Fire Stations Lulea and Örnsköldsvik

Previous to our arrival in Örnsköldsvik, I had an opportunity to visit Norrlandsflyg, the largest air ambulance operation in Sweden. This was an unique opportunity to talk shop with the pilots and co-pilots of the (American) Sikorsky helicopters which provide service throughout Nordlaands. (Look for Erin's photos of the airport). Ambulance operations are somewhat different in Sweden, with municipalities and larger districts providing service, augmented by the National resources such as Norrlandsflygg. But as english is the language of flying the world over, I had no communication difficulties with the pilots and crew I met while visiting the airport in Gellivåre. We were even able to swap some stories about memorable calls -- emergency work is pretty much the same the world over. Adrenaline does not care if you are Swedish or American, you get the call, you get a little excited, your vision narrows, your heart pumps a little easier, and you go to work. The satisfaction is in a job well done.

At Övik, I had another exceptional visit with the municipal fire department, thanks to Assistant Chief Haaglund and his firefighters. Previously, I was able to join Chief Bylin and the crew in Luleå, where I got a superb overview of the 112 dispatch center, as well as the operations of the firefighters and their Swedish engine companies. In Luleå, they apparently specialize in cold weather operations, as they are so close to 66 degrees north latitude and winter is such a long season. Due in part to their cold weather ops, and the specialized gear they wear, Swedish firefighters are permitted to wear beards, while in Massachusetts we are a clean shaven lot. We don't use the same hooded system on outerwear and prefer a direct seal from our face to the SCBA mask. The end result is pretty much the same, but even in firefighting, it's interesting that there's more than one way to skin a cat!



Back in Övik, I was able to closely inspect the equipment, including the Skanska Tower, with a 30m bucket and ladder combination. This is a highly complex ladder system, engineered in Finland, but mounted to a Swedish truck. Again, this specialized equipment is nowhere to be found in the USA. However, it appears to excel in the tight quarters of European cities and their tightly packed apartments. The straight-tip or bucket-and-ladder combination favored in the US is equally well suited to our environment of large streets, big windows and big roofs. One of the highlights of these visits was watching the firefighters in action, as I was able to standby at a training evolution. After some spaghetti was pulled off a truck, the next crew opted to put out their fire in the "American style". They performed a beautiful Vent-Enter-Search operation and had the fire room vented in about 6 minutes after initial smoke diving. These firefighters are more than welcome to visit Massachusetts to see us work in town or in the forest at their next opportunity.