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Busy as Hell
Busy As Hell is a funny, serious, and instructive look at the wild experiences shared by hundreds of Boston firefighters who battled their way through the busiest years in BFD’s history - a period known affectionately as “The War Years.” This was long before bunker gear …. no masks, just dungaree jackets, work shoes, and (maybe) gloves. The era of iron men and wooden aerial ladders! What was it like being a Boston fireman back then? For instance, what was it like to watch the captain wrestle on the ground with one of his men while the building was burning down? Who comforts a suicidal man by telling him exactly where to land when he jumps so the firemen don’t have to go far to pick up his body? What happens when a very talented prankster gets a taste of his own medicine? What famous and old-time horror movie personality lived in the attic of one of Boston’s historic fire houses? Find out who opens a roof from inside an unvented attic? How many ladder trucks does it take to rescue 125 souls from a blistering inferno in the dead of the night? And what was it like to work with a fireman who lit buildings on fire - in his spare time and even when he was working?
Boston’s happy band of swashbuckling firemen climbed aboard the old fire engines and raced through neighborhoods filled with wooden three-deckers, aging brick buildings, on narrow streets and little back alleys (the famous “paved-over cow paths”) and put out a staggering number of major fires - one every 13.6 hours, for twenty-one years straight! Busy As Hell indeed!
328 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 9, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 16, 2023
Well, this is definitely getting a red shelf spot.
Lt. Mike Foley worked for all of the " War Years" in Boston Fire, from open cabs, to the riots, to the drawdowns and the beginning of the arson years. This only covers the beginning of his career.
Told as a loose set of firehouse stories, no real cohernet narrative is ascertained aside from " It's great to be a Boston Jake". Which, you know what, it sure is.
Like all of the proper SEAL or top of the heap military novels, Lt. Mike is extremely humble. This is the first time someone articulated why we do what we do in a way that others can understand. He doesn't talk about what he himself did but rather breaks down stories of what he considers a " good jake"." Coming along after some intense trainings and firehouse discussions, it was well needed.
Definitely gonna be easier to read if you know anything about firefighting but I reccomend to most people.
Lt. Mike Foley worked for all of the " War Years" in Boston Fire, from open cabs, to the riots, to the drawdowns and the beginning of the arson years. This only covers the beginning of his career.
Told as a loose set of firehouse stories, no real cohernet narrative is ascertained aside from " It's great to be a Boston Jake". Which, you know what, it sure is.
Like all of the proper SEAL or top of the heap military novels, Lt. Mike is extremely humble. This is the first time someone articulated why we do what we do in a way that others can understand. He doesn't talk about what he himself did but rather breaks down stories of what he considers a " good jake"." Coming along after some intense trainings and firehouse discussions, it was well needed.
Definitely gonna be easier to read if you know anything about firefighting but I reccomend to most people.
July 10, 2021
Highly Recommend
As a person who loves Boston Fire History, this is a must read. Mike is a great author and makes you feel you are right there in the firehouse.
As a person who loves Boston Fire History, this is a must read. Mike is a great author and makes you feel you are right there in the firehouse.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews