(BIRDS CHIRPING) This is so weird, being back.

Can't even tell a house used to be here.

I think it was around 1:00 or 2:00 a.m.

I woke up to my room was jus completely filled with smoke.

I stepped outside on the balcony, and just wind, crazy like a tornado, and I turned aroun and it's just a wall of flames.

I grabbed my, um, laundry basket and my backpack, because I was going to school the next morning.

And the winds and the lighting of the sky with the...

It was just, like, red, overca the whole way you're driving.

It was just a scene out of a... a war movie.

I thought our whole city was going to burn.

Didn't see an engine in sight.

They were dealing with about 50 other fires in our county.

Resources were stretched so thin, um that there just wasn't enough.

It's alway in the back of our heads now, and it's something tha you never thought would happen to Santa Rosa.

You never thought a fire would be ab to wipe out an entire communit.

I will be a firefighter till the day I die, because I never want... that to happen to another community again without being able to try and help.

MAN 1: About three quarters of our country is actually protected by volunteer firefighters.

So, that i your neighbor down the streets, it's the person in the store you're buying your milk from.

You don't know who they are... until you maybe hear something go off on their hip and their pager says, "Ho, hey, "I need to take a break and I need to go help my community."

MAN 2: The volunteer fire service in America, it... it means everything.

If there wasn't a volunteer fire department, you know, some of these towns and cities, they wouldn't exist.

MAN 3: A lot of areas don't have the money to support a full-time fire department.

These people, they leave their families, they leave their homes to come and help their neighbors, and help their friends.

They're filling the gap that, you know, the area can't afford to do.

(INDISTINCT CHATTERING) WOMAN: Her eye was completely swollen shut.

I thought that was more why she was fussing.

But then, she started gasping.

Seventy five to eighty percent of our calls are EMS calls.

Probably the biggest evolution of the fire service is not fighting fire.

MAN 1: Trench rescue, high-angle confined space rescue.

We do anything.

They call... (LAUGHS) They'll call the fire department for anything.

When 9/11 happened, we... we actually sent two paramedic units to the Pentagon.

When we have disasters, the volunteers kick in.

During the hurricanes in Louisiana, w helped people in their houses with chainsaws, clearing out roads put tarps on people's houses.

Volunteer fire departments are the core of the community.

Friend helping friend, somebody that actually is there and cares, not just a stranger.

MAN: We have to protect our community Because if we don't, who will?

We'll go to Gregory Haas.

Hey, welcome.

I'm Brady.

Derae Elmo.

Nice to meet you again.

Have a seat, yeah.

Do you have any medical certs EMT, paramedic, first responder?

-No.

-BRADY: Okay.

-Medical certs?

-Yes, sir.

I'm a Washington State EMT.

Any EVIP experience?

I've done the online classroom.

I got the certification.

-On the engine, or... -Yes, sir.

Oh.

Okay.

I'm gonna put "yes."

-Have you physically driven?

-Oh.

No, sir, I haven't.

Okay.

We'll just put "no" for now.

-Do you have military experience?

-No, sir.

Leadership experience?

Um, I've had quite a bit of management experience in the corporate world.

Most of my leadership experience comes from sports.

BRADY: Fire service experience?

I've been a volunteer for the last year.

Been on the calls, but haven't acted in them.

-Zero.

-BRADY: Okay.

We're starting fresh.

Hi, everyone.

My name is Oden Olsen.

I started in the fire service as a volunteer in 1982.

Problem solving is what we do.

When their house is on fire, is that a problem?

-CLASS: Yes.

-What do they want you to do?

-CLASS: Put the fire out.

-Solve the problem.

Sometimes it's just, they forgot to take their medicine.

But, to them, that's a problem.

Trying to help people, it's hard.

But once you can see, you know, how you can turn someone's day upside down or turn it up... right-side up, you know, it's a cool experience.

I'm a special education paraeducator for the Selah school district.

I don't know.

I feel like I've had a knack just for helping people for a while.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY) I feel like I just want to be kind of that man that my kids can look up to.

"He worked really hard, and this is what he's accomplished."

KAY FITCH: I come from long family of first responder, military, law enforcement.

It's in my blood, I guess, as corny as that sounds.

I'm currently a security officer at the Woodland Park Zoo.

I really want to be somebody that can do anything, to be that, you know, that go-to person for, you know, somebody who's having a really bad day.

EDWARD PARK: My parents had a restaurant.

One night, someone got in and created a fire.

The firefighters were able to help salvage documents and money.

I kind of wanted to, in a sense, pay it forward, ANTHONY COUNTS: There are insecurities that I had in high school.

I was a little smaller, a little shorter.

You know, I wasn't the smartest kid.

Those are all mental blocks that you can overcome.

And that's why I really wanted to become a firefighter.

I wanted to be surrounde by other people who want to b the best version of themselves.

I'm so ready to jump on the fire.

I'm head-first.

I'll go first.

I don't know anything, but... Is there another word for excited?

