A playful fire pole video topped 1 million views, giving Durham firefighters a viral recruiting boost

By Kristen Johnson
The News & Observer

DURHAM, N.C. — When a handful of Durham firefighters slid down a firehouse pole for a social media video, they had no idea they be doing so to pop and Disney tunes — or that they’d become viral sensations.

The Durham Fire Department recently posted a slow-motion video of its Ninth Street Fire Station 2 personnel sliding down a pole, participating in a social media trend where the subjects don’t know what “walk-up song” will be added to their clip. The mastermind behind the post, Patrick Brickman, the department’s public affairs analyst, kept the musical choices a secret from the crew until the video was published.

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The caption reads, “Having the members of Station 2 go down the pole… but choosing the songs ourselves. Which firefighter was your favorite?”

Since Friday, the video has amassed over 1 million views between Facebook and Instagram. About two-thirds of those views came from Instagram alone, Brickman said.

“Whenever I see something online, I like to put a little spin on it myself,” Brickman said in a phone interview Tuesday. “The one I did see, they were asking the firefighters what their walk-up song would be and had them run out of a fire truck. I was like, well, we have the pole. Let’s try that. I thought it was funny.”

The video’s impact

Viewers quickly began picking their favorite firefighters, with Captain David Mangum and a firefighter named Koonce getting the most attention. Mangum slid down the pole to a snippet of Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten,” while Koonce slid to a cover of P!nk’s hit “Get This Party Started.”

“They might not trust me anymore,” Brickman laughed. “I didn’t tell them what was happening when they showed up.”

Brickman said he found himself playing comment moderator to prevent some overeager fans from crossing the line.

While the video serves as a lighthearted distraction, there is also a strategic purpose behind the viral hit: attracting the next generation of first responders.

The video’s stars represent just a fraction of the city’s fire department, which currently has over 400 firefighters across 19 stations. More than 65% of the department’s calls are for Emergency Medical Services, and there are over 350 emergency medical technicians, according to the city.

In the past year, the department has gotten over 600 applications and is nearing full staffing, Brickman said.

The video put a smile on viewers’ faces over the weekend and puts the Durham Fire Department on the map for prospective recruits looking for a welcoming, team-oriented workplace, Brickman said.

“Our social media and recruitment efforts are pretty much always married,” Brickman said, noting that he works closely with the department’s recruiter, Tim McCoy. “We want young people to apply and come work here, and social media is a way to get that attention.”

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Led by Motorola Solutions, with participation from Index Ventures and Dylan Field, this round brings BRINC’s total capital raised to well over a quarter billion dollars