What do you do to protect your own safety on the
job?
From the files of
PhotogsLounge.net
Darryl
Wingard
"If you check the obituaries printed in the NPPA annual, the single
largest cause of death is car accidents. I have to constantly remind
my new photographers that no story is worth dying for, that speeding
or driving dangerously rarely saves much time. And the sad fact is that
speeding works against you at the assignment desk. If a trip should
normally take an hour, and you regularly speed and get there in less
time, then the desk starts to think it only takes 45 minutes to get
there and they schedule accordingly.
Now
I admit that it took me awhile to learn this lesson myself. It's hard
to reign in your excitement to get to the story when you're new to this
and equally hard to tell the desk that you missed something. But it's
easier than getting a ticket or getting in an accident. Now I tell everyone
to allow more time to get places, slow down, drive with your lights
on (I'm amazed at how much that seems to cut down on people pulling
out in front of me), and to remember that it isn't your job to correct
bad assignment scheduling by speeding. If they don't give you time to
get there, that's their fault.
And
to all you live truck operators: LOOK UP, LOOK UP, LOOK UP! We want
to cover the news, not be the news."
Sheldon Gajarian
"Wear your
B.P.vest everyday and do what we preach, BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS!
To say "nothing is worth dying for",is true, I can't think of many things
that are, other than family. But going to that edge, being first on a
scene, the exclusive and best of all just kicking butt can't be beat.
It's adrenalin and lots of it. Screw the assignment desk messing up time
after time, your producer thinking they know best while sitting on their
ass, a reporter with as much street smarts as a chimp, don't let any of
it cloud your judgement. All I want is to win the GAME everyday and hope
both eye's and ear's keep working, cause thats all we have, ourselves."
Kolin
Lawler
"The images that we see through the viewfinder are so
limited that our peripheral awareness often takes a back seat. Your on
the most amazing spot news story of your career and you don't want to
miss anything. Sometimes you forget the basics...look around. I found
this out the hard way while shooting the scene where a girl had been pushed
to her death off a fire escape. I was broadsided and nearly knocked off
my feet, camera and all, by the girls angry boyfriend (who was later arrested
for pushing her). This took me by surprise but taught me to be much more
careful. Since then I try to look around between shots and keep my ears
open for those who don't understand that I'm just doing my job."
Dave Wehlage
"If you
mean safety as in "what do I carry in the way of protective gear," the
answer would be "very little." The station provides me with a ballistic
vest, a Threat-Level II if I'm not mistaken, and that's about it. As a
freelancer, I'm responsible for most of my own safety gear....and that
budget goes mostly to foul-weather gear. I will be buying Nomex brush
turnouts before brush-fire season, though...and with all this talk recently
of anthrax attacks, I'm seriously considering buying an army-surplus gas
mask...works for tear gas too.
Now, if you mean
safety as in "covering my butt," I'd have to say the number-one way
I stay safe is by not trying to be a cowboy. I was one of the first
ground cameras to arrive at the North Hollywood shootout, while the
perps were still spraying the street in front of the bank. When I heard
that these guys were using full-automatic armor-piercing weapons, I
elected to remain where I was at, the initial command post, and cover
what was happening there... for a number of reasons, not the least of
which was it was out of the line of fire. I saw the choppers overhead,
and knew that they could get far better footage at far less personal
risk than I could. I was also not in radio contact with my desk, and
they were sending a reporter to rendezvous with me, so I had to stay
in the general area anyway. This is not to say that I didn't get some
compelling stuff. Wounded being evacuated, cops taking up defensive
positions as the gunmen left the bank, police-radio traffic as the armored
car tried to rescue one of the most grievously-wounded officers...and
the general sense of panic that was so pervasive in the early stages
of that incident.
Providing for your
safety is just common sense, really. We all take risks, this is a dangerous
job. I just try not to put my butt in a situation where it's hangin'
out, so to speak. I won't do live shots in gang-infested areas after
dark. I won't drive 110mph to a breaker (my truck won't do 110mph...).
Anytime I'm at a scene where there is the potential for peril to my
person, I will (usually) follow the recommendations of the public-safety
personnel there. They're the experts at keeping people alive. So, I
listen to them."
Bruce Johnson
"What do I do to protect myself on the job? I don't let my
producer/reporter drive. Ever. I'm not kidding! Boy, if they handed out
frequent driver miles...."
David R.Busse
"Since I am primarily the Wescam operator in our station's
helicopter, safety is a major concern. I have been doing aerial news photography
for about 20 years so these are some of my personal safety habits:
1. I will not fly with inexperienced pilots...people with less than
2500 helicopter hours, people with no mountain/desert/water experience,
etc. "Movie pilots" (a qualification, btw, with absolutely no relevance
to news work), people with lots of R-22 (flying lawn mower) time and
people with relatively low hours in the particular aircraft type should
be avoided.
2. I do a pre-flight walk-around with the pilot. I am not a pilot but
have an above-average knowledge of the mechanics of helicopter flight
and constantly ask questions of the pilot and mechanics.
