Fire rescue.
Why did nine brave and courageous firefighters have to die to save property in a furniture warehouse in Charleston, South Carolina?
The major objective of the mission was accomplished after safely evacuating the only two employees on the premises. Thereafter the focus of the firefighter's efforts should have been to contain the flames as best as possible from the outside of the building and to try to prevent the fire from spreading to other properties. However, hindsight is 20/20.
This tragedy is beyond comprehension and may contribute to the re-thinking of the mission objectives of our firefighting forces. The protection and saving of lives should always remain the priority. However, firefighters should not be expected to put their lives at risk to reduce property losses.
Let the insurance companies take the risks in financial terms; that's why they collect premiums for property losses.
In light of this unfortunate incident we should feel ever more appreciative of the valiant services of our local volunteer firefighting men and women.
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Not in vain
"Why did nine brave and courageous firefighters have to die to save property in a furniture warehouse in Charleston, South Carolina?"
A terrible tragedy it was, waltelb. Firefighters, cops, military people all risk their lives at one point or another. This is the nature of their jobs and they darn well know it all too well. Dare I venture to say that the adrenaline rush these people get in the course of their duties, paid or volunteer, is one of the reasons why they choose these occupations.
Having said that, if you researched the story prior to posting your piece, you would know that two civilians were reported to still be inside the burning building, so the firefighters did the job there were paid to do, and went into the inferno to get them out. Both persons were rescued.
So these firefighters did not lose their lives over a building or pieces of furniture as you would have us believe. That would be an even greater tragedy.
was it 2 or 4
hi sabrinus, walteib mentioned 2 people being saved. were there actually 4 people rescued?
kltpzyxm
Two were saved
mxyzptik, waltelb correctly made mention of two people were saved, as did I. It was his rant about firefighters being killed because they were ordered to save the furniture in the building that got my goat.
I see no mention about four people being saved.
From CNN -
Said fire chief Rusty Thomas: "They did exactly what they were trained to do." (Watch what firefighters may have experienced inside burning store )
They went into the burning building on Monday in search of two employees who had been reported to be trapped inside.
One employee made it out. The other, Jonathan Tyrell, said he banged with a hammer, hoping someone would find him before the fire reached him. A firefighter was eventually able to pull him out.
"I hugged him and told him 'thank you' over and over," Tyrell said in an interview aired Wednesday on CBS.
Pickie, pickie!
Sabrinus you missed the point entirely; but I am used to your silly criticism and I am not about to explain to you the message. You have your views and I have mine; why don't we leave it at that. You seem to have a good knowledge about a lot of issues, but for some reason I always get the impression that your are addressing everthing with a "far left" spinn. Notice, I did not use the word ranting to describe your thoughts. Please check out the word rant in the dictionary and see if it fits to decsribe my comments.
Jus' Doin' Their Job, Ma'am
I think someone is definitely missing the point, because there is more to having a fire department than rescuing kittens from trees and boys from the wells. Consider, if you dare, what your home insurance might cost if, as you propose, the order of the day was let it burn ... From the CBC News we read how the City of Gatineau and its fire department are being sued by an insurance company over claims of shoddy fire fighting against a blaze that destroyed most of the Glenwood Plaza last July:
The world, the real world, is a real place. There is a noble purpose of saving lives and we can applaud that, but there is also a very real purpose of keeping our collective insurance rates within the stratosphere.
insurance
i hope the nine brave fire fighters who died had good life insurance and the insurance companies have to pay big time. i can understand risking your life to try to save someone else but to do so to try and keep insurance premiums low is inane. insurance is a joke. how many of you won't make a claim, even though it is legitimate, for fear of losing insurance or having increased premiums? auto insurance, for sure, should be government run like health insurance. we are forced to buy auto insurance, but cna never _really_ use it, out of fear. if my home was burning and someone was inside, then i would certainly want all the help i could get. but, if there was no one in the house, try your best to put out the flames, but please dont risk your life going inside to save my stuff to keep my insurance premiums out of the stratosphere.