Ecstatic.

ZACHARY FERGUSSON-WILLIAMS: Our department, we're a rescue company.

We have two ambulances that run all the time, a paramedic chase car, and a heavy rescue squad.

And pretty much what that is, is a big toolbox on wheels.

You just show up and there's a problem and it's like, what tools do we have to solve this problem?

Our primary job on anything we go on is search and rescue.

-(KNOCKING ON DOOR) -FIREMAN: Fire Department.

We're running a fire, we would not be the ones pulling a hose line, -'cause we don't have hose.

-You okay in here, too?

They could be downstairs, putting out the fire, we'd be upstairs, searching the building.

WOMAN: Thank you!

Wheaton is very close to DC.

We're about only 10, 15 minutes away from the DC line.

The population's constantly getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger.

(INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER) WILLIAMS: We might run about 10,000 calls a year or so.

You would come in at, like, 5 o'clock, you make your bed, you get a call, and then, you don't come back to the station until 11 o'clock at night.

As soon as you clear the hospital, you get another call.

Back-to-back-to-back.

The excitement, like the constant movement, constant action and stuff.

That was the stuff that really drew me into it initially.

-(INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER) -Driving is really fun.

It is also very stressful.

Imma have to back all the way out.

I think you want to get your ass a little bit closer over here.

(TRUCK BEEPING) WILLIAMS: I drive a truck that's like 70,000 pounds.

So, it's a very big truck.

(SIREN WAILING) For me, it's still the siren, the lights, the running red lights.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) Driving is the best thing you can do at the firehouse.

When I was younger, I was always interested in the EMS, the ambulances, counting fire trucks.

You hear the fire truck coming, you just wanna come watch it fly past, and the sirens and the lights.

I watched a lot of medical shows, and real life ER shows.

That gave me more interest, like, "Oh I really wanna be a doctor."

So that' my primary reason for all this, is because I wanna to make sure that I like blood, and I like people, and I like all this type of stuff before going off to school and spending $250,000.

If a fire truck made the sound, you'd come run in here and run to se the truck going down the street.

You thought it was here, but it was always going down Randolph Road, because it's the main road out there.

WILLIAMS: I live with, like, my mom, my brother, and my two grandparents.

They pretty much helped raise us Now, it's kind of the reverse.

Now, we're kind of supporting them, goin and doing the grocery shopping, and, um, doing errands, medicine, stuff like that.

It's not an easy thing to balance.

There's a lot of long hours.

Most of my days are probably... they're probably 17-18-hour days.

It's good to have a balance of home life that can balance you out from the chaotics of the world, and wha you have at the station, too.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) Thank you for helping us today.

I appreciate it.

It's raining.

So, everybody have a jacket?

Hopefully it's going to stop.

But make sure everybody have a jacket.

When I came in, I thought that I was just joining to be, like, the, the note taker, the person that's getting all the supplies, putting them in the units or something, or doing all the paperwork after the calls, just there to help them in whatever they needed.

Then I get there and they're like, "Oh, no, no, no.

You're the people doing it."

Like, "You're the one that's going to go out and help that patient "who's, like, on the floor is dying."

I was like, "Oh, my God."

Like, "That's me?"

All right.

Cool.

That's it.

-Thank you.

Thanks.

-OTHERS: Thank you.

(ALARM BLARING) (SIREN WAILING) PEREZ-CRUZ: First call went out, and, like, the tones kind of scared me.

But the moment I hopped into the unit and they were like racing down, I was excited.

(SIREN WAILING) Those first few calls, I remember that I couldn't get, like, the blood pressure.

And I was like, "If I can't do the basics, "then how am I gonna be able to do the rest?"

You figure yourself out with the people around you.

They're taking care of the patient, then you should be focused on getting the patient's history.

The driver is focused on the logistics aspect.

This is chaos, but it's like a controlled chaos.

And I liked the chaos.

(CHUCKLES) At first, my mom, she was nervous.

And she was like, "I don't think it's a good idea.

"There could be accidents, and I wouldn't know where you are and what's happening."

My uncle, one of them, talked to her, and he was like, "Remember that you were exactly like her?"

My mom, my dad, they were both police officers in El Salvador.

They always inspired me to do more, to be more, to help other people.

She was always like, "Help people, always be nice.

"You never know what anyone's going through."

(INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER) I know, because my mom only speaks Spanish, that if it was her in an ambulance, and she'd be surrounded by people that maybe don't speak the language, she'd be terrified.

And I know that if I'm on a call, I can be their voice.

I joined when I was 16.

I'm about to be 19 So, I guess almost three years.

-Yeah yours is easy to find.

It' -Right here, right here.

Look right here.

(LAUGHTER) What pulse is that?

-Radial.

-Radial.

What about this one?

-Carotid.

-Okay.

Which one do we use for babies?

OTHERS: Brachial.

WOMAN: What if someone's unresponsive, where do we go?

OTHERS: Carotid and radial.

