dwcfireman

Highway robbery at it's finest. It's a shame that purchasing agencies are either unaware of this practice or willing to waste tax dollas just because they like a certain manufacturer.
I got experience this first hand, where my department loved the demo, and the commissioners decided to buy said demo unit. Alas, it wasn't the same once the vehicle was retrofitted for NYS emissions. Complete loss of power through the drive train and we could barely make it up a hill with the accelerator floored. Then more money has to be poured into the vehicle to refit it to the needs of the department. It seems like a total waste to me because, in this case anyway, the powers at hand didn't do te proper research. I also know of another department (elsewhere in the countyry) that bought a demo tanker, and it turned out to be too heavy for certain roads and bridges. Turns out that the advertised GVW from the dealer did not include the weight of water in the tank. The tanker thus had to be towed a few times out roads that crumbled beneath it. Another example of not doing the research.

Highway robbery at it's finest. It's a shame that purchasing agencies are either unaware of this practice or willing to waste tax dollas just because they like a certain manufacturer.
I got experience this first hand, where my department loved the demo, and the commissioners decided to buy said demo unit. Alas, it wasn't the same once the vehicle was retrofitted for NYS emissions. Complete loss of power through the drive train and we could barely make it up a hill with the accelerator floored. Then more money has to be poured into the vehicle to refit it to the needs of the department. It seems like a total waste to me because, in this case anyway, the powers at hand didn't do te proper research. I also know of another department (elsewhere in the countyry) that bought a demo tanker, and it turned out to be too heavy for certain roads and bridges. Turns out that the advertised GVW from the dealer did not include the weight of water in the tank. The tanker thus had to be towed a few times out roads that crumbled beneath it. Another example of not doing the research.

"Vacant" structure with someone inside. Take note for the next time someone tells you to write off a vacant building...
Nice job YFD.

Ignorance is bliss

It's amazing what you can do with an excellent recruitment and retention program, along with excellent training. I'm presonnaly not familiar with Buchanan, nor this particular fire for that matter, but all I have to say is good job to the BFD!

Agreed, huge kudos to them.
See folks, it CAN be done.

The LPRs on the Animal Control Van... it may be a vehicle that doubles as parking enforcement (like many other places do) and if it gets any "hits," they can radio it in and have a patrol car check it out. That would be my guess.

Based solely on media (we know how that goes) sounds like SCHOOL buses would be fine for this case. Since we are not talking about elderly or othewise compromised folks.
Even better, a TAXI to bring a doc and two nurses and a registrar with a laptop to the school, out of the hot/warm zone. Treat and release in place.

Generally, if it's not in service then it cannot respond. Barry, do you know when (or have you heard a timeframe of) it goes into service?
This, IMO, seems a bit silly. I always thought the point of a MERV was to assist at MCI calls and aid in the transport process. Does anyone have a good description of what the Medical Evacuation Bus is intended for? I can't seem to find any information about it on the County's website.

Generally, if it's not in service then it cannot respond. Barry, do you know when (or have you heard a timeframe of) it goes into service?
This, IMO, seems a bit silly. I always thought the point of a MERV was to assist at MCI calls and aid in the transport process. Does anyone have a good description of what the Medical Evacuation Bus is intended for? I can't seem to find any information about it on the County's website.

Could it be its not in-service as of yet?
Last reports was it would be in-service soon

2 Men Accused of Interfering With NYPD Police Choppers
With Laser Pointer
Wednesday, Oct 1, 2014 • Updated at 5:14 AM EDT
Police say they’ve arrested two men on felony charges after they allegedly interfered with NYPD helicopters in separate incidents last month, with one allegedly deliberately shining a laser pointer at a pilot and another allegedly flying a drone too closely to a department chopper.

Police say that 26-year-old Daniel Parris was cuffed on suspicion that he shined a laser pointer at a chopper that was hovering over Jamaica Hills, Queens, during a search for an assault suspect on Sept. 24.
The chopper pilot said that he was hovering about 750 feet over the neighborhood when he saw a green flash that illuminated the entire cockpit, according to the NYPD. The flash forced him to take off the night-vision goggles he was using to conduct the search.
STORY: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/NYPD-Chopper-Helicopter-NYC-Obstruction-Laser-Pointer-Drone-Brooklyn-Queens-277705321.html?_osource=SocialFlowFB_NYBrand
I remember this happening to the WCPD Chopper a while back. VERY DANGEROUS!

