HENRICO, Va. – Patrick Hannan has wanted to be a firefighter since his fourth birthday when he said he “got the coolest hook and ladder fire truck as a present and it was my favorite toy from then on.”
“I still have it to this day,” he said.
Hannan, a New York native, works a Fire Station 1 in the central part of Henrico County. He’s been a firefighter for 11 years, 10 of which have been served at station one.
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He works with about 30 guys and one captain, “spread across three different shifts at the house.”
During #CBS6TakeoverTuesday, Hannan will introduce you to the crew, and show you what the day in a life of a firefighter is like – though rarely are two days the same.
In fact, that fluid nature is something that makes the job great, Hannan said, and definitely better than a desk job.
“The job is the best in so many ways,” Hannan said. “I work with a great crew and we always have each other’s back.”
“I get to help people when they need it most,” he added.
Patrick Hannan has known he wanted to be a firefighter since he was four years old.
“The public has a decent perception of us, however, I don’t think they understand the fact that in Henrico alone, firefighters staff the engines/trucks/squads, AND the ambulances,” Hannan said. “We are all EMTs and a growing number of us are paramedics.”
Another aspect the public may not understand is the dedication firefighters have to their job.
“It’s more of a life choice than an occupation,” Hannan said. “We spend countless hours and holidays away from our families while at the firehouse.”
“There are always family birthdays and holidays celebrated at the firehouse,” he continued. “It’s what keeps us all together. The family environment extends from home into the firehouse.”
Hannan’s plan for #CBS6TakeoverTuesday is to give as much of a glimpse as he can into a regular day at Fire Station 1.
“I hope everyone enjoys it,” he said.
All summer we have invited people in the community to take over our CBS 6 Instagram account, so you can learn about their world through their eyes. At the end of the summer takeover, you vote for who had the best takeover, and we donate to the charitable organization of their choice.
Hannan chooses the Henrico Firefighters and Families Charitable Foundation, which helps firefighters when there is injury, illness or death in their family.
You can read more aboutit here.
Check out the other Takeover Tuesdays, here.
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It's been a pretty good day here so far. Believe it or not, we're only halfway through our shift here at the station. We'll be here until 7am tomorrow. One of our Battalion chiefs came by and joined us for dinner. He kindly shot this photo of our shift minus the two guys who are on leave today so you could see all of our faces. I just want to thank everyone for following along all day, and especially thank @cbs6 for giving me the chance to share a day in our firehouse with you all. Here's to hoping for a slow evening, but if we catch anything fun, I'll be sure to put something up! Thanks again! 😁🚒 from @louderthaneleven, and the boys of #henricofire Station 1 C-Shift. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 4:38pm PDT
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Dinnertime! Everyone is quiet and the food is disappearing quickly. Sure sign of a good meal. Way to go Wells…. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 3:16pm PDT
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As many of you know – Henrico Fire also handles all of the EMS calls in the county. You saw the ambulance in this morning's photo, and we'd be remiss if we failed to cover a little bit of it. Firefighter stuff is cool, but EMS is also a large part of our job. Here's firefighter Ryan West giving a real quick rundown in the back of the Ambulance. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 2:54pm PDT
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For any ladder needs greater than 24 feet, our truck companies are equipped with ground ladders ranging from 10 feet to 35 feet long. In addition, there's also the obvious 100 foot aerial ladder on the roof 😁 #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 2:10pm PDT
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Doing a little ground ladder training before it's time to start cooking. All #henricofire's engine companies carry a 14 foot "roof" ladder, and a 24 foot extension ladder -pictured here with firefighter Borel. These are great for throwing to windows of your run of the mill 2 to 3 story residential homes for rescue. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 2:06pm PDT
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These gems pictured up top are the married set of irons sometimes referred to as "the keys to the city" The flat head axe, and the Halligan bar. They are a forcible entry staple on any piece of fire apparatus in the world. The Halligan bar (initially designed in 1948 by a FDNY Deputy Chief named Hugh Halligan) is a solid steel bar with an angled "fork" end and a combination "pick head, and "adz" end. Used in combination with the flat head axe as a striking force, the simplicity of the bar's inclined planes, and leverage force multiplier – there aren't many residential doors that we can't get pry our way into in an emergency. Pictured below, Lt. Smith is giving the pick and adz a little cleanup with a file after some recent use at training. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 11:58am PDT