Good job.

(LAUGHTER) (INDISTINCT CHATTER) You're dispatched to a single family home for trouble breathing.

All right.

I'm checking for a pulse.

Do I feel a pulse?

All right.

Immediately, Frinet, can you start compressions?

Kendi, can you call to fill the assignment?

ELECTRONIC VOICE: Analyzing heart rhythm.

-Shock delivered.

-"Shock delivered," continue.

So, my next step is, I'm going to have one perso communicate with the translators -tell the mom what's going on... -(ALARM BLARING) (INDISTINCT CHATTER) (SIREN WAILING) (CRICKET AND BIRD SOUND) (COUNTRY MUSIC) (HORSE NEIGHS) Hey, babies.

Hi.

How are you?

How are you?

I missed you so... You'll see a sign that says, "Start."

You're just gonna follow that up.

We've got new trails in this year.

Have fun.

There you go.

Have a good ride.

Be safe.

WOMAN: Love you guys.

Thank you for coming!

WOMAN: We came up with the idea of getting a trail ride going, get a little more money for the Little Fork fire department.

MAINVILLE: Living in an area with horses is the best thing ever.

I wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

How are you?

MAINVILLE: Thank you so much for coming out.

We really, really appreciate the support.

We love it We like what you guys do.

So... MAINVILLE: Well we appreciate it.

You guys have fun and be safe, okay?

-(RADIO BEEPS) -Chief Nine's responding.

(SIREN WAILING) Everybody's fine?

Okay.

Hi.

WOMAN: Hi.

MONACO: Animal owners, it's their child.

You're dealing with their kid.

I understand.

I'm a horse owner.

So, if something were going on with my animal, I would be very upset and very emotional.

MONACO: So, the chest bar is bent.

And this is the side the horse was on.

Of course, the horse is not going to have a seat belt on.

Okay.

Thank you.

Horse has been located.

-All right.

-Bye, Joker.

All right, Joker, let's go.

There can be a lot of leg injuries.

There's been head wounds.

Their faces getting mashed into something.

In a general circumstance, firefighters aren't going to help with the horse.

It's kind of like having an elephant somewhere.

MONACO: We ran two or three calls where we had horses that were down or trapped, and didn't have a clue what we were dealing with.

We got wind that there was a specialization class for technical large animal rescue.

That sounds kind of cool.

Nobody else is doing that.

So, we're going to do the tripod next and we're going to make it easy.

Well, it's never easy with the tripod.

We're gonna raise it up, and then we're gonna put the horse under it, and then raise the horse up.

We had a call for a cow in a swimming pool, and that was our first call.

And the whole way, we were like "I hope we got this."

(LAUGHS) As far as walking up the stairs, they put plywood down.

The cow just wasn't going.

We were like, "Hey, we can do this lift."

And he was like, "You can do this lift?"

And we were like, "Yeah."

We were able to attac the straps and a Becker Sling, and we were able to get the cow out.

MONACO: And the word gets out, "Hey, there's, you know, these people "who can do that, or take care of it, and they're pretty proficient at it."

MAINVILLE: We're the only up-and-running team in Virginia.

And we run some very interesting calls with that.

MAINVILLE: Every animal is different Every situation is different.

Every owner is different.

MONACO: It's been... Actually, it's been a lot of fun.

Cows in pools, horses in pools.

We've had two horses in hay lofts.

Cause horses don't do steps.

MAINVILLE: We don't claim to know everything.

Each call that we go on with the technical large animal rescue, we learn a little bit more, and a little bit more, and a little bit more.

We've had a couple of dogs in wells.

And we had a cat stuck in a pipe.

We had to cut the pipe.

Kind of guessing how long the tail was, and there was no complaint.

So, we got that one right.

You know, stuff like that.

(CHUCKLES) (INDISTINCT CHATTERING) -'Morning.

-'Morning, sir.

OLSEN: This is how everybo is going to lay their gear o when you get ready to go, okay?

Everybody's should look the sae all the way down the line.

Attention to detail, that's going to be re important when you're in a fir.

The one little mistake you make on your SCBA can mean, matter of the difference between you living or dying.

So, if we can keep you from not making that little mistake, then maybe you'll stay alive.

Okay, you have one minute to put your PPE on properly and be ready to go.

Hood up.

Helmet on.

The first time, it's not going to be pretty.

On your mark.

Get set.

Go!

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) OLSEN: Fifty five seconds!

Sixty.

Keep going.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) Spin around.

Keep going.

All right.

Good.

You're good.

(SIGHS IN RELIEF) WOMAN: You got it.

Keep it up.

-Yep, just work through it - WOMAN: Just work through it.

Good job.

You just need to slow down.

Breathe through it, okay?

You just need a little organization, and you're gonna be just fine.

-All right?

-PARK: Yeah.

Thank you, ma'am.

You're welcome.

Good.

Tighten that.

Good.

Now you're here.

Like you mean it.

There you go.

Good.

Lean forward.

