!Please Remain Calm!

We come back after taking most of last year off & catch up on all kinds of stuff: Dannys pool, the economy, the good and bad of too much overtime, staffing crisises at both of our jobs, stacking PTO vs using it up, flunking a paramedic intern, open neck wounds, freezing on calls, what its like being a Fire Inspector, Grey's Anatomy, promoting vs being happy at work, missing your partner, real life Weekend at Bernies situations, the difference between co star, guest star, top of show guest star, & why it sucks to go back to co star, & finally, dog bites in unimaginable places. This is a good start to the new year.  

We're back with a deep philosophical dive into focus on the job, how you view interactions with patients & coworkers, flow state on the fireground, holographic multiverse, aging, synchronicity, losing weight, how we got into fitness, Mexican psychic readings, zen philosophy, & the final update on Danny's pool (it's done). 

We're joined by Army Veteran, & veteran Fresno County paramedic Mario Torralva. Mario was enjoying the county fair with his wife and friends, when he began to feel ill. He rapidly got worse, & his wife called for help and had him transported (by his coworkers) to the nearest ER. Doctors assumed he had a stroke based on his symptoms, but all scans were negative. When Mario would improve and be close to being released home, he would suddenly become very ill again and was even transferred back to the ICU. Mario winds up staying in the hospital for 3 weeks, baffling teams of doctors as they try to find out what his actual illness was. He has to endure exploratory surgery attempts, a 2.5 hour MRI, a lumbar puncture, a Nasogastric tube insertion, & more. Mario describes all the emotion of the hospital stay & trying to figure out his own diagnosis as well. You wont believe what it winds up being, how they discover it, & how his surgery goes. On top of that, he finds out how much damage was done, and has even more complications post surgery.  Mario explains it all from the perspective of a veteran paramedic, & discusses his recovery, & how it changed the extent to which he listens to his body. This is a real life episode of "House".

We're joined by LAFD Firefighter, fitness influencer, & business owner Crystal Reneau (@ketowithcrystal) who tells us what its like to be one of the "faces" of the LAFD after a year on the job. We learn what its like to be a rookie when everyone in your new station already knows who you are. How to hold a relationship together during your rookie year. How every new firefighter featured on the LAFD Instagram hears from Danny and learns about PRC. We hear how super hard firefighting is, & how you start and run your own business during all of this. 

Friend and comedian Alex Hooper (Americas Got Talent, Comedy Central) is back on our show after telling us a hilarious story on episode 26 (Anaphylaxis). While we're happy to have him back, unfortunately that means something else has happened to him if he wound up on PRC twice. Alex was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma in August of 2022. He shares his whole journey. From symptoms at a music festival, to testing, to treatment. He talks about the toll on himself, and on his new wife (he was married in April 2022). He's super honest & candid about everything he went thru and shares all the emotion surrounding the setbacks that led him to over a month long hospital stay. Resulting in a new beard, a huge appreciation for the little things in life, like sunshine, as well as an epic reunion with his Pugs. This episode shows how a positive mindset can really save your life. 

We talk to LA County Firefighter Trevor Williams, inventor of the Williams Key, a very cool and effective forcible entry tool used by firefighters everywhere. We talk about how he came up with this tool, but we take a long and windy road to get there cuz Trevor is SUPER INTERESTING. He tells us about growing up in Zaire in a missionary family during a civil war & a genocide, then returning to the US at age 8 for a few years to ride bikes and go to the movies. Then at age 12 his family moves, to Haiti, where he lives until his senior year of high school when he moves to LA, while his family moves back to Haiti. He goes back to visit his family in Haiti a couple years later when, while hes visiting, a devastating earthquake destroys the country. Trevor tells us first hand what this was like, thinking his family had died, and staying for weeks to provide aid and search for victims. We eventually get to him inventing the Williams Key, we also get a cool story from Danny, who fought fire on the Venice beach boardwalk a couple days before. 

We examine 3 significant recent cases that made national news involving PD & EMS that had tragic outcomes. The first case happened right by Danny's station in Venice, CA. LAPD struggle with an agitated guy after a traffic collision, who dies hours after being tased multiple times. We discuss whats seen on the extensive body cam coverage of the incident, as well as the different ways this incident was shown in social media. We also discuss the horrifying Tyre Nichols video, and why the EMT's who responded to help him were rightfully fired from their jobs. Then we discuss an incident in Ohio where the responding paramedics have been charged with first degree murder. We break down what went wrong in all of these cases and where the mistakes were made. We also talk about how you can do the right thing as a first responder no matter what is happening before you arrive on scene.  

