How Decatur Firefighters Are Battling the Heat

With heat advisories almost a daily occurrance and no real relief in sight, firefighters are especially vulnerable to exhaustion and other heat-related afflications.

But the Decatur Fire Department has its own way of helping its personnel make it through particularly brutal hot weather.

"During these hot summer days we try to limit our exposure to outdoor activities unless necessary," said Assistant Fire Chief Tim Hatcher. "And we have our own misting trailer."

The forced-air misting trailer is used for calls in which a cooler environment is needed for rest and rehab, as well as for special events like the city's recent 4th of July festivities.

The misting trailer is Hatcher's brainchild. "While visiting Bush Gardens and standing in the lines for rides, I noticed how cool things were with the misting fans," he said. "I decided to take our department's decontamination trailer and convert it into a misting trailer.

"With grant funding from the Decatur Business Association, I purchased all of the equipment to put together Georgia's only misting rehab trailer. It's available to all fire departments through a Georgia mutual aid group request."

Besides the misting trailer, Hatcher said the department is conducting its training indoors these days, in classrooms only.

"And all of our apparatus is air conditioned so that we keep our crews in a controlled environment to and from emergency responses," he said. "We set up a rehabilitation sector during emergency incidents to keep our staff hydrated. And on extended operational periods, we bring in off-duty crews to limit exposure times."