3. I do a pre-shoot (sometimes this means en-route) briefing with the
pilot on what we need to accomplish when we get to our assigned location.
4. I monitor atc (air traffic control) frequencies along with the pilot
and try to act as a second set of eyes whenever in the air or at an
airport.
5. I make sure that passengers and inexperienced trainees have a complete
briefing on ground safety procedures (stay away from tail rotor, etc.)
whenever around the helicopter.
6. I ENCOURAGE management and other employees to fly with us at any
time to better understand what unique challenges we face when covering
news from the air.
7. My pilot/partner (a 14,000-hour guy) and I have a rule about bad
weather and risky situations: it takes just ONE NO VOTE and we don't
do it. Period. We only go when both are comfortable with a situation,
and we do not question the other person's judgement.
8. We try to stay informed on every significant accident/mishap involving
helicopters. Good writeups are available from a variety of aviation
sources. That more than anything else encourages safe flying and attention
to details.
9. I discuss "what if" procedures on a regular basis with the pilot:
"what if" we have to ditch in the ocean, land in the street, do a notar
(no tail rotor) landing, etc. On the ground, in the course of occasionally
shooting "normal" stories, I absolutely refuse to drive faster than
the speed limit and I try to practice what the utility companies call
"the circle of safety."
Every time I park the truck and every time I am about to drive off,
I take a complete walk around the vehicle, looking UP and away for anything
attached, any dangers of overhead obstructions, any problems with the
vehicle (flat tires, etc.)."
Steve Ligtelyn
"I think
we are targets because we carry a $60K camera that someone else wants.
So I don't let my guard down anytime. If you have to set your camera down
(To open the door to your van for instance), Stand on the shoulder strap.
Or have your reporter or Producer help out. Always be aware of your surroundings.
Don't make yourself a easy target."
Bob
Gould
"Tough question about safety, but...I just try to make sure I know what's
going on around me at all times, especially when I am by myself in a tough
neighborhood . I try to make sure somebody is with me in really rough
areas. Also, I am very careful when driving and running live trucks. There
are too many careless people out there and pushy producers in this field
that don't like to think about live truck safety. Speaking of which...Mark
Anderson and Dave Wertheimer at KSTP have produced a ten minute live truck
safety video. It's excellent and it's called, "look up and live." They
will probably love to send you a copy if you call them. They are in the
process of marketing it with the NPPA."
Dan Konik
"I still get a little nervous when I have to go out on an ambush
shoot. You never know how it will turn out. More often than not, it's
an empty house or a slamming door. The same goes with shooting crime scenes
at midnight. Just watch your back and stick with the cops. I don't get
out of the truck unless the police are around. My mom didn't raise any
dummies, and I'm not about to die for a TV show. "
Sid Farhang
"Fully realizing that arming myself is clearly not an option,
and that for the most part accepting all assignments, the only thing one
can do is to develop street smarts, using common sense and being aware
of your surroundings. Some assignments are dangerous just by their location
alone, as being in a rough part of town, or maybe hanging off the side
of a helicopter, or just maybe speeding to get to an assignment....the
Bottom line: anything excessive in life is not good for survival. Thinking
one step ahead always seems to help me either in equipment readiness ,
or safety awareness in a risky situation. We all take chances in our jobs
but we must be careful not to take job dedication too far."
Michael Woeste
"I've found
anonymity to be a very usefull tool in my own safety in the workplace.
I drive an unmarked car and I don't slap stickers all over my gear, letting
every psycho out there know which station I'm with. It's alot easier to
blend into the woodwork in a tense situation when I don't look like a
human billboard. For every person who thinks your station is No. 1 there
are five who think that the story that really pisses them off can be directly
attributed to you."
Chuck Dennis
"POWER LINES, POWER LINES, POWER LINES.
Before I was a shooter I spent 10 years of my life as an electrician.In
that job I have had to work in some really bad conditions.Water is a
real problem, even sweat when you are working hot(circuits energized!)
can be a good route to ground.120v from a live van can in a puddle of
water can with 15 amps KILL you....But the real problem ENG operators
have to look out for are the power pole lines in older housing tracks,
towns and cities that have not gone to underground feeders..Without
getting long and drawn out......LOOK UP LOOK UP LOOK UP....Those lines
are 60,000 volts and if they don't kill you ,you will most likely loose
a leg,foot or arm....."
Louis Lee
"How do I protect myself in the field? Several ways. It depends on what
kind of protection you're talking about. As far as physical/health, I
keep a well-stocked first aid kit in the trunk. As far as physical/environmental,
I keep a hard hat for construction site shoots, and a snow suit in case
I'm in the elements for any length of time. As far as physical/danger,
I keep a ballistic (bullet proof) vest in the trunk. As far as mental,
forget it. Too far gone already."
Chris Wilkinson
"To be
honest, I don't give much thought to safety on the job. I always seem
to rely on common sense and paying attention to what I'm doing. Would
it be good to have more training? Sure, I guess. However, I still think
that YOU are responsible for yourself, and those around you. Pay attention,
and use common sense. (For those without common sense, seek training-lot's
of it.)"
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