You’re a company officer. While putting your gear on the rig, your engine and medic unit are dispatched for a child who is not breathing. At that very instant, a firefighter comes running into the station exclaiming that he is reporting for duty and will drive the medic unit. As he passes you, you smell an unmistakable odor of alcohol on his person. Now what? Remember: The child isn’t breathing…
Decision Point
The decision point in this scenario rests in the answer to the most basic question: Do I need to take immediate action? And the answer comes in the form of another question: Will failure to take immediate action jeopardize the safety of my firefighter, a member of my crew, or the public at large?
If the answer to any part of this question is “yes,” then action must be initiated. The fact that a child isn’t breathing is secondary to allowing a firefighter who may be under the influence of alcohol to operate a motor vehicle. You must tell the firefighter that they cannot respond on the call and that they must remain in the station until otherwise directed, pending an investigation.
Fortunately, you have an array of choices that address both the needs of the child and the safety of all involved:
- Send the engine company without you.
- Direct the firefighter who was being relieved to respond on the call.
- Abort the call completely and direct the communications center to send the next closest company.
- Ask the other member of the medic crew to grab their equipment and respond on the engine.
- Direct another member in the station to take the call as the medic unit driver.
- Elect to go on the call yourself with the engine company. (In this case, you run the risk of the firefighter not remaining in the station. Regardless, the firefighter cannot respond on that or any other call. )
Let’s assume you elect to send the engine company on the call while you remain behind with the firefighter. You should make some immediate notifications. In a career department, you need to notify your immediate on-duty supervisor (usually a battalion chief); in a volunteer department, it might be the chief. In either case, a chief officer needs to report to the station immediately to assist in managing this issue.
At this point you have not drawn any conclusions or even gathered any facts concerning the circumstances. An investigation will need to be conducted and it’s essential that you follow your organization’s procedures.
This specific example is filled with landmines. For example, do you have the authority to “relieve” someone of duty? Although you may certainly have the right to prevent them from responding on a call, relieving someone from duty is a big deal, usually requiring the agreement and direction of a command officer. If you’re a volunteer, do you have the authority as a company officer to suspend someone pending an investigation? Again, this is usually reserved for command officers and must be spelled out in writing to be defendable. More than a few volunteer companies have been forced to allow a “fired” or “suspended” member back into their organizations because they failed to follow their own policies–or worse, had no written policies to follow.
Other considerations: Does your department have a drug testing policy? If so, what are the circumstances under which a member can be compelled to submit to a test? What are the implications of a positive test? If your organization doesn’t have a mechanism to test a member who is believed to be under the influence, the only recourse may be to involve law enforcement.
The Bottom Line
Hopefully, you won’t confront this exact personnel issue. But as a company officer, you will face personnel challenges that require critical decision-making skills. When you’re confronted with a personnel issue, ask yourself whether the circumstances require your immediate action. If so, take the appropriate action, make the necessary notifications and then start gathering the facts. Remember, you are responsible for far more than talking on the radio and pushing the siren.
