 123 about 11 years ago

There are departments that have explorer programs that start at your age. You can check with the Boy Scouts of America to see if there is one near you. Law Enforcement does the same. I might suggest that you check with your local community college to see if they have dual courses where you get high school and college credit for the class. This can be a signficant boost to a career if you are able to get you EMT in your senior year. Firefighting and EMS are trending to be handled by the fire department.

1041 Votes

What is the typical rank system in a career FD vs. a VFD? Are there ranks such as corporal that do not lead a unit but are still ranked? Thanks.

Asked by 123 about 11 years ago

Starting from the bottom to the top.

Firefighter- Private

Senior Firefighter-Corporal

Engineer- Sergeant- Driver Operator

Lieutenant

Captain

Division Chief

Battalion Chief

Assitant Chief

Chief

Fire Commissioner.

This is a standard but can be listed as a different title.

1040 Votes

So you wanna be a Firefighter?

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I live in a city and always see other drivers tossing lit cigarette butts out of their car windows. Does this pose any sort of fire risk? Does a tossed cigarette butt have the potential to cause a house fire?

Asked by mm4884 about 11 years ago

The answer to that is yes. California is a prime example with the high fire danger they have especially this time of the year. The flung cigarette still is a hot ember when it is ejected. Beside the fact that it is a peice of litter that takes many years to break down in the environment.

1034 Votes

Hello! I'm doing a research for a story i'm writing on firefighters and what they go through during a house fire. May i contact you via e-mail?

Asked by ----- about 11 years ago

palmettoss@yahoo.com

1027 Votes

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If a 4-man truck company is told to do search-and-rescue on a burning house, (and they are following the 2 in 2 out rule) will the "2 out" typically be in the same company? If so, will the officer typically go in or stay outside? Same for engines?

Asked by 23 about 11 years ago

Usually you keep 2 expeirence FF on the team, If you can have a full crew together is even better. The Officer typically will go with the first one. Depends on the size of the department.

1022 Votes

Do firefighters have to fill out reports for each incident they respond to? What kinds of things do these reports include?

Asked by Ace about 11 years ago

Yes, We fill out reports called NFIRS- National Fire Incident Reporting System. We have two components that we use. The first one is fire calls which records what type of call, manpower levels, resources reponded and nature of call which if it is a fire it calls for description of what was burning, where it started along with a narrative of the incident. When we respond to medical calls we are Advance Life Support crews and a incident report that records type of call, who and what responded and statistical info of pt along nature of call and what we did for the patient. Our statistics for these calls are used for fire specifics which can be used to determine what you pay for home insurance and the medical is used for medical reporting statistics along with insurance payments. It should be noted that even though we have HIPPA laws the fire reports are public information except the medical reports which are medical records and are not available to the public.

1018 Votes

How many different radio channels will be used when a fire happens? Is there a separate channel for the initial dispatching of the units and for the units that are on scene? What about the FFs in the building?

Asked by 345 about 11 years ago

Yes, dependent on the size of the departments they will initially dispatch a call on the main channel and then have units that are responding move to an assigned channel. Firefighters usually operate on a fireground channel that is a lesser frequency strength and keeps communications from ground crews confined to the call. The incident commander will monitor several channels on larger incidents.

1016 Votes

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Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I am considering joining the local VFD in about 4 years when I'm 17. From your experience, between being a FF and an EMT, which one might be better suited for a teenager still in high school?
Thank you.

What is the typical rank system in a career FD vs. a VFD? Are there ranks such as corporal that do not lead a unit but are still ranked? Thanks.

So you wanna be a Firefighter?

I live in a city and always see other drivers tossing lit cigarette butts out of their car windows. Does this pose any sort of fire risk? Does a tossed cigarette butt have the potential to cause a house fire?

Hello! I'm doing a research for a story i'm writing on firefighters and what they go through during a house fire. May i contact you via e-mail?

Also on Jobstr...

If a 4-man truck company is told to do search-and-rescue on a burning house, (and they are following the 2 in 2 out rule) will the "2 out" typically be in the same company? If so, will the officer typically go in or stay outside? Same for engines?

Do firefighters have to fill out reports for each incident they respond to? What kinds of things do these reports include?

How many different radio channels will be used when a fire happens? Is there a separate channel for the initial dispatching of the units and for the units that are on scene? What about the FFs in the building?

Firefighter

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I am considering joining the local VFD in about 4 years when I'm 17. From your experience, between being a FF and an EMT, which one might be better suited for a teenager still in high school?Thank you.

What is the typical rank system in a career FD vs. a VFD? Are there ranks such as corporal that do not lead a unit but are still ranked? Thanks.

So you wanna be a Firefighter?

I live in a city and always see other drivers tossing lit cigarette butts out of their car windows. Does this pose any sort of fire risk? Does a tossed cigarette butt have the potential to cause a house fire?

Hello! I'm doing a research for a story i'm writing on firefighters and what they go through during a house fire. May i contact you via e-mail?

Also on Jobstr...

If a 4-man truck company is told to do search-and-rescue on a burning house, (and they are following the 2 in 2 out rule) will the "2 out" typically be in the same company? If so, will the officer typically go in or stay outside? Same for engines?

Do firefighters have to fill out reports for each incident they respond to? What kinds of things do these reports include?

How many different radio channels will be used when a fire happens? Is there a separate channel for the initial dispatching of the units and for the units that are on scene? What about the FFs in the building?

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I am considering joining the local VFD in about 4 years when I'm 17. From your experience, between being a FF and an EMT, which one might be better suited for a teenager still in high school?
Thank you.