Firefighter Becomes First Ever to Think of Setting Station 51 Tones as Ringtone

Nineteen year old volunteer firefighter Andrew Culburn received accolades from his peers on Wednesday after becoming the first firefighter ever to set his cell phone to play Station 51 tones anytime he receives a phone call.

Station 51, of course, was the main fire station in the 70s television show Emergency! Its protagonists – John Gage and Roy DeSoto – have been the inspiration for countless young men looking to join the fire service. Followers of the series will fondly recall the loud tones which played over the loudspeaker, and set off the fire station’s bell anytime Johnny and Roy received a 911 dispatch.

“I’m really excited to be able to share the Station 51 tones with my firefighter brothers whenever I get a text message,” said a beaming Culburn. “I just can’t believe no one ever thought of this before.”

Culburn, who had been struggling for street cred ever since graduating from the volunteer service’s first responder program and literally reading the Firefighter Essentials book cover to cover, hit the home run after having experienced a series of strike outs. Earlier in the year he suffered a serious setback after sharing a firefighting themed poem, which he had written, with the on duty crew. This followed yet another embarrassing mishap after trying to get the other volunteers to call him “Mother.” A tribute, no doubt, to Bill Cosby’s character in the classic ambulance movie Mother, Juggs & Speed.

“You know, we’re just so thankful to have such a sharp young man volunteering alongside us in this department,” said veteran firefighter Lt. Mark McKenzie. “In my 20 years of serving this community I have developed a knack for sorting out the good ones from the bad, and I can tell you this kid’s got potential.”

McKenzie went on to add, “The other day [Culburn] tried to turn his phone on vibrate during a medical call, and I said to him ‘No, you leave that volume right where it is.’ People need to hear this.”

Culburn is set to leave home for college at the end of the summer, but until then he says he is perfectly content driving his parent’s minivan to calls, and leaving his fire pager on loud enough at dinner for everyone in the entire restaurant to hear. When asked what other plans he has for the future, Culburn shared a sketch of the Maltese cross tattoo he designed himself, with the inscription “9/11, never forget.”

Additional Reporting by Drew Rinella.