Night Elf Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 Do fire houses still have poles? We were talking about it after dinner. It seems like they would because it has to be faster than stairs, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted June 9, 2014 Author Share Posted June 9, 2014 Aww.. thanks for the answer. I'll DH and ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Lava Mama Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Well, we just went to a new firehouse a few months ago that actually had a fire pole! In CA of all places, land of the regulations-run-a-muck! I was very surprised because I thought they were not allowed, either, especially with a newly built place. The station is in a major flood zone, and the guy said it was allowed because if the levies break, they need to get the fire trucks out as quickly as possible. He also said if the levies break, don't wait for the fire truck because they won't-be-a-coming! He was completely serious! He told us to plan because we would be on our own! Luckily, we have moved from that area. The trip was for our Cub Scout troop and all the boys wanted to slide down the pole. They couldn't. It would have been fun! I would have even given it a try! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 No, because of OSHA. Too many injuries. Firefighters don't ride on the back on fire trucks either. They're inside, belted in. For a long time, the most dangerous part of the job was getting to the fire. My brother's Chicago fire station has one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 We've been to several stations around us that have poles. They don't use them for fires anymore, but they did slide down for the kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Cornelia Snook Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I want one in my house. No wait. Kids would love it and probably get hurt. Never mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedicMom Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Most don't. A lot of the newer-built stations in this area are one story, but also because OSHA has taken a lot of the fun away. :-) I do know more than one firefighter that has put one in his house. Mostly for decoration and nostalgia purposes. I have not asked what else they are doing. My husband desperately wants one. I continually veto the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 One of the branch managers if a software company I know of had one installed in his office so he could get downstairs quickly to meet the customers in the lobby. o.O LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2scouts Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Yes, some do! For a while they went out of favor because sleepy firefighters would wake up, fall down the pole and end up with sprained ankles. Some firehouses put in slides instead of poles because they're safer. However, a few years ago, our city built a huge, new two story firehouse and the firefighters insisted on having a fire pole and they got one! The second story has the "living room", workout room, and the sleeping areas and the firefighters frequently use the pole. It is surrounded by a gate so nobody falls in and there's a floor that only opens when there's enough weight on the pole. It also has a large round pad at the bottom to add cushioning when they land. I've been told that most of the firefighters prefer the pole, but they are not required to use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Most don't. A lot of the newer-built stations in this area are one story, but also because OSHA has taken a lot of the fun away. :-) I do know more than one firefighter that has put one in his house. Mostly for decoration and nostalgia purposes. I have not asked what else they are doing. My husband desperately wants one. I continually veto the idea. :lol: I remember hearing about fire stations that were putting in slides instead. Just as fun and fast but safer, I guess? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 A local firefighter won $13 million when he fell through the fire pole hole (say that five times fast!) head first in the middle of the night. He was at a new fire station and wasn't familiar with the layout. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Yes in Australia they do. They have a springboard type thing at the bottom so when they hit the ground they bounce. They also bear hug it with their long sleeves so they don't burn their hands. Just curious...but if they don't have a pole or slide how do they get down quickly? We were told that the stairs were too dangerous because people kept tripping over each other trying to get down fast. When we visited the firestation there were four callouts and every time the firemen came down the pole. The pole was enclosed in a chute type thing so they can't fall off it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fdrinca Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 The two stations we visited this past year have poles that the firemen use. I asked. They said that the poles are really useful BUT beware of sliding with shorts. To my DD3's disappointment, we were not allowed to slide down like real firemen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I have never seen a fire station with a pole. However all the fire stations within a 300 km radius of where I live are all volunteer fire stations that are not manned. Rather the siren goes off, the Volunteer firefighters pages go off, they leave their place of employment and race to the fire station, jump in the truck and go to the fire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 The metro one does but not the rural ones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted June 10, 2014 Author Share Posted June 10, 2014 Okay, the slide is definitely cool. I wonder if some guys do it just for fun. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plateau Mama Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Just curious...but if they don't have a pole or slide how do they get down quickly? We were told that the stairs were too dangerous because people kept tripping over each other trying to get down. All of the fire stations in my area are one story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoxcell Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Yes, our local fire house does and it is a brand new building. We took our kids to a field trip there in January and they showed the kids how they go down the pole. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I have never seen a fire station with a pole. However all the fire stations within a 300 km radius of where I live are all volunteer fire stations that are not manned. Rather the siren goes off, the Volunteer firefighters pages go off, they leave their place of employment and race to the fire station, jump in the truck and go to the fire. They leave them completely unmanned? That seems kind of crazy. In my hometown they provide 2 college students (it is a college town) free room. In exchange, they are part of the volunteer fire department. They take turns manning the fire house at night (so can't be out partying or whatever). It's a good deal for the students and helps the department with rapid response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedicMom Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I think most volunteer fire departments are unmanned. We have a few in the area that have one paid driver at all times. My volunteer department is technically unmanned but we generally have people hanging out at all times and we have a rapid response ems vehicle that a member has at all times. Even being unmanned, we have a four minute average response time. That it from the time the call goes out until the time someone gets on scene. A lot of this is that we have several members that are professional firefighters and/or paramedics, and so we all work strange schedules and are home during the day. We run over 800 calls a year purely volunteer. So it does happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyontheFarm Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 My husband's fire house is all volunteer. It's a single story building so no fire pole for them. :( My kids would love for Daddy to put one in the barn so they could get out of the hay loft faster. Mean mom is always telling them to go slower down the ladder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 My relative worked in a firehouse with a pole for years. We saw the crew use the pole many times, for calls and instead of the stairs. They also would throw each other stuff through the hole. The funny thing was the new guys were taught never to use the pole if they had showered and didn't dry well and weren't dressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cascadia Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 We just went on a fire station tour a few months ago, and they had a pole. Three of the firefighters demonstrated using the pole for the kids, and I was interested to note that they all used a different grip/technique! My 2-year old is still talking about it :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 They leave them completely unmanned? That seems kind of crazy. . I'm guessing Melissa lives in country Australia. Lots of country fire stations are unmanned as they don't get a lot of calls. I live in the country and the fire siren tower is right by our house and in the two years I have lived here it has gone off only three times. What would be crazier is to have a people sitting in a fire station waiting for a call that might only come once every six months or longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 I am way out in the country. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 The fire siren going off (apart from once a week practice night) is such a rarity that when it goes off people will crane their necks out their front doors or step out of shops to see what direction the truck is going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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