Our 100th episode features the guy who goes back the furthest in Danny's fire life, LAFD Engineer Don Nash. Don was Danny's explorer post advisor at station 63 when we were teenagers. In additon to telling us some Danny history, Don also works with the LAFD historical society & breaks down all kinds of stuff we never knew about the layout of the LAFD throughout the years, station segregation, why certain rules exist (why does everyone HAVE to eat together?). We also learn the history of the Paramedic service in LA, including the original ambulance guys before paramedics were invented. Don even tells us about an old area hospital neither of ever knew existed, along with some wild stories about ambulance days in the 80's, and learn what its like being a firefighter at LAX. We go back to before turnout pants & automatic doors on this one. 

Comedian and former Pediatric Oncology RN Taquita Love joins us for a deep conversation about healing thru laughter, the resilience of children and the lessons she learned working in a Childrens Hospital and then in the Pediatric wing of the biggest cancer hospital in LA. We talk about work/life balance, & how you realize whats really important. She also tells us how her family got her into medicine and nursing, and then into stand up comedy. Danny also explains what happened to the station 63 Instagram page & we talk about Ben's new comedy special he just filmed. 

We talk about where we've been the last few weeks, Danny pays respects to a friends wife who recently passed & talks about how the fire family comes together at times like these. Then we discuss the LA mayoral race & the endorsement of Danny's union and how that process does and does not work. Finally, we get into our side gigs as Danny talks a bit about being a tv actor & some recent big auditions, & Ben discusses his upcoming half hour comedy special & the process behind that. 

We answer questions from the listeners/viewers. We talk about burn out, working with other departments and agencies on incidents, switching from a smaller department to the LAFD, what to do with all of your new money, & how to keep traditions alive in the Fire Department. We talk about horses, special cookies, proving yourself, learning tricks, rolling turds, wagons, yelling out of necessity, real estate investing, & more. 

We have former professional boxer & current LAFD civilan staff, Luis Mora telling us how he blew out his bicep during an intense session punching a heavy bag. The blowout was so severe that Luis had to have a donor bicep transplanted into his arm. He tells us the story of his journey from the streets of Northeast LA, trying (not always succesfully) to stay out of gangs, which led him to boxing, where he found success & a way off the streets, sort of. We learn about the world of pro boxing, bad promoters, getting fights, getting knocked out, fighting thru injuries, & all the people who show up to watch fights. We learn what its like growing up when your dad is a "knucklehead" & all of your friends are too. We also learn how Luis worked for the LA Mayors office & City Hall, while fighting as a professional boxer at night (his nickname was "The Mayor"), you'll be surprised when you learn what his job was at City Hall too. Luis is super interesting & a fun guest who knocks out this interview.  

We talk about all of the partners a paramedic & EMT has in the private ambulance world, & how its different from the FD. From the people who are passing thru on the way to another job, on to the lifers, guys who never sleep, magicians on meth, regular people on meth, weird company owners on drugs, drinking off duty, caffeine abuse, insane diets, old timers,random stations, posting for hours, the owners adult children, & all of the cool people you meet as well. 

We talk about the workday of a paramedic in the Fire Department with a partner for 24 hours a day. Whats it like working and living with a partner all day & night & having to depend on them when things get serious. How do you manage different personalities, styles, & approaches to work. We give examples of when it goes good and bad. Sometimes you wind up with lasting friendships. What kind of bond do you build by going thru tragic experiences together? What if your partner is going thru a hard time on their own? We cover it all. 

We're joined by Harbor UCLA Neurosurgery Nurse Practitioner Suzy Velasco, who tells us all about Neurosurgery in a huge trauma center. We talk brains, drains, & automobiles, 80 year olds falling down, husbands getting drunk on roofs, corkscrews & knives thru the skull, gangsters shooting each other in the high C Spine, football injuries, all of the conspiracy theories that pop up in our comments section, drilling holes in skulls, & changing paths in life. You'll keep your head on straight after this one. 

