JohnnyOV

FF/Paramedic and Katonah FD LT Jeff Waful ran circles around some guys during FFII down at WCFTC 2 years ago. And other than maybe his turnout gear, he used the same SCBA and everything as everyone else.

I've had the same argument countless times with my dad and he maintains that there are term limits. They're called elections. If people choose not to vote someone out or vote new blood in we have nobody to blame but ourselves.
It's a cogent argument. Drives me nuts!

http://www.time.com/time/
Looks like the police can now have to worry about more people who think the "cool thing to do" is to protest everything since Time decided to put a Protester above any other individual in the entire world.
Don't get me wrong, I understand the protests of governments who torture their people, and protesters who actual fight for a legitimate cause that benefits the masses, but I can see this backfiring in the Untied States face and more "OWS's" popping up everywhere. Stay safe to the brothers in Blue.

Looks like, as I'm sure most of us assumed, that the Police were totally justified in the use of pepper spraying the protesters, and gave them ample warning to vacate the area they were "occupying" before the use of force was applied. Video is about 15 minutes long, but it's worth it to watch it all.

What do the French know, anyway?...If it weren't for us, they'd be speaking German right now.

The guys on the police forum probably said the same thing about the invention of the fit5 coward grenade that so many local fire departments use.

I have a couple of thoughts, this isnt anything new, been going on for years, the people know about it, and roll the dice. No different than laying off police and firefighters and the residents clap and say sorry but i want lower taxes, (but in turn expect the same services).
I hear this "moral high ground" sentiment and have to think, what if a firefighter got injuried during the fire that his dept, in writing, isnt supposed to be involved in, does the municipality have the right to then refuse to pay for treatment. Or how about the injuried firefighter sues the officer for sending him into a situation that is clearly outside of his dept sop's.
The "we are firefighters and have to do something" has to be based on sound principal's and training. 50 - 60 % of deaths at confined space incidents are would be rescuer's.
What about the thougt process that balances 75.00 against your home.
We dont have this problem on the east coast yet, but listen up as the people weigh taxes against services in all communities, career and volunteer.

I honestly read this as "How do we get rid of Eggo's in the fire service"... (I need to get out of my office more often.)
Simple, don't shop in the frozen food aisle.

I honestly read this as "How do we get rid of Eggo's in the fire service"... (I need to get out of my office more often.)
Simple, don't shop in the frozen food aisle.

I honestly read this as "How do we get rid of Eggo's in the fire service"... (I need to get out of my office more often.)
Simple, don't shop in the frozen food aisle.

I honestly read this as "How do we get rid of Eggo's in the fire service"... (I need to get out of my office more often.)
Simple, don't shop in the frozen food aisle.

On 12/4, the members of Hughsonville FD in the Town of Wappingers helped make a little boys 11th birthday unforgettable. Christopher, the son of a close friend to my wife and I, has been diagnosed with "Leg-Calf Perthies", a bone disorder that has caused the complete deterioration of his right femur. Christopher has been confined to a wheel chair and has recently found out that he will be undergoing the first of several surgeries at Boston Childrens Hospital the week of Christmas. To celebrate his Birthday his family chose to rent the hall at HFD, seeing as Christopher has always loved the fire service. When the members of HFD found out what a fan of the fire department Christopher is they decided to give him a few gifts of their own. Sporting an HFD helmet and a huge grinn, Christopher was pushed through the engine room by the Captian of HFD and given his own personal VIP tour of the station. He almost jumped out of his wheel chair when the Lieutenant pulled "THE BEAST" (45-55 and Christophers favorite truck) into the back lot and sat him in the drivers seat. His eyes lit up as he was lifted into the bucket of the Tower Ladder and his smile could be seen for miles as the HFD members all accepted his challange to a "wheel chair race". Christophers perfect day came to a close with the members of HFD singing "Happy Birthday", having some cake, watching him unwrap his gifts and presenting him with his own HFD patch and T-Shirt (With a picture of "THE BEAST" on it of course).
From Christophers family: "To Chief Glenn Kramer, Assistant Chief Tim Laffin, Captian Ed D'Anna, Lieutenant Trevor Dhalla, Fire FIghter Ryan White and Fire Fighter Chris Baker:
Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts, you have no idea how much this ment to Christopher and how much you have just helped him. It was so wonderful to see him smile like that today. He was still talking about all of you when we got home. Thank You and God Bless!"
Here are a few shots from the party. I wanted to post this to remind all of us why we do what we do. As the members of HFD showed today, It's not all about getting on the big red truck and running into the devils play ground. It's about the smile on a little boys face when you hand him a helmet and say "blow the horn". Thank you again HFD for making Christophers birthday so special for him. Stay Safe!
If anyone would like to be kept up to date on Christophers journey PM me.

