exmrvfc

Thta's good to hear. The way I read it in the paper is what prompted the post. Glad to "clear the air" on that one.

Millwood Fire

Just read the above article and it mentioned that a Junior Firefighter was injured trying to vent the roof. Can any of the Millwood guys clarify this? I was under the impression that Junior Members (explorers to some) were not allowed to enter or go up on the structure. In order to do roof ops, you must be an interior FF (and an experienced one I would emphasize). I would think any IC would be nervous about a junior member going on the roof. Hopefully I just read this wrong.

Capt,

Your points about cancer are true enough but shouldn't that be a personal decision made by the firefighter? Does the Union/Employer have the right to tell the firefighter he is not allowed to smoke cigarettes? What about firefihgters that are overweight who have a higher chance of being one of the 50 heart attacks each year?

The posts about training are the best ones. Everyone needs to be trained and trained properly. A dept that allows its guys to operate when they have not taken the State training are not doing anyone any favors and are only opening themselves up to a huge OSHA/PESH problem. ON the flip side there is still career members in combo depts that have not been thru ANY academy training. The Westchester Career academy only started in the early to mid eighties and depending on the department you only did in-house training. What it comes down to is the attitude of every volunteer/combo/career dept that training is the only thing that can give you the tools to do the job. Experience makes you better. a paycheck just means its your occupation.

Firetruck Bar

This could go down as the biggest buff ever. The guy took a 1963 engine and converted it into a bar in his house!!

The consolidation of disticts makes sense for a lot of the area departments. It might help if some of the villages and town governments consolidated as well. Unfortunately, we have not gotten to the point where enough people are calling for it. I believe the Pelham Manor local election had a trustee candidate calling for consolidation with Pelham and he lost. Witht he way taxes keep increasing, at some point this issue will be forced into discussion.

When someone leaves as a volunteer it may be called "burnout" but usually there is a another reason that brought about the final decision to leave. There may be a conflict witihin the department that is caused by one group vs another. Sometimes people get upset if they lose an election and feel unappreciated. It can also be outside factors as working more hours in a new job or just having had a baby. We all have 24 hours in a day and no matter how big a buff you may be, those 24 hours have to split between work, family, sleep and being a volunteer. This is where department officers need to treat there members as "people" and not just firemen. If you see a member is around less, give him a call or take to the side and ask if everything is OK. Let them know you care about the person not just his attendance.

To answer Jason, its not a career issue because your not trying attend training/calls/meetings on top of you job because it is your job. It would only be an issue if you were still volunteering in addition to your career job. Then you are dividing your 24 hours between work/family and being a volunteer.

Don't be afraid to listen to those below you when they come up and say Lt/Capt/Chief something aint right here. Usually something is wrong and it is time to reevaluate the strategies/tactics.

On the same note, let those who came before you, be the "little bird in your ear" who gives you helpful advice based on their experience.

Not trying to take sides but I agree the IC needs to be the IC. I say IC since an alarm may have multiple Chiefs which could put an Asst Chief inside as section Chief per ICS. The guys on the inside are depending on the IC to make the right calls, call in help if needed and alert the interior crew if conditions are changing that they can't see.

Not enough manpower doesn't happen at the fire as the department is usually aware they have a manpower problem well before the call. This problem should be addressed ahead of the fire whether paid, combo or volunteer.

Bob, Your insights are always appreciated.

I would add the old standby when you open the door "stay low & let it blow". Don't rush in right after opening the door.

For a great history on smooth bores and why a lot of people think they are superior, read Andy Fredericks article "Little Drops of Water-50 years laters" in Fire Engineering (2/1/2000). For those that didn't know him, he was avid proponent of the smooth bore and FDNY Member in Squad 18. Andy also made a instructional video on the same topic that is available thru the OFPC training library. This information should be required training for all. Automatic nozzles have their uses but I am a firm believer in the smooth bores for all of the reasons stated earlier.

Having fought fires doing tankers ops in our district with no hydrants, I was more than happy with our 1000 gallong Engine Tankers. The ETA's gave flexibilbity and as Arrow XT pointed out is depends on dump and recovery time. All of our ETAs had direct tank fills to speed the process. Our 1500 gallon taker had 3 dumps and a direct tank fill. If we were called for a Mutual Aid Tanker, the 1500 gallon went first followed by one of the 1000 gallon ETAs if needed. Very few departments ran with the 2000-3000 gallon tanks due to the size of the rigs. Remember that tankers are used in areas mainly without nice wide streets like in the southern westchester. The 1000/1500 tanks are much easier to drive and thus aid in a faster recovery time. It may not "seem like a tanker" but it serves a very valuable purpose. Does anyone question why we have Engine Rescues?? It's more than an engine but less than a Rescue but it too serves a very valuable purpose.

