I'm Paula Hughes with People Who Make the News, the mobile intensive care team of Squad
51, Paramedics John Gage and Roy DeSoto.
We'll be following them and the firefighters of Station 51 as they respond to typical emergency
calls and perform their valuable services to our community.
Okay George, save it.
When do we get them playing checkers?
Well today's firefighters George are action guys, right fellas?
Yeah right, in fact some of our rescues when they call for them we see quite a bit of action.
And from what I hear you see quite a bit of action off duty too.
Like motorcycling, hang gliding, skydiving, that sort of thing?
Yeah well me personally I go rock climbing, hiking.
That's what I mean, it's real macho.
Maybe we could get some pictures of you lifting weights later.
Sure why not, we got a good physical fitness program here at the station.
Yeah I know you have to take regular tests.
Right now I'd like to get some shots of the equipment that you carry like the bio com
and the jaws of life.
You've been doing your homework eh?
Right I have to keep sharp for my job just like you guys have to build muscles for yours.
Miss Hughes, can I see you for a minute please?
Sure Captain, excuse me fellas.
Aye she sure looks good.
She looks as good in person as she does on TV.
She ought to, she won three gold medals in the Olympics for swimming.
You know she reminds me of a PE teacher I once had.
Yeah I know, I got a feeling she thinks for nothing but a bunch of he-men you know.
Yeah well so does my mother, you know she thinks that all firefighters are mucho macho.
Well you have to admit we are in good shape.
Yeah I know but there's more to it than just bronze, I mean we got some brains too.
Well who?
Well I don't know.
Okay I got your clearances for you, take one and I'll keep a couple copies for myself here.
Now you can ride in the squad but you're going to have to follow in your own car so please
obey all the traffic laws and the speed regulations okay?
You know the district?
I'll probably beat you there.
I don't feel like you have to.
Now there's to be no filming on private property or of any victims being treated, we can't
have their privacy violated without their permission okay?
Don't worry Captain we've been thoroughly briefed on town.
Good.
Squad 51, man unconscious, 874 Culver, cross street, third avenue, 874 Culver, time up,
820.
Squad 51, page 3, 6, 5.
Oh, hurry, please.
OK, just hold on just a minute.
What do we got?
It's my son.
I heard a crash and I found him on the floor.
He's unconscious.
A science student, huh?
Well, it started out as a hobby, and the first thing
we knew there wasn't a good car.
Oh, my God.
He's on the floor.
Is he all right?
We don't know yet.
What's his name?
Gary.
Looks like he just fainted.
Rampart to squad 51.
Now, go ahead, 51.
Rampart, we got a male victim here, age?
19.
Age 19.
A victim is diaphoretic and he's breathing very rapid.
Stand by for vital signs.
Pulse is 110.
Respiration is 24 and rapid.
Pulse is 110.
Respiration is 24 and rapid.
The patient is responsive to pain, and he's starting
to regain a little consciousness.
Johnny?
There's a snake behind you.
Don't move.
Go ahead, 51.
51, informant reports
tons of chemicals are stored in tanker.
Use caution.
151, this is Rampart.
Can you send me some EKG?
10-4, transmitting EKG.
We're sending you a strip.
Vitals to follow.
Pulse is 160.
The victim is in extreme pain, Rampart.
The patient is in V5.
Rampart, we have lost the victim's pulse.
Beginning CPR.
We're defibrillating victim, Rampart.
Rampart, we've defibrillated victim.
He's inside his rhythm.
Minister 2 Amsotium bicarbonate.
Start an airway.
Start an IV, 51.
Like David Ritter.
Squad 51, continue monitoring vitals
and transport immediately.
Rampart!
Stand still.
Hey, Gary, hold still.
Hold still.
51, do you read me?
51, this is Rampart.
Go ahead.
Don't move.
I don't know what did it happen.
They were coming in loud and clear.
31 will stand by.
We'll see about that.
Gary, hold still.
We got something to put him in?
Oh, here's a bag.
I don't get it.
Nothing over here.
Nothing?
Nothing down on the path.
Nothing?
Nothing down on the pants.
