Fire Department Safety Officers Association Symposium Opens in Scottsdale, Ariz.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – More than 200 firefighters from around the nation have gathered in Scottsdale for the 28th annual Fire Department Safety Officers Association Apparatus Specification and Maintenance Symposium.

This morning, firefighters heard the opening remarks and welcome from FDSOA President Rich Maddox who said the focus on the week-long events is always about safety.

During the opening ceremony, the Emergency Vehicle Technician of the Year award was presented to Michael Adams, fleet supervisor for South Metro Fire Rescue Authority (SMFRA) in Centennial, Colo., by Janet Wilmoth, Special projects director for Firehouse. Firehouse and Smeal Fire Apparatus sponsored this year’s award.

Wilmoth said she has always had a special spot in her heart for EVTs as her brother was one and she knows the dedication and hard work it takes to keep firefighters safe on the road.

Mike Bowan, Smeal’s vice president of national sales, said his company was proud to sponsor the event and reminded everyone that safety is the focus of the business and the reason everyone gathered for the symposium.

“We’re here about safety,” Bowman said. “And we need to keep it that way.”

The keynote speaker for Monday morning’s event was Jim Juneau, a personal injury lawyer from Texas who talked about what happens when firefighters do bad things with fire trucks.

“You might be asking; ‘what’s the big deal,’” Juneau said. “you may be asking why is a personal injury lawyer here at an apparatus symposium.”

He went on to explain that more firefighters die in the line of duty from apparatus mishaps and accidents than all other non-natural causes, such as heart attacks, combined.

“There are 5,550 on-duty firefighter injuries per year,” Juneau said. He said there are no agencies that keep exact track of civilian injuries attributed to firefighter crashes, but the number is staggering.

He also cautioned that the firefighters and the commanding officers, can be held personally liable for mishaps.

“You sitting here with a wallet in your pocket and a checking account can be held personally liable,” Juneau said. He added that life savings and personal “goodies” can be liquidated to pay claims awarded in lawsuits.

He also mentioned there are two different kinds of liabilities, criminal and civil. He said police and the justice system are involved in criminal cases and there’s a standard of guilt that must be met for prosecution. To be convicted of a criminal offense, an individual a level of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt must be met.

Lying on a report and blowing through a red light or controlled intersection against the controls are two sure ways to become criminal liable for one’s actions, he said.

Juneau focused more on the civil liability issues where monetary awards can be given for mistakes.

He said civil liability is the money assigned to compensate victims for misdeeds, he said.
He also explained about negligence and its definition.

“Negligence is a legal concept that means folks ought to be careful,” Juneau said. “… The key concept is did you do what a reasonable person would do.”

Juneau also walked the attendees through the process of a lawsuit and how juries work and what kinds of awards can be made if a firefighter or a community is loses a lawsuit.

“Juries are typically made up of people who know nothing about the equipment you use or the training you’ve had,” Juneau said. “…That ought to make your butt pucker.”

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