The White Falcon - 01.05.1992, Side 5

NAS Fire Department climbs the ladder of success
103 Colleen C. Casper
jk^O.
warm marigold yellow folder display-
l^nhe fire department shoulder patch on the
cover contains the proof that U.S. Naval Air
Station (NAS) Keflavfk’s Fire Department
takes their work seriously. The folder, con-
taining statistics on the fire department and
various brochures onfire safety, may be handed
to any interested visitor, proudly, by Haraldur
Stefansson, NAS Fire Department, Fire Chief.
The fire department's recent selection as the
first runner up in the Allen G. Ogden Competi-
tive Program proved that the statistics are
genuine.
Established to recognize outstanding ac-
complishment towards the improvement of
fire prevention and protection throughout the
Navy and Marine Corps, the award is concrete
proof the NATO Base Fire Department is top
notch. “It is a great honor for us, as Icelanders,
to compete with Americans to receive this
award. It is very meaningful and it’s good to
be recognized for the activities that we do from
day to day,” said Johann Egilsson, Communi-
cation Officer.
Bragi Gujdonsson, has been with the fire
department for 24 years. “I am proud that the
«partment received the award and it is a
onor. It is nice to have the recognition,
st one more motivating factor for our
e said.
The team here, unlike any other fire depart-
ment is tasked not only with responding to
fires on base and on the airfield, but is also
responsible for the air operations branch. The
department’s responsibilities include structural
fire protection, aircraft crash fire rescue, fire
protection, airfield snow and ice removal, air
cargo handling, bird control (in the runway
vicinity) and performing transient line func-
tions. The department also boasts of an inter-
nal maintenance and repair department which
ensures the upkeep of 80 pieces of equipment
in its possession.
One hundred and thirty-six Icelanders are
employed by the fire department, 80 of which
which are firefighters and the rest are part of
the snow removal team in the Air Operations
Branch.
The fire department was not always all Icelan-
ders though. “When I first was a rookie fire-
fighter in 1956 there were 90 people. The
department was composed of Air Force,
American civilians and 10 Icelanders. In 1963
after the Navy became the base host, they
decided to assign the responsibility to the Icelan-
ders permanently and that same year we had
our first Icelandic fire chief,” Haraldur
Stefansson stated.
“Every emergency is
rentw
' Haraldur Stefansson
Constantly responding to emergency calls,
the fire department responds to base fires and
airfield emergencies. The department is also
increasing the community’s knowledge in the
area of fire prevention, on a regular basis.
During 1991 the fire department responded to
484 structural problems other than fires, 28
fires, conducted 12,308 inspections, gave 252
fire prevention lectures, and responded to 266
fire crash/hazardous material emergency re-
sponses.
What makes NAS Keflavfk’s Fire Depart-
ment one which sets the standard for excel-
lence? “Every emergency is real. Emergen-
cies may vary in size but we respond to them
all. We respond to the problem, isolate the
problem and then stop the problem,” said
Haraldur Stefansson.
The fire department is constantly on the alert
for any emergency. With 19 firefighters stand-
ing by at any given time and 10 snow team
members on duty (in the winter) at any given
time the fire department is prepared for the
worst scenario. With the widespread knowl-
edge of fire prevention, firefighters are experi-
encing a decrease in large emergencies.
“What we are benefiting from today in fire-
fighting is young people having training in fire
protection. When I was a boy fire prevention
was never spoken of. In the last 30 years, due
to increased education, fires still occur but less
often become large fires,” the fire chief said.
“What people need to remember is that we
have one enemy in common that will always be
there and will not change with the new devel-
opments of the world, fire. It is ruthless and all
people are created equal in its eyes.
“No matter what happens you can always
depend on the fire department. If you were
downtown in New York City, new to the area
and broke your ankle you would call the fire
department,” Haraldur Stefansson stated, “at
least you know the fire department will always
respond.
“Do you know how the fire service origi-
nated?” he asked. “The fire service is the
oldest form of service for the community in the
world. People in the primitive age in order to
survive had to harvest food for products to eat,
such as potatoes, com or wheat. Each person
had to grind his own wheat. Eventually one
person decided to try grinding the wheat with
a bigger rock than anyone else. A commill was
developed and everyone wanted to use it.
Slowly people got even more civilized and
started building clay houses. The roofs were
made of straw and they realized they needed to
put someone on watch to make sure the roofs
did not catch fire. They decided the person
must be able to alert the village of the emer-
gency, therefore the person on watch carried a
horn. The watch stander carried around a stick
with a hook on the end of it and a ladder to put
out the fire,” Haraldur S tefansson related, “that
is why we have the bugle for our insignia and
hook and ladder companies.”
The fire chief attributes the success of the
fire department to his people. “If it were not for
the people (that work for you) you would not
get anywhere. With Total Quality Leadership
you must begin and end with the people. We
work as a team and we have never been able to
afford anything else. I manage by MBWA,
Management By Walking Around. The key
here is to work together. We do not single out
one person, it is not single quality leadership
but total (as a team) quality leadership that
ensures success,” he said.
No matter what you experience in life the
fire chief believes you must do what you feel is
right. The fire chief said, “You have to be
yourself, you are the only one who can be you.
As an old chief petty officer once told me, ‘Be
it tall or be it small, do it well or not at all.’”
10
Fire safety
£>ps
1. Install and maintain smoke detectors.
2. Plan and practice a fire escape for every
room in your home.
3. Keep all portable space heaters at least 3 feet
( 1 meter) from anything that can bum.
4. Never smoke in bed or when you ’re drowsy!
5. Don’t leave your cooking unattended.
6. Store all matches and lighters away from
children..
7. Check and replace all frayed and cracked
electrical cords.
8. Ease bums by running them under cool
water for 10 to 15 minutes.
9. Stop, Drop, and Roll. If your clothes
catch fire, don’t run! Stop where you are,
drop to the ground, and roll over and over to
smother the flames. Cover your face with
your hands to protect your face and lungs.
10. If you’re in a smoke-filled room get
down on your hands and knees and crawl to
the nearest safe exit.
May 1,1992
5