Randy Anderson is a firefighter/paramedic from Preble County, Ohio. He started as a volunteer in 2010, eventually becoming a full-time employee while working part-time at several area departments. Aside from being a firefighter/paramedic, he also teaches EMS at various locations.
It was May 2017, and I had just promoted to an officer’s position. I stepped out back behind Station 2 to enjoy the late-spring weather when a city police officer pulled up [...]
Beard Bros The Holidays are upon us. As I worked on this piece, I was frequently surrounded by Christmas cards. The cards arrived from all parts of the area; from hospitals, [...]
Today, I’m writing about flags. Why not? Everyone else is doing it. We have flags on our apparatus and personal vehicles, flags on our uniforms and bunker gear. Some of us [...]
“Medic-XX, Engine-XX, this is your call. 123 Main Street, possible overdose. Pt is located on the front porch of residence, not breathing. PD is on scene, CPR in [...]
Social Media in the Fire Service Twitter. Facebook (Live!). Snapchat. Instagram. Probably others that I’m too far out of the technology loop to even grasp, being of the [...]
In public service, we are often faced with difficult situations that no human should be thrust into. We are forced to bear witness to things that would drive most people mad. [...]
It’s 0905hrs on a Sunday morning. The career firefighter is sleeping soundly in his favorite recliner, enjoying the freedom to nap indiscriminately on a weekend, but also [...]
Beer? Check. Meat? Check. Super Secret Squirrel BBQ rub? Check. Smoker? Check. Pager and/or radio? That’s a negative, Ghostrider. I am about to hit the road for two days of [...]
Mother’s Day is right around the corner, so it only seems fitting that I should write about women in today’s fire service. I don’t know about you, but I [...]
I sit here at my desk, facing the street, typing furiously on my wife’s laptop because mine doesn’t have Microsoft Word. It is 2017. We have Drones. We have Cell phones [...]