Gary, can you hear me?
Gary?
Gary, will you be bitten by a snake?
Roy, there it is.
Yeah, it don't look like too much.
That's enough.
Snake, just a cold pack.
All right, just relax.
Snake.
Snake bit me.
All right, just calm down.
Calm down, take it easy, okay?
I thought I hit him, but he bit me.
All right, take it easy. Calm down, okay?
Just settle down. Gary, settle down.
Rampart, this is Squad 51.
Go ahead, 51.
Rampart, we ran into a little trouble here.
Sorry for the delay. Our victim's been bitten by an unknown type snake.
51, when was he bitten?
About 10 or 15 minutes ago.
Are there any signs of tissue destruction or symptoms from the patient?
It's affirmative, Rampart.
He was bitten on the left forearm.
He has slight swelling there.
We've applied a tourniquet and cold pack.
51, start an IV with 500cc's D5W and the opposite arm TKO.
Transport as soon as possible.
51, did anybody get a good look at that snake?
We have a snake, Rampart.
10-4, transport snake also.
10-4, Rampart.
Dix, we're gonna need a herpetologist to make an identification on that snake.
Okay.
All righty, let's clear the way here.
We got a patient coming through. Thank you.
What's gonna happen to me? Am I gonna be all right?
You're gonna be fine. You'll be okay.
You don't happen to know what kind of snake could bite you, do you?
No, I've been trying to figure it out.
It didn't have any rattles or anything.
I'll just get the car. I'll be right there.
I thought you were gonna get here before us, George.
I would've. Would've, only I got a ticket for speeding.
I couldn't afford to anyway, private property.
Take it easy next time, okay, buddy?
Where are you going now?
I gotta see a man about a snake.
I'll meet you at the station.
Okay?
Emergency in one. Emergency in one.
Wait here. I'll be right back.
Hey, are you gonna leave me here holding a...?
Okay.
I'll keep your arm low.
All right. All right, Gary.
You take it easy, okay?
We're gonna take good care of you, okay?
Thank you, Sela. Thank you.
Johnny?
Hi, I'm Dr. Brackett.
Had a tangle with a snake, huh?
It was pretty fast.
Yeah, well, a lot of professionals have found that out.
The paramedics said you didn't know what kind of a snake it was.
I picked it up out on the desert.
It sort of looked like a rattler.
Dix, will you get a lab man up here?
I want a CBC and a protime and a platelet count.
Also, get me a snake bite kit with a suction device.
I'm gonna do a skin test for horse serum sensitivity.
Tell the lab I want those blood tests every four hours.
All right.
All right. Puff them up a little.
Yeah. Okay. Sure. Thank you. Bye.
Excuse me. I'm Paula Hughes.
Oh, yeah, I recognize you.
You're filming the paramedics today, right?
Yeah. Well, you must be Dixie McCall.
Yeah. Well, they told me that you know everything.
Yeah. Paula, you got ready?
I'll be right with you. Okay.
I thought maybe that you would know what to do with this.
Okay. I'll see you later.
Thank you.
Dixie!
When we finish showing this equipment,
I'd like to get into the weightlifting.
Sure.
Marco, what do you do in your off-duty time?
I like to ski when my schedule permits it,
and I also belong to a semi-pro soccer team.
What's catching on, you know?
I know. I love it. I played some myself.
Oh, yeah? Yeah.
Huh. Well, you know, you ought to check this guy out.
He's a great deep-sea fisherman.
Yeah, me and my brother go out shark fishing quite a bit.
Hmm. You know, the more I hear about the fantastic things you guys do,
the more I think we ought to do a whole show on your hobbies.
It could be pretty exciting. Yeah.
Well, there's a guy on Beeship that likes to hunt with his bow and arrows.
Yeah, that's right. Yeah.
And then there's a guy over on Station 15, the mountain climber.
Yeah, Phil.
Went up to Yosemite, climbed, what was it, Capitan?
Yeah, right. Okay.
Got hung up there for three nights. He had to sleep in a sling.
Yeah, well, they got stuck up there for three nights.
Oh, that sounds better all the time.
Do you guys stick football?