You're at 56 seconds, Park.

That's awesome.

Everything went great that time.

That's way better than you've been doing.

You've been at like 1:40.

Try to avoid, you know, touching everything so much.

Just do it once.

You're doing it.

I'm telling you, I just watched you.

Touch it once and move on, okay?

-Thank you, yes.

-All right.

Good job.

(OVERWHELMED SIGH) (CHUCKLES) (INDISTINCT CHATTER) (BASKETBALL BOUNCING) In the past, we've had hundreds of people here at a time.

I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if we have at least... at least 1,000 peopl through here today, maybe more.

A lot of people, they may know us from beforehand, or they may hear things, you know, "Fireman, blah, blah, blah."

But we're not, right?

We're just kind of like, you know, regular, ordinary people.

Well, maybe ordinary-ish, but... Let's grab a bite to eat, finish your coffee, whatever it is.

Let's aim to start pulling tables up by, like, 8:45 the latest.

HUGH JACOBSON: We've been around since 1877.

So, that's... We're approaching 150 years of service.

(SIREN WAILING) When I joined the department back in 1997, the membership roster was pretty small.

ELI RIBOWSKY: We were struggling to get trucks on the road.

Sometimes we would just show up, you know, one or two guys, and we'd just be waiting for a driver to show up, and, you know, roll a truck.

JACOBSON: The leadership of the company at the time got together and said, "What are we doing wrong?

What can we do to change that trend?"

-MAN: "Welcome to" and then... -H-O-U... H-O-U-S-E I'm a little tired.

Can we dumb it down a little bit?

Just to make sure that I know how to spell it?

(CHUCKLES) -MAN: Don't worry I'm putting it in order for you.

-All right.

Good.

We were either going to adapt or we weren't going to survive.

You know, we had to make some changes.

We had to think a little outside the box.

Every department around here was struggling to find people.

But, really, we weren't struggling to find people.

We had a whol untapped flow of people that... nobody ever looked at before.

YITZY GRUNWALD: I've been living in Monse approximately three years now.

Since my wife is from Monsey, when I got married, I moved up here.

We got an apartment.

Okay.

(SPEAKING YIDDISH) (SPEAKING YIDDISH) The community here in Monsey they're all Orthodox Jewish.

You've got the modern Jewish people, you've got... you've got a whole bunch of different kind of Jewish people.

We can have five people in the room, everybody from a different community.

It's a family.

I like to give to other people.

My father is this way.

My grandfather is this way.

And all my uncles, they're all this way.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY) Even growing up, when I was a teenager, I started doing wilderness first aid, and I did lifeguarding.

And since I live so close to the fire department, I took a knock on the door.

One of the chiefs told me, "You've got to shave and then come back, "and we'll give you an application."

As a general rule, the ultra-Orthodox, they don't shave.

The way I grew up is: we don't touch the beard, we don't touch the beard.

Neither this and neither that.

So, I've actually never trimmed my beard in any shape or form.

It's actually very long.

(SNICKERS) I tie it up, and then, it's a lot of... Takes a couple of minutes, and then, I tuck it all in.

They can't be fitted properly for a mask.

So, they can't be the interior firefighter.

GRUNWALD: I used to come by and get to know the guys.

I really wanted to get in.

So, I was hanging out a lot at the fire department.

Like, what's the deal?

Is there a way that I can join this fire department?

LERER: You can't just ignore a large percentage of your community and say, "Oh, you want to become a firefighter?

Too bad.

"You want to help out your community?

Too bad."

ALL: "...indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Reading of minutes from the previous meeting.

JACOBSON: We started talking about it and kicking the idea around that there's a lot of things that can be done on the fire ground that don't require wearing a mask.

LERER: We started formulating a plan.

He said, "Give it some time.

We're working on something."

I, I didn't give up.

I didn't give up hope.

LERER: We finalized the SOP changes, the bylaw changes.

It's another month until they're actually going to vote on it.

JACOBSON: Rules, regulations, right?

How the program would work.

"Okay, Yitzy, next week, next week."

And out of that plan came the Exterior Firefighter program where they could do anything and everything up to the point of being an interior firefighter.

Yitzy was actually sitting in the parking lot, when we were having the vote at the meeting.

He was pounding on the door, asking for an application.

I mean, I guess that really sums up who he is, you know.

You know, he was going to make sure he got in this place.

and kick ass as soon as he came through the door.

(SIREN WAILING) JACOBSON: There are always going to be people in any organization who are going to be resistant to change.

I'll admit that I myself was...

I was a little skeptical at first.

Like, how is this going to work?

GRUNWALD: We used to spend hours at the firehouse just doing dress drills, doing forcible entry, going through the trucks, When my pager goes off, my adrenaline was pumping.

"Oh, got a call.

Got to run."

I'll go no matter where or what I'm doing, I'll drop everything and go.

RIBOWSKY: You know, hose lines need to get stretched, fire hydrants need to be hit.

