LAKEPORT — When Lakeport firefighters go out on a call for medical aid or a fire, many times they don”t have to tell each other what they need.
Andrew Bergem of the Lakeport Fire Protection District said he communicates non-verbally with co-worker Brian Hajik ? just like family.
“I know if something happens to me he would die to help me out and I would do the same thing,” Bergem said.
Bergem said he and other firefighters don”t talk about that, but they know they can trust each other.
The brotherhood isn”t limited to emergencies ? they monitor each other to make sure they discuss how a medical call, a fire or death got to them, Bergem said. Volunteer firefighters from the 1950s come in at 6:45 a.m. every day for coffee and to talk.
Bergem said being a firefighter is an obsession and when he”s not at work, he”s talking or thinking about it.
Lakeport firefighters work 48 hours on and four days off with three crew shifts, Fire Chief Ken Wells said.
“It”s nice unless work is really busy.”
Calls all day and at night make it difficult for the firefighters to keep up on medical aid reports and sleep. In 2008, Lakeport fire responded to about 2,500 calls, an increase of 14 percent since 2006, Wells said. About 76 percent of those calls were for medical aid.
Capt. Bob Holbrook of Lakeport fire said he might get about three hours of sleep at night between calls.
During the day, the job never ends for him. Holbrook said staff rarely sits around. They”re updating training manuals, searching for grants, cleaning and training.
Wells said fire crews train by pulling hoses on and off trucks and engines, practicing using equipment, getting hazmat training or other specialties and attending instruction at other departments.
“Just coming in and doing your job isn”t really keeping your training up to date,” Wells said.
Bergem said one of the perks of working in a small city is firefighters get to work on trucks, engines and get all types of training.
“In big cities you have guys specializing in one thing,” Bergem said. “We get to do everything.”
Bergem and other firefighters made training videos they will post on their Web site to help each other, the public and prospective staff members, Wells said.
Wells said one of the tough parts of working for the fire department is funding.
“We”re constantly battling the state and federal government taking money away from our tax dollars,” he said.
Wells said the state took 8 percent of the department”s budget last year. The department wants to build a firehouse because it rents a building from the City of Lakeport and wants a permanent place to stay.
“We”re barely surviving now with our income,” Wells said. “There”s no way we can afford to build a firehouse.”
Hajik said though he and the rest of the department would like to have a new firehouse, he loves the job.
“Everything we do we see results,” Hajik said. “There”s a fire ? we put it out. We give advanced life support and help someone live a few more years. We see it on a daily basis.”
Contact Katy Sweeny at kdsweeny@gmail.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.
