There are times when a driver can begin to display bad habits when driving the apparatus. This can occur either while driving on routine movements or during emergency responses.

If the officer or other crew members need to address unsafe exhibition of someone's driving techniques or "road rage," then action needs to be taken before costly damage occurs (possibly from litigation or vehicle damage), reputations are ruined or the fire department gets a bad rap and tarnished image.

First and foremost, all firefighters — especially drivers — are constantly under the watchful eyes of the public. Let's face it, we do stick out like a sore thumb. A fire truck driving down the street always gets the public's attention. Plus, we are wearing a uniform.

Therefore, whenever an unwanted incident occurs — speeding through a school zone when not on an alarm, becoming vocal with a civilian driver due to their driving habits or inadvertent mistakes, cutting off another vehicle (especially without using a turn signal) or using offensive hand gestures — consequences can be high profile.

All a citizen complainant needs to do is pick up the phone and file/request a complaint. The trucks are easy to identify — there is no need for a license plate number; all they need is the unit number.

There aren't that many of us in our respective municipalities. The minute a firefighter reports for duty, any negative attitudes need to diminish.

If there is a problem, consider changing drivers immediately if there is another qualified person to do the job. If not, conduct a counseling session involving the supervisor and the driver about curbing his driving shortcomings. An immediate attitude change needs to occur, and driving techniques must improve. The crew needs to feel comfortable, safe and secure.

My position required me at times to run a driver remediation session requested by a company officer, accident review committee or higher administration. The drivers and their vehicles ranged from normal passenger vehicles all the way through aerial apparatus, from firefighters to chiefs.

Many times, incidents occurred due to a firefighter's vision and inability to see clearly or gauge depth. A visit to the optometrist and the addition of eyeglasses/contacts or change in prescription helped resolve some issues. Some opted for corrective surgery.

Initially, I would ride with the person being remediated and observe his driving habits. I would watch his eyes, observe his steering technique, watch his feet, observe his head movements, and feel the vehicle forces when turning, braking and accelerating.

I would then have the person verbalize to me every action being processed in his head. (I am not a mind reader.) I wanted to assure the correct driving "attitude" and that the individual was taking in the whole environment to assure their safety and the safety of others. In other words, the focus needed to be on driving and nothing else.

If I saw any incorrect techniques or anything needing tweaking, I would get behind the wheel and instruct about what needed to be done correctly. I would verbalize my every move plus describe the picture of my surroundings.

For example, let's say we were stopped at a stoplight in an intersection. I would assure the vehicle is positioned behind the large white line and the whole crosswalk was in clear view. Keeping my head on swivel by looking all around and at my mirrors, I would observe all the traffic and signs.

Once the light turns green, I would take a three-second pause, looking left, right, then left again, followed by smooth acceleration. Once in motion, I would constantly update my computer (my brain) to the changing environment, taking note of the traffic patterns, signs and erratic drivers, always using turn signals when needed, maintaining my instrument scan and legal speed, etc.

Most importantly, I was always envisioning potential problems and how I would immediately react.

Sometimes we need to face the fact that there are persons who may not be able to drive department vehicles, especially larger ones. They can drive their personal vehicle to and from work, but they may not possess the necessary knowledge, skills, abilities and attitude to drive in emergency situations or even during normal movements.

Like anything, though, if the person works hard and perseveres over time, the situation can improve. The learning curve may take longer for some, but with good instruction and the right attitude from the student, good things can happen.