He May Have A Point

“We don’t do as well on these multiple-choice tests,” said Capt. Otis Jordan, president of the Houston Black Firefighters Association. Jordan and the HBFA are not part of the suit. “I compare fighting a fire, riding an apparatus, to playing football. Your best athlete might not be the straight-A student.”

Click image for story.

Source: Houston Chronicle

I think OJ (Otis Jordan) has a point, though it's not what he intended, and it's something that white firefighters would get pilloried for mentioning. The main point is not that blacks are less intelligent than whites; it's that multiple choice tests are probably the least effective means of selecting competent fire officers, especially at the lower ranks.

I've done well on competitive multiple choice examinations, but I admit that the skill set they test has almost nothing to do with whether or not you'd be an effective fire officer. What they test are the skills of rote memorization, dogged perseverance and a certain ability to mindlessly digest mounds of trivia and regurgitate it on command--i.e. a skill set that rewards a certain thick-headed personality type. Consider it a form of affirmative action for bovine bureaucrats.

What makes a good fire officer? Things like: *courage, * quick decision-making ability under pressure,* strong ethics, * people skills, * leadership charisma and, * especially at the lower ranks, raw physical fitness. This is the same skill set that makes a good football quarterback or an infantry platoon leader in the Army.

Defenders of written tests say, "Well, they're fair." To which I say: drawing names out of a hat would be fair. There must be a better way to pick effective fire officers. 

What I Did Wednesday Night

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Actually, I was only an observer (which was fun; I got to take these pictures). District 19B ran this fire. It was the second in a series of (probably arson) fires that District X responded to within a period of maybe twenty minutes. Engine A arrived on scene first, initiated offensive attack, was withdrawn after District X ordered defensive attack. 

This was first time acting engineer on E-A pumped on a working structure fire. He had supply line laid and attack lines properly pressured upon our arrival (about five minutes after dispatch).

District X's defensive attack brought the fire under control in about 15 minutes.

Here's the Google street view of the (abandoned) house before the fire.

Trouble Recruiting Black Firefighters

Click image for story. Source: Denver Post

This is a puzzling problem* seen throughout the country. Blacks have been very successful in the military. You would think they'd be as good a fit in municipal fire departments. There are a number of black fire chiefs nation wide, but departments consistently have trouble with black rank-and-file recruitment. 

In my own department race relations are a mixed bag, though probably more positive than in most departments or other organizations. I've worked (fought fire and made EMS responses)  with some outstanding black firefighters and paramedics through the years. We have blacks in our command staff (no black fire chief yet; though a likely future candidate is African American) and a black union president. Race relations in the stations is generally good, with some strange examples of self-segregation at specific stations.

Blacks in the fire service, and race relations within departments, are important topics that I intend to blog more about in the future. 

* If relatively few blacks are interested in fire service careers, is that really a problem? Not sure. There are very few Asians in the fire service, but you don't see newspapers running hand-wringing stories about that.

Private EMS Driver Critically Injured

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Many of us paid/municipal/volunteer FFs/EMT(P)s don't much care about private emergency providers, don't consider them "one of us." 

We should. Private EMS can be valuable allies in providing emergency services. 

Source: WPBF

More from Firegeezer.

Screamers

Jay Lowry has great thoughts on maintaining a calm voice in radio transmissions. (At about 10 minutes into the podcast.)

I comment: OUTSTANDING comments on maintaining a calm voice in radio transmissions. Couldn't agree more. Whether you're rolling up first on-scene, or in command, a calm voice on the radio creates a positive feedback loop. Even if you don't feel calm, if you sound calm on the radio, those responding are more likely to react that way--and so will you as things run smoothly.

EMT Shot and Killed By Patient

I'm a little late on this, but...

Northern NY police: patient shot and killed EMT

January 31, 2009

CAPE VINCENT, N.Y. - Police in northern New York are investigating the death of a 25-year-old emergency medical technician who they say was shot and killed by a patient he was trying to help. 

Mark Davis died after he was shot in the Canadian border town of Cape Vincent late Friday. According to police reports, Davis and two others responded to the home of 25-year-old Christopher Burke and were treating him when he became agitated, got a high-powered rifle and fired two shots, hitting Davis. 

It wasn't immediately clear who called for the EMTs or why. Davis was working with the with the Cape Vincent Volunteer Fire Department. 

Burke was arraigned Saturday morning on charges of second-degree murder and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. 

Source: Newsday

111 Earn Coveted Darwin Prize in Kenya.

"Molo, Kenya - At least 111 people died in Kenya when an overturned petrol tanker exploded as people swarmed over it to scoop up leaking fuel in one of the region's worst such accidents, officials said on Sunday..."

"Some witness accounts said the spill may have been started when someone lit a cigarette..."

Source: IOL, South Africa