Oh, yeah. Are you kidding?
Well, I was thinking, if you help me out on the job,
I could maybe promote some tickets for the USC-UCLA game Saturday.
Oh, wow. That's great.
Great. You know, we have a lot of clout down at the stadium.
Yeah, well, look, anything we can do, just ask.
Yeah, right. Super.
Yeah, you know, there's some other things we do, too.
Yeah. George, how does this layout look?
I'll start it, and then I'll bring you two in for questions.
Right. Okay.
What are you doing? We're in the stadium.
She said us, too. You'd answer questions.
We're all here. Hold it.
Sorry.
That hand bar's flashing. I...
Got to dull it down some.
Wait a minute.
Just polish that.
That's showbiz.
Sorry, guys.
Think about the tickets.
Oh, yeah. Tickets.
Think about the tickets.
See, you see...
Station 51, man trapped at the steam plant.
8463 Jamison.
Cross Street, Adams.
8463 Jamison.
Time out, 10-14.
Station 51, KMG 36, 12.
No!
There's a problem.
That is...
I didn't know he was up there until I saw this woman taking pictures of him from across the fence there.
You know anything about this, miss?
I told him it was a stupid idea, but he wants to be a start man.
That man up there?
Yeah, he read about a movie they're making.
He's practicing high-working calls.
I'm supposed to take pictures of him.
Ma'am, you think maybe I can look through there?
Sure.
Thank you.
Yeah.
Looks like he's tied himself onto that I-beam right up above him.
He's not tied up there. He's handcuffed.
He's what?
Handcuffed.
He wants to climb down that way as part of the stunt.
He's still got his arms...
He's still got his arms around that I-beam.
That's right. Earl Flynn forgot that when he put the cuffs on.
You got a key?
He wouldn't know what to do with it if he did.
He's the kind of a guy who'd stumble over the white line of a crosswalk.
Life belts and a spare one for him.
Lock and tackle and life lines.
Here you go.
Oh, ma'am, that outfit he's got on, what kind of a movie is he making?
What else? The cat burglar strikes again?
Uh...
Let's get a shot from down here.
I'll narrate over it later.
You okay?
Are you all right?
Yeah.
Okay, you're not hurt?
No.
Okay.
We're gonna fly.
This is mine.
More slack!
How's he not?
He's doing okay. He's not hurt.
Man, now he got himself in this mess. I'll never know.
Watch the block here.
You got it?
I got the block.
Right over there.
Okay.
You got it?
Yeah.
Okay.
I got the block. Right over there.
Okay. There it goes.
You need any help?
No.
All right.
Hang on, man.
There we go. All right.
All right, take him down.
All right, take him on down.
I sure hope we got that.
Agent De Soto are taking quite a risk.
That's their job.
Don't you worry. I got it.
That's my job.
Dr. Baker, outside call, please.
How you doing?
I guess I'm all right.
What's the story, doctor?
The herpetologist identified the snake as a baby Mojave rattler.
Too young to have rattles, but it's a good thing.
You're gonna give me something for it pretty soon?
Right now.
We just had to be certain you weren't allergic to the anti-venom.
I've heard about people selling venom to labs.
Thought I could make some extra money.
Did you know venom had to be taken under sterile conditions to be of any use?
Now he tells me.
Yeah. Just be glad you're still around to hear it.
I'll drive in later.
Thank you.
I'll drive in later.
Thank you.
Now, remember, we just want to show an average meal here at the station.
Right. It's average.
My daughter Kelly's been combing his mustache for half an hour.
Since when do we have placements?
We never had placements before.
Well, you do now.
Now, just go ahead and eat.
Don't pay any attention to us.
And just your regular shop talk, okay?
Okay.
Oh, come on, Marco. What's with the parsley?
You can't hide this stuff.
Here you go, Johnny.
Go on.
A typical meal here at Station 51 finds the firefighters
enjoying a kind of rough-and-ready camaraderie,
talking about their work, sports, and action-filled hobbies.
Did you see that outdoor sculpture exhibit at the County Museum?
Yeah, I did. I did.
That was real good. I liked it.
