Not everyone works in a nice warm office
Everyone has to earn a living, but those who do so in the outdoors are finding working conditions pretty brutal lately.
Capt. Thomas Fair of the Butler Fire Department said firefighters responding to calls in the frigid weather usually add another layer of clothing underneath the “bunker gear” they wear to a fire.
He said his department got the approval of city council to rent a few torpedo heaters that they can take along to the scene of a fire to keep firefighters warm.
The firefighters also take turns sitting inside the fire trucks to briefly warm up before heading back into the freezing temperatures to fight a blaze.
The fire department also has a contract with the Butler Transit Authority to bring buses to the scene of a fire so firefighters can get inside and stay warm, or cool in extreme heat in the summer.
Keeping the water and equipment thawed is also a major concern of the firefighters in the grip of frigid weather.
He said water must be circulated regularly between the tank and the pump to keep it flowing.
“We’ve had instances where it’s frozen up and we’ve run into trouble,” Fair said.
He said the rented torpedo heaters can also be used to keep water from freezing.
“If the trucks aren’t working properly, people could get hurt,” Fair said. “The main thing is safety.”
Fair, a firefighter of 29 years, said the most chilling calls he has responded to over the years were in -30 degree wind chills.
“I remember being cold on a lot of calls,” he said. “That’s why I dread this job in the winter.”
Temperatures will become more seasonal on Sunday when the single digits seen in the last week will give way to a high of 23 degrees, according to www.weather.com. The 10-day forecast also shows normal January temperatures in the 20s, 30s and even 40s.
