Firefighting in the United States
Encyclopedia
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
in 1631, the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
passed a law banning smoking in public places. In 2003 in the United States there were approximately 800,000 volunteer firefighters and 300,000 professional firefighters. The Firemen's Association of the State of New York (FASNY) has been providing information, education and training for the volunteer fire and emergency medical services throughout New York State since 1872.
The professionalization of American firefighting was largely a result of three factors: the steam fire engines, the fire insurance companies, that demanded the municipalization of firefighting, and an ideology which suggested that payment of wages would naturally result in improved service. The American firefighters are represented and united in the International Association of Fire Fighters
International Association of Fire Fighters
The International Association of Fire Fighters is a labor union representing professional firefighters in the United States and Canada. The IAFF was formed in 1918 and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO in the United States and the Canadian Labour Congress in Canada. The IAFF is headquartered in...
with the headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
The United States Fire Administration
United States Fire Administration
The United States Fire Administration is a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency which in turn is managed by the Department of Homeland Security located in unincorporated Frederick County, Maryland, near Emmitsburg.-History:...
provides national leadership to local fire services. The fire department
Fire department
A fire department or fire brigade is a public or private organization that provides fire protection for a certain jurisdiction, which typically is a municipality, county, or fire protection district...
s report fires and other incidents according to the National Fire Incident Reporting System
National Fire Incident Reporting System
The National Fire Incident Reporting System is a system established by the National Fire Data Center of the United States Fire Administration , a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The System was established following the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 The...
, which maintains records of the incidents in a uniform manner. The National Fire Protection Association
National Fire Protection Association
The National Fire Protection Association is a United States trade association that creates and maintains private, copywrited, standards and codes for usage and adoption by local governments...
sets and maintains minimum standards and requirements for firefighting duties and equipment. The suppression of wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
s is regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture, US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This is done through the National Wildland Coordination Center.
The two million fire calls that American fire departments respond to each year represent the highest figures in the industrialized world. Thousands of people die each year, tens of thousands of people are injured, and property damages reach the billions of dollars. Indirect costs, such as temporary lodging expenses, lost time at work, medical expenses, and psychological damages are equally alarming (The United States Fire Administration 1996).
According to American Red Cross statistics, the annual losses from floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters combined in the United States average just a fraction of those from fires. House fires in particular are one of the most common tragedies
Tragedy (event)
A tragedy is an event in which one or more losses, usually of human life, occurs that is viewed as mournful. Such an event is said to be tragic....
facing emergency disaster workers in recent history. According to the US Fire Administration, the United States has a more severe fire problem than generally perceived. In inner city Pennsylvania neighborhoods, house fires have greatly increased, especially in socially and economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. An alarming trend in these specific house fires is that sixty percent of these houses do not have working smoke detectors. Additionally, these households are prone to using supplemental heating devices and substandard extension cords that are not Underwriters Laboratories (UL) compliant. UL compliant extension cords are labeled with valuable information as to the use, size, and rating of the cord (Dunston, 2008, p. 2).
History
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch colonial settlement that served as the capital of New Netherland. It later became New York City....
established the colonies' first firefighting system in 1647. Fire wardens inspected the houses and chimneys, fining for potential hazard. An eight-man team called a rattle watch patrolled the streets at night. When a fire was detected, they shook wooden rattles to alert townspeople. In 1711 the concerned Americans formed the so-called mutual fire societies of approximately twenty members each. When fire struck a society member, other members rushed for assistance. The first water-pumping engines were imported to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in the 1730s. In 1736 Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
founded the first American volunteer fire company in Philadelphia. Such companies were soon organized in other colonies. Among those who served as volunteer firefighters were George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
, John Hancock
John Hancock
John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...
, Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American...
and Paul Revere
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride...