Fellas.
Station 51, Station 49, Station 15, Tanker 17, Copter 14, Woodcrow 33, Tractor 11,
Fresh Fire, Hillside Park, Upper Picnic area.
Hillside Park, Upper Picnic area.
Island 1247.
Station 51, BMG 36.
Camp 1247, Camp 111, Camp 121, Fresh Fire, Hillside Park, Upper Picnic area.
Time up.
Welcome there.
Okay, why don't you guys stay down here on the way, all right?
Okay.
LA, Station 51, we have a barbecue fire.
Cancel other units.
All units responding with Station 51, cancel.
See if anybody's in this van.
Hello, fire department.
Hey, anybody in here?
Yeah, your barbecue pit's on fire.
Do you get any calls like that that don't amount to much?
Not enough, unfortunately.
I'd rather get calls than not, especially when it might be a brush fire.
Uh, Engine 51, this is Squad 51.
Cap, we'd like to check that out.
Engine 51, we're right behind it.
Okay.
Looks like he's unconscious.
I'm sure not seeing any way to get the rigs down there, do you?
I don't.
Guess we'll have to.
Okay, I'll get the helicopters fence that way.
Okay.
LA, Engine 51, we have a boy over a cliff on Ridge Road, south of the upper picnic area, Hillside Park.
Request an ambulance.
That's Ridge Road, south of the upper picnic area, Hillside Park.
Engine 51, is he well?
Mike, watch your back to rig up here so he knows the eye's in front.
Watch your back.
Okay.
Oh, there we have Cap.
That's pretty soft.
I think we should just go off to the side down here and then traverse across.
Okay.
Okay, I'm not a Dan here.
Okay.
Okay, bring it down.
All right, lower the stoves.
Easy.
Bring it down easy.
All right, yeah, now I got it.
I'm sure we're not going to get that Stokes up there with them guiding it from below.
Well, why don't we bring them all up together?
We can't do anything unless you want to knock the mountain down on top of them.
Hey, guys, we're going to bring all three up at once.
Stand by, Stoker.
Easy.
We're going to need some oxygen.
We can't fill this short.
Equal and responsive.
Rampart, this is squad 51.
Go ahead, 51.
Rampart, we got a male victim here, about 14 years of age.
He has a hematoma on the left occipital area.
He's unconscious, responsive to some pain.
The pupils are equal and responsive.
Stand by for vital signs.
Yes, sir.
96, regular.
Respiration is 20 and labored.
Pulse is 96 and regular.
Respiration is 20 and labored.
Stand by for BP.
110 over 70.
BP is 110 over 70, Rampart.
Will you check his tendon refluxes for me, 51?
Stand by.
Get these shoes and socks off here, kid.
Yeah.
Positive on the right.
Positive.
Rampart, he's responding briskly.
He's got a positive babinski on the right foot.
Sounds like a possible cerebral concussion
with increased intracranial pressure.
Are there any other signs of bodily injury?
That's negative, Rampart.
OK, 51, start an IV with normal saline TKO.
We don't want to give him an extra volume.
Normal saline TKO.
Dixie, she's on call for neurosurgery.
Transport as quickly as possible, 51.
We'll have a neurosurgeon standing by.
10-4, Rampart.
He's going to need parental permission
if you're going to treat him to diastole.
That's right.
We don't have a wallet or anything.
What about his dog on his legs?
That's right.
Jeff, come on, let's go over to the dog.
Let's get this, George.
It's good human interest.
Come here.
Come on.
Come here, boys.
Come on, give us a hand here.
Come here.
Come on, boy.
Come on.
Come on, boys.
Come on.
You got him?
Come on.
Come on, boy.
Come on.
OK.
Come on.
Come here, boy.
Come on, buddy.
Okay, don't run up on us.
Here, boy. Here, boy.
Here, boy.
Come on, come on, come on.
Ah.
The captain, he's got a license.
Yeah, but I certainly have to touch.
Ha ha ha.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Room three.
Darkness, good manager.
Dixie, that poor Rex right here on his way.
Right behind him, Joe.
Doctor, Landimer's standing by.
