When the bell goes off, instead of sprinting to class, junior Nathan Rodney sprints from his bed in the Cabin John Fire Station to the awaiting ambulance.

Rodney is an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) observer for the Cabin John Fire Department. Despite not being certified to perform medical duties, an EMS observer goes on every call that the fire department receives and helps the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) treat their patients.

Rodney decided to become an EMS observer because he hopes to become a doctor when he gets older. He also heard from other CESJDS students that working at a fire station was an amazing experience. For now, since Rodney is under 18, his work for the Cabin John Fire Department can only earn him community service hours.

Before turning 16, Rodney submitted an application to the Cabin John Fire Department to become an EMS observer. He took a series of online classes, passed a physical exam and had a few training days with the department before starting his Saturday night shifts in November.

Rodney’s shift is from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. Sunday morning. Because his shift is during the night, Rodney is able to sleep for parts of the night in the bunk room.

When Rodney is not resting in the fire station’s bunks, he and the other members of the fire department sit around a desk, waiting for an emergency call.

Once the tone sounds, all those on duty leap into action.

“When the tone goes off, I just put my shoes on and hop in the ambulance,” Rodney said.

Usually, there are two calls per 12-hour shift. Once the ambulance reaches its destination, Rodney gets whatever the officer in charge needs, such as defibrillators or stretchers.

After the patient is placed in the ambulance or a fire truck, Rodney goes with the wounded to the hospital and gets them checked in before returning to the station.

Rodney was scared on his first call, a car accident, because he did not know what to expect.

“It’s a little emotionally draining seeing the person on the floor, but you get used to it after a while,” Rodney said.

More recently, Rodney responded to a car accident on Feb. 27 that left three people, including a Walt Whitman High School senior, dead and two others injured. Rodney’s unit was the second EMS unit on the site, and they helped the other firefighters get the injured people out of their cars. This was the first time Rodney had been called onto a scene where people died.

Although dealing with tragedies such as this one can be hard, Rodney tries to learn something from each new experience he has with the fire department.

“It has helped me become a better first responder,” Rodney said. “These kind of experiences will help me in the future if this happens again.”

Rodney wants to have more responsibilities in the fire department and plans to take courses to become an EMT by next school year.

“It’s a great way to give back to the community, and I love doing it,” Rodney said. “I like going on the calls. I like the excitement. I like the sense of family at the fire department.”

Because he does not sleep much during his shift, Rodney spends most of Sunday resting to recover from Saturday night. This takes a chunk out of Rodney’s weekend, but it does not bother him.

“I’m willing to give up some of my social life to be part of a fire department,” Rodney said. I do not mind, because I love what I do.”