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#henricofire #truckcompanynumber1's job is a little different. This unit is a rolling toolbox with a full complement of ground ladders, and a 100' aerial ladder. The truck company's job is to help force entry if needed, search for life, or fire, and help ventilate the smoke and bad gases out. #henricofire's truck companies and squad companies also carry hydraulic extrication tools (Hurst Jaws of Life) to facilitate with patient extrication problems as result of car crashes. Whereas there is a fire engine at all 20 firehouses across the county, there are only 5 ladder trucks in Henrico county and they're strategically spread across. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 11:09am PDT
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This is #henricofire #enginecompanynumber1. The engine company's role is to deploy hand lines and get water on the fire. It carries 750gal. of water on board, and has hoses to connect to a fire hydrant for an unlimited water supply. The engine has a water pump on it that boosts the pressure up and sends it out through the hand lines that we stretch to the fire. Our primary attack lines are 200', and 300' long and flow 185 gallons of water per minute. We also have lines and appliances capable of delivering 325-1000 gallons per minute. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 10:39am PDT
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Tradition and pride are huge in the fire department. Home made assignment boards like this one can be found in most firehouses across the world. It's a place to show who is riding in each seat for the shift, along with being able to showcase some station pride. I like to draw cartoons and fun images on here to build up morale and start conversations at least once a week. The #1chalkboard is getting more and more famous as time goes on 😁 #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 10:24am PDT
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Lunch time is here. Grilled cheese is delicious, soup is awesome. All for $4/man. Better than any restaurant. Wait till you see dinner 😁 #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 9:32am PDT
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We take turns cooking, and everyone gives the chef of the day $8 that covers 2 meals. Firefighter Wells is the chef for the day. He's making us grilled cheese sandwiches with vegetable soup for lunch, and chicken pesto with tortellini and broccoli with some everything bread for dinner. When I started this job at age 25, I had no idea how to cook anything, and budget was a foreign word to me. Simple things like shopping and cooking are rites of passage in this job. :) #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 8:06am PDT
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Yep. Even fire trucks need to stop and refuel every once in a while. We carry cards to get fuel at select stations across the county, but the county also has its own fuel depot off woodman road that we're currently using. #truckcompanynumber1 holds about 65 gallons of diesel. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 7:06am PDT
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Tuesdays are typically truck check day around here. In addition to checking all of our tools and gas powered units, we also tilt the cab and do a detailed inspection of the fluids/engine compartment/brakes/suspension and all the other moving pieces and parts parts for anything obviously damaged. These rigs are pretty big and heavy (T1 is 76k pounds alone) and we ask a lot more of them performance-wise as opposed to say, a garbage truck or dump truck, so we've got to keep on top of maintenance. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 6:03am PDT
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First call for the day is in the books! 23hrs to go! #enginecompanynumber1 and #truckcompanynumber1 are out and about. 👍🏻 #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 5:04am PDT
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We have a ladder truck, an engine, and an ambulance here at the station. Minimum staffing per shift is 8 people. 3 on engine. 3 on truck, and 2 on the medic. We are all cross-trained on all the units and take turns in each seat. #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 4:30am PDT
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Welcome to the firehouse kitchen. We're on shift for the next 24hrs, and the only guarantee is that the rookie will keep the coffee flowing. @nikkidee_ray and @krisluehrs are on the tv telling us about the day to come. Let's do this! #cbs6takeovertuesday
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 20, 2016 at 3:49am PDT
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Patrick Hannan has wanted to be a firefighter since his fourth birthday, when he “got the coolest hook and ladder fire truck as a present and it was my favorite toy from then on.” “I still have it to this day,” he said. Hannan now works a Fire Station 1 in Henrico County. He’s been a firefighter for 11 years, 10 of which have been served at station one. During #CBS6TakeoverTuesday, Hannan will introduce you to the crew, and show you what the day in a life of a firefighter is like – though rarely are two days ever the same. In fact, that fluid nature is something that makes the job great, Hannan said, and definitely better than a desk job. “The job is the best in so many ways,” Hannan said. “I work with a great crew and we always have each other's back.” “I get to help people when they need it most,” he added. Make sure to welcome Patrick tomorrow and follow along!!! #CBS6TakeoverTuesday is a fundraiser, and at the end of the series you vote for who had the best takeover. We will donate $200 to their charitable organization of choice. @louderthaneleven chooses Henric Firefighters and Families Charitable Foundation.
A post shared by WTVR CBS 6 (@cbs6) on Sep 19, 2016 at 2:30pm PDT
