"The LSFD — misconduct reocurrences: ASB, PSD and high-ranking officials move slowly to discipline and sanction firefighters and other sworn employees."

[Vroosi]

[Vroosi]

The LOS SANTOS TIMES' relation with the LSFD has never exactly been the healthiest between agencies and institutions, as far apart as their nature, purpose and duty may be. It takes a few seconds of looking up news articles to realize that the number of outlets claiming and pointing out the BAD APPLES and many negative aspects that have been present in the FIRE DEPARTMENT's structure for decades heavily outweigh anything positive that has ever been reported by the news agency — to no one's surprise, specially when one remembers that it's any news outlet's job to speficially point out the dark side of PUBLIC AGENCIES.

 

Despite the immense and rapid change LOS SANTOS has gone through in the last few decades, being submitted to a complex process of gentrification that altered not only the reality of a FIREFIGHTER and the way the Fire Department works, but also the way it serves the city — this applies to the first responders in red, of course, but also to the ones in blue and the safety hat-heads and all the other public and city employees; everything is much more sensitive and fragile, the act of seeing everything through a third eye has been made necessary and extremely essential if one wishes to maintain their badge — the LOS SANTOS FIRE DEPARTMENT continues to appear on the very front page of the LST every once in a while to be reminded that, no matter how long it's been, a news agency with a grudge will make sure to show its fancy fonts, grammar and text structure to reprimand whoever it doesn't like, whilst also making sure that the entire metropolitan area, as well as a few of the educated men and women of the east and south of LOS SANTOS watch everything. Those firefigthers and paramedics could save as many children and adults as they'd like, one or another's face and dirty - and often illegal - story would end up appearing on an unexpectedly large number of computer or cellphone screens under a title written in black and gothic letters. Without a doubt, the existence of PETTY JOURNALISTS who've got their eyes everywhere is certainly taught in many academies across AMERICA, not only in Los Santos, though part of being "held to a much higher standard" also revolves around mastering the act of being the center of the media's attention.

 

This isn't to say the department is spotless of corrupt individuals, even if that may be what most of those same individuals would like people to think - or think themselves. It's difficult to have any sort of reason when your department has been the center of news stories in the region, or even in the entirety of the west coast, and it takes a lot of courage to say that, maybe, perhaps, at the end of the day, "it isn't as bad as people claim it to be". As long as there's a specific bureau, division or unit responsible for speaking in the name of the FIRE CHIEF, as long as there's a specific bureau, division or unit responsible for speaking to CORRESPONDENTS, GAZETTEERS and PROPAGANDISTS, as long as there's a specific bureau, division or unit responsible for investigating those who are (hopefully) saving lives on a hand and grossly flirting with the idea of infringing department policy on the other, this department will continue to cherish its own image. Even if, eventually, in one way or another, legally or illegally, those same correspondents, gazetteers & propagandists end up finding dirt on someone or something. That's what they were hired for.

 

Whether inspirational or nerve-racking, a news article, most of the time, comes from a scream of help heard from the inside - anonymous reports made by sworn-firefigthers aren't anything new. In fact, whistleblowers exist and have been existing since the beginning of each, any and every industry. Within the context of legal, government agencies, things do not change. If anything, whistleblowers might have an easier time letting their truth out. It's not like a FIRE OFFICER, or even worse, a CFO is going to send someone to shut a fellow firefighter up. Right?

 

In either way, one thing is a fact: LSFD's history is, somewhat, even if only by a percentage, marked by corruption and scandals; and corruption scandals. Restoring the department's reputation has, in a way, been an easy fish to sell - they save people, after all, and are one of the largest fire departments in the US, behind only the brothers in the county and the strangers in the east coast. After all, if corruption was expected to come from anyone, it would, ninety-nine percent of the occasions, be expected to be coming from the POLICE DEPARTMENT — which is also historically (and specially) corrupt — instead of expecting it to come from the firefighters and paramedics who serve our people. Perhaps the department is nothing other than ordinary, but with a much larger structure and relevance as consequence of serving such a broad area - whether the EMTs like it or not, this does come with the consequence of, again, being held to a higher standard. Or perhaps the city of Los Santos is doomed to harbor the most corrupt of individuals. However, no matter how many times the department may find itself victim of thirsty journalists, it truly is such a huge lack of luck to be a firefighter serving the city of entertainment.

Edited June 6, 2024 by Vroosi

[Vroosi]

res1

[Vroosi]

(( Hello. This thread will tell the story & development of Carl Mendoza; a newly-employed firefighter for the Los Santos Fire Department. ))

Edited June 6, 2024 by Vroosi

[Vroosi]

 

[Vroosi]

[Vroosi]

On 6/15/2024 at 7:48 PM, Vroosi said:

 

[Vroosi]