Firefighters Duty to Act
This paper explores the extent and level to which firefighters and fire paramedics have on duty to act. A number of legal cases and their outcomes that have been experienced in the U.S. over the years are illustrated for better understanding of the issue. Under the same, legal differences between being on duty and being off duty for firefighters and fire paramedics are discussed. An in-depth look at being off duty and what paramedics and firefighters are legally expected to do if faced with a situation is given. The paper also explores on available laws that protect firefighters and paramedics on and off duty. In respect to the legal responsibilities of fire departments, the paper suggests some of the things that the fire department as an employer needs to do to have protection from potential legal issues. Finally, the paper explores the effects of having a higher trained fire department versus a less trained volunteer department as far as risk of legal issues is concerned.
Firefighters and fire paramedics in the U.S.
To understand legal responsibilities of firefighters and fire paramedics, it is important to understand who they are and the skills that they posses. The City of South San Francisco Human Resource Department (2010) defines a firefighterparamedic as an individual who does carries out a number of Mobile Intensive Care Paramedic duties which may include fighting fire, providing medical aid as well as being involved in other activities meant to protect life and property. Other than being called in case of a fire incidence, a paramedicfirefighter is supposed to maintain firefighting apparatus and train people in ways of preventing fires. He or she is also required to carry out inspections and advise on fire safety precautions. Any other related task also lies as a responsibility to a firefighter or a fire paramedic.
Primarily, the duties of a firefighter are almost the same as those of a fire paramedic. A fire paramedic however has both the skills of a firefighter and those of a paramedic. A fire paramedic has a dual function and is therefore skilled in suppressing fire, performing search and rescue missions, preventing fire as well as ensuring public safety. In most fire departments, the dual firefightersfire paramedics usually alternate their duties of firefighting and paramedic functions. According to Robinson (2006), a firefighterfire paramedic is usually assigned to a rescue ambulance in case of fire incidences and is always prepared for either of the duties as may be required. A firefighter will on the other hand perform fire attack roles including providing ventilation, evacuating people and property as well as doing exposure protection duties. Fire protection duties include suppressing fire, preventing fire, controlling and putting off fire in addition to attending to emergency situations which are a risk to life, property or environment. These are legal mandates and responsibilities for employees in fire protection activities as defined by the U.S. Department of Labor. Firefighters and fire paramedics are examples of employees who are involved in fire protection activities.
The above responsibilities and authorities as defined by the law are primarily applicable to fire departments at the municipal, county, district or state level. This class of firefighters fire paramedics therefore have a duty to act role. There are also trained volunteer firefighters who may be employed by private fire departments or just possessing the skills but not attached to any department to offer such services. Such firefighters may not necessarily be obliged to carry out the above described duties.
Even with the enormous responsibilities that firefighters and fire paramedics have and the so called duty to act, there are extents to which these may apply. A fire department always has people ready to respond to any emergency in 24 hours in a day. As long as a firefighter is on duty, then he or she is required to respond to any emergency call requiring for his services as defined by the state, district or municipality in which they are operating. In most firefighting departments, the firefighters are provided with home-like accommodation since they spend most of the hours in the department and may even be called on duty during odd hours as may be necessary. It is not uncommon to have fire fighters and fire paramedics work overtime most of the times so as to meet their obligations. The Novato Fire District for instance usually has overtime shifts for firefighters and calls back its employees in case of unusual events like major fires among other serious disasters (Novato Fire Protection District, 2010). In such situations where the fire department has its staff on duty, then the duty to act responsibility is applicable to the firefightersparamedics. Duty hours not only encompass the hours when the fire officers are directly involved in responding to emergency situations but also cover the time the officers spend studying or training others on fire safety measures. During this time, firefighters and fire paramedics have a duty to act (Firemen Jobs, 2009).
While off duty, the legal responsibilities of fire captains and fire paramedics may not be abiding even in cases of duty to act situations. However this depends on the jurisdiction under which the firefighter is operating. Furthermore, such a situation requires more of moral than legal responsibility and therefore the staff may not be bound to this duty. For instance, Reistad (2009) illustrates a case where firefighters together with other citizens were involved in rescuing occupants of a vehicle that was burning. The incident that occurred in Milwaukee was an example of a duty to act situation. Among the rescuers were a police officer off duty who also has legal responsibilities of rescuing lives and property. This situation is surrounded by both legal and moral responsibilities. One of the firefighters was noted to have stated that their oath of duty encompasses a duty to act whether off or on duty.
The controversial question occurs in trying to draw a clear line into whether a firefighterparamedic is still regarded as such while off duty or whether the title and responsibilities only apply when one is on duty. This kind of situation has led to legal cases involving fire departments and its employees mainly in duty to act situations. The scenario is not a simple one as acting or not acting in such cases may lead to legal cases. If for instance a firefighter who is off duty came across a fire incident, they may choose to take action or not to. As stated earlier, some states in the U.S. have put statutes mandating anyone who comes across such scenarios to offer the best possible help. A firefighter in Vermont may therefore be charged of not acting in such a scenario (EMS Responder, 2010). He or she may not necessarily be directly involved in putting off the fire or rescuing but may help in calling up for help from fire departments.