. Volunteer firefighters were honored with frequent stanza
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
s in urban newspapers and made the subject of heroizing prints by the popular American printmaking firm Currier & Ives. In 1818 the first known female firefighter Molly Williams
Molly Williams
Molly Williams was the first known female firefighter in the United States. An African American, she was held as a slave belonging to a New York City merchant by the name of Benjamin Aymar who was affiliated with the Oceanus Engine Company #11 in 1818. During her time in the company she was called...
rose to prominence in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, when she took her place with the men on the dragropes and pulled the pumper to the fire through the deep snow.
In the early days of the fire service, fire departments were, more or less, social organizations in the community. And, being an accepted member meant a certain social status in the community. Remnants of that social status can still be found today in the traditional style firefighter's helmets that resemble top hats worn by the early firefighters. Monies that were used to help fund the organization were obtained by insurance company payouts from fighting fires. Firefighters could easily tell just who had fire insurance and who didn't by fire insurance marks
Fire insurance marks
Fire insurance marks were lead or copper plaques embossed with the sign of the insurance company, and placed on the front of the insured building as a guide to the insurance company's fire brigade. They are common in the older areas of Britain's and America's cities and larger towns...
located on the front of the home. Oftentimes it was a problem for homeowners who did not have insurance to have the fire department respond to a fire in their home and effectively remove belongings and such because the firefighters knew that there wouldn't be any money in it for them.
By the 1850s and 1860s the reputation of volunteer firefighters hit extremely low. Amidst accusations of rioting, disorder and inefficiency the majority of volunteer firefighting forces in the United States were being replaced by fire departments. American firefighters built, designed or assigned specifications for their equipment. Particularly, they dedicated themselves to the engines and viewed them as integral to the fire company identity. The first fire companies - the Union Fire Company, the Columbia Fire Company and the Anacostia Fire Company were organized in 1804 to serve the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, the Capitol
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
and the neighborhood of Anacostia in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
respectively. By the 1840s and 1850s the differences between companies within the same city had become quite significant. In 1853 Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
became the first city with a fully paid fire department. In 1855 the Metropolitan Hook and Ladder Company Number 1 Firehouse, Washington's oldest extant firehouse, was built at Massachusetts Avenue
Massachusetts Avenue (Washington, D.C.)
Massachusetts Avenue is a major diagonal transverse road in Washington, D.C., and the Massachusetts Avenue Historic District is a historic district that includes part of it....
.
With few exceptions, firefighters denied African Americans the opportunity to join the companies or form their own ones. As early as 1818 in Philadelphia the local free black community attempted to form the African Fire Association. Meanwhile some southern cities like Charleston and Savannah relied on African American labour.
Lately the specialized life-saving units in American fire departments - the pompier corps - were formed.
In the 20th century, the nature of an American firefighter's job began to change. Not only was structural firefighting still the main purpose of the department, but more specialized training and education, such as for high-rise structure fires, confined space environments and building construction education have been included and emphasized. Other disciplines had been taken on as responsibilities in lifesaving. Presently, most all fire departments across the United States have been trained in and perform technical rescue, vehicle rescue, high-angle rescue, woodland firefighting and hazardous materials incidents. Additionally, most all career departments as well as many volunteer departments have emergency medical assets at their immediate disposal.
There have been several notable fires which cost the life of many firemen. 343 FDNY firefighters were killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. In 2007, the Sofa Super Store fire
Charleston Sofa Super Store fire
The Charleston Sofa Super Store fire occurred on June 18, 2007, in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, in which a flashover and structural collapse contributed to the deaths of nine Charleston firefighters.-Fire and collapse:...
in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
killed nine firefighters.
Company types
Fire Companies come in one of several types.- Engine Company
-
- An Engine Company is based on either an engine or a pumper. This company has the primary responsibility of supplying water to a scene, to locate and confine the fire, and extinguish the fire.
- Truck Company
- A Truck Company is based on a ladder truck, aerial truck or tiller, and has many more responsibilities. Primarily, the company performs the ladderwork and supplies master streams to the fireground. They also perform structural ventilation and overhaul, primary and secondary search & rescue, securing of utilities, and supplies rapid intervention teams.
