First I wanna say hey to everyone I am new to the site. A little about me I am prior service Army. Used to be a Topo Guy (making maps) been out for 2 years and have been a volunteer firefighter. I just went through MEPS yesterday. Got qualified and gotta go see my recruiter about the ship date. Anyways I have been told by my recruiter that DC is the best way to go to be a career firefighter in the USCG. If I could be a full time firefighter in the CG I would never get out so please dont inform me of how military certs transfer to over to a civilian fire dept. I know there are career CG firefighters and I just wanna know is this the best start to get to that point and if not then what is. I was thinking also MST because of the HAZMAT training I received in college but quite ironically its the only job I didn't qualify for on the ASVAB. Also can someone enlighten me on this process of swearing and signing your contract the date you leave. My recruiter wont be back until the 9th and I wanna know what I gotta do next. Anyways thinks for reading all this and I look forward to reading your replies.

P.S. can someone who has been through PITSTOP teall what the atmosphere is like.Im expecting to be rather tough but not in your face basic training style.

There are only 1 or 2 fire houses in the Coast Guard. I know there is definitely a fire house in Cape May, NJ and possibly in Petaluma, CA. If you're on a boat you'll be doing all the fire fighting training and maintenance on fire fighting equipment. If you want to get into the "M" (materials) field then you should look to go to a Strike Team or an MSU (marine safety unit). DC's do go to these billets and work along side the MST's. As far as the swearing in thing goes I have no idea as I'm not a recruiter. Don't have any idea about PITSTOP either. If you're wanting to be a career fire fighter on the outside then DC would definitely be the way to go.

I’m not sure you can call CG DC’s career fire fighters. We do have fire stations and you might do a tour at one, but not your 20 yr career. DC’s maintain equipment and train in FF, and we construct, weld, plumb, and general go to guy. DC is a great rate because you’re able to take pride in seeing your achievements such as plumbing in an eye wash station that could save your shipmates sight, remodel a head in a barracks building, or PMS a firehose station knowing that valve and hose will save the ship and lives. Being a DC in the Coast Guard is a lot more than just fire fighting. Hope this helps. It hurts to say; but It’s too bad you’re prior service I would have recommended the Air Force I hear they have a FF rate or mos. Good luck to you.

A good DC spends more time working on preventing fires and training for the big "what if" than fighting fires. If you are fighting lots of fires then someone isn't doing their job very well. You also need to be proficient in carpentry, welding, plumbing, chemical-biological-warefare, water-tight fittings, etc. You will learn the basics of all this at DC school. I've been a DC for almost ten years and thank God I've never seen one. When you are on land you can run out of the building but when you are on a ship where you going to go? Like they said above we do have a firehouse or two but getting stationed at one of those places would take a lot of luck.

As far as fire houses go Petaluma is all civilian no coasties there. So that leaves Cape May and good ol' Kodiak.

Tracen Cape May is the only full time Coast Guard manned firehouse left. You can volunteer in Petaluma and the Baltimore yards have a Fire Brigade. Your best bet in the CG to play firefighter is in Cape May. While there, they sent me to DoD fire school. I also recieved my NREMT and HazMat ops. Depending on how you mingle with the crew, they can also get you ARFF, HazMat Tech and Technical Rescue qualified.

Also they have mutual aid with most of lower township. While I was there we ran about 1300 calls a year mostly light headed recruits and BLS but also 2 MVA's, A building collapse, and a small number of boat fires.

You can also get credit for all the hours you will be working on F/F stuff by enrolling in the USMAP. it gives you the option to obtain your apprenticeship as a F/F and all you have to do is maintain a log of your hours, its a great deal. mine took about 4 years to complete.

I am currently stationed at the USCG YARD Firehouse, which I dont think anyone mentioned above. I went to the Baltimore City Fire Academy for Fire 1, Fire 2, HazMat Tech, and Rescue Tech. I went to University of MD for Fire Instructor 1, 2, and 3, and Emergency Vehicle Operator, and Pump Operator. I went to Anne Arundel County for EMT and a couple counter terrorism courses. While it sounds like I have alot of quals, in the last 4 years I have put out three fires, 2 with my boot and one I blew out. So you dont really get alot of experiance at a firehouse, you have a much better chance on one of our boats, I have put out a couple little ones then. Also if I were to try and get a job with Baltimore City Fire Department, I would have to go through all the courses again, because even though I went through there they dont transfer. I know it sounds like it doesnt make sense...but...thats the way it is. Good Luck

The DC rate is an excellent platform to learn from. But as always, the mission of the service comes first. You can be a firefighter, plumber, welder, carpenter, HazMat responder or L/E and then become a Warrant or CPO and become a mentor for the next generation.