Is the boy's parents been notified?
Well, when I left, they were still trying to find out who he is.
Ready?
On three. One, two, three.
Right.
You know, every kid should have some form of ID on him.
Beaton, bring up that point on your TV show.
Hey, that's not a bad idea. I'll take it out and see what happens.
I want a full skull and cervical spine series.
A knee and my scan.
I want to see those pictures as soon as possible, okay?
Doctor, they found the boy's mother.
The police just telephoned.
Do you want them to bring her over?
Well, I think we could save some time if we get permission to treat first by phone.
Since you got an extension, I'll need a second person listening to verify the conversation.
Hello, this is Dr. Early.
I'm sorry.
It's too early.
Yes, put her on.
Bye.
Well, it's really too early to make a deafening prognosis.
He's had a severe blow to his head.
But his vital signs are strong.
All we need is your oral permission to start treatment.
Yeah, that's fine.
We can go ahead then. So you just have the officer bring you over and we'll get word to you as soon as possible.
You're welcome.
Look, and don't be worried. He's going to be okay.
Dixie, did you get that?
Confirmed.
That was the boy's mother.
They have an okay to go ahead and treat him.
Good.
Where's Paula?
Oh, she and George went and took the dog to the vet.
Oh, good.
How's the filming coming?
Not bad, not bad at all.
You know what she wants to do?
She wants to do a special show on just what firefighters do on her off time.
Can I show that on TV?
You know what I'm talking about.
You know, like action stuff, stuff like that.
I don't think that's such a good idea.
Well, why not?
Because people get the wrong idea about firefighters sometimes.
I mean, we do a lot of physical stuff.
That's fine, but there's more to it than just that.
Like what?
Well, like the time you wrote the poetry for the girl that broke her leg.
Yeah, that's right. I forgot about that.
Of course she was 21.
Yeah, I mean, we got firemen that are musicians,
firemen that are artists.
That paramedic that directs little theater in his off time.
That's right.
You're right.
I forgot about that.
Yeah, I suppose if we do do it Paula's way,
we'll be one-sided. There's no doubt about that.
Yeah, the athletic side,
because that's what Paula's interested in.
I mean, what bothers me is that
a few million people are going to get a distorted impression
of what firemen are all about.
Ah, you're right.
Well, do something about it.
Ah, you guys better hurry up. They're coming.
Slow down. We're not quite ready yet.
Slow down.
Ah!
Hi. How you doing?
Okay.
All right.
You know, how would you produce a thing
about the film?
It couldn't be better. They liked the film that George took in earlier
and might even use it tonight.
Okay, good deal.
Oh, and they even liked the idea of the feature story
on the crazy things you guys do on your time off.
Great, great. Well, that's what I
wanted to talk to you about.
The crazy things we do.
You know, we thought we'd show you
things that told the whole story.
You know, not just one side of the story.
Oh, right. I was hoping to get some more
footage on the way lifting.
Oh, yeah. We're going to do that too, but why don't you just
go on in there and see what I'm talking about.
Hi. Hi.
Uh, we wanted to show you some of our hobbies.
It's a helicopter made by a guy on a sea shift.
He's won a lot of awards.
It's nice, isn't it?
Yeah, very nice.
I've got a lot of things I threw together,
pots and things. I built my own kiln and wheel.
This usually hangs in the reception room
when it's done by a fireman, station 18.
He's even got some hanging in the museum of industry.
Hmm. I can see why.
It's very good. But, fellas, you know...
Listen, you know, when I have the time,
I like to do decorative tin work,
just like my grandfather used to do in Mexico.
Yeah, look. It's very pretty.
Yeah.
I got sort of an odd situation here.
I collect antique barbed wire.
It's nice, huh?
Very interesting.
Hmm. Oh, I like these.
Who did these?
Well, uh...
I kind of...
You did?
I got this, George. You like that?
Did you do that? Yeah.
Well, where did all these things come from?
Made some calls around
from some of the other stations,
got them out of lockers, some from home.
You see, when things get kind of rough around the station,
you know, we like to blow off a little steam,
so we go home, we do kind of crazy things.