kltpzyxm
Put that in writing, Mxy
Because it's my guess, the day you discovered your property had been intentionally left to burn and your insurance company says sorry mate, but it was your choice you might feel a little differently about it. Neighbours of ours had a freak fire that took everything, the whole building ashes to the ground, all the kids toys, all their possessions, everything. No one was hurt, and we saw amazing support form friends and neighbours (worth noting that a prominent Beach used-clothing store opened up special for them and said, "go ahead, take what you need, no charge")
Today they have a brand new house, same spot, same neighbourhood, same school, its all new and starting again, but they have it, and that's something. I'm no fan of insurance companies (4% of their annual profits could obliterate world poverty) but do recall that a heap of burnt timber cannot be used as downpayment leverage or collateral on your next mortgage nor does a fire negate the money you'd borrowed to get it, and maybe recall as well, since I'm not old enough to have my mortgage paid off, that the banks require home insurance or no deal, so if I don't have insurance, I don't know about you, you may be independently wealthy and just pick up cottages the way I change guitar strings, but for May and I, we still reel in amazement that we ever had that 5% to put down, and twice as amazing the Royal would actually lend money to musicians! When I saw Grapes of Wrath I remember looking at the houses the Okies were leaving and thinking "Man, I wish I could afford a shack like that" and now here we are, some fraction of an acre, a lawn-mower. If it ever vanished, that would be it for us, we'd be back to the trailer park option (assuming the trailer survived)
So I don't demand the heros do anything foolishly heroic (tho wayne has already plotted a rescue plan for my bass) I applaud them for doing their job (which they knew was dangerous) and because of that, society works just a tad little bit better all round, not perfect, but better.
And besides, what's next? Police no longer risk themselves to manage traffic or solve robbery? Ambulance drivers making the call as to whether you are really urgent or if a cabbie would do? Infantry that just follow the invaders along to ensure they don't hurt nobody because, heck man, you could get killed tryin' t' stop 'em?
You are right on.
MXYZPTLK I am glad that you understood my comments. You are right on in your first paragraph. My original comments suggested that the Charleston tragedy may contribute to the "re-thinking" of firefighters missions. It will always be very difficult to make the judgement between
saving lives and putting firefighters lives at undue risk to protect property.
watch it myx..
your comment to "should be government run like health insurance." will brand you a left leaning pinko by Walteib, Im sure he never uses OHIP and pays for his own private insurance.After all..that would be too far left.
(before anyone takes offence to this, I abhor someone putting left right and other into arguments, just trying to make a point)There is old chinese proverbs, when you raise your voice you have already lost the argument..or was it when you raise the bbq temp you have burned the ribs..hmm
Back to the fireguys..they do what they are ordered to do by the chief.
**********************************************************
"How does one "Seem to think"? Either you did or you didn't! "
-ZenGary
in writing
hi gary, i thought i just did. lol. here it is again with emphasis "if there was no one in the house, try your best to put out the flames, but please dont risk your life going inside to save my stuff to keep my insurance premiums out of the stratosphere"
i am happy that things have worked out well for your neighbours and i certainly agree with you about how devastating it would be to lose everything do to fire or some other reason. but, what if a firefighter had died that night? thankfully it didn't happen. and im not putting them down. im criticizing the insurance industry, not the notion of insurance itself. fyi, i don't owe anyone any money, i'm not independently wealthy, and also have house insurance hoping i'll never have to use it as the result of a fire. i did use it once as result of flooding on 3 floors and dealing with sleazy insurance adjusters and shoddy workmanship was a real pita and, my rates went up. i guess you have never had to make such a major claim; you are lucky as it ain't always so rosey.
kltpzyxm
A Blog Comment is Hardly Binding
Mxy, I meant put it in writing not a blog comment, although the comment you could post is a notarized scan of the document from your insurance company showing clearly that they understand that your property is not to be protected against fire damage. That kind of writing, the sort that stands up in court. A court proceeding would just laugh at a blog comment.
