Take Time To Thank A First Responder

It’s a privilege to live in a society where help is only a phone call away. But until help is actually needed, it’s not something ordinary people think much about.
In years of reporting, we’ve been to the scenes of many emergencies, and we’ve listened in on untold hours of public safety broadcasts. Together they tell a pretty compelling story: when emergencies happen, local first responders are there on the double, providing skilled, humane service.
We recently reported on a motorcycle accident in Chatham that left a man seriously hurt. The short news item in The Chronicle told a tiny fraction of the story. We saw local and state police skillfully control the accident scene and saw Chatham firefighters provide skilled care, taking time to console bystanders. We saw skilled Boston MedFlight medics zip to town and, with the same skill and compassion, whisk the patient up to Boston for treatment. For the first responders, it was another day on the job. For the people involved, it was almost certainly a pivotal moment in their lives.
A few days later, a man was reported missing from his home in North Harwich. Quietly and efficiently, first responders from around Cape Cod were called to action, converging on the scene quickly with their special training and equipment. As firefighters combed the area, police officers from several jurisdictions collaborated, calling in the State Police Air Wing for support along with a drone from the Barnstable County Sheriff’s Office. Thanks to training, practiced coordination, advanced technology and quite a bit of shoe leather, the man was located safely, miles away in Dennis. Another human drama came to a happy conclusion, well outside the view of most of the public.
When people are injured or suddenly ill, when they are afraid or in crisis, on land or on the water, local heroes answer the call every day. And trust us, they deal with emergencies that would curl your toes. Fleeting headlines and short news items simply don’t do them justice.
Next chance you have, stop a first responder to say thanks.