Swab

Hey Nich, whats a fire brigade?

Me too

Swab

quote:

Originally posted by Gerry_Agnosia:
Another set of questions for you all, please forgive for derailing the thread, but I didn't feel that these questions were important enough to deserve their own thread:

I was wondering, what sort of water bottles do you all carry daily on duty? Nalgene? Camelbak? Would a surgical stainless steel bottle survive the harsh saltwater-air you are surrounded by while on the cutters?

How about your tools and other equipment? Do you have to replace them often?

Would titanium bottles, knives and tools be best?

Thank you.

[Sorry, these questions were just killing me.]

Water Bottles: Everyone has there own preference. Stainless should be fine as long as you take care of it.

Tools: As long as you take care of them the salt water does not affect them. But if you don't take care then you will have problems

Titanium: May be the best but cost is a large factor.

Bottom line take care of your stuff and you
will be OK.

well when i went threough boot camp i ot stuck in regimental hold because i didnt pass my pf test intime. and we shared the same barracks as them. they are pretty relaxed and you get to use your cell phones when you do good. but if you screw up then they will treat you liek another recruit. they also run themselves with out much supervision. but they are stoping the program in october and i heard its all filled up now. but try and get in cause if i coudl i wiould. i dont know much about dc since i'm pretty much brand new. but its what i will most likely go. i'm also thinking of going mst but not sure yet. hope this was helpful.

quote:

Originally posted by crazydieselguy:
well when i went threough boot camp i ot stuck in regimental hold because i didnt pass my pf test intime. and we shared the same barracks as them. they are pretty relaxed and you get to use your cell phones when you do good. but if you screw up then they will treat you liek another recruit. they also run themselves with out much supervision. but they are stoping the program in october and i heard its all filled up now. but try and get in cause if i coudl i wiould. i dont know much about dc since i'm pretty much brand new. but its what i will most likely go. i'm also thinking of going mst but not sure yet. hope this was helpful.

Maybe you should read over your post before you hit send...it is difficult to read

quote:

Maybe you should read over your post before you hit send...it is difficult to read

That was a gentle way to phrase it........

quote:

quote:
Maybe you should read over your post before you hit send...it is difficult to read



That was a gentle way to phrase it........

word

Get back on topic...quit dogging the guy because he didn't spell a few words right and got the letters mixed up on a couple of others.

I know I'm rehashing an old thread, but as a former Navy DC and now a career FF, I can say much of the same stuff asked here has been also asked on the Navy side too.

Despite what anyone has heard or may believe being a FF in the military will NOT get you onto a career fire department. Not to say what you learn is not valuable, but just do not count on the military training to suffice as qualifications to get onto a dept. Now there are departments out there that are general qualifications (ie, 18, HS diploma/ GED, driver's license) that will give vet points, but those departments also get excess of thousands of applicants for a few jobs.

As I tell folks on the Navy side, if one is truly interested in becoming a career firefighter and is looking to the military as a stepping stone, then take advantage of as much college education you can get. Any college credit class offered try to take advantage of because those credits do transfer to other colleges. Also take advantage of DANTES and CLEP courses to supliment credits. Then about 2 years before one decides to get out, look at colleges that offer fire protection degrees and take a placement test. (some colleges have up to a 2 year wait for fire protection)

Go to college, get your degree, get your firefighting certifications and if you don't land a job right away start to work on getting your paramedic. Here is the reality folks, fire departments today rarely review applications. That is Human Resources job. Most HR people have NO CLUE about military service and can't supplement military experience for certifications. So if you want the job, get your certs.

Having a degree in fire science, and being a vet will take you much further than military experience alone. Having paramedic gets you even further. The reality, especially in today's economy, fire departments do NOT have a lot of money to spend on training, nor to send people to medic school. If you come looking for a job and have a degree, certifications, medic, AND being a vet, you make it hard to say no. If you come in with military training alone...good luck landing that job.

Bottom line is no matter what branch one goes into, not even Air Force, it is much harder to walk out of the military and onto a fire department without some formal education.