'Feel like a rock star': one day in the life of a California firefighter from Ukraine

In the United States, a fire department is usually also an ambulance station. Therefore, American firefighters are also lifeguards and paramedics. In Sacramento (California), a quarter-century old Lviv Oleg Klepach has been working at one of the local stations. This is discussed in the video material VOA.

At the station, in one shift, there are usually 6 paramedic firefighters.

“I worked as an ambulance paramedic for about 3 years, and then I came to work at the fire department,” says Oleg.

The working day usually begins with training, 2 cars - fire and ambulance - leave for the call.

"The medical team was the first to arrive on the scene, they had to break the window, get in and pull the victim out," said Firefighter Training Officer Justin Carisa.

At the training, the medical team pulls people out of the burning building, and the fire department provides first aid. Here, every specialist is universal and can replace another.

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“During a training cardiac massage on a mannequin, I look at the monitor and monitor the pulse,” says Klepach’s colleague.

“Yes, we see the cardiogram, we see his heartbeat and we can immediately send this data to the hospital doctor,” explains Oleg.

Thus, the hospital will have data on the victim immediately, even before the patient arrives.

“This tube for intubation (holds in his hands) is what our paramedics who work in the ambulance do in Ukraine,” says Oleg.

At the end of the duct there is a video camera that shows the exact location of the airways.

The stretchers with which the machines are equipped can support more than 300 kg and can lift it with just one finger and a button.

“One finger, one hand,” says fire department captain Eric Linson.

At the station there are 2 type fire trucks - for city and forest fires. 90% of the calls are medical, the rest are road accidents, chemical releases and others.

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“I once had coffee with people who called the fire department because they felt lonely,” Linson says.

The fire station is located in a small building, but despite this there is everything you need there: a gym, a relaxation room and a kitchen where employees cook their own meals. But the products they buy for themselves.

“We have a law that there must be ice cream in the refrigerator; you can’t live without ice cream,” says Klepach.

Anyone can come to the fire department and talk to firefighters who save lives, often risking their own. Firefighters are highly respected in the USA.

“As the Americans say, “I feel like a rock star.” When I put on the uniform, I notice that people treat me differently. I'm not saying that without a uniform I'm treated poorly. But when we enter a store or any other place in uniform, children wave to us, people greet us, there are times when they hug and kiss us. Because people consider us heroes,” says Oleg.

Democracy reigns in the fire department, the chief is not appointed, but elected.

“He can be removed at any time if he treats his subordinates unfairly, the firefighters gather and say goodbye to him,” says Oleg.

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The man says that the authorities never raise their voices on subordinates, and buys the necessary tools without delay. Therefore, people here work for a long time. Oleg has been working at this station for 25 years, he says that his salary is enough for a large family.

“Everything I have was bought not on credit, but with money I earned,” says Oleg.

A firefighter's salary is 2 times more than the average Californian, and the pension is 90% of the salary. But you have to work a lot overtime. Oleg shares his experience of working in America with his Ukrainian colleagues on social networks.

When a call comes in, the ordinary life of the fire department changes rapidly, you need to be ready for departure in a minute.

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