I for one am shocked, SHOCKED that this outside agency of strangers could show up in MY county and study a system I have been in for 30 years.... and be so 100% dead-on accurate!! They should have hired EMT Bravo to do the study for 1/3 the price.
I have done my own study. It shows that 100% of these studies are paid for and then ignored, then repeated again in a decade or so. Who recalls that HUGE series of articles in the local paper about 25 years ago about the long waits, understaffing and over use of EMS mutual aid? Very well written and researched. Opened many eyes. The newspaper that published it changed names, but the EMS situation did not.
I blame me. We run the systems. If we put down the TV clickers and facebook (and EMT Bravo!) and cooperated and worked on this, I have a high level of confidence we would get it done. But I also have a high level of confidence we won't do that.

Seriously dude, you're going to tell me that you never moved another emergency vehicle or had one moved for you? And if someone was trying to do the right thing and help you out by moving a police car you'd collar them? Nice.
And I can't believe you're actually suggesting that the driver of the ambulance positioned the vehicle to "inconvenience" others on the road. See my other comment about urban parking problems but more to the point is the EMT did what he/she had to do and was completely justified. Should they really have gone hunting for a parking space?
Remember this little pearl from COP101?
Does it occur to you that if the woman had just heeded the officer's admonition about not moving the ambulance and went to work, none of this would have happened? Instead she interfered with them on the scene and had the temerity to go to the PD to make a complaint. Clearly she didn't get the point so to reinforce that point now she'll find out how the judicial system works. It's not the EMT's fault that this woman talked herself right into handcuffs.

entry made, fire got bigger, exit made

Sounds to me like the Brothers did one hell of a job here. Could we get a little more info? This is the type of incident where the Brothers truly earn their mettle. "Multiple reports of people trapped on floors above", yet as the old saying goes, putting water on a fire saves the most lives. You're talking a multi-million dollar property here, around the holidays, possible deaths if the proper action isn't taken, residents' displacement, we've all seen the worse of it.
I just don't think a good job like this should go the wayside of a simple (yet excellent) I.A. so if there's input from any of the HFD companies, or their union Brothers of GFD, FFD, with help from SFD, I'd sure love to hear it.
Congrats Brothers. Great job.

>>"...I was asked to respond to your question regarding required training for volunteer firefighters. Let me preface this answer by saying that PESH does not differentiate between volunteers and career firefighters; both are considered employees under State law." <<
While PESH does not differentiate between career and volunteer, NYS Law does. NYCRR Part 426 (Minimum Standards for Firefighting Personnel) requires the following:
§ 426.1 Purpose.
The purpose of this Part is to establish uniform minimum State training standards designed to increase competency and reliability of fire service personnel; improve and expand the professional training available to paid fire service personnel by developing uniform minimum standards for basic, in-service, advanced in-service and promotional supervisory training programs, with emphasis on proper subject content and better instruction;
§426.7 In-service fire training.
(a) Permanently appointed firefighters and fire officers normally assigned to command company operations at emergencies shall annually receive a minimum of 100 contact hours of in- service training in the following subject areas:
The 100 hours technically does not acknowledge the "8 hour" OSHA/PESH requirements, but can easily accomidate it under the required subject matter.
Each career firefighter/officers training must be documented and submitted to NYS annually.
I have seen a number of complaints from the volunteer firefighters that they are no allowed to have MTO (municipal training officers). MTO's are mandated by NYCRR Part 427 to facilitate NYCRR Part 426. So until Part 426 requires all firefighters in NYS to have 100 hours of annual inservice (plus the initial and officer training) MTO's will not be allowed.
The NYSPFF fought very hard over 35 years ago to creat this legislation. FASNY fought very hard against it and the result is the above legislation and a divided fire service.