Every 911 run starts with a caller, that caller is the first person on scene in most cases and the first rescuer as well. We talk to 2 bystander rescuers in a crazy incident from last week. Ripped from the headlines, actress Anne Heche crashed her speeding car into a house, with the car catching fire while the driver is trapped inside. Our guests, the Martin brothers (Beto & Fabian)witnessed the crash on their Venice CA street and sprang into action, helping the homeowner to evacuate and fighting back the flames and smoke to attempt to rescue the driver. This is a helluva story of neighbors stepping up to do the right thing and risk their own lives to help a stranger in need. We get all of the details and full rundown of this event first hand, and the thought process as you realize how much this incident changes for the worst so quickly. 

We break down Mass Casualty Incidents, what comprises one, how they look, & how to run one perfectly. We talk about how chaotic these incidents can be & why its so important to establish the MCI quickly and correctly, with a clear chain of command. We break down a recent MCI (bus crash) that we both worked on together, and the unique circumstances surrounding that MCI. We show you why although every MCI is really kind of weird and different, the job is always the same & must be done in the same order, for good reason. We talk about mutual aid, too many chiefs, too many jurisdictions, traffic, the news, and all of the other things that can go sideways. You also get perspective on how these incidents are run in a huge metro area like LA. Danny also breaks down some of the aftermath of a recent 4th of July drowning save.

Responding to a shooting is one of the routine calls that makes a paramedic feel like a paramedic. Getting a shooting victim to tell their story has been anything but routine. It takes bravery to survive a shooting & talk about it on our podcast, & we finally found a guest who was shot, a lot, & also likes to talk, a lot (he's a comedian). Elias Zepeda tells us how he was shot 11 times (at a quincenera) & THEN was shot again in the head a couple of years later. If you're thinking he just has bad luck, its more that he was doing exactly what people who get shot a lot do to get shot. He tells us all about what it was like to be shot each time, how he remembered the paramedics, surgery, recovery, and rehab. He talks about dying multiple times, going to prison, being in a huge gang, boxing, being bullied, gangbanging in a wheelchair, and why little dogs love him. We also talk about your state of mind while youre bleeding from gunshot wounds

We have LAFD Firefighter Paramedic Tyrone Hurst @firedepartmenthumor who tells us about his hilarious videos and characters based on LAFD archtypes that are super accurate and funny. Tyrone tells us how he came up with his characters: Captain Quarters, Bull Engineer, the Rookie, & Senior Firefighter. He tells us how low department morale, along with the exaggerated outside perception of LAFD firefighters led him to start making funny videos to help build up morale thru laughter, and show that his department is actually a fun place to work. We talk about guys who are hammers, salty, cool, old school, jokers, and sometimes thats all the same guy. Tyrone also gives insight on getting on the job, how long and hard it can be, & what it takes to make it.  

Comedian and actor Jon Kondelik tells us an incredible story of an incident that neither one of us had ever come across in our nearly 20 year paramedic careers. He had a unique chemical burn while leaving his hand in what he thought was a  latex plaster mold being used for special fx in a student film. The mold begins to burn his hand as it hardens into solid concrete, trapping his hand in what he describes as a "deep fryer". What follows is a scramble to try and free his hand with a hammer and a screwdriver. Jon explains how panic sets in & no one thinks to call 911. Jon winds up freeing his hand and spending weeks in a burn center where they try unsucessfully to save his fingers. Jon shares his whole emotional journey while recovering from this event & all he had to overcome mentally to get to where he is today. We also get an incredible story of Danny saving a drowning victim at a 4th of July pool party that took every last trick in the book to get a pulse back. 

Sometimes the same person has to call 911 and have paramedics respond to them multiple times in the same year. Or same month, or same week, or same day, or same night after midnight. These people are known as frequent flyers. If there was a 911 rewards card, these guys are racking up the miles. Danny explains the different types of frequent flyers, why some are legit, some are a pleasure to serve over and over, some are not really legit but are still a pleasure, & some push the upper limits of your frustration threshold. We explain how there's no way to really stop frivilous use of 911 for medical issues, how these patients are also known, and either welcomed or dreaded, by the local ER's as well, along with the possible effects and ramifications of taking people to the ER who don't really need 911. We also talk about what its like to almost get to sleep over and over all night long but not actually sleep at all. 

