Safety is essential
Arthur C. Smith
Secretary
New York Board of Fire Underwriters
New York, New York
The February 1997 Letters to the Editor was ablaze with the controversy you evidently ignited by past editorials regarding firefighter safety. As I read the letters, I became aware of the full spectrum of firefighter perceptions of safety. At one end was what was perceived as overregulation, or as one firefighter put it, “Real firefighters are wasting away at the hands of the safety patrol.” At the other end of the spectrum are those who attack you for what they see as condoning unsafe acts and “insinuate that safety is synonymous with cowardice.” If nothing else is accomplished, at least you have gotten people to reveal just how they personally see the subject of safety and its impact on their ability to perform.
Safety has been and continues to be a hard sell to many in the fire service, where the John Wayne image persists. One writer refers to the “phonies” involved in establishing safety standards. To those who feel this way, I point out that NFPA committees addressing this issue are from every walk of the fire service. Included on the committees is representation from individual fire departments, the IAFF, the NVFC, and the IAFC, all of whom feel they are better at establishing safety guidelines than someone who has not “walked in your shoes,” like OSHA or other agencies.
I am sure that none of the writers are advocating a return to the conditions that prevailed 20 or 30 years ago, when there was little, if any, in the way of protective equipment or, more importantly, concern over death and injuries to firefighters. This was also a time when most civilians and governments believed that injury and death were part of the job, often because that`s what we told them. But I`m sure none of us would want this to continue.
Tom Brennan points out in his letter how important basics are. I am sure we all agree with him and accept safety as a basic ingredient like personal protective equipment that not only enables the job to get done but ensures our going home rather than to a hospital. The irony of his statements is dramatically magnified by the cover and related pictures of the Fire Focus article (“Townhouse Fires,” February 1997). All one has to do is examine these photos to see many “basic” safety rules that were evidently ignored. Should we turn a blind eye toward these photos and explain them away by saying “You don`t know the conditions on arrival, so you can`t point a finger at these firefighters”? Or more, should we use this example to show others what should not be happening? You must answer this question truthfully to yourself. Your answer will tell you where you stand on safety.
