Mental health in the fire service - be the link

December 1, 2021

Yesterday I received a phone call from one of our young firefighters. His first words were heavy as if spoken through a thick curtain, or as if his entire body was burdened with a dense blanket that he could barely speak through. Then the modulation of his sentences slowed; his voice cracked; and he began to sob. There was what sounded like the clicking of a gun in the back ground. This was his MAYDAY.

I have a photograph of another firefighter on my office wall. He was having trouble in his marriage. He was arrested after a violent event in his home. He refused to wear anything but long sleeve shirts after that. His photograph is on my wall because we didn’t hear his MAYDAY.

A you all know, the members of our departments are under incredible stress every day, at both work and home. Some of them work three, even four, jobs to keep their families sheltered and fed. Then on the job, they see people broken in ways that shouldn’t happen. They flood with adrenaline, and dive into action. They make decisions that decide the fate of their fellow firefighters and the public they serve. And then in the shadow of quiet moments they sometimes struggle with meaning, identity, and purpose.

It’s a tough business that we are in. We take on burden after burden, and claim we don’t need any help - until we break. We can’t see the fracture lines in our own being. We all know the chain of survival metaphor: that it requires the coordinated decisions and actions of many to save a life. There is a chain of survival for our firefighters, too. And you and I have to BE THE LINK in the chain to connect our firefighters to the help they need.

There are resources to help, but we are stubborn and think we can solve our problems alone. There is no success in the fire service that is not because of a team succeeding together. And there is no failure in the fire service that is not a team failure. We have to help each other get the help that we may not individually realize we need. BE THE LINK.

Here are some links for support to help you and your department on the way:

South Carolina First Responder Assistance and Support Team (SCFAST)

South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program (SCLEAP)

National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) – Share the Load Program

Fire Service Behavioral Health Management Guide

-Columbia Richland Fire Department Assistant Chief Chris Kipp, Health & Safety Committee member