Are 18-year-olds ready to be firefighters? Readers respond

In the Feb. 6 edition of FireRescue1’s Daily newsletter, I asked readers, “How old were you when you joined the fire department?”

I was 17, but — if I’m being transparent — I got my feet wet long before then.

I posed the question due to our report of an Illinois House bill that could potentially widen the recruiting pipeline by lowering the minimum age to become a firefighter to 18. In my experience, as a firefighter and as someone associated with a fire service media company, it’s the kind of proposal that immediately splits the room — and also exposes the tension the fire service wrestles with every time staffing comes up. (Note: The bill would also raise the maximum age of those eligible to to take a firefighter exam — but that is another debate for another time.)

Over the years, I have read and written plenty about recruitment and responder well-being, but I keep coming back to the same unresolved conflict. Some readers argue that bringing teens into the fire service early is one of the best ways to build a long-term workforce. Others counter that we can’t spend one breath warning about stress, trauma and cumulative exposure — and in the next breath push younger people toward the scenes that cause them.

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