As we’ve previously discussed, firefighters don and doff their equipment, terms deriving from do on and do off. They are also said to dout a fire, meaning they “extinguish” it, dout being a similar shortening of do out. This is...
Your telephone is for talking, right? Or is it? We’re guessing it’s been a while since you sat next to a telephone waiting for it to ring. In fact, maybe you’re one of those people who HATE to see that voicemail message light...
shake and bake n.— «Some people lay down on the floor to get below the smoke. Others began shaking open their emergency rescue shelters. Made of a reflective material, the tents are a last resort. Some firefighters ghoulishly refer to...
spiking n.— «The proposed firefighter contract also would have ended a practice known as spiking, where firefighters can inflate their pension payouts. The contract was designed to limit how much overtime and compensatory time pay could...
gasoline siding n.— «The wood-frame home, which is adjacent to Vale Park on the south side of Eastern Avenue, also has what firefighters euphemistically call “gasoline siding”—a petroleum-based imitation brick that feeds the...
per piece manning n.— «In fire safety circles, “per piece manning” is the term for the approach that the union and mayor have endorsed in negotiations to settle a contract that expired last July. McKay explained how “per...