Firefighters Redux
Remember our story of the Illinois firefighters who had their equipment removed over workers compensation complaints? The city of Albany, New York is taking a slightly different approach. Recognizing that physical fitness for firefighters, who must carry 60-70 pounds for long periods of time, is paramount to their survival, the city is spending $294,000 to “equip” the eleven stations it maintains.
The move comes on the heels of a study in The International Journal of Obesity, indicating that 77 percent of firefighters are overweight or obese.
The village of Howard, near Green Bay, WI, is going one step further, performing annual examinations on their on-call staff. Those who don’t make the grade are re-assigned.
On a positive note, this should be of some comfort to us all. If firefighters, paragons of strength, are struggling with obesity, then it’s harder to feel bad about a couple extra inches of flab. On the downside, it looks like the firefighters are doing even more to make us look like wimps.
Already, there are already firefighter training programs, with some pretty stringent requirements. Would-be firefighters can expect the following requirements:
The ability to carry a 12 foot ladder through an obstacle course.
Operating a 30 foot ladder, simulated by pulling a rope with the tensile equivalent of a 50 pound bag of cement.
Climbing an aerial ladder set at a 60 degree angle up to 50 feet.
That explains the need for fitness training. If any firefighters are reading this, how do you keep in “firefighter” shape?
