A link to my neighbours/Community · Dubai · Gratitude · Life · Musings

To all the Fire Service Men/Women out there…

jacquelineobyikocha

You know at times, we tend to take a lot in life for granted, going about our daily business grumbling and sometimes without care or in-depth thought as to what others pass through in the course of their jobs.1451716994149[1]

It took watching the luxurious building of The Address Hotel rage with fire on the Eve of the 2016 New Year’s day at a close range, to serve as a big eye opener for me, as to the enormous pressure and brave exploits of Fire fighters all over the World.

They put their lives on line every time they step into such blaze and even though some of us will very well say that it’s their job after all and that they are trained for it, it takes a heck of gumption to do the stuff that these courageous humans do.

For All the TEA in China and all the Swiss CHOCOLATES and a million dollars on top, I, Jacqueline, would not venture near that raging inferno that I witnessed.

The orange tongues of the fiery blaze licked with thirst and reckless abandon, in search of who and what to consume. The billowing smoke was choking even from a distance and yet these service men, did such a fantastic and efficient job even as others (including me) were watching in silent prayer.

Since the night of the 31st, the image of the burning skyscraper has been stuck in my head and my vivid imagination has been in overdrive ever since. On television, fire service men tend to look glamourous and sexy, but, gosh, when the chips are down, their job is one tough cookie to bake.

To the brave men and women of the Fire Service all over the World, how can one say thank you to your selfless services?

How can one appreciate the utmost help received from all of you for fire incidents which sometimes stem from actions of irresponsibility of others.

Yet, all I can say, and I know some people have this in mind as well, is thank you very much. Thank you for being there to mitigate a situation that could be worse. Thank you for giving so much of yourself. For your courage and faith in the face of such scary adversary.

Respects.

Bless you all.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

 

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Published by jacquelineobyikocha

A wordsmith with a vivid imagination, an eager mind and a burning desire to carve out tales. As I journey with my muse to that land of all possibilities and self discovery, I hope my personal evolution will serve as a beacon of inspiration for anyone who chooses to stop by.

51 thoughts on “To all the Fire Service Men/Women out there…”

  1. You are soooo right, Jacqueline. I hadn’t even heard about the fire so I looked at the news footage and it was scary just watching it from afar. Then to read that all of that started from burning curtains on the 20th floor. Thank the Lord nobody died.

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  2. My fiancé is a firefighter and I worry about him every time he goes to work. His shifts are 24hours and I know without a shadow of a doubt he would go fight that fire to make sure no one gets injured or worse.

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  5. Lol @ “For All the TEA in China and all the Swiss CHOCOLATES and a million dollars on top” 😀

    I salute the brave men and women who risk their lives to save other people. I saw photos of the sad fire incident.

    Life is so unpredictable, the next second is pregnant with surprising twists and turns.

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    1. Nne, it was just frightening watching the blaze. Not a small thing at all. Thank God they build very solid structures here. Life is truly unpredictable. We got there by 8pm and by past 9 the raging flame started and blazed all through the night. We left around 2am and it was still going. I wonder what would have happened if those fire fighters hadn’t battled it with such efficiency…

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  8. Why do, so called, experts always say that people in all jobs ask “What’s in it for me?” For fire-fighters, it’s all about the person in trouble and not about themselves. I agree it takes a very special person to do such a job. Well done fire-fighters!

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  9. I always say there are a few professions where the workers deserve high pay and double respect and fireworkers are one. I saw the news items and immediately thought of you but I saw you posted after and I knew you were okay. That looked scary and I saw many Americans drawing comparisons to 9/11.

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  10. As a firefighter I want to thank you for your kind comments. I was wondering how close you were to the fire.

    To be honest, the job can become quite mundane and routine with momentary shots of the extreme thrown in for good measure. One memory that I hold dear is the memory of the day my partner and I pulled a lady from her burning house. Afterwards, her son came and gave me a hug for saving his momma. I have seen more tragedy than I care to remember, but also have seen the hand of God in so many ways.

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    1. Wow Patrick, you guys are awesome. I believe God’s hand was truly at work on 31st night. For such a huge structure over 63 floors and almost comparable to the same height of Eiffel Tower) the fact that there were no deaths recorded is nothing short of a miracle. We were just next door in the mall which is linked to the hotel. We all had to rush out of the mall and watched the fire from a safer distance.

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  11. When watching the broadcast on the news here, my mind wander to you there in Dubai 😉

    I have much respect to those in service-Firemen, The Police, Nurses, Doctors etc. They face challenges everyday and would not like to think about life without any of these brave souls. My mother wanted me to be a nurse, so did my Godmother, but I had no passion for the profession so it would’ve been an injustice to my patients and insult to those who made it their life.

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      1. You’re so right!
        My problem though, I have too much empathy(if there is such a thing) and petrified of needles 😉 With a better understanding and acceptance of life and death I’m getting better at controlling my emotions and phobia, well maybe not so much the needles part.

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      1. a lot of the smaller fire departments, especially volunteer units, provide some of their own equipment…especially in the olden days, they would hold turkey raffles and other pass-the-boot collections at public events…and use the money for equipment.

        There is also a large number of men who get lung diseases from smoke inhalation…back in the day they did not have proper masks, and could not protect adequately against smoke. Newer masks solve most of this problem.

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      3. because they were volunteer departments, and not financed like big. cities with decent tax bases. All have to pay for their own uniforms, not basic coats and helmets, and of course not trucks etc.

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  15. Yes indeed, fire-fighters are the good guys! My late husband of 32 years was a fire-fighter, in fact chief of our small city department when he retired in 1982. Our department started out volunteer back in about 1950, and went full-fime in 1960. Every year there was a big Christmas party at the fire station, and inevitably the guys would talk about fires they fought over the years. The smaller departments all had/have a pact with neighboring departments…which provided more manpower, and additional equipment….also more fires. As a reporter I covered many fires. One more thing…one of our fire-wives remarked once that there is nothing as cold as a fire-fighter returning home to his bed in the middle of the night from a winter fire! 🙂

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      1. we were married 32 years, he had been a firefighter long before we married, then he retired about 10 years later. He was a lot older than me. He died in 2000. But yes, it was stressful.

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  16. New subscriber from the Meet and Greet at Mostly Blogging.

    I have always had a great respect for those who run to danger for the sake of their communities. I live in a rural area, and there is a volunteer fire department, so when they run, they don’t even get paid for it, like in some cities. They leave their jobs, or beds, etc, to battle the blazes.

    My FIL’s house burned to the ground last April and although they couldn’t save the house, one found a box of pictures (some burned and lots of smoke and water damage, but still…) and put it away from the house so it could be saved. There were pictures of family members going back more than 50 years.

    God bless them all.

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