As stated earlier, the extent and level to which duty to act applies may lead to legal cases. There have been several scenarios that have led to legal cases involving firefighters and fire paramedics versus states or individuals. A classic example of failure on the part of fire department while on course of duty is a case filed by a fire victim Shaffin Ahmed in a fire incidence in Queens in November 7, 2009. When the apartment on 65th Street where Ahhmed caught fire, the New York fire department dispatched its rescue team to 62nd Street instead of the 65th Street and before the error was discovered, the officers had already wasted some 15 precious minutes that would have saved the victims. Ahmed suffered the injuries that cost him 50,000 while trying to rescue the victims of the fire which the fire department delayed in responding.
On and off duty responsibilities of firefighters and fire paramedics
While on duty, it is an obligation that fire captains and paramedics respond to situations that may require their services, failure to which they may face disciplinary actions. This is unlike off duty officials. When on duty, a firefighter paramedic have all the resources necessary in tackling any incidence that may appear. This therefore means that they have a legal responsibility of offering their services whether called on or not. The fire department can even take disciplinary measures against its employees who fail to fulfill their duties in situations requiring their services. For instance, the Atlanta Fire Department had to discipline three of its firefighters who failed in their duty in a shooting incidence in December 2009. The disciplinary action was taken on the grounds that the fire officers did not asses a store clerk who was wounded in the incidence having assumed that he was already dead (Varone, 2010). Such an incidence was serious enough to cause the suing of the fire department hence the disciplinary action.
It is possible however to find that fire departments are not able to respond appropriately to emergency situations even with the availability of on-duty officers. This may be probably due to lack of necessary facilities in rescuing various situations. Since firefighters and paramedics deal with varying emergency cases, some of them may present challenging situations to them due to lack of enough facilities. In such a situation, the fire department or its employees may face charges if it is determined that they failed to respond appropriately. The situation is usually very hard for the employees as some of the situations may be beyond their level of handling and even calling for more assistance may not help. This means that on duty fire officers are prone to facing charges if for instance a life is lost during the rescue process. A relative of a deceased for instance may sue an officer on duty on the claims that they failed to act appropriately to rescue the life of their loved one. This becomes a very challenging situation since the firefighterparamedics may have tried all that they could have done but the situation is beyond reversal. The worst thing however for a firefighterfire paramedic who is on duty is to fail to respond to a call or a situation whether called or not as this would amount to negligence of their legal responsibility.
Unless a firefighterparamedic is in a jurisdiction where they are obliged to offer help while off duty, moral responsibility reigns. It is often hard and challenging to deal with duty to act situations while off duty even when one would like to help. One challenge is that these officers may not have much to offer in terms of help since they may not be having the necessary equipment. They have to weigh between risking their own lives and trying to save other lives or properties. These individuals are however better positioned to offer help even if not in a direct manner. First, they are in a better position of calling for help from fire departments if none has arrived at the incident. Moral responsibility may move them to help in rescuing and evacuating in the best ways they can. This is so because most of the firefighters and paramedics bear a higher personal responsibility of giving their lives to the course of others.
Off duty fire officers and paramedics will however be hesitant in offering help in fear that they may end up being sued just in case a life gets lost in the process. While it may not be within their means to prevent loss of lives, some people may take advantage of such situations to seek compensation from firefighters and fire departments. This is a very likely case if there is a law that obliges the officers to act even while off duty.
What can Fire Departments do
With so many hazards and challenges surrounding a firefighterparamedics job, it is pertinent to have laws to protect them while on and off duty. On duty employees are better covered in the law since they can get compensation if they suffer harm while on duty. The Illinois state has a Line of Duty Compensation Act that protects paramedics and firefighters who die or suffer harm while in the course of duty. It is fortunate that firefightersparamedics have the right to be paid overtime pay whenever they are called upon to work overtime, thanks to the U.S. department of labor. An officer responding while not on duty is however not covered and therefore can be considered to just be offering humanitarian assistance. Such acts may shape the role of on duty and off duty fire officers whereby off duty officers may be reluctant to offer help due to lack of such protection. In general however, the law is deficient in as far as protecting firefighters and paramedics on or off duty is concerned.
It is clear that fire departments are faced by enormous legal challenges while executing their duties. Incompetence in their employees in following laid down procedures and legal directions can lead the departments into unending cases every time they are involved in executing their roles. This is especially in cases of duty to act situation. To protect itself from such legal issues, a fire department is supposed to hire competent individuals. In addition, being well equipped in fire suppression and rescue missions coupled with following laid down legal procedures would go a long way in saving the departments from legal confrontations. Perhaps it would be even safer to operate a less trained volunteer fire department than having a higher trained department since duty to act would not be mandatory and would save the department from many legal battles.
Conclusion
On duty act situations present a challenge to fire captains and fire paramedics across the United States. The legal on duty act responsibility however is mainly applicable only when these fire officials are on duty. Interpreting this responsibility is however challenging and has led to several legal cases. Firefighters and paramedics ought to understand their legal responsibilities while off and on duty especially in duty to act situations. It is unfortunate that most laws only protect fire officers while on duty making most of them hesitant to offer help while off duty. It would be wise for fire departments to enlighten their staff on legal responsibilities in addition to being well equipped in order to avoid legal battles. Otherwise, it would be safer to operate a volunteer fire department than a higher trained department to avoid some unnecessary legal issues.
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