4 Easy Ways To Maintain A Volunteer Fire Department

This will not be an article that covers the usual options such as ISO, ICS, and NIMS. It will be one that looks at 4 vital tips that are so often overlooked in today's volunteer fire departments. These tips seem so simple yet without following them there could be destructive issues such as trust, and loyalty to the department that fall below the waist side. We must remember that a fire department is only as good as it's weakest member. Let's look at the 4 rules that need to be considered for any successful department.

4. Training!This is so vital that without it an organization is done. I am not just speaking of in house training and hands on approaches. Departments need to take advantage of other training available to them. FEMA offers a vast variety of valuable training materials and courses through it's website that can allow fire fighters to gain more knowledge in their off time. The more we know as firefighters the better we are suited to perform our jobs. If you know you will be using a thermo camera take it out and go around the community getting used to the device. If your job is to ventilate house fires visit the community you serve and visualise what you would have to do on certain homes to properly ventilate them. Training is the foundation of a good department.

3. Pride!All members of the department should take pride in their department and the community they serve. Keep your station clean and respect the other's that have to work from it. Also be a beacon in the community. Have someone from your department teach fire safety at local schools, do holiday events for the community and be seen showing that you care. One good way to do this is to host community clean up projects and even something as simple as handing flyers to people will show that you care enough to go the extra step. The community needs to have faith in you as a firefighter and a person.

2. Input! Every member should have an equal say. Understand that department heads should have the final say but no one firefighter should have authority over another. This creates a tense work environment and really starts to cause chaos in the ranks. When one firefighter is shown special treatment it gives that member a sense of superiority and causes other members to feel less important and they may tend to slack off on their duties. If a big purchase is to be made all members should know about it, not just a select few. Once again this gives the image of one firefighter being better than the others. Input can make or break a chain of success.

1. Devotion and Dedication!!! I can not stress this enough. If you have joined a department just for the sake of being able to say you are a firefighter than for God's sake quit! A true firefighter is going to show up to all training classes and events. This includes road blocks and other fund raisers. Dedication is the glue that holds a volunteer department together. Every member depends on the other for support and when one member loses the devotion to participate they put the other members at risk. If you are a department head you should be looking at the members who display the most dedication as your go to guys. So many times we see dedication misled. Dedication is not a measure of friendship outside of the station but a measure of willingness to go the extra mile inside the station and on fire grounds.

These four steps can assist in developing a working fire department that avoids petty issues that cause departments to fail.

I am a certified volunteer fire fighter with Wheelwright Fire Department and South East Fire Department where I serve as assistant trainer and public educator. I have been involved in the fire service for several years. I have been very active in the training of these two departments.