Moving greeting on social media, on the ‘Provincial Fire Brigade Command-Genoa’ page, to a colleague ready to retire, this is Federico Brizio who, with the end of April, will be able to enjoy a well-deserved rest after many years of work as a firefighter. The studies of the French entomologist Antoine Magnan are nicely cited according to which “The wing structure of the bumblebee (not the bumblebee), in relation to its weight, is not suitable for flight”, with the addition of the aphorism “but he does not knows and flies anyway.”
“Federico Brizio is our bumblebee – we read in the greeting -. He joined the fire brigade in 1984 carrying out his military service as an auxiliary fireman and in 1991 he became a permanent fireman. And he is not exactly the stereotype of a fireman , as he was interpreted by the ‘elders’ of the time. Physically very thin, even too polite, to the point that you think he’s knocking on the door even if he’s going out. But he, who may be thin, has the resistance and the stubbornness of a mule. He is not interested in the preconceived opinion of others; he has decided to become an air rescuer and becomes one with full dignity of role in terms of technique, style, ability to collaborate and dialogue with others, especially with the healthcare component that operates on our helicopters. A goal was set: 200 rescue hoists, that is, recoveries from the ground to the helicopter. And this led to a commitment that lasted 15 years.”
A commitment which, however, continued in many other fields, starting to deal with the organization and management of rescue operations: “Federico becomes a national expert in operations room procedures – continue from the Command -. But he does not become a theoretician and he proves it every single day in which he carries out his work in the operations room. He does not follow the teams; he accompanies them and supports them from when they leave the office to when they return”
He was also part of the ‘Tast’ team of the Fire Brigade (Technical assistance support team) which has a substantial ‘Intelligence’ function to support activities abroad. It has carried out exercises in Turkey, France, Bulgaria, Sweden, Croatia, Belgium, Slovakia, but also operational exercises in Haiti due to the earthquake, in Chile due to serious forest fires and, a few months ago, in Libya, due to the flood following the collapse of two dams. Remotely, he also guaranteed support for other Fire Brigade missions abroad, for example in Beirut after the explosion in the port.
And then the conclusion: “Skills always made available, even carrying out the role of teacher numerous times. All this while maintaining a decidedly rare humility, availability, self-irony and style. The conclusion of this partial description, to return to the incipit, is that Federico is the fireman who, despite skeptical opinions, has shown that he can fly, long and high. Federico would be an incredible example to follow just for the technical aspects and emulating him would not be easy The main great lesson that Federico leaves us is in his ways, his stubbornness, his smile even when obstacles seem insurmountable, the ability to suffer wrongs and never have a word of hatred towards anyone. Good continuation of commitment because we know that it won’t be retirement to stop you.”
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