We hop into the time machine & go back 23 years (that can't be right?) to our fire academy days when we were young whiipersnappers trying to get on the job. We give you all the tips it takes to prepare yourself, and we talk about how far the right attitude will take you. We talk about the stuff we were bad at, & how we improved, how to study, how the instructors act, how to get over your fear of heights, what PT is like, how to get the most out of your academy, & most importantly: how to take the most EPIC class pic & risk burning the back of your head. We also get an LAFD drill tower story. Listen to how we did it & know that you can do it too, or remember your academy days with us. 

For the first time ever, we have a PhD, & a Harvard grad on our show. Dr Chelsea Shover is an epidemiologist who headed the Covid 19 Vaccination program for LA county's unhoused population. That means more Skid Row stories. Plus we get into her journey into epidemiology. What's it like to become an epidemiologist right before a global pandemic hits? How do you get some of the hardest to reach people to get vaccinated? We cover a bunch of other stuff too; getting hit by a car, a town with only one business, journalism, hosting a radio show in New Zealand, encampments, threats, gift cards, pilot programs, concussions, CBD water, & more

We talk about the trials and tribulations of the probationary year of a firefighter and how to survive it and thrive. Danny draws from his own experience as a rookie with the LAFD, as well as his time as a veteran firefighter who's seen a lot of rookies do well or struggle. We hear about the guy who fainted giving a drill, the guy who fell thru the roof on his first day leading a Truck company on a structure fire, why you close the door behind you at an apartment fire, & a bunch of other things that can go wrong. But Danny breaks down a LOT of things that you can do right as a rookie to help you be successful, including how to go beyond the owners manual and power point to nail all of your drills, the importance of taking initiative, talking to old timers, and more. Don't miss this episode if you really wanna crush your probation year.

We talk to the author of "How To Be An International Disaster Volunteer" Michael Noone. He tells us how he went from Paramedic to Firefighter to Disaster Aid Volunteer to Disaster Service Analyst for LA and surrounding counties to Keynote Speaker to Published Author. He breaks down the crazy world that is the 3rd world after a disaster. He explains how to get deployed, how it works once you hit the ground and how a patchwork of people and organizations come together to offer aid.We also learn how Jolibee Restaurants helped save the Philipines and we say Katmandu multiple times.

We talk about the horrific elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Not just the details of the event, but what its like to respond to shootings with kids, shootings with multiple victims, active shooter situations, & the PTSD for the first responders that work these scenes. We talk about what its like to work in the neighborhood you grew up in, or still live in. The risk of having to treat your immediate family members. The fear of possibly making a mistake with someone you know personally on a 911 call. What if you have to triage a mass shooting, telling parents theres nothing you can do, & moving on to try to save more kids. What about finding out your own child died at the incident you're working at? We also get into the challenges leading up to this event, the respose, timeline, everything including how we feel as parents. 

We're joined by LAFD Battalion Chief Kris Larson. An awesome guest who candidly tells us her super interesting life story. Sure she was the 1st black woman Captain, Task Force Commander, & Battalion Chief in the history of LAFD. But did you know she was a 3 time All American on the legendary UCLA track team in the late 80's with Olympic legends like Jackie Joyner Kersee? Strap in as she takes us on a journey that starts in a small town in Washington & goes thru multiple firefighter assignments, the riots, rookies taking selfies at fires, recruiting, fire camps for girls, drill tower instrcution, covid testing 10,000 people a day, almost crashing in the engine, & working with our dad. Yes, Chief Larson rode with our dad for a couple of years & tells us some funny and cool stuff about working with him. You get a lot of great advice for up and coming firefighters here.  

We're joined by social media star & content creator Yarema (@yarmatoocrazy) as he tells us about a nasty injury from a freak accident at home that he absoiutely needed to call an ambulance for and refused to, resulting in permanent nerve damage to his hand. He explains his whole reasoning to not call, & how long he wound up waiting for help. We go into how common this is, why people refuse to call, and why people refuse to go to the hospital even when facing death. We explain what AMA is, how to do it, and Danny explains the craziest situations where someone refused to go. I mean unbeliveable situations. Don't refuse this trip.

We're joined by business owner, expert cake decorator, Krav Maga green belt. assistant to business titans, old school LAFD wife, & expert grandma; Linda Gonzalez. Not only is she our mom, she's married to our dad & tells the whole story of the life of a fire wife from the hiring process, to the rookie year, promotion, & retirement. She gives great insight into what it takes to make a relationship work with a firefighter. She tells an awesome story that covers the LA Olympics, the World Cup, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, 5 martial arts disciplines, Eli Broad, JFK, LBJ, Nixon, Peru, racism, affirmative action, us as babies, cakes, small businesses, & more, She also talks about what its like to have a child become a firefighter. Mom gives a LOT of useful info here. 

