Firefighter Friday: Chief of the Clayville Fire Department Joe Inglis
This week's featured firefighter for "Firefighter Friday" is Joe Inglis, the Chief of the Clayville Fire Department. He shares with us his journey into firefighting and tells us about the hardest parts of his job.
Joe Inglis has been with the Clayville Fire Department for quite some time. Since 1989, to be exact. He was promoted to Chief of the fire department about two years ago, following in his father's footsteps. Actually, he's a third-generation chief, his grandfather was also the chief at the Clayville Fire Department. Before Joe became the chief, he was the assistant chief for about 20 years, so it's safe to say he has gotten a lot of "practice" in before taking the job.
In the video (at the top of this page) Joe Inglis explains what made him want to become a firefighter in the first place. Yes, it does run in the family, but he knew before he was even able to help out that that's what he wanted to do. He knew when he turned 16 or 17, that he was going to be a part of the fire station.
Joe also tells us about how Clayville Fire Department is a little different. A lot of the firefighters we've talked to during "Firefighter Friday," really stress the need for new and younger members to join their local fire departments. Joe says they've been pretty fortunate with having enough people on board. He added,
It just so happens, at the last meeting we just voted in three more. So, we're pretty fortunate.
Joe also opened up to us about a moment on his job that he'll never forget. It was a tragic car accident where a young child didn't make it. It was at that time that Joe decided to become an EMT as well (and he still is). He explains more in the video (above).
We asked Joe if there was anything that made him not want to be a firefighter. He told us it's not so much of the firefighting side, but more of the EMT and medical calls they go on. Joe says they've seen pretty much everything, and sometimes (especially when it's kids), it makes them rethink what they're doing...
It kind of makes you step back and say, 'Is this really what I want to do?' And on the same token you say, 'If I don't do it, who's going to?'
No one wants to be exposed to those things. No one wants to see children in pain or suffering, or someone severely hurt. But firefighters and EMTs see this a lot. It's a big part of their jobs, and for that we want to commend ALL those who face these traumatic sights and experiences. Joe's right, if they don't do this... Who will??
We also talked about things that many people don't know or don't understand unless they themselves are a firefighter, or have firefighters in their family. Joe told us about all the time that is invested in the training and the paperwork for the chief officers. He also thinks that's what could be hurting a lot of fire stations when it comes to recruiting new members. It's hard for a 16 or 17-year-old to make such a great commitment that asks for so much of their time.
By the way, did you know every fire call, medical call, and emergency call has paperwork? Each call has to be reported and documented. That's a LOT of paperwork. And their training hours. Pretty much everything the fire station does has to be documented.
On top of being the Chief of the Clayville Fire Department and an EMT, Joe also runs the water department for the town of Paris and was just appointed to the Head Coach of the Varsity Football Team for Sauquoit Valley. We asked him where he finds the time to do all this, to which he replied, "I don't know."
Make sure to check out the full story in the interview at the top of this page. For all that Joe Inglis does, everything he does as a firefighter and EMT, and all that he does in the community, we're proud to recognize and feature him for this week's "Firefighter Friday." Thank you again, Joe!
If you know of a firefighter that you think deserves recognition for the job they do, you can nominate them to be featured on "Firefighter Friday." To nominate someone and get all the details, just click on the link below:
BONUS VIDEO: