Fighting Weather And Fires Difficult This Week

Fires dangerous for fire fighters, especially in these kinds of temperatures.

Clay County East 52 Volunteer Fire Chief James King said frozen water tests firefighters’ limits. King said the department has to continuously move the water inside the truck if not used to keep water from freezing. King said firefighters’ extra precautions due to the cold temperatures cause another problem, fatigue.

“Is it more fatiguing, you know, fighting a fire during cold weather? Yeah, of course, you know, it’s cold,” King said. “You’re having to, ain’t going to say you’re wearing extra gear, not turnout gear, but you’re wearing more clothes under your turnout gear to stay warm you know which fatigues personnel and of course also fatigue on personnel fighting with the icy issue.”

Algood Fire Chief David Judd said icy roads can also hinder efforts. Judd said they send a smaller truck before deploying the engine, as a heavy fire engine is more likely to slide and fall off the road. Judd said the cold weather complicates bringing the fire truck to the scene, resulting in longer response times.

“We’re making sure, it’s not only dangerous to the truck, but you’re looking at slick roads and stuff like that,” Judd said. “And you know, a heavy fire truck going down the road, it takes a lot to stop that truck.”

Clay County Firefighter Chris White said extreme cold can freeze icicles on helmets, making them unusable, as happened in 2020. White said as simple as it seems, he has seen slipping be a safety hazard as water turns to ice.

“It takes longer because you have to be more careful because where the water freezes on the ground,” White said. “Because you have to watch where you walk and you have to be more careful not to damage or hurt yourself or any other personnel that is with you.”