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Post by wcfdcapt19 on Jul 22, 2008 9:33:01 GMT -5
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Post by commonsense on Jul 22, 2008 13:19:56 GMT -5
Fire police face a dangerous task each time they respond to an accident or fire.
And they get little respect for it, according to state fire academy instructors who spoke at the Pennsylvania State Fire Police Association meeting in White Haven on Sunday.
State Fire Academy instructor Tony Riccardi, who has taught fire protection for over 50 years and is an active member of the Harleysville Fire Co., said the biggest complaint he hears across the state is that fire police don’t get respect. He recalled once seeing a fire policeman directing traffic wearing pink, floral spandex shorts and a muscle shirt with flip-flops.
Though the description drew a few chuckles from the 100-person crowd at St. Patrick’s Church Hall, Riccardi was making a serious point. Riccardi contends that fire police who do not wear a uniform will not get respect. But many other changes have to occur statewide before fire police will be treated well, Riccardi said.
All fire police should be trained though the state, he said. They also need proper equipment and financial help to obtain proper equipment.
Unless these things are accomplished, “you will never, ever, ever get out of a second-class category,” he said.
He challenged the crowd, which included representatives from statewide fire police units, to advocate, train and support fire police work.
State fire Commissioner Edward Mann said fire police are the most “misused” and “abused” parts of a fire department.
“If you want respect, you have to do something to stir it,” he said.
State laws regarding fire police are antiquated and need to be changed, Mann said. He said the state association needs to start urging lawmakers to make these changes.
State fire academy instructor Mike DalPezzo attended the event because he wants to see the changes that Mann and Riccardi were asking for. DalPezzo, who works at two fire companies in York County, said the state association needs to take a more active approach to see that fire police have the tools necessary to protect themselves, firefighters and the public. DalPezzo said the family of a fire police member who dies while on duty may not receive financial aid for funeral expenses because of how the law is written.
Most fire police use their own vehicles to respond to emergencies while most firefighters and police officers use official vehicles. Fire police are treated like “a second-class citizen,” DalPezzo said.
Robert Hill, president of the Luzerne County Fire Police Association and member of the Dennison Township Fire Co., said the job of fire police is very dangerous. Fire police, Hill said, have to battle aggressive drivers and distracted motorists and simultaneously protect firefighters and themselves from vehicles. Those problems have become worse over the years, he said. He compared vehicles driving through an accident scene to “a 3,000-pound bullet,” that fire police have to divert.
The state association holds regional meetings across the state quarterly, Hill said. Luzerne County Fire Police Association hosted the meeting on Sunday, the first time a meeting was held locally.
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