One profession which could be considered the most exhausting during Florida’s summer time season, is being a firefighter, especially when it comes to wearing full fire protection gear while trying to extinguish a out-of-control blaze.
John Reble, Fire Chief of the Milton Fire Department, said his crew of first responders must be mindful of what Florida’s rising temperatures can do to a body.
“We have to be very careful,” Reble said. “There really is no way to cool the gear down or cool them down once they are in the gear.”
Should firefighters respond to a structure fire or any scenario in which they are suited in full gear, the fire commander on scene must keep an watchful eye over the first response crew.
“(Firefighters) get in the mode and their adrenaline gets going and so the incident commanders must keep an eye on them and limit time involved,” Reble said.
Reble said it is important for firefighters to keep from getting dehydrated.
“Once you start observing the signs of dehydration, it’s too late,” Reble said. “So the idea is to head that off and when we get out there in the summer heat.”
Whenever possible, Reble said his firefighters stay cool with air conditioning when conducting regular training to refrain from dealing with the heat. He said he also limits outside training exercises and other activities, including vehicle and fire hydrant maintenance.
“We try to limit that when it’s hot, so the guys are not exhausted before they get the first call,” Reble said. “Sometimes, we don’t have that luxury.”
Reble said there have been a few instances when the department has sent a firefighter to the emergency room due to dehydration.
“It happens, we have been on some fires lately where it just zaps the guys,” Reble said. “So it ends up taking a lot more man power, because you can’t really get as much out of them as you ordinarily would.”
However, with assistance from neighboring fire departments, including area volunteer-based departments, Reble said such demanding calls can be more manageable. However, depending on any day of unforeseen emergency calls, the department must always be ready.
“It’s what we deal with and we try to anticipate and manage,” he said.
Although Florida’s summer time heat may not favor firefighters, Reble said there is a consider upside to being a Florida firefighter, especially during the cooler times of year.
“Come January, we thank God we live in Florida and not up north,” Reble said. “Because we don’t have frozen fire hydrants and hoses frozen solid.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Fire Chief: Firefighters must prepare for summertime heat