Ladders need to be thrown.

There's just as much happening outside the fire ground as there is happeni inside of that burning buildin.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) They proved all the naysayers wrong.

Really, it's breathed new life into the organization.

GRUNWALD: People come over to the firehouse, they want to see the fire trucks and they're always welcome.

(SPEAKING YIDDISH) GRUNWALD: When we show up to an ultra-Orthodox Jewish house, "This guy speaks Yiddish to me and he's basically like us."

I think it bring a lot of peace of mind tha "Oh, okay, we're in good hands" There's people in their community that can explain them the way the 9-1-1 system work, the way we operate.

You got to stay low and go.

Let's go.

There you go.

GRUNWALD: I remember the first year that I saw it before I joined the fire department.

I was standing there like, frozen to the barricade, and just watching the do their work.

It was amazing.

And here I am.

(GARAGE DOOR WHIRRING) SHARI MICHL: This friend had a heart attack.

And he called Alan.

He says, "Hey, can you drive the bus for me, "just temporarily, till I get over this heart attack?"

And Alan said, "Well, yeah, I suppose I can do that."

Well, 25 years later, he's still driving the school bus.

(CHEERFUL MUSIC) When you're in a small community, some people, you have to wear some hats, and that's just how it is.

I've been farming my whole life.

I drive a school bus.

I'm also currently the chairm on the village board of Exeter.

SHARI: As far as his mayoral duties, a lady called one time and had a bat in her toilet, and wanted Alan to come and get the bat out.

So... We get calls that there's a dog running loose, and then we have to go catch the do and take it to the dog pound.

That's part of the mayor's duties.

(LAUGHS) (CROSSING BELL RINGING) (TRAIN HORN BLARING) (TOY TRAIN WHISTLING) ALAN: I would describe Exeter as a very rural community with good, hard-working people.

Once they get to know you, you're in.

-ALAN: Morning, Levi.

-Morning.

-ALAN: Morning, Lynn.

-Morning.

SHARI: Alan and have been married for 42 years.

ALAN: Both Shari and went to school here in Exeter, and we wanted to raise our kids here.

SHARI: Alan and I are kind of joined at the hip.

And actually, now that you say that, that's probably part of the reason why I joined the fire department.

I have been a member for approximately 40 years.

You know, when you get a call, 99 times out of 100, you're going to know the peopl that are having the tragedy.

It could be your family.

It could be your neighbor.

It could be your classmate.

ALAN: For goodness' sakes, can you imagine if you had to come a long way to fight a fire?

I mean, what would happen?

I mean, there'd be no point.

By the time you get here the battle is going to be over.

Well, that's exactly what's going to happen if we don't keep our rural local departments going.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) When I was going to school here, we had like, 350 kids in the school.

Well, now, there's about 140 kids.

So, that's how things have changed.

SHARI: How do you keep a town alive?

There's only so many of u We have to help each other out.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) Okay.

Let's go ahead and get this thing started.

ALL: ...under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

We are going to have our open house the 9th of October from 4:00 to 7:00.

I'm looking for a few volunteers to work that 4:00-7:00 shift.

We're going to have close to $2,000 in things to give to our community.

With the smoke detectors, If there is someone in our community that can't seem to get them up, that are maybe older or alone, if we would volunteer our time to go put them up...

The older people here right now are not going to be here forever.

People my age, even me, are maybe stepping back a little bit, saying, "Yeah, this is mayb a little too strenuous for us."

We even have a couple guys that are still on that are in their 70s.

So, we have to keep that pipeline of those young, fresh blood coming in so we can retire.

LANE STRATE: It seems like everybo gets out of here when they can.

I didn't want to deal with all the hustle and bustle of city life.

I just couldn't do it.

I had to come back to my hometown and kind of settle down.

This time of year, I'm dumping trucks.

I am loading train cars, hauling grain, cleaning bins.

(PEACEFUL MUSIC) If we're doing well, that means the farmers are doing well, which means the local businesss are doing well.

It just kind of works as like its own little ecosystem.

(OMINOUS MUSIC) It's fairly quiet around here, but, usually when there is a call, it's bad.

ALAN: We get farm accidents, crop dusters hitting the power lines flying down.

Diesel spills.

We've had train derailment We've had an elevator explosio.

(DISTANT SCREAMING) SHARI: It was October and it was 100 degrees.

We had a really bad one on one of our fields.

It blew into t or three other people's fields.

It was a bad fire.

We actually have a list of farmers that have volunteered if there's ever a field fire, they will drive to you, no matter where you're at, and they will just start turning circles in the field, just cutting down crops, trying to contain i so it doesn't jump or spread.

ROBBIE PETERSEN: You get a fire it goes miles.

Miles and miles, if it gets out of hand.

They drop what they're doing and they come out.

I mean, it's...

It's huge.

I mean, you think about the farms that have been here.

I mean, there' 100-year-old farms, you know?

And it's nice to know that you have a backup when things go wrong.

How's it going?