As for experience with floods, man, I'm from Winnipeg!! Of course I can tell you flood stories to curl your hair, every last one of them resolved beautifully and quickly and with amazing thoroughness. They even meticulously cleaned and restored the naked G.I.-Joe I'd left forgotten under the stairs 40 years ago!
So your cynicism is a little misplaced.
Now, it is true that our flood claim a few years back here in Sauble was met with really shoddy materials in the replacement, but I blame the local vendor for shafting the insurance company because every other aspect of the response to our call was first rate and professional. It was only the carpet material that was cheap shite, probably the cheapest they could find, and we won't be shopping there with our own money, I can tell you that much.
Mxy, my advice to you is to get yourself a better insurance company. Seriously. Insurance companies make enough money off us they can afford to render proper service when required. Like every other professional, 80% of them are only in it for the money, but there are those remaining one in five who are in it because they get high on the feeling of being an essential service provider. Those sorts are just really, really hard to find (hint: look for an old worn car in their driveway) -- and when you change companies, it will be a good opportunity to put your money where your keyboard is and get that clause to abandon your burning property in there so you can scan it and give us all the once and for all!
for the sake of money
i'm sorry, do you sell insurance? fyi, i've already changed companies and i hope i never need to make a claim. i am also glad that your experience with insurance claims has been better than mine and i hope you still have your gi joe. you seem to be ok with someone risking their life and dying to put out a fire, when no one else's life is at risk, in an effort to keep your insurance rates from going through the stratosphere; i'm not. so, i suppose we should agree to disagree on how far our brave fire fighters should go for the sake of money.
kltpzyxm
I guess that means 'no' eh?
Well, maybe you won't put it into your policy but we have enough of your local firefighters on the SBP here who've read your pledge, assuming they know which house is yours, and should it, heaven forbid, ever spark itself to flame, I'm sure they'll all be more than happy to scoot off early to the 'Horn once they've got you all safely out of the building.
Lord knows they're busy enough with saving the rest of the town's properties.
In a pickle?
waltelb, all I can say is "that's an interesting reaction".
Hmmm...Agreed that I have my views and you have yours. This is news?
As for my "far left" leanings, well, you got that right. I was what you would call a "hippie" back in the sixties, and I guess I still am. If you really want to know, I am left of the NDP, a fervent tree-hugger, climate-change-accelerated-by-humans advocate, vegetarian, happily married for 31 years to a wonderful woman, and a lifelong devout atheist. I am against economic growth for the sake of economic growth. Somehow I don't think you and I would get along anyway!
waltelb, I hardly need an introduction to the dictionary. My vocabulary is quite fine, thank you. I rant all the time. If you should ever call one of my posts a "rant" I would not be offended in the least. If you live your life according to dictionary rules, that is your call. I meant no disrespect. From now on, I will never refer to your posts as rants, as I see you are easily off-put!
Paix
sabrinus
Peace, peace brother sabrinus!
Enough already with your psychoanlysis.Try to stay focused on the issues at hand and offer your rebutal, thoughts and possible solutions, as you see them. Please try not to get personal. Don't worry if you still feel like a Hippy from the 60's. You could feel worse; arthritis,back pain and so on and you may possibly develop a liking for political conservatism at your age.
Also, there is nothing wrong with being left of the NDP, a tree hugger and climate change advocate etc.
watch it
hey bub, i am a leftist. i believe in socialism where it makes sense but not as an overall way to run a country. and, i do hope the local fire fighters have read this. i pity the poor person who is asked to risk his life to save gary's gi joe when the house is burning just so gary's insurance premiums don't go up. i suppose i could challenge gary to put it into his policy that he expects the firefighters to risk their lives to save his precious 'things' so his rates don't go up, but then that would be just a silly as his request of me.
kltpzyxm