They hold more or less a shots worth of fluid. I also don't see the vast majority of people getting hammered off this and i don't really see it making the abuse of alcohol by younger and younger teens worse. This is as much of an issue as the 14 year olds we pick up who are blitzed after two beers or two shots. Likewise, i don't see my treatment changing much.
The bigger problem, as far as i've seen as i don't have children, are the parents who fail to properly parent their children. How many young intoxes have you taken to the ER who's parents have been "OH SALLY/TOMMY ITS GOING TO BE OK! I JUST WANT YOU TO BE BETTER AGAIN!" My parents always made me ride out the misery of being married to the porcelain queen for a night and made sure i payed for my actions despite the hangover. I think it worked.

AFA are a giant can of worms. Is it really a potential fire?
Like everything else we do, we need to do a risk analysis.
About 2 years ago I did one for my dept. and was a little surprised at what I found. Over a 25 year period we did over 36,000 AFA's. I removed any call were we also recieved an additional phone call or calls and we also did not count water flow alarms. Approximatly 8 were actual fires. Now from a risk benefit, what I also found was we were more likely to find a fire from driving down the road and spotting flames, than from an AFA. Also we had more actual working fires that occured while we were out at AFA's and a property without an AFA had a fire.
Also, what is the potential for an MVA while responding to the high number of AFA's
I also find it interesting that the Fire Service is in effect financially supporting the alarm industry. They advertise that they will protect you, but all they do is make a call. My annual contribution to ADT is 30% more than what my taxes that for Fire, Police & EMS. The only reason it is worth it to me, is my insurance company reduces my premium by the same amount as my ADT bill, so I'd be paying it anyway.
I am not saying we should not respond to AFA's or even let PD "check & advise" but should we respond to them the same way we respond to a reported fire?

So does this mean that for every wires down call a circle of caution tape, spanning 2 telephone poles, needs to be secured?

It all comes down to the NYS training requirements which are an absolute joke. Include FF 2, survival and FAST as the basic FF course. If the training is too much, go join the Elks lodge.
My department encourages everyone who is an interior firefighter to train with the FASTeam and eventually join. However, you cannot put non-FAST trained members on a FAST assignment though, which is why it comes down to a special team in volunteer departments in NYS. Unless you require every interior member to be certified with survival and FAST, then it is going to have to be a special team.

Chief, I'd like to completely ditto this post. verbatim. We work exactly the same way, only with a designated time we allow for us to get on the road with the minimum manpower.
Calling FAST early has reduced their response times to our district, and I strongly urge other departments to implement policies like this as well. It is probably one of the most proactive, and smart moves we've made in a long time.

Google for it, .ppt is the file extension, you be amazed is what out there for free.

Hahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
I read that and see;
In the volunteer sector, vote for your buddy, even if he isn't the best choice for the position.

This is simple physics, and a dumb idea. The point at which your center of gravity passes over the moment (the feet of the ladder acting as the pivot point) the object is going to tip in that direction. Any idiot could have realized this, and these guys obviously are mo-rons.
If this were to be bought by a company, and an employee were to actually violently fall off the ladder, it would have never stood a chance of holding him up. The momentum of the employee would pendulum swing him out and away from the moment, causing the ladder to fall even harder then it did in the video. Although, it would probably be a little bit softer then just free falling to the ground.
A majority of ladder accidents come from over extending the person out and away from the moment of the ladder. This device is completely useless since it works best in a vertical fall, directly down the center of the ladder, and not to the side.