-Good, how are you?

-Not too bad.

STRATE: With Firefighter 1 coming up, I finally decided to take the step to be properly trained on house entry, hazardous smoke.

So, I'm gonna have to say goodbye to the beard.

He's gonna have to go bye-bye.

-I don't think I've ever seen you without a beard.

-Mm.

-Gonna look like I'm 12.

-(LAUGHS) I mean, I'm not going to want to sit back and watch a friend of mine not come back out, and I could have been there to go in and get him.

WOMAN: You're not gonna recognize yourself in the mirror.

(LANE LAUGHS SOFTLY) -Oh, my.

-Oh, my.

(LAUGHTER) (FOOTSTEPS) (SOLEMN MUSIC PLAYING) (EXHALES) MAN: Oh, man.

(SOLEMN MUSIC CONTINUES) (UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) For those of you that have trouble chewing bubble gum and walking at the same time, This is gonna take some work, but that's okay.

That's why we are here.

We are here to learn.

(MAN GRUNTS) MAN: Right face.

(MAN GRUNTS) ♪ You've got to keep your head ♪ Above the water BRADY: You have the black shoe polish, you have a cup of water and you have a cloth.

Massage that a lot.

Everybody's job from the nozzle back, is to get this person to the fire.

♪ You've got to go further CONOVER: We're training for the worst case scenario.

I can't see.

It's hot I'm uncomfortable, and I found someone.

We're doing everything by touc.

You're volunteering your time to come up here to get better.

It's like a house.

We're building the frame.

That house will never be complete because yo should constantly be learning.

♪ And push!

(PIPE SQUEAKING) ♪ Push!

♪ Well, well OLSEN: What is today?

Playing with fire.

Put a little bit of water, see what happens.

♪ My people!

♪ Push!

Sock it back.

♪ Push!

MAN 1: It is not rainbows and lollipops.

You have to have discipline in this profession.

When you're wearing this uniform, you are not an individual.

You are a member of a team.

And if you do not participate in that team, then things can go wrong.

MAN 2: Come on, guys, push!

Pull!

Pull!

You need to remember who you represent.

You're representing your community as a leader of that community.

Like the view?

But you're also representing everybody that has worn this uniform before you.

♪ I know I've got to be strong You represent your family.

We all want to make somebody proud.

But you're also doing it for yourself.

Have pride in what you do.

MAN: Fall out.

(ALL SHOUTING) ♪ Pick myself up ♪ Start again ♪ Yeah!

♪ Push!

OLSEN: You're flooding my apartment.

Get it stopped.

FIREMAN: Struggling here, sir!

(ALL SHOUTING) ♪ Come on people!

Push!

(ALL SHOUTING) Get in, Mr. Park, get in there.

Get in.

(SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY) (CHEERS) Oh!

There you go.

♪ You've got, you've got to push!

♪ Come on y'all ♪ Push, push, push!

(BREATHING THROUGH MASKS) ♪ Push!

(MUSIC CONTINUES OVER CAR RADIO) ♪ Push!

MAN 1: It's gonna be mainly reds, huh?

MAN 2: Reds and, hopefully some trout.

We didn't catch any trout last time.

(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING) I always said, when I was a younger man that I didn't want to raise kids into this world the way it's going.

But we're here to leave something better that... that would carry on, and you do that with kids.

JR i a mirror image of me, I guess, and I'm starting to see it a lot more now.

-You want to reel it in?

-Yep Come on.

I never expected him to become a firefighter.

But when you see your d doing something that they love, he wanted to do the same thing.

He was like, "Dad, I want to do that."

Jason's got a different personality.

He scares me sometimes.

Sometimes, I feel like he's holding feelings in or some emotions, but he never fails to amaze me by the stuff that he does.

Jason has a big heart.

He doesn't see a bad in anybody, which, sometimes, can bite a person, you know, in the rear.

(MYSTERIOUS MUSIC PLAYING) JR: My brother would always try to isolate himself.

We kind of saw him veering of and drinking a lot of alcohol, and going out with friend that he probably shouldn't have been going with.

JASON: It all started with, you know, the alcohol, and then, being in a bad relationship.

Being unemployed was really hard.

I felt like I wasn't going nowhere with my life.

My wife would always be up late at night, waiting for him to come home if he was going to come home.

I did get a call one night that I was hoping that I would never get.

Jason, um, had a rude awakening.

We went out drinking one night, and I had, you know, one too many drinks.

Our assistant fire chief is a constable.

DELGADO: I'm a deputy constable in Bee County.

I was out patrolling and saw a vehicle speeding right here through downtown, doing 57 in a 35.

My brother was in the passenger seat and his friend was drivin and tried to flee from the cops.

JASON: He almost ran over the constable.

-(SIRENS WAILING) -(POLICE RADIO CHATTER) JASON: If my bud wouldn't have stopped the truc, they were gonna open fire on us.

DELGADO: You know, got the driver stopped at gunpoint, and there was a passenger in that vehicle.

