Hoover Firefighters Help With Florida Condo Collapse

SURFSIDE, FL — After a 12-story beachfront condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Florida, partially collapsed June 24, first responders are still working on recovery efforts. This includes a couple of Hoover firefighters.

Lieutenant Jeff Harris and District Captain Toby Rigsby of the Hoover Fore Department were deployed Thursday to Surfside, part of a 14 member crew from departments across the nation. All members of this crew are members of the International Association of Firefighters.

The purpose of the deployment is to provide emotional support for the first responders that are working the building collapse incident, which has reached a death toll of 90 as of Monday morning.

The deployed crews have been trained by the International Association of Firefighters in a Peer Support Program. This program trains firefighters to provide peer support to combat the emotional and psychological effects of working traumatic incidents.

"Unfortunately, the profession of firefighting experiences a high rate of suicide," Division Chief Duane Prater of the Hoover FD said in a statement. "This peer support program was developed as a first line of defense in response to this occupational hazard."

Prater said because the incident in Surfside is an exceptional incident with a high loss of life, firefighters may relate easier to a peer that understands the emotional rigors of the profession rather than not seeking professional help.

"Peer Support firefighters are trained to recognize the signs of stress and provide early intervention," Prater said. "As a peer firefighter builds rapport with the affected firefighter they can refer them to appropriate resources as needed."

The deployed crews initially conducted fire station visits to speak with the affected firefighters. The crews were then broken into teams to work shifts around the clock at the collapse incident site. The crews worked alongside the search teams as victims are still being recovered.

The crews are expected to return to their departments Tuesday.