~ 114th CONGRESS GIFTED FIRE SAFETY BOOK ~

For Immediate Release

Dr. Burton A. Clark, EFO
I Can’t Save You, But I‘ll Die Trying: The American Fire Culture
ISBN 978-1-887654-57-9
Nashville, Tenn. – The Fire and Emergency Manufacturers and Services Association (FEMSA) and the
Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association (FAMA) through their joint Governmental Affairs Committee
(GAC) have commissioned a special edition of the critically acclaimed I Can’t Save You, But I’ll Die
Trying: The American Fire Culture by Dr. Burton A. Clark, EFO.
Karen Burnham, Administrator of FEMSA said, “providing each member of the 114 th Congress with this
special edition of I Can’t Save You, But I’ll Die Trying is a grass-roots effort to initiate meaningful
dialogue on a variety of issues facing firefighters, citizens, government leaders, public administrators,
and educators regarding fire safety. Our goal is to help eliminate the yearly 3,300 fire deaths, 16,000
burn injuries, and property losses exceeding $11,500,000,000.
These industry associations represent manufacturers of life-saving equipment and services comprising
over 106,900 U.S. employees and the number continues to grow.
I Can’t Save You, But I‘ll Die Trying: The American Fire Culture (published by Premium Press
America, Nashville, Tennessee) by Dr. Burton A. Clark, EFO is 45 years in the making. Dr. Clark has
been an active participant in the fire service from his early days as a volunteer to the highest levels at the
National Fire Academy. Clark shares his unique observations of a profession and a culture he dearly
loves, has dedicated his life to mastering, and his desire to share knowledge to protect and save lives
from fire for both firefighters and the general public.
Dr. Clark believes, “Society needs to change how it thinks and feels about fire death. When a civilian is
killed by fire, it is not an act of God. When a firefighter gets killed, it is not part of the job. When there is a
fire death, something went wrong. The public, as well as the fire service, can all do better to prevent and
survive fires.”
Dennis Smith, former NYC firefighter and founder of Firehouse Magazine said, “I, and I know I speak for
all of the men I worked with, were primarily committed to ensuring that the life was protected, even in
situations where our success was very questionable. It is because I believe that statement I am sure that
as many people as possible should read I Can’t Save You, But I’ll Die Trying: The American Fire
Culture, to remind themselves of what they do wrong, and the when and the why of it when a life,
predictably near expiration, is made safe because of what can be read as unsafe practices.”
Edgar H. Schein, Professor Emeritus, MIT Sloan School of Management said. “This is a profound
analysis not just of firefighting but of how all of us deal with safety, with rules, and with managing our
daily lives. By showing us the cultural and personal side of safety behavior this book can be an
important guide to leaders, managers and ordinary citizens. It is not only a vivid account of firefighting
but is much more in making us aware of our own thinking under crisis conditions and making us
understand what those who deal with crisis face.”