It's a two way street (not the one in the video), fire trucks don't park in front of a house being burlarized, and police shouldn't be parked in front of a fire. Sometimes you have to do a little damage to get the job done. I recall a fire upstate where a fire broke out in a house literally 3 doors down from the firedepartment/police department building. A rookie police officer left his cruiser in front of one of the fire bays (and ran towards the fire!), and the driver of that first due engine just pushed the cruiser SIDEWAYS across the street. Was it the right thing to do? It probably wasn't the best judgement call, but given the situation I would do the same thing. After all, there's a reason the insurance companies exist.
However, since the officer in the video happened to be right there he could have just moved the car.

The police officer didn't appear to be all that concerned, you can't be certain he even had the keys to move those THREE police vehicles blocking the block. This wasn't overly aggressive, he didn't smash through the cop cars at speed causing any serious damage or potential for major catastrophe, he moved them until he had enough room to get by and squeezed through. He even had his guys out of the rig spotting him as he went through. I don't think he did anything particularly terrible, stopping where he was on a tight block like that, before the fire building, isn't exactly the ideal spot for an engine. He would have further blocked out any other apparatus, particularly ladders who should be in front of the building. None of us know all the facts, but this isn't exactly a video to freak out about, sometimes you need to pull a maneuver like this, should you be trying to smash into a police car on every run? No, of course not, should the police be a little more cognizant of their vehicle positioning at a fire? Quite probably. I don't think this guy made a mistake or had bad judgement, I don't think it was the oh the fire department can do no wrong mentality either. He decided pushing those cars and doing some damage was worth the reward of getting himself into position, it looks like it worked out just fine.

Good for the chauffeur...I wish I was driving. Seeing that fire on arrival, minutes count... I cant stand cops that need to park so close... its happened to me many of times.
We block the road ...the cops want to arrest us.

In the city, I've found that cops have been more careful about parking in the vicinity of the fire building, lately. I recall having more issue a few years ago. Perhaps training and awareness has improved. Something seems to have worked.
I completely agree about being wary of this, "cowboy" mentality and the attitude of, "doing no wrong" in the pursuit of the job. Some guys really want to be the engine chauffeur who puts the supply line through the car windows. In this case, I'd say the chauffeur did a pretty good job. He made a careful and calculated maneuver to get through a tight spot. He pulled up, gently pushed the cars outta the way and then proceeded past. He almost made it, apart from the Bimmers bumper.....but, stuff happens....
I'd call this a successful example of how to professionally improvise.

I fully agree with you, RES24CUE, I should clarify from my original statement that I don't condone this type of behavior. However, given certain, and unfortunate, circumstances you have to find a way to get the job done (i.e. breaking the windows of the car blocking the hydrant to get the 5" connected). I'll bring it to your point of "DON'T GO LOOKING FOR IT!" There's a time and place where you would have to cause the undue damage, but, in my opinion, has to be a last possible option or you really need to save those 30 seconds to keep that rescue from becoming a recovery.
And, yes, videos like this do leave an unjust impression on the youth in the fire service. It's so easy to get lost in the moment and make a snap decision that can later become a mistake. Unfortunately for us, we're being watched all the time by the public, and almost always being recorded on a cell phone camera. That's when our little mistakes become huge issues for the department. It's best that we take these videos and put them to good use in the classroom. This video in particular is great for a driver training class, and can really drum up a good discussion around the table.

