A firefighter takes part in an air bottle consumption drill during a joint exercise between Edinburgh and Amity fire departments in September.
Photo provided by Edinburgh Fire Department
Edinburgh’s fire captain understands the opioid crisis isn’t just about statistics.
His daughter died of an overdose when she was in her 20s.
Joe Sinclair has been a captain for the Edinburgh Fire Department for two years, and some of the most harrowing scenes he’s come across don’t involve flames, but people who have lost their lives to drug addiction, leaving families without loved ones. In 2022, 35 Edinburgh residents overdosed, many of them teenagers and young adults. That’s why Sinclair is leading an effort to start the town’s first fire cadet program.
“I’m not saying all of them are juveniles or younger people, but if we can make a difference in their lives, it’s certainly worth a try,” Sinclair said. “(My daughter) overdosed and I feel like if she was around the right people and doing the right things, she could’ve traveled the right path.”
With the new program, Edinburgh will join fire departments around the county that have had cadet programs for years, including Franklin and Bargersville.
The Edinburgh fire cadet program will be open to teenagers 14 to 18 years old. Although they won’t be able to enter burning buildings or medically attend to people, the teens will shadow firefighters as they extinguish blazes and respond to EMS calls by observing and assisting them with the equipment they need. They’ll also learn CPR, help out in the firehouse and participate in community outreach, such as passing out meals to low-income residents, Sinclair said.
Town attorneys must look through certain paperwork, such as waivers and standard operating guidelines, before they give the town council the go-ahead to vote on it. Edinburgh’s town council showed support for the program when it was first introduced in December, and town council member Ryan Piercefield said he doesn’t foresee any issues with the program getting final approval.
Along with being a part of Edinburgh town council, Piercefield has served the Franklin Fire Department for 20 years and is currently a lieutenant.
“It’s a young man’s industry and if we can get these youth into it early, it’s a pathway to a great career. I started off as a fireman in Edinburgh. It’s a great place to start as a cadet, or in my case, as a volunteer,” Piercefield said. “If we can keep one kid from going down the wrong path by being in public service, that’s a success.”
Sam Kirchoff, a member of the Edinburgh Fire Department since October, was a fire cadet with the Madison Township Fire Department in Morgan County from 2018 to 2019 while he was in high school. Cadets should be mentally prepared to see gruesome elements that face firefighters on EMS calls, such as broken limbs, victims of suicide and drug overdoses, and other situations involving death and gore. Still, it’s a good way for people thinking about a career in firefighting to determine not only if it’s the right career for them, but what can happen to people if they become hooked on drugs, Kirchoff said.
“(It’s important) having kids realize what some of the problems in the town are,” he said. “We have an opioid crisis, a drug problem in town and friends might be thinking about getting into drugs and opioids. They can see firsthand what happens when you do that type of stuff.”
The fire department’s goal is to start the program in the coming months, with students serving as cadets after school, on weekends and during the summer, Sinclair said.
“It’s about knowing the system and the culture of firefighting so they can have a better understanding of the firefighting field itself,” he said.
