They run into burning buildings to help others. But who helps firefighters with the mental toll?

Yes, Paul Ash has had a long career as a first responder, first as a firefighter in St. John’s and now as assistant chief at the Harbor Grace Fire Brigade. Over those years, he’s seen a lot. I wish my eyes could forget what I’ve saw there. And any first responder would tell you the same thing. It takes a toll. It comes back. You know, you’re you’re bringing some of it home. And if you don’t recognize the symptoms, then it’s, you know, when you let it snowball, it accumulates a lot more and it causes a lot more stress for your family, your workplace and all sorts of things. Ash says he was overloaded with traumatic memories. It’s kind of hard to talk about back about 10 years ago I I crashed on Christmas Eve and my son said to me, he said, Dad, you you have to seek help. He did from counsellors, from family, even from pets, and it all helped. This one right here is our combination tool. Ash isn’t alone. It’s a short distance away in Bay Roberts. This is the kind of life saving equipment the fire department uses when responding to emergencies. But the chief says those same volunteers need help with their mental health, and right now there’s no employee Wellness programs. We’re doing what we can with what we got. PTSD is common in firefighters, police and paramedics in Canada, though according to Public Safety Canada, no one knows the full extent of the problem. RCMP Corporal Jolene Garland says traumatic events like crashes are hard to process. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a real thing amongst first responders, and police are no different. When it falls into that bracket of health, you know, the sights, the sounds, the smells, everything We see at a crash scene, it, you know, we take that with us. Often times it comes home with you at night, it can linger, you know, far beyond when the crash happened itself. 2017 The president of the provincial paramedic Association says there are many reasons why first responders struggle with mental health. Systemic issues within the system that’s causing stress to individuals that that stress continues to build up, which is then causing mental health issues, could be issues within someone’s personal life that is then spilling over into their professional life that’s causing mental health issues. There’s a number of different things. The provincial government runs a warm line for first responders through its Bridge the Gap service. It runs seven days a week from 12:00 PM to 12:00 AM and the number is 1-709-237-4180. But the province is ending that project at the end of the summer, pending a review. In their most recent budget, the provincial government dedicated just over half, $1,000,000 to municipal fire services. But Ashe wants the government to spend more money on mental health resources for volunteer firefighters in communities like his, and he wants to put an end to the stigma surrounding mental health. When I joined here 44 years ago, you know, I was always told that big boys don’t cry. Well, big boys do cry. Darrell Roberts, CBC News, St. John’s.