I am generally unopposed to Monday Morning Quarterbacking. However, on this one I am hesitant. I do not know the whole story here, the assignment for that piece of apparatus, what the engine driver was trying to accomplish, or most importantly, where that rig went after the video ended. I hate the bullish mentality that many firefighters develop these days..."we are the fire department and we can do whatever we want." It is my belief that there a lot of overzealous idiots in this business who think its "cool" to force a door for an automatic alarm, break every window in the house for an incipient burn in a rubbish can, or push someone's car out of the way because they want their engine 10 feet closer to the fire. That said, I have 2 opinions on the mater:
The first opinion is that the engine doesn't belong in front of that fire to begin with! The only thing that would be achieved in this instance would be that the engine would block needed access for a ladder truck that should occupy the flanking position on the corner of that building. After all, we can always add more lengths of hose, but we can't add another fly to the ladder. That engine should be parked out of the way somewhere down the street and the amount of hose needed should be pulled to the fire building.
The second opinion that I have here is that I do not know the specific assignment of that engine and therefore cannot say that pushing those cop cars out of the way wasn't justified. If there were guys screaming for water and that engine was assigned to hit the plug, then maybe it was urgent that they squeeze by to get water to the attack engine. If there were people hanging out of windows and the ladder truck was behind them, maybe they needed to get out of its way. I don't know??? But I don't think that waiting 30 seconds for the cop to move his car would have made much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.
My strongest opinion on the matter is that there are plenty of young and impressionable firefighters who read this blog who should take the actions demonstrated in this video with a grain of salt. There are many potential negative outcomes of performing a risky maneuver like the one in this video:
1. The two cars being pushed could have turned sideways and completely blocked the engine's access to the fire.
2. The car being pushed could have struck the engine's tire, flattening it, and leaving the engine unable to reach its destination.
3. The cars could have jumped the curb and taken out an unseen hydrant compromising the water source needed for the fire.
4. The actions of the driver could cause "bad blood" between the fire department and police department resulting in endless headaches during future operations.
As the previous post stated, "sometimes we have to do a little damage to get the job done." BUT DON'T GO LOOKING FOR IT! This should be viewed as an unfortunate event that should be avoided at all costs and not a great opportunity. There are far too many people (morons) in this industry who will think that this video "awesome." So I don't think that we should be cheerleaders here to feed those with an overly aggressive mentality.

It's a two way street (not the one in the video), fire trucks don't park in front of a house being burlarized, and police shouldn't be parked in front of a fire. Sometimes you have to do a little damage to get the job done. I recall a fire upstate where a fire broke out in a house literally 3 doors down from the firedepartment/police department building. A rookie police officer left his cruiser in front of one of the fire bays (and ran towards the fire!), and the driver of that first due engine just pushed the cruiser SIDEWAYS across the street. Was it the right thing to do? It probably wasn't the best judgement call, but given the situation I would do the same thing. After all, there's a reason the insurance companies exist.
However, since the officer in the video happened to be right there he could have just moved the car.

Caught this at the ARFF Facility at Albany International Airport(ALB). Belongs to the 109th Airlift Wing based out of Stratton ANGB in Schenectady, NY. Also caught there another day is their Fire Chief's car.

I remember back home that our apparatus committees were always about the size that people keep suggesting; five, usually consisting of the chief, both assistant chiefs, a couple of senior firefighters. I remember for our new engine (2005), however, that someone finally had a bright idea, and a legitimate idea at that. One of our younger firefighters was a certified deisel mechanic! Much to what Bnechis stated, it makes all too much sense to send a mechanic. I understand it's simple for carreer departments to send a mechanic, but in the volunteer world we need to get these people involved in the apparatus design process. I know A LOT of volunteers who are full time mechanics. They have knowledge and skill where many of us don't, and we need to include them where it counts!

I remember back home that our apparatus committees were always about the size that people keep suggesting; five, usually consisting of the chief, both assistant chiefs, a couple of senior firefighters. I remember for our new engine (2005), however, that someone finally had a bright idea, and a legitimate idea at that. One of our younger firefighters was a certified deisel mechanic! Much to what Bnechis stated, it makes all too much sense to send a mechanic. I understand it's simple for carreer departments to send a mechanic, but in the volunteer world we need to get these people involved in the apparatus design process. I know A LOT of volunteers who are full time mechanics. They have knowledge and skill where many of us don't, and we need to include them where it counts!

Just my opinion having served on two.... Chief officer, line officer, experienced firefighter/operator, representative from board of commissioners or whomever is cutting the check.

I think STAT213's post is a good way to end this discussion. He gives some good advice and hopefully some will listen.
For the record, EMTBravo and me supports Westchester County Police Department and it's mission based on numerous years experience and familiarization with the agency.. It's one of the very few agencies in Westchester that truly understands and utilizes the "shared services" concept. I'm dismayed that there are some people who forget this equipment is there to protect us all who are in Westchester, resident or not. We're very lucky to have these relatively standard (to most major metropolitan areas PDs across the country) resources available to us. And lucky enough to have officers brave enough to man these type of units. It's unacceptable to bicker for bickering's sake and cause misconceptions on issues like this.
To anyone STILL questioning the need, please re-read my post below:

I can't tell if you're putting on an act and playing dumb, or if you're actually involved in emergencies services when you can't even structure a written sentence into a logical, cohesive manor with proper syntax, grammar and annunciation, so the rest of the world can understand you.
I get that it's the internet, and that people really could care less about spelling late vs. L8, or Lmao.... But seriously brotha, pick up a book and learn the difference between a period and an apostrophe.
People might actually take what you're trying to convey to us seriously.