The volume of emergency medical service calls is increasing every year – to all our detriment.

“The increased volume of emergency medical service calls, especially in large metro departments, is a big topic of conversation everywhere. It continues to increase exponentially every year – so much so that the current trend is unsustainable. People who aren’t experiencing life-threatening emergencies are calling 911, which leaves our resources unavailable to respond to genuine emergencies. So we’re looking at our EMS response system and modifying how we respond to these calls.”

I can train just about anyone to be a firefighter, but I can’t train them to be a good person.

“Traditionally the fire service has not done a good job of preparing its future leaders; we’ve relied primarily on luck. The cost that comes from not developing your leaders can have huge ramifications.

“Many of our engine and truck companies are responding to calls for service nearly continuously each day. The ability to treat people with dignity when you’re tired and you’ve already run 30-plus calls can be a challenge for some, but it’s a critical part of the job. During the hiring process we do all we can to determine whether candidates share our organizational values and principles: I can train just about anyone to be a firefighter, but I can’t train them to be a good person. Someone who doesn’t have the right qualities can cause a lot of harm to the department and the public.

“We’re putting time into developing leaders at every level of the department (12 years ago we initiated a leader development program), and the results are clear. There are some amazing stories coming up about firefighters going above and beyond. For example, one of my engine companies recently responded to an elderly female who fell and cracked her head open on the hardwood floor in her home. After the crew had treated her and transported her to the hospital, they went back to the house, made entry, and cleaned up the area in her house where she had fallen (there was a lot of blood) so she wouldn’t have to return home to deal with cleaning that up all by herself.

Times of San Diego

“Another example came on a medical call – cardiac arrest. The engine crew responded quickly and took good care of the husband, as well as every family member there. The wife called me later that week to share how our crew had treated her husband and family with great care and dignity. I asked how her husband was recovering. She told me he had passed away. Even though she had just lost her husband of many years, she called to thank us for the care we gave him and her family. That says a lot about the quality and character of our firefighters.

“Statistics demonstrate that most people will never call 911 in their lives. However, when they do, they may be experiencing the worst day of their life. We have to remember that – to treat people well. The citizen and their family will remember that day forever. Those are the kinds of things that are most important.”

There’s no greater threat in San Diego than a wildfire.

“Wildfires are always a big concern here; there’s no greater threat to life and property in San Diego. It’s year-round, and climate change has only made it worse.

“Last year, more than 11,000 structures were destroyed in the state of California, and hundreds of thousands of acres were blackened. The average annual rainfall in the city is approximately 11 inches.  We’ve received a fraction of that this year, meaning that we expect to experience critical fire conditions once again this year. And once the Santa Ana winds start blowing, we’re going to experience some fires that are uncontrollable.”

We show up ready.

“The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department has some of the best trained firefighters in the country. We work hard and spend a lot of time and resources on training. We’re also fortunate to have the best equipment available and the latest technology at our fingertips.

“We do this so that when we do arrive, our citizens have some of the most highly trained firefighters in the country taking care of them. We take a lot of pride in that. We’re going to show up, solve your problem, do it quickly – and treat you with great care and dignity.”

–Chief Brian Fennessy, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department