Just like other folks. Yeah.
Yeah, we got a lot of other things, too.
We could have brought in, could have showed you.
Oh, I'll tell you about it later.
Okay.
1247 Commerce Street.
Broad Street, Michigan.
1247 Commerce.
Timeout 1645.
1247 Commerce.
Timeout 1645.
651 KMG 365.
prow Casino.
There's a guy dropped underneath that truck,
and somebody over there got rolled trying to drag him out.
Thank you.
Two-inch and a half nak drainage.
Got an engine 51 region.
Firepods fired to man trap.
extra
by
and
are
.
You! Can you move it to the side?
Let's get in front of it.
Well, this ought to give us a few rating points.
Okay, I'm gonna go up in here. Let's go.
Put my name on the flash.
Are they really going in there?
It's a job, George, and yours is to get us the film.
Okay.
Oh, he's got bad car
Okay.
Going down.
Okay.
Let's go!
Yeah!
Oh, he's got bad car going all over you.
Okay.
Yeah.
Okay, we're coming through.
Okay.
Come around.
Pull up, Marco.
Get that thing back from you.
It's properly taken control.
Yeah.
Get in here, Marco.
Okay.
Pull the crank! I'm gonna go for the valve!
Get out of here!
Can you hear me? Get out of here!
Get out of here!
Okay.
Get out of here.
Please, help.
Yeah.
Okay.
Rampart, this is squad 51.
Go ahead, 51.
Rampart, we got a male victim here, about 34 years of age.
He's got tar burns on the back, shoulders, and arms.
He's in extreme pain.
51, can you estimate the burned area and type of burns on the victim?
About 20% of the body.
It's hard to tell what kind of burns these guys got.
He's got tar all over him. I'd say they're second and third degree burns.
He got a sterile sheet applied and also blew it.
51, what are the vitals?
BP is 140 over 80.
Pulse is 120. Restorations 24 and rapid.
Rampart, the BP is 140 over 80.
The pulse is 120. The respirations are 24 and rapid.
51, start an IV with normal saline.
Give him 75 milligrams of Mepyridine IV to ease the pain.
Transport immediately.
IV normal saline, 75 milligrams of Mepyridine.
Rampart, we got an additional victim with just minor burns on his hands.
He'll be accompanying the other victim into the hospital.
10-4, 51.
Is he in pain, Captain?
Oh, yeah, we were lucky.
How did something like that get started?
Well, everybody's quitting in a hurry.
It's the end of the day.
Are they going to be all right?
Well, one guy didn't hurt too bad, but the other guy's got some bad burns.
They've got a good burn water rampart. He should be okay.
You guys are really great.
Thank you. We're just doing our job.
I asked what George's been telling me all day.
Went way beyond doing a job.
If anything happens to me, I just hope you and Gage get there first.
Oh, thank you.
Hey, we've got to get our film in.
We'll call you when it goes on the air, okay?
All right, yeah.
Yeah, thanks a lot.
Okay, I look forward to seeing it.
Okay.
Now, so long.
No, that's great.
No, I'm sure we could work something out.
No, I mean, that's what we wanted.
We just wanted to show you we were just like everybody else.
Yeah, no, that'd be fine.
Okay, all right.
I'll tell them, and thanks for calling.
Okay, bye-bye.
What'd she say?
Not much.
Said we're going to be on the 11 o'clock news tonight.
All right.
Hey, what are you going to work out?
Oh, just a few things.
Like what few things?
Well, I might as well let you guys in on it, huh?
Yeah.
Miss Paula Hughes in the news was so impressed
with all the hobbies that we showed her
that she's going to try to get the station
to sponsor an arts and crafts show for firefighters only.
On the level?
Yeah, yeah, on the level.
That's incredible.
And the benefits will go to the fireman's fund.
Oh, right.
Listen, the one thing I want to know is did she get the tickets?
Yeah, she got six tickets, enough for all of us.
Six tickets to the USC UCLA game?
Well, not exactly.
She was so impressed, you know, by the cultural interests
that we displayed that, well, she got six tickets
for the opera for Saturday night.
The opera?