The recent immigration sweeps across Southern California became the flashpoint for several days of protests in Los Angeles. While many demonstrations were peaceful, moments of tension put the city’s first responders on high alert.
At their height, the protests saw access to major freeways blocked and vehicles set on fire. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass responded with a temporary curfew.
What happened earlier this month in California can happen anywhere, and numerous episodes have occurred across the United States and Canada in the past five years.
Whether responding to a protest, political demonstration, or spontaneous act of civil unrest, fire fighters, paramedics, and other emergency medical professionals are being asked to operate in increasingly unpredictable environments. The stakes are high – emotionally charged crowds, delayed access to patients or fires, and rapidly changing threats.
Departments across North America can draw valuable lessons from recent events in Los Angeles and others in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C., where fire and EMS agencies have developed specialized response protocols, coordinated closely with law enforcement, and stayed mission-focused to prioritize responder safety.
Fire and emergency medical services do not stop, even during the protests in Los Angeles. As the crowd size increased, the city’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) went into a Level 2 activation, changing response protocols to keep fire fighters safe on the job.
“This means fire, law enforcement, and related agencies all coordinate through the EOC and continue to respond to emergencies on a heightened alert,” said John Bagala, 10th District State Representative. “Areas deemed to be unsafe require a police escort at all times.”
After the hot zones, or tactical areas, are identified, up to seven task force units are deployed and respond from strategic locations, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department officials. At minimum, those include a fire truck, engine, and ladder company. However, units can be scaled up to include more apparatus as needed.
“Safety is paramount. So, it is critical that fire fighters stay mission-focused and wait until they can respond with law enforcement,” said Adam VanGerpen, one of several public information officers for the Los Angeles Fire Department and a Local 112 member. “With police watching for any signs of danger, we can quickly get in and get out.”
Safety is paramount. So, it is critical that fire fighters stay mission-focused and wait until they can respond with law enforcement. With police watching for any signs of danger, we can quickly get in and get out.
LAFD PIO Adam VanGerpen
Sometimes it can be safer to let fires burn.
For example, as some news outlets reported, protesters set fire to several self-driving electric vehicle taxis.
“It was not safe for us to go in there. So, we were not going in unless the cars were positioned near buildings and the potential for the fire spreading was high,” VanGerpen said. “In those cases, we went in and knocked out the fires and got out.”
First responders were also on heightened alert earlier this month in Minnesota after the shooting deaths of State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and the attempted murder of State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
City officials were also aware of the planned No Kings demonstrations.
“The messaging coming out of government offices was to stay calm,” said Minneapolis Local 82 President Mark Lakosky. “Our city got through the last few days without serious incident, but we were ready to respond with our task force had things escalated.”
Minneapolis was the epicenter of the 2020 protests after George Floyd was killed by a city police officer.
“During those protests, it was fire after fire after fire. We were in constant response mode, always going in with our task force unit, complemented by police units,” said Assistant Fire Chief Wes VanVickle, who is also a member of Local 82. “It was an intense pace until the National Guard could arrive to supplement our response.”
Following that protest, Minneapolis fire fighters recognized the critical importance of coordinating with law enforcement and related agencies to get the most accurate, real-time information about potential threats and their locations to ensure fire fighter safety.
Once they have that information, the department can identify areas where task force teams are needed, or where regular responses can continue. Minneapolis leaders say it may also become important to switch out task force teams with greater regularity to avoid heightened fatigue.
“We are all trained in what to do in these scenarios. To stay safe, we just have to remain mission focused,” VanVickle said. “Have a command center, keep communication lines open, know what all related agencies are doing, and keep your head on a swivel.”
Washington, D.C., fire fighters also have a task force model that is activated regularly. Those instances range from a standard rally where people are exercising their First Amendment rights to full-scale emergencies such as the Jan. 6, 2021, incident and the 2020 George Floyd protests.
When incidents escalate to civil unrest , the department relies more heavily on law enforcement to help manage crowds, prevent unlawful behavior, and maintain a safe operating environment.
“We have to be ready to respond within those environments,” said Captain Ray Edwards, who holds a leadership position within the DC Fire and EMS Department Special Operations Division and is a member of Local 36. “We go in with more units and staff and never go in without a police escort.”
Edwards said it is protocol to receive intelligence regarding potential threats from the Department of Homeland Security or one of the multiple law enforcement agencies across the metro area. Special task force units will then be assigned, while each fire station will continue to be staffed as normal.
“If it’s a 100,000-person march, for example, we mainly get medical calls. People are not used to walking long distances, so they get heat exhaustion or dehydrated,” Edwards said. “But if it’s a civil unrest situation, we will get more fires.”
“The smaller trash can fires that aren’t threatening any nearby structures, we may let burn out. But, if it’s leaning up against a building, we will go in with law enforcement and quickly put it out.”
Edwards said D.C. fire fighters have seen it all and learned valuable lessons from past experiences. The key, he emphasized, is to be prepared, stay focused on the mission, follow established protocols, understand your role in the response, and always put safety first.
The IAFF offers further guidance on staying safe in the workplace with two training courses: Workplace Violence Prevention for First Responders and its follow-up, Practical Strategies for Safety. The courses, using real-life scenarios as examples, are designed to equip fire and EMS responders with ways to protect themselves in potentially violent situations.