- Rescue Company
- The role of a Rescue Company is the search and rescue of victims in an incident such as a fire or road collision. This company has more equipment on its vehicles than a Truck or Engine Company.
- Squad
- A Squad is a hybrid company consisting of an apparatus equipped with supplies necessary to perform some levels of rescue operations as well as engine and truck company operations. It is also referred to as a Rescue-Engine Company in some departments.
- Medic Company
- A Medical Company or EMSEmergency medical servicesEmergency medical services are a type of emergency service dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or the medical practitioner, believes constitutes a medical emergency...
, is a paramedic service run by the fire department. Many fire services offer some form of emergency medical service, usually in the form of ambulances with EMTs or Paramedics.- Quint
- QuintQuint (fire apparatus)A quintuple combination pumper or quint is a fire service apparatus that serves the dual purpose of an engine and a ladder truck. The name quint is derived from the Latin prefix quinque-, meaning five, and refers to the five functions that a quint provides: pump, water tank, fire hose, aerial...
s are a very recent addition to the fleets of fire departments. A Quint is a ladder truck that also carries an amount of water and hose line to perform as both a Truck company and an Engine company. It is named because it performs five functions.
- An Engine Company is based on either an engine or a pumper. This company has the primary responsibility of supplying water to a scene, to locate and confine the fire, and extinguish the fire.
Training disciplines
- Firefighting
- structural firefighting
- highrise firefighting
- confined space firefighting
- wildland firefighting
- airport firefighting
- Rescue
- rope and technical rescue
- high-angle rescue
- vehicle rescue
- structural collapse rescue
- water rescue
- ice rescue
- Hazardous Materials
- chemical spill
- flammable liquid spill
- Emergency Medical Services
Ranks and Insignia
There is no single standard system of rank insignia in use, but certain ranks are common. Many variations in insignia systems make use of the voice trumpet, a type of megaphone, and frequently referred to as a "bugle."Firefighter is the lowest rank. Often, it may be subdivided into grades, which may or may not be marked on the individual's badge.
Driver, Engineer, or Fire Equipment Operator are used by many departments. Usually, no insignia is present, but the badge will often note the rank. A few will have two grades of this rank.
Lieutenant is seldom used, usually being marked by a single trumpet, usually in silver, and it is the lowest "officer" rank. Some use a single bar, instead, again, usually silver. A few use a single gold trumpet or bar. A few departments have multiple grades of lieutenant.
Captain is used in most departments, usually being denoted with a pair of parallel trumpets connected by a thin bar or parallel silver bars. A few use gold trumpets or gold bars.
Senior Captain is rarely used, and often is shown with 2 silver trumpets crossed.
Battalion Chief is the highest ranking officer for which one is always on shift, and usually the lowest rank of chief. Typical insignia is two crossed gold trumpets or two stars, tho some departments use 3 trumpets or 1 star. Occasionally indicated with an oak leaf like a US Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
Additional chief grades usually exist between Chief and Battalion Chief; usual insignia is 3 or 4 crossed gold trumpets or 3 or 4 stars. Titles include District Chief, Assistant Chief, Deputy Chief.
Chief is usually the highest rank in a given department, traditionally shown with 5 gold trumpets or 5 stars.
Additional ranks outside the normal chain may exist; Sergeants, Majors, and Inspectors are all ranks used by some departments. According to the 1986 Anchorage Fire Department Explorer Handbook, Anchorage Fire Department used a single gold trumpet for inspectors, and both single silver trumpet and single gold bar for lieutenants, depending upon assignment.
Many fire departments use cuff stripes as well as trumpet or military style insignia on their dress uniforms. Typically, they are the same in number and color as the bugles worn, but variations occur.
Further reading
- Women in firefighting
- Dennis Smith. History of Firefighting in America, 1978
- Steven Scher. New York City Firefighting, 1901-2001
- Shawn Royall. Firefighting in Charlotte (North Carolina).