KGUN 9 reporter Andrew Christiansen spends Christmas Eve with the Tucson Fire Department

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — As I walked into the station, I had barely shook hands with one of the firefighters at the Tucson Fire Department’s Fire House 4 when they immediately got a call.

I quickly got into the firetruck with them, an exciting experience I had never gotten a chance to do.

It was a little tighter in there than I had thought, but it was definitely a thrilling time!

The first call we went to was a potential overdose call and it seemed like he was doing ok after the firefighters checked his vitals.

As we were heading back to the station, we got another call. This time it was at a nursing home where a man was feeling sick with respiratory issues.

After the firefighters attended to him, it seemed like he was going to get better.

We got back to the station and I got to know firefighter David Dorame, who has only been with the station for a few days, but with the Tucson Fire Department overall for about 6 months.

“So you’ve been on with the Tucson Fire Department for about 6 months. What was it that really motivated you to join?” I asked him.

“I grew up with different family members on the Tucson Fire Department and they were definitely a big inspiration for me wanting to join,” Dorame told me.

With it being Christmas Eve, I was pretty sure he was missing his family.

“I’m still doing Christmas with my family tomorrow, get together with them, enjoy the Holidays,” he said.

Dorame said they work three 24 hours shifts and then have 4 days off, so he has Christmas off.

Then he showed me around the fire truck.

“Every morning when I get here, I get my gear on the truck. I check my SCBA pack and bottle, make sure that’s ready to go for the day, make sure all the EMS equipment is stocked up and ready to go,” he said.

Right after, we lifted some weights and Dorame shoulder pressed 135 pounds for 3 sets.

He did good!

Of course I also had to do some bicep curls with firefighter Alex Burns.

Right after, he helped me try on some firefighting gear. It was a lot heavier than I had thought.

I also did something that I had been wanting to do my entire life: honk the horn of a fire truck! That was a lot of fun!

I got to ask Burns what it’s like spending Christmas Eve with his fellow firefighters.

“We take care of what we need to early in the morning so we can just spend the rest of the day kind of celebrating the holiday and keeping up with family,” Burns said.

I also asked him a question I had been wondering about for a long time.

“What’s it like going inside a burning building, maybe saving some people and trying to put out the fire in a timely manner?” I asked.

“It’s pretty exciting. It’s not that any of us ever wanna see this happen but when it does happen, it’s all business,” he told me.

I also spent some time with firefighter Roger Thompson, who showed me all of their tools.

“These are what a lot of people refer to as the jaws of life,” he said as a I picked up a really heavy set of what looked like giant pliers.

He’s been with the station for about 6 years and I asked him about the Christmas traditions they have at the station.

“It’s fairly common to have a white elephant gift exchange. We usually try and make something tasty for dinner,” Thompson said.

And let me tell you! The food looked amazing!!! They were all pitching in to cook ugly steak from Dickman’s Meat and Deli and a mix of vegetables.

Right after, they surprised me with something I didn’t think I would see at a fire station: a zip line.

They’re the ropes rescue station, so they set one up in between two fire trucks.

I was still in shock as I went across it, and it was so much fun! It was my favorite part about the day!

Soon after, some of their families visited, but some of them had to leave on a call quickly there after. At least they got to spend some time with them after the call!

All in all it was a very Merry Christmas….Eve that is!

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