Buff Club Canteens Are Responding More Frequently
Some time ago we commented on the canteen service just started for San Diego’s fire fighters by buffs of the Pioneer Hook & Ladder Society. You don’t have to operate in the severe weather and high fire potential of the older eastern or midwestern cities to appreciate the advantages of such a service.
In some areas, though, it has been thought “soft” for men on the lines to have refreshments brought to them. Only at really major disasters, perhaps, has a canteen been called out. Some fire officers fear that men will tend to straggle away from their companies, to “hang around” the canteen vehicle. But a little patience and mutual understanding can solve this problem. As that happens, canteen runs are on the rise.
Once authorized to respond and serve only on a third or greater alarm, the Milwaukee Fire Bell Club canteen is now allowed—even encouraged—to assist at second or even first alarms depending on circumstances. Called to fires outside the city itself only two or three times between 1965 and 1975, the club canteen now responds into nearby suburban/rural areas almost once per month, as officers in a score of adjacent fire departments realize the benefits.
Similarly, in Washington, D. C., the Friendship Fire Association canteen had for many years rolled only on second or greater alarms.
Discretionary response
Reported the association in December 1977, “Fire Chief Burton W. Johnson has been so gratified by the performance of the F.F.A. members that he has authorized discretionary response by our group . . . to any fireground where nine companies are engaged, or the equivalent of a box alarm plus a task force…”
Responding to more incidents, perhaps of shorter duration each, demands an effective dispatch system. This isn’t easy for buffs, who must be reached at home or work, as for on-duty fire fighters in their stations—or volunteers who may have sirens for their cars. Clubs are handling this in a variety of ways.
In Milwaukee, a single person designated canteen dispatcher is automatically notified by the fire alarm office on all second or greater alarms within the city. Using a card dialer to speed the process, that dispatcher then calls 10 names on his canteen committee list. Each of those persons then phones one other, until all 20 members are alerted—beginning with the designated canteen driver for the month.
The only problem with this method is finding a permanent dispatcher who will always be at home. A commercial answering service is one solution. Such a service was used for many years in Washington D. C. Recently, however, when the bill for this reached $600 annually, a new system was devised.
The DCFD alarm dispatcher announces over the radio a “special dispatch” for “Car 5.” Five buffs in the F.F.A. are designated as “coordinators.” The first of them to hear the radio message acknowledges to the alarm office by phone, then starts down a pyramid call list to the other buffs. If the dispatcher receives no prompt acknowledgement, he then tries to reach a coordinator by phone.
In the typical pyramid list, the person at the top calls two others; each of them in turn calls two more, and so on down until all are notified. This system works well with about 50 members in the Box 414 Club of Baltimore.
When Seattle buffs during 1977 began expanding their operations beyond city limits, they came up with this procedure: The Seattle alarm office was given a list of buffs and their suburban living areas. Whenever a suburb needed their services as canteen workers or Red Cross volunteers, its own dispatcher was to notify Seattle, who would then call a buff “covering” that area.
Said the club’s newsletter, “It is expected that the first fire buff contacted will respond or arrange for a response. If it appears that more than one should respond to help … don’t hesitate to call others.”
Just as with fire department operations, the false alarm problem can arise in these calling arrangements. The canteen may fail to arrive when it’s needed, or show up when it isn’t wanted—sometimes to the embarrassment of all concerned. The solutions seem to be:
- Make sure a response is made only on request of the officer in charge of the emergency. In the case of fire, this would be the ranking chief officer of the jurisdiction.
- Make sure there is only one channel for notification. All calls should come through a single contact.
Fire officials can help by tunneling their own requests for buff assistance through the right channel, and also by allowing for the response time needed. For a canteen to arrive on the scene after all companies have picked up and returned to quarters is a frustration for everyone.