A deadly blaze in Wallingford prompted the town's fire department to activate its peer support team. It’s to help firefighters process what they witness on scene.
As Wallingford firefighters respond to an emergency call, the crew inside is also getting help if they need it when they return.
“It’s first responders helping first responders.”
Deputy Chief Samuel Wilson said his firefighters are committed to serving the town, but certain calls can take a toll mentally, carrying the stress and burden of what they may see at scenes.
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“Nothing will ever substitute from the experiencing of actually having to live it yourself. It’s unfortunate, but it’s necessary in our profession,” he said.
Wilson said the department has a peer support team to help firefighters sort out any feelings or emotions they may have before going back on duty.
“They’re all specially trained counselors to deal with critical incident stress debriefing, kind of working through the challenges first responders experience,” he said.
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He said the team was proactively activated in response to a deadly residential fire on Geneva Street Wednesday. While he couldn’t give specifics on that fire’s investigation, Wilson said there have been factors considered in previous activations.
“It’s a death on scene. It could be a traumatic event. Something that hits close to home,” he said.
Wilson said the peer support team has been active at the department for five years and was an idea from the firefighter’s union. He said the counselors being first responders themselves adds a layer of relatability and understanding for his crew.
“There’s really nobody that’s going to really understand more of what you’ve just went through than people that have been there, maybe not this time, but have been there in times before,” Wilson said.
