MONROE, Mich. — More than a dozen Monroe Charter Township firefighters responded to a fire in a plaza Tuesday afternoon.
While they were able to put the fire out, the conditions resulted in one of the firefighters being hospitalized due to heat exhaustion.
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The fire department's fire inspector Calvin Schmitt is still looking into the cause of the fire, he says it took its toll.
Another firefighter also suffered from the heat and required medical attention on the scene, he said.
"He was doing ops up on the roof and he came down and was seen in the emergency room," Schmitt said. "But I don't know if he was admitted or not, I think it might have been from dehydration or just overheated cause that's possible."
Emergency services checked the vitals of a total of 17 firefighters on the scene.
"Once they were cleared by the medics, they'd go back to active duty," Schmitt said.
With temperatures so high, it's a dangerous job, which is why they take safety precautions such as having EMS on standby.
"We have protocols in place that help keep our guys safe," Schmitt said.
Those protocols include having the firefighters take turns working on the fire and keeping a lookout on their coworkers.
"Obviously, if you start feeling symptoms of dizziness, blurred vision, not feeling well, then we're going to move you to a safe area," Schmitt said. "But if you go through two bottles of air, if you're breathing air, you go to rehab."
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He said it's critical to monitor vitals, check temperatures and make sure the crews are hydrated, something fire departments across the country understand, including Rossford.
Rossford firefighter Mike Lord says crews keep an eye on one another, looking for symptoms, especially during training, to see if anyone is struggling to keep up.
"The unfortunate thing is with our gear, it creates that vapor barrier where it doesn't allow that sweat to evaporate and cool you down like you would normally just standing here like we are now," Lord said.
Schmitt says the gear can make things even worse if a person is already suffering from heat exhaustion.
"It's just exhausting, you know all the equipment that we have on, you know you can deplete your fluids quickly," he said.
As for the firefighter that was sent to the hospital, Schmitt said blood test results came back indicating that everything was okay, but they'll continue to monitor him.
The fire resulted in 10-12 patients in a nearby kidney dialysis center having to move while cleanup takes place.
Schmitt said people can expect part of the plaza to stay closed off for the next month while he works with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office to determine the cause of the fire.