One of the patrolmen came over and told me...

He goes, "You know whose son that is?"

Just give me a minute here.

I just...

I get emotional... because...

I used to be Jason at one time.

I used to be a kid that used to run around this town, terrorizing neighborhoods and stuff.

and that's why I take great pride in what I do...

It took a lot for me to do what I did to, uh, turn my life around.

It wasn't easy, uh, coming from a single-parent, uh, home, and having a lot of regret towards my father, because he wasn't around.

It was the fire department, and the EMS, is what pulled me out of it.

Because I can guarantee you right now, if it wasn't for the fire service, I wouldn't be here right now.

I don't know where I'd be.

I don't even know if I would have a family.

(HOPEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) JAIME: With Jason, what I'm trying to tell him is that, yeah, we screw up in life sometimes, but don't let that define you.

I said, "Look, everybody's allowed mistakes in their lives.

"I made mistakes in life.

Everybody has, you know."

And we told him, said, "You've got to learn from this mistake."

Next thing I know, "I want to join the department, Dad."

I was like, "Awesome" (CHUCKLES and it's turned his life around.

It really has.

My first call was a structure fire with a lady trapped inside, and we couldn't get to her on time.

So, she passed away inside.

He got hit with the whole shebang pretty darn quick.

It just made me want to be there all the time to become better at what I do.

You see all these people hurting, it makes you want to be a better person because you're not just taking care of yourself, you're taking care of a whole city.

JASON: Anything that we've ever done, we've always done it together, The department says "The Hernandez boys are in town."

JAIME: One's gonna go left, one's gonna go right.

And we're going to attack it from the side.

Make your commands, and have your team follow you.

MAN: Ready!

(SHOUTING) JAIME: My purpose in life, come to find out, was... doing this, giving back.

And I see my life coming full-circle.

Forward, forward!

Attack, attack!

All the way across, all the way across!

(INDISTINCT SHOUTING) JAIME: You hear the stori about generational firefighter, and I was the one that started that in my family.

You know, if you're in trouble, guess what?

We're showing up We're going to be there for you, whether we know you're not, and that's just who we are.

That's how I raised my boys, and that's how I see Cody being raised.

JR: It's big shoes to fill, but I would like to fil those shoes as best as I can, Maybe in a few years people will look the same at me as I do him.

(BIRDS CHIRPING) (DOG BARKING DISTANTLY) (PLAYFUL MUSIC) BARBARA WILLIAMS: I like to travel.

I love to quilt.

I love my family.

And not particularly in that order.

(CHUCKLES) And I love to serve.

I love to help people.

When I give a qui to someone, it's like I've le a little piece of myself there.

If I can share something tangible and it's useful, then I think it's just important to do that.

When we both retired, we decided to move out to the country.

It's quiet, it's peaceful and it's just beautiful.

You know, we love the mountain.

We'd been in the house maybe six months, and I was driving into Culpeper to get some shower curtains that day.

I drove by the station.

The bay door was and the chief's buggy was ther.

God took the wheel, you know.

And I swung in and I went in and the chief is sitting there.

And I told him that I had recently retired, and that I would like to volunteer.

I told him that I could type very fast and I had good organizational skills, and I would like to help him.

And he said, "Nope, that's not what we need."

He said, "We need an EMT."

I said, "No, no, no, that's not me.

(CHUCKLES) That's not me."

He said, "That's what we need."

And he handed me a book.

It was about maybe four inches deep.

I said, "What's this?"

He said, "This is your EMT book.

I signed you up.

You start Monday night."

I said, "Okay."

And so, I got home, and my husband said, "Where have you been?"

I said, "I think I joined the fire department."

(LAUGHS) And that was it.

(SIREN WAILING) No two calls are ever the same.

No two heart attacks are the same.

No two diabetic emergencies is the same.

No two strokes are the same.

(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION) We went on a call the other da.

We go in thinking the guy had had cataract surgery, and it ended up being a cardiac call.

He was in AFib and he was needing to be transported.

So, that's why we go full-bore every time.

We're going to get some of these good-looking guys to pick you up, because I'm old and I'm weak.

-No, you're not.

-(LAUGHS) You'd be surprised.

WILLIAMS: You know, we have a growing older population, and a lot of the people that I pick up, I know.

You have to be able to focus on not the person, but the problem.

And once yo get the problem under control, then you can talk to the guy about his golf game.

Thirteen years ago, if you told me I'd be running rescue in an ambulance, running a crew, I would've told you to check yourself into Saint Elizabeth's, because there is no way I'm going to be doing that.

But here I am.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) My philosophy is, it's easier to keep going than it is to stop and get going.

The world's so big, and we have such a small piece here, and we just have to take care of this.

Since 2017, we've had four major campaign fires here in Sonoma County that have burned thousands of homes an displaced thousands of people.

This county has maybe 25 fire departments, of which three are 100% paid.

So, that leaves 22 departments that still use volunteers.

