Firefighters Climbing 100 Ft Aerial Ladder~For Jack

[riverbee]

jack and i were busy sidetracking  perry's thread on 'stinky honey' with firefighting training stories.......

so i thought i would post this up in a new thread.  jack asked me over on that thread:

"Hey squirt,did you get to tie the rope at the top of a 100ft. aerial ladder truck and slide it to the ground. Knowing your going to have to do that makes you pay close attention in the knot tieing class. Most trainee's got weeded out before they got that far just climbing to the top of the100ft. ladder."

i never had to scale that aerial, it was not required at the time during my agility or training, and i can tell you i would have failed that test.  100 feet?  i would have had the beejeebers going and wetting my pants all the way up and all the way down and probably only managed 25 or 50 feet before i turned scaredy cat. something about heights on a ladder.....  don't know how these guys and gals do it. anyway, i am guessing you had to pay attention to a great deal more than knot tying class jack.....hmmm, don't look down, or don't skip a rung?......

found a couple of vids for you jack to reminisce on, and anyone else who wants an appreciation of heights with fire gear on:  (100 feet~roughly 10 stories jack?)

check out the the ladder climb and view from the top:



and a female firefighter scaling 107 feet up an aerial ladder:


 

[Perry]

Uuuuuuuuuuurp! 

[riverbee]

right perry?!

this is one of those jobs i would not choose for a living........

sheesh, i got the heebie jeebies and vertigo just looking at the videos.......

[Jen]

Man! Bravo firefighter sistas!

I keep thinking what if I had cramps and it was my day to climb that ladder

 I know.. I know 

  

[riverbee]

hmmmm, well jen leave it to you...... is that like a bad hair day.....
i think it works like this....(cramps) and sorry guys but you all get it and understand, but jen, might make you mean and determined enough to climb the ladder twice the day you are scheduled for testing and everyone would make sure you had your harness or ladder belt on and would clear out of your way thereafter until you came down and the dust settled.......

 

[Jen]

Bombs Away!! 

[LazyBkpr]

I used to work on those as well as USE them..  Been up to the top several times..  Got backblasted down three flights of steps and that ended my firefighting career.. I had two 5 year old children at the time, I decided they were more important.. Continued to work on and build fire trucks for many years. Still have my coat and helmet. The face shield is melted..  As bad as the safety gear was 30 years ago, I still only ended up with a light burn around my neck and wrists.. lots of bruises, a sprained wrist and broken ribs..    Lots of respect for the fellas that do that every day.

[brooksbeefarm]

Your right there Lazy the equipment and training has changed. I started on the tailboard as a plug man,( they don't ride the tailboard anymore) in Springfield, Mo. Tested and made Rescue and Salvage Specialist, tested and made Engineer (Drove and operated fire truck ), tested and made Fire Captain of #3 Fire Station, enough about me.The most important thing is the training, it's for your own good and your fellow fire fighters. You have to be in good physical health, not afraid of heights,not claustrophobic, or can't stand the sight of blood, then this job is not for you. It's sad to have to climb a aerial ladder and talk a trainee down, that has froze to the ladder 50 to 75ft. up that wanted to be a fireman,or see a trainee have a panic attack that didn't  know he was claustrophobic. Times are changing and will continue changing with new technology. Now if you want a real thrill? climb a Aerial ladder to the top with the temp. in the teens or lower, to use the nozzle at the top to put out a factory fire, or?, when you reach the top, lock in your safety belt, then pull the lever to open the nozzle, the pressure will push you back 3 to 5ft giving you a real thrill like your falling backwards , After 20 to 30 min. (sometimes longer) your ordered down, the over spray of the water has icicles hanging from your helmet and your shield iced over, the bunker coat is froze like a lamp shade so you have to take your spanner wrench and beat the ice off the buckles so you can take it off and drop it so you can climb down the ladder, locking your safety belt one rung at a time. Makes you want to kiss the ground sometimes when you reach it. Jack

[LazyBkpr]

  In a real fire, you cant see diddly squat. Cant see an inch in front of your face with your light turned on.. the scott pack leaks, and smoke gets in, no matter how you try to insure it is well sealed. You find someone, and carry them out with your buddy, fighting the steps and the blindness, carrying someone who cannot help you. You get them out FINALLY, and find out they perished well before you got to them..   Pull a charged hose Up two flights of steps. Run across a shingled roof that is smoking. Watch your father run across a smoking roof, and watch him fall through with one leg, and roll out of the hole with one leg on fire..   Open a door and FEEL the wind go whistling past you INTO the room.. it gives you JUST enough time to say.. OH S#!t.....  Run the cannon mounted on that platform a while in the winter, and take a step back...   I am here to tell you, there is NO FEELING more terrifying than feeling your feet slip when your that high in the sky...   We didnt have safety harnesses btw...  you slide off the back and theres nothing to stop you.
   I cant imagine running a hose from the platform. Thats another level of courage all by itself.
   When i was younger, the blood etc did not bother me a lot. Today, If I had to deal with that much blood someone would have to carry me away. I think getting out of it when i did saved me from being humiliated when i passed out on the job....