The Life Of A First Responder

All For A Stranger

Long before the blaze of fire overtook the room, the dense smoke filled its helpless victim's lungs. Everything became hazy, as he attempted to escape. As he dropped to the floor, he thought, This is it. This is where I'm going to die.

Little did he know, at that moment a brave man was running in that inferno for him. That man with heavy turnout gear found him through the thick smoke. He pulled the victim out of the flames merely moments before the house was totally engulfed in flames. The man slowly woke up, breathing in the fresh, clean oxygen.

So, you think they're overpaid? They're actually underpaid. Most firefighters have to work a second job to feed their families. Volunteer firefighters are no different. They have the same training and risk their lives just as much.

You think they sit around all day and do nothing? After the morning cleaning, each firefighter trains for those bad calls. Then they exercise to prepare for the next emergency. At any time they could be called out to help a stranger, like you. They have to be ready.

Through all this, he has to catch up on the sleep. Just as he's falling to sleep... The tones go off again. Without hesitation, he crawls out of bed and postpones his sleep for another time. Because your precious, endangered life is more important than his sleep.

Do you find yourself feeling annoyed, when you hear a siren? Yes, you might pull over as they rush past, but do you actually pray for them? They need it.

Meanwhile, the driver of that fire engine pushes the gas petal to the floor. Adrenaline flows through him. He holds his breath. He imagines the worst, but hopes for the best.

When he arrives at the scene of a gruesome car accident, he sees bloody, broken bodies. He wants to fix what he can't. He can't put the pieces of the body back together, like you would a puzzle. He can't perform CPR and breathe the victim back to life. No matter how much he tries to It's all just another picture seared in his mind that he will never forget. If only the driver of one of the cars hadn't drank that bottle of beer...

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A home alone teen hides in the dark closet, while burglars ransack the house. Her heart beats faster than ever before. She struggles to control her shaking hands, as she dials 9-1-1. She cautiously raises the phone to her ear. Moments after, she hears a voice say, "911, what's your emergency?"

After the girl franticly whispers the frightening situation, the voice says on the other end, "Alright. What's your address?"

Just after the dispatcher send off units to the house, the teen panics when the criminals are only feet away from her. The comforting voice on the other end assures her, "Stay calm. Everything is going to be fine. Police are on the way. Just stay where you are and be quiet."

The police arrive just minutes after that. In a matter of minutes the police handcuff the criminals. Soon the teen walks out of the closet. She's understandably a bit shaken up, but other than that she's fine. She's alive. It was the caring voice of the dispatcher and quick response of the police that possibly saved her life.

You think he sleeps in their patrol car and eats doughnuts all day? His shift starts with patrolling the neighborhood, then receiving calls all day or night at any time. Calls from serving a warrant to responding to a silent robbery, which either by the way could be dangerous. Then he stops by the side of the road to wait for speeders, drunk or distracted drivers.

Yeah, I know what you're thinking. He just wants to ruin your day. Right? Wrong. Little do you know his only sister was killed by texting and driving. She thought she could just send that text. It couldn't wait until later. Little did she know that last text would steal her life away from her. Now his goal in life is to stop a car accident happening in any way he can. Believe it or not, he just might have saved your life and others.