I’m a volunteer fire fighter in PA
OK, I do not get any compensation for my services. A few things, in the fire service, helmet colors are used to determine the status of the firefighter. Since I’m a regular firefighter (non-officer), interior certified, my helmet is black. Juniors and probationary members have yellow helmets, line officers have red helmets and chief officers have white. Different compnies have different color schemes (our mutual aid company uses red helmets for probies), the reason is to give the officer in charge an at a glance idea of the capabilities of the man under the helmet. Try to ID a guy wearing an air pack.
Again, we are volunteer but we cannot personalize our personal protective gear at all. I’m company chaplain and I cannot put a cross sticker on my helmet. The only exception is I can put HazMat ops and vehicle rescue cert as well as EMT on my helmet and nothing on my bunker gear. I can wear my own customized flash hood as long as it is NFPA approved. I cannot remove the eye shield and replace with goggles.
The chief in Newton (as much as it pains me to say) is right. The fire service is quasi-military and being in the public eye requires uniform and professional dress appearence. The public demands it. You would be amazed how an unhappy tax payer complains about the professional service we provide using volunteer labor. It is amazing.
BYW, helmet color will not really effect temperature and NFPA rules require reflective stickers Trapezoids to visability.
Having said all that, the chief is probably a jerk.
Tom
One other thing, our helmets have our last name on the back in reflective letters. This is so we can ID our own helmets and is a source of personal pride to the men.