We talk about some of the firefighter line of duty deaths in the LAFD that have hit home for Danny in his career. We explain the fire department traditions surrounding firefighter deaths, whether it be on duty, off duty, or in retirement. Danny remembers some of the Firefighter funerals he has attended, & explains the different levels of funerals that the fire department gives its members. He talks about reading about firefighters who died at stations he worked at, & the mini existential crisis when the dangers of the job really hit home. A lot of tradition and respect covered in this episode.  

We're joined by LAFD Inspector Roger Sackaroff. A former sports reporter and native New Yorker, Roger was inspired to join the fire service after 9/11 and wound up in LA. Roger tells us the incredible tale of a mystery illness that sent his 7 year old son into liver failure and put him on the transplant list. After multiple extended stays in Children's Hospital. Roger was finally told that his son had aplastic anemia, a rare blood disoder that affects only 100 Americans per year. Rogers' son needed a bone marrow transplant. There was only ONE exact match in the entire world. The fate of Rogers' son was in the bone marrow of a random stranger in Germany ! This is an amazing story of courage, perserverance, and love. The fire family came together to support Rogers' family and to get as many people as possible registered to "Be The Match" and donate bone marrow if needed. Plus a random stranger across the ocean stepped up to save a life he never knew. Everything had to come together perfectly to save Rogers' son. 

Danny describes his first big fire as a young firefighter in the Skid Row district of LA. The LA Produce Market is at least 2 full city blocks of all of the produce LA County can handle on a given day. On this given day, all it produced was a huge fire. Danny describes every detail, from seeing the loom up while on another call, to feeling poisoned by literal habanero chili pepper smoke. This is a crazy story of one of the most unique major fires, including a river of avocadoes & watermelons, rats, the LA Times pics of Danny, 50 gallon water tanks, & more. We also go over some of our favorite old episodes that seem to have been missed by the audience. 

We go back in time again to discuss the craziest part of Paramedic school; internship. Where the student who crammed a year of medical school into 60 classroom days & a month in the ER gets to be a real paramedic running 911 calls with the FD. We remember our time as interns and talk about our preceptors, their personalities, & how much that comes into play. We talk about all of the real elements you have to face out there for the first time in many cases, and for the first time as the person "in charge". We talk about sudden death & sorrow, drills, reading, sleeping thru calls, waking up your preceptor, overtime guys, first shift, last shift, zero shift, good shift, bad shift, swapping districts, & more. We give you more tips on how to pass this hard part & we also discuss the National Registry exam. 

We're joined by LAFD Drill Tower instructor and CAPS program director, Captain John Marasco. He tells us everything it takes to pass the drill tower at the LAFD training academy. He explains the culture shock and huge adjustment to entering the LAFD from any other job & the physical and mental demands. We talk about how the workforce and hiring pool has changed, & why the Drill Tower can be such a shock to their system. He tells us how this change led to the creation of the Candidate Advancement Program (CAP) which is an amazing opportunity for anyone who wants to join the LAFD. Captain Marasco explains how CAPs was developed, and how much goes into to transforming a prospective candidate into an LAFD firefighter who will pass the Drill Tower. We talk about crossfit, strength, beach muscles, fireground skills, the marines, how to get hired, & a LOT of physical fitness stuff. 

We take a trip down memory lane and tell you all about the ordeal of our paramedic school days from 20 years ago (that can't be right), as Danny begins precepting a new paramedic intern on his rescue. We break down the paramedic training landscape in LA, & tell you how we wound up at the toughest school of them all. We explain the academic insanity that is paramedic school (a year of medical school crammed into about 60 school days) & what it takes to prepare and survive it. You learn how to advance from the classroom and learn from the RN's in the ER, including how Danny almost saved the legendary Chick Hearn. Then we get into the craziest part, internship. We talk zero shift, freezing up, no doz, 5 am - 12 am school days, study groups, crazy instructors, IM's in the butt, failing, passing, drilling, BLS skills, & reading reading reading, & more reading. God we had to read so much. You get a bunch of tips on how to get thru medic school. Plus Danny gives a touching tribute to a mentor Firefighter. 

