I am on a small local volunteer fire department, and we train once a week or every week on fighting fires.
A key principle when fighting a structure fire in town is to hook up to a hydrant on the way there. You want to be as close to the fire as you can, but sometimes the hydrants are a block or two away.
The procedure for pulling up on a scene is for the fire truck to briefly stop at a hydrant as close to the fire as possible. Then the fireman sitting in the passenger seat gets out and goes to the back of the truck. He starts pulling off the end of a large diameter booster hose that comes off the back of the truck.
He pulls a few yards of hose off the truck, and then wraps it in a loop around the hydrant. Then he gives a signal to the driver — either by hand or radio — and the driver continues to drive the truck towards the fire.
Now, the loop around the hydrant should hold that hose in place, and it will automatically peel off the back of the engine as the driver gets closer to the fire so they can attack it.
In some cases, however, the hose on the truck could get caught up and really pull hard. The loop at the hydrant should stay in place, but it might not.
Either way, it’s key for the fireman there to “get out of the way” and let that loop do its job of anchoring the hose. In rare cases, it could come loose and drag behind the truck with a large steel fitting on the end dancing down the street.
You don’t want to be pulled along with it!
If all goes well, the fire truck is now on scene and the fireman are starting to attack the fire using the water already in the truck tank. The fireman at the hydrant can hook up that hose, and the other end is attached to the truck. Now the hydrant man can turn the hydrant on so the engine operator can fill the truck.
Like I said, it’s always important to let that hose loop do its anchor job, and “get out the way” in case it doesn’t hold. That fitting on the end could really hurt if it hit your knee or *worse*.
I’ve found that it’s a good lesson for business, too.
If I’ve found a buyer and seller of goods or services — might be frac sand, barite, machinery, industrial vehicles, you name it — I like to link the two people up…
…and then…
…get out of the way!
Yes, my role is not to “get my fingers in the pie.” Good business people will figure out a deal if it makes sense to them. Sometimes it works, sometimes the deal doesn’t go through. In that case, I just find another player to bring to the party.
But, it’s not my role to screw around and get in the way of the deal, like so many *middle men* do. They try standing on the hose, instead of having faith in the process and getting out of the way.
If you have something that you need — product to buy or sell, a piece of eqipment you need or want to get off your books — give me a shout and let’s see if we can make some business fire for you. E-mail me or give me a call to discuss.
I swear to “light the fire” and then “get out the way.”
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