A day in the life of a firefighter

Have you ever wondered what a day in the life of a firefighter is like?

KIFI/KIDK reporter Jilliana Colina got to slide into the life of a Madison Fire Department firefighter.

“A lot of the day is filled with responses to the public, but a good portion of the day is also filled in training, like working with the ladder truck like we are today,” said Chief of the Madison Fire Department, Corey Child.

Being a firefighter is not your typical nine to five job. These brave men and women are covering shifts around the clock to make sure our communities are as safe as they can be. This requires a lot of commitment, heart, and flexibility.

“Firefighter, you never know what’s going to happen. Someone needs some help and we just drop everything and we just go help them and it could be from helping someone save a dog or cat from a tree or someone who lost a loved one,” said Captain Ellis Johnston.

It’s a selfless job, and unique for anyone up for the task.

“It gets difficult, but it’s rewarding at the same time, and we really enjoy the work that we do,” said firefighter Sam Paris.

The firefighters at the Madison Fire Department have a goal to put their gear on in a minute.

A typical day includes checking their equipment, exercising, training and responding to calls. A day that starts and ends together for the firefighters at this station.

“So dinner time is great, our Chief actually mandates that we all eat dinner together, and it really creates a nice unity for the department.”

“Really a hundred percent of what we do is responding to somebody else’s hardship and bring resolution to it, and in that regaurd, it brings a lot of pleasure to their jobs.”

All full-time firefighters at this department are cross-trained in EMS.