There was a movie a few years ago that promoted the idea of doing good deeds un-prompted and if everybody took that approach the world would be a better place. Who knows, someday you might be the recipient of a good deed.
Last week was an opportunity for the City of Eden Prairie to do its best to help out the community of Red Lake in some small way. The result was that the Eden Prairie Fire Department went up to Red Lake on Thursday morning to help their Fire Department deal with the tragedy from earlier in the week. Myself, Assistant Chief Scott Taylor, Lieutenant Tony Liddell, Lieutenant Ward Parker and firefighter Doug Thies arrived in Red Lake at 5:00pm.
I had several objectives for the duration of our stay. First, provide firefighter staffing so that their firefighters could forget about responding to calls for a few days and deal with their grief and the grief of their loved ones. Second was to determine what other needs there might be that I could help them with, through the State Fire Chiefs Association.
Two other Fire Chiefs joined me in Red Lake. Fire Chief Dave Kapler from Rochester, MN and Fire Chief Bill Mund from St. Cloud, MN. Both of these guys are veterans in the fire service and know how to get resources through the Chiefs Association.
After meeting with Fire Director Roman Stately and Fire Chief Keith Stately, Dave and Bill and I quickly determined that the most pressing need was to get a Critical Incident Stress Debriefing organized for Red Lake Fire. The men and women of the Red Lake Fire Department were on the scene early enough that there were still guns drawn as they entered the building to save those that still had a chance to be saved. Their efforts and those of the other responders are the reason why people survived the shootings. It is hard to keep that in mind if you were one of the responders, the tendency is to dwell on those that didn’t make it and think about what else could have been done. The reaction is normal but not healthy. The stresses that first responders feel can tear apart the people and the organization. Fire Director Roman Stately realized this and wanted to give his people the best chance of recovering from this terrible event. We happened upon a team from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and were able to get a session set-up on Friday evening. Almost all the firefighters attended, that was a great sign for the future of the organization. A second session with resources from the Duluth, MN area is planned for later this week.
With the help of the State Fire Marshal’s Office we were also able to set-up crews from around the state to cover for Red Lake Fire until Sunday, April 3rd. Departments sending crews are: Moorehead, Bemdji, Hopkins and Mound. Many more offered there services as well. The stand-by crews will help Red Lake Fire have the time to get themselves back into the routine of their firefighting duties and still allow for time with their families.
The men and women at Red Lake Fire are very grateful for all the assistance they are receiving from Fire Departments around the state. Everyone in the first responder business knows we are all only the next call from needing the same kind of help that is being provided to Red Lake Fire. Paying it forward is alive and well, as it should be.
(L)Fire Director, Roman Stately and (R)Fire Chief, Keith Stately in front of their trucks and their fire station.
