Firefighters from six departments graduate from 220-hour Company Officer I and II May 10 at Dowagiac Fire Department.

Capt. Mike Mattix has a surprise for 11 firefighters from six departments gathered in Dowagiac Fire Department’s conference room Tuesday evening.
Their 220-hour company officer course began last October and ends May 10.
One element of chapter eight for Company Officer I and II is dealing with the media.
His students, who have been in the fire service up to Craig Yeager’s 25 years with Wayne Township, have been writing press releases and memos.
Mattix puts two on the hot seat — answering questions from a reporter.
In fact, when the “media” arrives, the room falls silent.
We parry about a blaze on Day Lake Street near Vandalia like a press conference — an untended burn barrel catches a structure on fire and spreads into rafters, no injuries, no vehicles in the garage.
“They lit it and left,” Jason Hayden said. “It was windy.”
Media accounts revolve around five W’s — who, what, where, when, why — and increasingly it’s hard to come by press releases with who. Policies vary from department to department, but, like everywhere else, social media play a part.
“I think that stems from HIPAA regulations,” said Mattix, a Fire Officer III.
The HIPAA Privacy Rule provides federal protections for personal health information held by covered entities and gives patients an array of rights with respect to that information.
“It’s so broad and encompassing,” Mattix said, “we’re almost afraid to say a name. You even notice it on sporting events on TV when a player gets injured. They go down to the sidelines, but about all they’ll say is they took him to the locker room. We had an incident where I needed a name for my report, so I called the hospital and they wouldn’t give it to me.  We can say a fire incident occurred at the Smith residence in the 300 block of South Front — as long as it is not still under investigation or suspicious. If any type of criminal activity is suspected, you want to be careful what you release because you could jeopardize the case. That’s why I feel it’s very important a press release is issued after a call within the department parameter for standard information,” such as damage extent, if smoke detectors were present and a cause, if available.
But investigations move at a slower pace than appetites for instantaneous information.
Firefighters are mindful that if they don’t tell their story, others will and fill the vacuum, but at the same time, Robert Moore said, “Each department has its own set of SOGs (standard operating guidelines or procedures) it follows.” He’s been in the fire service 11 years in August.
Lt. Brian Townsend of Dowagiac Fire Department said, “Someone can sue you for just standing here talking, so you’re better off not saying anything. It’s such a fine line you’ve got to walk. You’ve got to be careful with everything you do. It would be great if we could give a little bit of information and save the details for a press release after we clear the call and get back to the station.”
Keith Carter is already Penn assistant chief. “This class gives him credence as an officer because he’s certified through the state,” said Mattix.
They treasure the time for multiple jurisdictions to augment textbook material with a more informal exchange about how individual departments operate. “We learn from each other” twice a week, one said. Four classes are prerequisites.
Deputy Chief Guy Evans spends one week a month for nine months completing command staff school through Eastern Michigan University.
Today’s fires burn hotter and faster because of synthetics, plastics and chemicals.
The spectacular fire which destroyed Edward Lowe Foundation headquarters near Cassopolis is discussed because the strip of yellow tape separating the public from firefighters was at a remote distance.
Ironically, firefighters who used to snap photos at fully involved fire scenes are being prohibited from the practice.
Social media such as Facebook “have become a real balancing act,” Mattix said. “Everything’s so instant. The fear from management is that everyone’s got one of these (a phone camera),” so when a shutter clicks, “We better be doing our jobs.”
They mention an officer in another jurisdiction terminated for photographing a patient in back of an ambulance and posting it to Facebook.
“The agency with jurisdiction controls everything inside the yellow tape,” Mattix said. “That’s our domain. If you come in and take a picture, ‘Give me the camera.’ We need to embrace the media because they have a job to do. I wanted these guys to get used to having a journalist ask them questions.”

Participants

• Keith Carter, Penn Township Fire Department
• Christopher Corzine, Howard Township Fire Department
• Jason Hayden, Penn Township Fire Department
• William McGowan, Wayne Township Fire Department
• Douglas Michels, Dowagiac Fire Department
• Robert Moore, Pokagon Volunteer Fire Department
• Eric Ruth, Penn Township Fire Department
• Brian Townsend, Dowagiac Fire Department
• Kevin Waldschmidt, Pokagon Volunteer Fire Department
• Tommy Wilson, Indian Lake Fire Department
• Craig Yeager, Wayne Township Fire Department