LAFD Public Information Officer & Captain Erik Scott joins us to talk about what a PIO is and does. We learn what it's like to be responsible for the messaging and social media brand of one of the most recognized Fire Departments in the world. We talk about special duty, all of the jobs you can do besides firefighting in the LAFD & Captain Scott shares his own injury story surviving a roof collapse in a structure fire that landed him on special duty assignments. He tells us how the Public Information section is broken down depending on the incident or issues, which incidents warrant an alert vs a press release, who decides what to post on the official social media accounts, & who monitors all of the content generated by fire department members? We hear about the challenges of this job, being sent to major incidents from home, being a contact point for the news media, & how that plays into responding to tragic events. We also cover the lighter side of FD social media, "selling soap", First Amendment auditors, hashtag watchers, & more. Plus we make our mom happy by not cursing at all in this episode. 

Our 1st episode of 2022 finds us reflecting on life & death on the job (mostly death). We talk about how often you witness sudden death, the aftermath of it & the toll that takes on your psyche. We talk about declaring people dead on scene in the field & Danny describes a gruesome stabbing incident where he recently had to declare someone dead. We talk about the LA County Firefighter who recently died in a structure fire, as well as the tragic apartment fire in the Bronx that claimed 19 lives. We also discuss 2 recent tragedies involving the LAPD. Omicron gets some airtime as well, as we discuss the current surge and its effect on the LA ems system. We offer tips on how to process all the death and tragic events you witness as a paramedic and firefighter.

We talk about what it's like to have one of the only jobs where you HAVE to work on Christmas some years & how the holiday staffing situation has changed recently. Danny shares his least favorite South Central LA Christmas tradition, & also gives you a bunch of Holiday safety tips. We talk about how many ways things can go wrong for you with all of these new holiday hazards, including mass casualty incidents over the holiday season. Then Ben tries to explain a little more about the LA County Medical Alert Center & goes into a mini recruitment pitch for one of the most unique jobs in EMS. We also plug the Spark of Love toy drive so you can do something good this year

This is it. We are giving you the goods for all of our listeners who are trying to get hired as a firefighter. We have recently retired LAFD Captain Chris Lewis, a 34 year veteran who has sat on countless oral interview boards, both entry level & promotional, even for other cities. He tells us all of the do's & do not do's of the FD oral interview, & there are A LOT. Danny also breaks down how to prep, what to wear, how to wait in the waiting room, how to walk in the room, how to greet the panel, how to shake hands, EVERYTHING. But the big prize here is this, we give you the tricks to a killer opening statement. The one that got us both perfect interview scores. We explain what an opening statement is, how to use it, & then show you how to write yours, practice it, & deliver it to knock out a perfect score. Captain Lewis also breaks down how to crush your zoom interview, including the difference in prep for zoom, getting your room ready, how to present yourself online. He also explains the main things that can get an otherwise good candidate bumped. We give up all the goods here to get you hired. Take notes on this one

We dive into substance abuse issues on the job, how easily it can creep up on you, then unique circumstances that lead first responders to it and how it can get out of hand. Danny goes in depth on his own personal struggles with this and explains how he hit rock bottom. We hear his personal journey of how he pulled himself out and the difficulties that go along with recovery. Once sober and back on track he is placed with a new partner goin through the same struggles with [pain pills after an injury. We talk about how often that scenario un folds in the fire service and how it can lead to tragic results. Danny recounts his former partners saga, which is a road mapper how these things are dealt with in the FD. This episode is full of honest introspection and personal accountability.

We're joined by LAFD Firefighter Paramedic Andrew Tom. Andrew was assigned to Rescue 9 with FF/PM Alex Saenz (Ep 49, The Boyd Street Incident) & was trapped in the building on Boyd Street during a BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) that created a giant blowtorch in the building Andrew was working inside of with Engine 9. What's it like to have conditions turn pitch black in a fire & then hear what sounds like a freight train coming thru? To know you have one way out, & seconds to escape? What goes thru your mind when you don't escape? When your path is blocked? Andrew gives us the full details of every firefighter's nightmare, to be caught in flashover conditions. How did he get stuck? How did he finally escape? How did it feel to know he was alive? What was the scene outside? What happened next? It's a fascinating story from his perspective. He shares his real emotions and the PTSD that followed and how he dealt with it all. You will never forget this episode. 

