“A sense of bravery rather than of fear”: South Metro firefighters work on through the coronavirus pandemic

Sleepless nights. House fires. Heart attacks. Car crashes. Medical emergencies.

And now, COVID-19.

It’s a firefighter’s job to respond when people need someone the most, but COVID-19 has added a new reality that few ever deemed possible. The added levels of stress from the pandemic that so many people feel is greatly magnified for firefighters and emergency responders.

Top: South Metro Fire Rescue EMS Supervisor John Aylward leans against Ladder 12 at Station 12 in Littleton on May 5, 2020. Aylward has a pair of shoes he only wears in the station as a way to decrease the chances of bringing coronavirus into the station. Bottom left: Firefighter Chris Herrington, left, opens the doors to the ambulance as, from left, firefighters John Cronin, Eric Szabo and Roxy Ligrani help each other put on their personal protective equipment before a medical call in Littleton on May 5, 2020. Bottom right: South Metro Fire Rescue Capt. Sheryl West uses an electrostatic sprayer to disinfect the Medic 12 ambulance in Littleton on April 19, 2020. She disinfects the entire interior of the vehicle after each run. (Photos by Helen Richardson, The Denver Post)

“We got into this line of work because we want to help in emergency situations,” said Jeff Hulley, a South Metro Fire Rescue EMS supervisor/firefighter. “I signed up to take the daily risks because that is what I love. But I didn’t sign up to pass that risk along to my 80-year-old grandmother.”

Many firefighters worry that they might be exposed on the job and bring the new coronavirus back to the station, inadvertently infecting their crew, or taking it home to their families. Concerns run high that this respiratory illness could be a career-altering or -ending sickness.

Everyday decisions in the field now have become even more critical. Firefighters ask themselves, “Did we do the right thing? Did we make the best choices?”

Dawning complete personal protective equipment South ... — Top: Wearing masks for protection, Littleton police officers help oversee a medical call for South Metro Fire Rescue on May 5, 2020. Bottom: South Metro Fire Rescue firefighter John Cronin, second from right, performs chest compressions on a patient as firefighters, from left, Roxy Ligrani, Chris Herrington, Eric Szabo and Jeff Hulley move a patient to an ambulance for transport to the hospital in Littleton on May 5, 2020. (Photos by Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

Mental health is a big part of the new conversations at stations. Suicide, alcohol abuse and insomnia can plague first responders.

“We don’t want people going down unhealthy avenues as ways to deal with this new stress,” Hulley said. “We are talking with our crews on a daily basis. We are having more training around mental health than we ever did before and making sure we keep stress at manageable levels.”

Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Top left: South Metro Fire Rescue EMS Supervisor John Aylward, left, chats in the office on a quiet afternoon with firefighter John Cronin at Station 12 on May 5, 2020.Top right: Battalion Chief Andy Powell, center, greets firefighter/paramedic Josiah Christian with an elbow bump after responding to a call on May 5, 2020Bottom: South Metro Fire Rescue firefighters, from left, Carl Brownfield, Lonnie Bierbauer, Lt. Joe Sims and engineer Steve Howard, have breakfast together between calls at Station 34 in Lone Tree on April 21, 2020. (Photos by Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

“We will continue to strive to provide the best possible care that we always have every single day,” he added. “I am looking forward to a sense of hope rather than one of despair and anxiety. A sense of bravery rather than of fear. … We will move through this and get to the other side stronger and more resilient for what we have all been through.”