Rescue Me. Chicago Fire. Emergency! Backdraft. Ladder 49.
These are just a handful of firefighting shows and flicks we’ve all fallen prey to watching. While entertaining to watch, they also have their teaching-moment downfalls.
We asked our fans on Facebook to share some inaccuracies they’ve seen while watching a TV show or firefighting movie. Here are some of their responses.
Don’t see an error you’ve noticed? Add yours in the comment section.
1.“That you would have clear visibility in a fire.” — Justin Graham
2.“Rescue Me made me wonder how Tommy always had a huge amount of cash on him, and why I don’t.” — Steve Tofanelli
3.“As a female firefighter, I should wear tight t-shirts and pigtails to work.” — Lindsay Bastilla
4.“All calls are major incidents.” — Matthew Ellis
5.“That chest compressions on a bed is OK.” — Fredi Perino
6.“That you actually get fires.” — Tim Lair
7.“How you can go into a fully involved commercial fire with your turnout coat open, no mask and helmet on and fight a fire while wrestling a loose fire hose and put out a fire.” — Eric Garcia
8.“That an AED shock brings you back to life immediately without CPR.” — Justin Stauss
9.“Nobody does paperwork.” — Stuart Buckley
10.“The misconception that the equipment is always in working order.” — Nick Rolley
11.“That you don’t need to adjust your helmet — you just put it on as if it were a hat.” — Marco Donis
12.“That everybody lives.” — Jenny Sifre
13.“All firefighters have perfectly clear and easily heard voices through their masks, and that your PASS never goes off unless you’re in trouble. Heck, you could be standing still half the show and nothing.” — Zak Matticks
14.“That you can just throw your tools anywhere on the engine or truck without strapping them down.” — Cory Willis
15.“You can attend a family emergency in a company rig, on the clock while going code 3 ... and smoking!” — Terry Westover
16.“We really are all that handsome.” — Andrew Welch
17.“We carry oxygen on our backs.” — Kelly Davis
18.“They make us out to be drunks and social idiots.” — Bobby Clark
19.“That your ears are indestructible! Nomex hoods aren’t necessary, and a fully involved structure fire does not affect your vision.” — Jonathan McAvoy
20.“One person [alone] cannot hold the nozzle end of a fire hose like in the movies. That person will be thrown around like a balloon on a string.” — Tom Wynn