We discuss the tragic events that unfolded at the Astroworld Festival 11/5/21 & explain how an incident action plan works, the command post set up, the crowd grid & how the medical assignments work, the chain of command, the kill switch, & how this all has to work together to prevent these tragedies. We talk about how and why crowd crushes and surges happen, including ones that we've experienced as concert goers. We get a lesson on the history of music festivals and raves in LA, & discuss how we had to stop the show at our own rap festival, Camp Flog Gnaw, for 45 minutes during a Post Malone performance to stop the crowd surge. We talk about what could've gone wrong at Astroworld & how this can be prevented in the future, & who bears what responsibility. You also learn how people die in these situations and exactly what a human crush injury is & how it happens. 

It's the "controversy" that won't go away. Our third and FINAL vaccine mandate episode covers the last things we didn't cover in the previous episodes. Mainly the deceptive facts and misinformation posted to social media by the top anti vax firefighters group. We explain how this bullshit works, why even though the staffing numbers in these posts may be accurate, they're blamed on the vaccine mandate when the truth is these numbers haven't changed for DECADES. We explain the real reason for these staffing shortages thru the years & show how this type of deceptive posting is actually part of a political media strategy ultimately designed to turn outrage into fundraising dollars. We explain how the goodwill built up over decades by the fire service is being hijacked and torpedoed for this "cause" & this can result in a negative outcome for the image of firefighters as a whole. We also talk about how a lot of these guys were actually friends of Danny & still considered great guys, only to now find themselves separated by this made up controversy. Don't wait for further research on this episode, get it in your system now. 

LAFD veteran Firefighter Alonzo Williams gives us a completely different angle to a story we previously heard in episode 44 (Shots Fired) when LAFD Engineer Kelly Kilmartin told us about a robbery and shooting of Light Force 50 at a structure fire during night one of the 92 LA Riots. Alonzo realized they were actually being shot at before they were robbed at gunpoint, then as they were being robbed at gunpoint their Captain actually refused to hand over their radios at first, and was nearly killed in front of the crew. Then when the decision was made to bail out of there, Alonzo was separated from his crew. A firefighter just off probation, who just escaped a machine gun attack at a structure fire, was now running for his life alone in uniform in South Central LA during the 1st night of the riots with no police in sight and no other firefighters around. Alonzo runs to the nearest fire station to find it empty and locked. He decides to run back to the scene of the shooting, with rocks and bottles being thrown at him and cars gunning their engines toward him if he tries to cross the street. He finally finds his crew hiding in a family's home nearby. This is a wild story that not only captures the insanity of firefighting during major riots, but also the racial undertones and tension of the LAFD in the early 90's as well as LA as a whole. It's also an incredible tale of survival in the craziest circumstances.  

We have comedians, podcasters (Common Ground), married couple, & new parents Rachel LaForce and Alex Gettlin along with baby Jonah, explaining how the baby made it through birth, then how his mom made it. Rachel goes in depth on her first-time mom journey. Everything is going great, so great that the baby won't come out. Rachel gets induced, has a long labor, delivers, then starts to severely hemorrhage & needs emergency surgery. In between we learn about doula's, birth plans, advocacy, massages that become vision quests, shaman women, why OB's are super chill all the time, how to stop a pregnant woman bleeding with your arm, NICU's, giving birth on the nurses last day at work, where to put placentas, what "Full Frat Dad" mode is, plus Danny tells some stories where a home birth went wrong. Rachel & Alex are great guests & really funny, & baby Jonah joins us for the whole show but didn't chime in much. This episode goes full term.  

LAFD Captain Enrique Graciano is a 20 year veteran firefighter, who also has 3 years as an LAPD officer under his belt. He tells us about the scariest night of his life. In September of 2003 he was a young firefighter on Truck 88, assigned to interior truck operations in a supermarket fire with flames and heavy smoke in the rear of the building. In a matter of minutes, conditions severely deteriorate, and when the order is given to pull out, he gets separated from his company, and is unable to find his way out. With time & air running out & the smoke and heat getting worse, Enrique realizes he may not make it out alive. He tells us in detail how the whole incident unfolds. How you can follow orders and procedures perfectly and still find yourself lost and trapped in a fire. We also talk about aggression vs caution, when and how to call for help in a fire, & what happens when that call goes out. We also talk about the importance of experience and knowing your crew, as Graciano's own guys from Truck 88 found him. We also talk about life in the "squirrel cage" at LAFD Fire Station 88, the biggest in the city. What's it like to have your life flash before your eyes? Or to barely escape a fully involved supermarket fire that still had customers shopping inside when you showed up? This is the definition of a close call with death.   

