Powered by more than 37,000 votes and a wave of hometown support, the Gulf Shores Fire-Rescue Department earned a place in the finals of ABC’s “Good Morning America” firefighters’ competition, with three of its members bound for New York City.
As the last of six semifinalists in the show’s “5 Alarm Firefighters Challenge,” the department was pitted in an online vote against Southern Manatee Fire Rescue of Sarasota, Florida. Viewers chose their favorite firehouse, and Gulf Shores came out ahead by roughly 4,000 votes. The poll ran for seven hours before closing at 2 p.m. on the program’s website.
A homemade video, a statewide push
Each competing department produced a video set to the song “Safe and Sound” by Capital Cities. The Gulf Shores entry featured firefighters lip-syncing at the station and around town, complete with dance scenes shot against a smoky backdrop and even a beach rescue.
Fire Chief Hartley Brokenshaw credited a broad, energetic effort for the win. “Everyone in the department pitched in and did their thing,” he said. “It was a true team effort. And the voting was a true effort of the whole state, county, everybody. I mean we had everybody, every city in the county voting for us. I think every city in the state was voting for us, too.”
Brokenshaw singled out fire-medic Justin Parks and his wife, Jamie Parks, for spearheading the project. Jamie Parks, who owns and directs South Baldwin Dance Center in Gulf Shores, choreographed the video while Justin Parks filmed it. “It had to be done pretty quick, within a week of when they found out about it,” the chief said. “I was really proud of them.”
Heading to the Big Apple
The next phase would play out live in New York City, where three Gulf Shores firefighters were set to face crews from the Tacoma Fire Department in Washington state and the McAllen Fire Department in Texas. Representing Gulf Shores were Lt. Robert Rowland, fire-medic Nick Anagnostopoulos and firefighter-EMT Logan Lambert, with Justin Parks joining as an administrator. “Good Morning America” planned to fly the men north that Sunday.
The competition was expected to begin Monday and to feature physical and knowledge-based challenges, with the possibility of a cooking segment. Each department would earn points, and the highest scorer would take home $10,000 in prize money. If Gulf Shores won, Brokenshaw said, the department would put the winnings toward training.
‘As far as I’m concerned we’ve already won’
More than the prize, the chief said, the experience underscored the community’s backing. The video, he noted, had taken on a life of its own. “It’s one of those things. It just kept kind of growing every day,” Brokenshaw said. “It just kept getting bigger and bigger.”
He returned repeatedly to his gratitude for the support that carried the small coastal department past larger competitors. “As far as I’m concerned we’ve already won,” Brokenshaw said. “No matter what goes on up there, we’ve already won.”
For Gulf Shores, the run offered a rare turn in the national spotlight, a chance to showcase both the department’s spirit and a beach town’s willingness to rally behind its firefighters. Whatever the outcome in New York, the department left home knowing that tens of thousands of votes had already made its case.