A burning bond

The members of Platoon C hold their breath in unison as the intercom at the Cape Girardeau Fire Station No. 1 cuts through the sound of clinking silverware in the dining room.

After spending the last hour preparing a home-cooked meal of hamburgers and bratwursts fresh off the grill and tater tots straight from the oven, silence now looms over the dinner table. With stomachs growling, the firefighters face the fact they may have to abandon their meal.

Luckily, another station answered the call. Dinner would go uninterrupted that night.

Things like this are simply part of the job for members of the Cape Girardeau Fire Department.

Cape Girardeau firefighters work in groups called platoons which handle about ten shifts in 24-hour stretches starting at 7 a.m. every other day, followed by six days off.

Clockwise from left, firefighters David Uptmor, Justin Siemers, Shawn Morris and Drew Goodale sit down to eat dinner as a medical call comes over the intercom. The call was answered by another station and dinner went uninterrupted.BEN MATTHEWS

Aside from responding to calls, a firefighter's responsibilities are similar to those in many other workplaces -- spending time cleaning, performing maintenance on equipment and undergoing training.

David Uptmor started as a volunteer firefighter after getting his EMT license in high school and then serving in the Marine Corps Reserves.

After battling his first house fire while training, he knew he wanted to work at the fire station.

He joined with the Cape Girardeau Fire Department in July 2012 after completing his fire training and paramedic school.

Uptmor described the atmosphere around the firehouse similar to that he saw during his time serving in the military.

Firefighter Jamie Hann lies down after dinner Tuesday at Fire Station No. 1.BEN MATTHEWS

"You live with these guys, so it's family," Uptmor said. "Sometimes you don't want to be around them and sometimes you get along great, but no matter what you have to live with them."

Assigned to the department's C Platoon, Uptmor has essentially been working with the same firefighters for the past four years.

"The more you work calls, because even a simple call in certain areas can be dangerous," he said. "You have to be watching each others backs because it's an unpredictable environment so you're kind of forced to trust somebody but also the more time spent together builds that trust."

For the firefighters, this trust is built just as much through fielding calls as it is through spending time cooking together around the station's dinner table.

bmatthews@semissourian.com

From left, fire captain Shawn Morris watches television with firefighters David Uptmor and Jamie Hann on Tuesday at Fire Station No. 1.BEN MATTHEWS

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