Coming from losing my home in the Tubbs fire, and now being in a position to where I can save homes is an unbelievable feeling, We're learnin new ways to fight these fires, and I'm a part of that.

I'm a part of learning more about my world.

It's something new every day and I love that The fire service wasn't originally developed for wildland firefighting.

It was developed for structural firefighting.

Things evolve, things change, and we grow to meet those needs.

You just have to... You have to be willing to do anything.

Basically anything.

And, sometimes, it doesn't follow script.

So you have to be able to adapt.

OLSEN: It's all being a problem solver.

We never say no.

We always say, "Yes, we'll come and help you."

MAN: In the last 40 years, the per-capita volunteer numbers in the country have gone down, like, 27%.

And it just means that the volunteer departments have to work that much harder.

There are days that we are covered, and there are days where we're piecing it together, but someone always pulls through, and we are always staffed 24/7.

I know I'm getting older.

I'm not the young spring chicken anymore.

I know my time's coming to where I won't be able to do that anymore.

If we don't have anybody to fill those shoes, um, then we're going to be in the same situation as a lot of other rural departments, and I don't ever want to get to that point.

ELMO: It's kind of bittersweet, you know, because, it's like man, that 12 weeks, like, where did it go?

But...

I definitely can tell that i It changed me in a lot of ways.

Maybe we don't have that, you know, that title of a career firefighter, and it's not our day-to-day and we don't get paid to do it, but the community doesn't know that.

We show up and we're firefighters.

MAN: Here you are, 12 weekends.

You had the dedication and commitment to be here.

And that says something about you.

That's the intentional fortitude And that's the heart of a public servant.

We went from just strangers, really, cause we didn't know each other.

We had to work together and, you know, rely on each other.

And we kind of became more friends, and then, all the way to the end, It was just like we became, you know, became a family.

Nathan Bostian.

Congrats, buddy.

-Thank you, sir.

-(APPLAUSE) BOSTIAN: I'm just excited that I actually made it.

There was a lot of times where I was kind of down on myself.

"Crap, can I do this?"

(LAUGHS) After coming out of that, the search prop, the first day, where I was like, "Ah, this is nuts!"

Went back through the same search pro a couple weeks later, it was... piece of cake.

MAN: Mr.

Counts.

Always got a smile on your face, don't you?

-Yeah.

-Outstanding.

MAN: Juliano.

I appreciate the hard work.

It's really cool to see how you guys evolved.

CONOVER: Whether you stay a volunteer or you become a career firefighter, I wish you guys the best of luck.

CONOVER: If you're like, I just want to volunteer for life, that's brilliant.

We need those people, right?

It's over half of our country.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER) ELMO: Most likely to be a captain one day... -Imma give that to my guy Counts, here.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Oh, thank you.

COUNTS: I had no clue what I was getting into.

I had no clue.

I didn't view myself as being capable of being that kind of person.

You're gonna learn so many cool things, you're gonna make new friends, new family.

And it's gonna be difficult, And it's gonna be difficult, but if you have the heart, you can be a firefighter.

(DISTANT RUMBLING SOUND) -(INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING) -(SIREN WAILING) (MUSIC CONTINUES) What's your name sweetheart?

Ashley?

Ashley, nice to meet you.

My name is Frinet, okay?

We're gonna help you out.

Patrick, neck brace, please.

(MUSIC CONTINUES) (MUSIC ENDS) WILLIAMS: There's that story of the little girl walking on the beach and all of these starfishes were up on the sand, and there was an old man standing there.

And she went ove and she picked a starfish up, and she threw it into the ocea.

And the old man said, "Well, you can't make a difference.

Look at all these starfishes."

And she said, "Well, I made a difference to that one."

So, that's how I feel about volunteering.

(REVERSE GEAR HORN BEEPING) I feel like if I can just throw a few starfishe back into the ocean, I'm good.

(BEEPING FADING) (UPBEAT SONG PLAYING) ♪ I'm gonna help you fin a way to help m Help you find it out JAIME: All right.

So, today is rescue training.

You're gonna search.

You're the lead guy, I'm the medic.

-Immediate medical response, right?

-Yep.

-If we need it?

-Yep.

-If not, load and go, right?

-Yep.

-And we communicate on the way in... -Yep.

-...and on the way... -Out.

That's right.

Front door, front door.

Two going in.

-Sweep.

-Nope, nothing.

-Nothing?

Clear?

-Clear.

I found somebody.

I need medical.

JAIME: Medical coming up.

What is it, a baby?

It's a panda bear.

Yeah.

JAIME: Nine, ten, eleven, twelve.

(FAKES COUGH, SPUTTER, SCREAMS) All right.

We got pulse, we got breathing.

Let's get out of here.

♪ My darling, I love you Good job.

Good save.

So, if somethin ever did happen, first thing we do is, we call who?

CODY: The fire department.

9-1-1.

JAIME: Good job.

-And then, we show up, right?

-Yep.

-Alright.