Izzy,

From my experience with tanker operations, the ETAs (Engine Tankers) were class A engines with 1000 gallons or more. Tankers had small to no pumps as their primary mission was water haulage. When we called in Mutual aid we knew the size of the ETAs and you based the number requested by total gallonage coming in and what was needed per the fire flow formula. We had 2 ETAs (1 1000 gallon & 1 1500 Gallon) and a EL (engine-ladder with 1000 gallon tank and 1500 pump). I liked the ETA concept as it gave you the most flexibility and a smaller overall truck. That was nice on some of the small back country roads and made it easier to handle.

If you are going to call it an engine it has to be at least a class A engine. Calling it an ETA just means you have 1000 gallons or more. When water is scarce, that extra 500 gallons can mean a lot. Considering most Engines carry 500 or 750, I don't think it is a stretch to distinghuish an ETA at 1000 gallons.

JBE is right about the Europeans. Rosenbauer Central states actually has 3 stage pump that will deliver 100 gpm at 600psi. That comes from there European side of the company.

The big question is in using it here. I know around here that standpipes have a tendancy to fail in the older buildings and that is at two stage pressure. Not to mention outside of WPFD and NRFD the tallest buildings are 6 stories and you don't the Hi pressure side of the equation.

Massachussetts has a different system for establishing property taxes. The State sets a basic amount that each municipality can raise taxes and if the town/city wants to raise taxes over that rate, it has to be approved by the voters. They call it an "override" vote. If you watch Firehouse.com, you see articles where emergency services will be cut if the residents don't approve the override tax increase. The politicians in this case are not necessarily to blame in these cases.

Our dept is handling NIMS online. Since 300 is not required until next year, those who are required to, will take the classes. 100,200,700 & 800 are easily taken online.

I have a friend who just moved to Wilton, CT and is looking join after being a volly down in Westchester. Does anyone have any info on the Wilton FD?? It seems like they have a small volly contingent per the website.

JBE, you beat me to that one!! Who wants to build the rebel rocket?

Bob,

Good question. I beleive the FAST assignment should be on the 10-75 ticket from the beginning. If the dispatcher thinks you are going to work, add the FAST (just like NRFD adds the 4th engine). If your mutual aid partners are not FAST qualified, at minimum get an extra company to stand by (Tim Sendelback from firehouse magazine calls this the safety engine). Then start working with your mutual aid partners to get the FAST training done. Up until now Camp Smith has been running regular classes and there was no reason not to get it done.

As far as your mutual aid departments not fielding a team for 15-20 minutes, I would bet the same problem happens if you called them for a truck/engine and its time to talk with them about the response.

JBE, always appreciate the run down on the calls. I hope the medical leave is nothing serious.

I agree with most people in saying I am not an Oliver Stone fan. I think it would be different if Steven Spielberg did the movie. I cannot think of two movies that were more compelling than Saving Private Ryan or Schindlers List. I would see a 9/11 movie by him but I would probably need therapy afterwords!!

Chief,

I am assuming you mean Accountability tags for tracking members on scene. If so, there is no "standard" in the County that I know of. Some departments use green for interior, red for exterior (green means go). Some use a two tag system; one for on location and one for inside the structure. This is done in case of a collapse and a FF on the outsie is buried, there is a seperate tag for him being on the scene. Each FF should carry there own tags with their PPE. Who gets tags is based on interior/exterior qualifcations of your department but everyone should get one.

My Advice would be to speak with your mutual aid departments and make sure you are all on the same page as far as colors & system. That is more important than what other parts of the County may do.

Without knowing the details it sounds a lot like the System Westchester County is in trying to implement. In Westchester, Police are not on UHF but they will have UHF Base stations in their HQ to be to speak with Fire, EMS or the County once the Cuonty wide system is implemented.

The County requires that you notify thm in writing that you have a FAST team that you want entered into the CAD and also advise if they are available for mutual aid. While we did not have to supply any details, all of our members had the OFPC Class as well as additional training in house.

From what I have seen with neighboring departments is that no one advises the county until they have enough guys trained.

Bob,

Who will staff the MSU, the first OT crew that comes in??