Busy Day in Franklin

Today held the record for the most calls for me on a shift so far. Even though I think my first shift technically had more calls 3 of them I did not go on. we had 8 calls went on 7 because one was a fire alarm activation as an additional call. We started off the day with truck checks Greg was around this time and he took showed me how he starts off the day running through the trucks that he is on for the day. He was on Engine 3, Engine 1, and the Ladder. He took the time to show me everything he went through which was cool. This included checking running and emergency lights, seat hight/positioning. mirrors, and a general check to make sure all equipment is there. We next moved into the truck check of the day which was the rescue. Every day there is one check that gets fully tested and all equipment on it gets fully tested. We started up top and he showed me all the tech rescue and water rescue gear as well as some of the hazmat. After we got done the top it was time for coffee break which is a cool time because a lot of the off duty guys and the administration all come back and we sit and talk at the break room table. We were talking about cars and trucks for a while which most people would know I love to talk about and do a lot. I got up to get a snickers bar out of the machine and right as I was taking my first bite. The pre alert went off so I turned around and headed for my gear. This was an interesting time because we were suppost to take the plow up to summer storage at 10 so we were cutting it close so Greg stayed behind with the deputy to take care of that. After coming back for about an hour our training was also had to be pushed back, and was delayed to after lunch. Finally it was lunch time which I wasn't sure what to expect because the talk of the day and even it started last night had been Captain Hicks making split pea soup. I had accutally had a message on my phone the night before from him asking me if I would like some. I said I would try it but I had never had it before. It turned out to be pretty good. In the afternoon Greg and I tested the box alarms which are the red boxes that you see on street corners and the sides of buildings that say pull lever for emergency. It is a really cool and old system. He had me calling the numbers to the station on channel 5 and filling out the sheet. We were driving along and heard on the Pd channel that they were going to be toning us to a report of smoke so we headed over and actually were on scene right as they were toning us. It turned out to be a pellet stove starting up and not an emergency. We had a fairly busy night with two med calls and only 4 hours of sleep. Mabe next time I will finally catch a fire call where I ride in a truck. Mabe off to dispatch today.