We're joined by LAFD Captain Donald "Dilly" Dillenberger, Pilot Joel Smith, & Firefighter Alex Salas. These guys were the 1st in Truck Company (Truck 73) on a man trapped in a vertical storm channel during a torrential downpour in May of 2015. These guys rush to find a guy hanging onto a wood plank for dear life with water rushing by at 25-30 mph. Firefighter Salas throws the guy a rope from a distance, in the pouring rain, over a fence, down in the river, and hits the guy square in the chest just as he loses his grip on the plank. They then attempt a rescue that is not advised in any manual, has not been attempted before, and is not practiced. They have to save a man trapped in a storm channel with completely vertical walls, NO rescue or access point, in rising, freezing, rapid water, in pouring rain, with no stable anchor points to tie off a rope. Firefighter Smith puts a harness on Dilly, who says an epic line and jumps in the storm channel and grabs the guy. Now the rest of the guys have to get Dilly and the victim out, with no time to spare, and the freezing water raging on both of them. Here's where the story really gets crazy & has roof ladders being lowered, & Smith almost falling in. We have audio clips from the incident (and video) & Dilly gives great insight into the Swift Water rescue plan and system within LAFD. Including the incident that set the whole plan in motion. We also learn why teamwork and knowing every part of your job as a firefighter is important. 

We update you on the ongoing lawsuits against the FD with the vaccination mandate deadline passing for city employees. Danny explains how the lines between official and unofficial FD business can get blurred at times. We talk again about why this vaccine controversy exists in the first place, why the logic behind it is flawed, and the lawsuit is going nowhere. We talk again about how good men can be led to believe that voluntarily quitting their dream job is not only logical, but their only choice. How principles aren't really principles without consistency, & the irony of giving up your career because you're being advised to refuse a life saving vaccine, by people who were vaccinated themselves. Then we look back after 60 episodes at some of our forgotten early episodes (the 1st 15) & break down why they deserve another listen (except the 1st episode we agree was a mess). It's a great insight into the early days of the pod when we laid some amazing stories on our listeners before people really grasped what we were doing. Danny marvels at Ben's ability to remember every episode and guest in order, & we tease an upcoming episode with guys who will expand on the craziest and most overlooked rescue story ever on the show.

We finally answer the number one question every paramedic is asked whenever someone finds out what you do for a living. Danny gives you a huge payoff to this question, as he shares the craziest childbirth story ever, along with multiple suicide stories including something you never really consider at the scene until you're there. Then he ends it by expanding on the story of his most personally traumatic response that put him on stress leave for a month and led to a PTSD diagnosis for him. We talk about the phases of a career, busy stations, stress on the job, the "map" in your head of all your worst incidents & how you can never really forget them, & why it's important to seek help and find hobbies outside of work. Also, these stories are seriously wild, can't really put more in the description. This episode deserves a vacation. 

Albert Sanchez was a 33 year old LA County Firefighter in great shape, with 10 years on the job, when he was hit suddenly with a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis after experiencing sharp abdominal pains at work. Albert explains his entire ordeal to us, from staying up all night researching his condition, to checking himself out of the hospital and getting into a cancer specialty center. Albert undergoes a risky surgery, then 6 months of chemotherapy, where he has a complete change of perspective on life and its challenges. Here is an otherwise healthy man who was given 30 days to live and is now completely in remission for years. This is an amazing story & Albert is totally candid and honest & gives great insight on what it's like to be hit with a deadly diagnosis at a young age & beat it. Everything that goes thru your mind is explored here as well as what happens to your body, & we learn how your own determination can save your life. 

We talk about where we were on 9/11/2001, & realize how old that makes us now. Danny gives insight into what the firefighters felt going into that building & how unique and dangerous the situation was for the FD. He also talks about talking to younger firefighters about that day & how those events changed his view of the job. We talk about the real reaction and feeling that day & week, as well as the layout & timeline of the events and reactions. We talk about the changes in the world since then, desensitization to mass death, effects on the course of history, defense contractors, Pat Tillman, the economy, Al Gore, Covid, old movie references, Danny's art skills, & more.