bad box

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

You too my friend ... what do we have left if we can't catch a little laugh every now and then?

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

This is shameful, but it's what I have come to expect from today's GOP. Politicians like the wimpy, cry baby Rep. John Boehner who have no respect for Cops, Firefighters or the military. He's never placed himself in harm's way to protect his country or another human being. He stood with the GOP when they held The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Bill hostage while demanding that Democrats join the GOP in extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. After getting the tax breaks for their wealthy corporate campaign supporters, they subsequently cut the funding for Zadroga in half before passing it. BTW, Rep. John Boehner didn't even stay in Washington to vote on the final bill which occurred on December 22nd, 2010. He along with many other GOP rich kids had already gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families. I wonder what it feels like to walk away from your responsibilities as an elected public servant whenever you feel like it, leaving your work undone. As a Firefighter, I wouldn't know that feeling, nor did I ever have the desire to abandon my responsibilities for my personal enjoyment ... Rep. John Boehner is a disgrace.
Thank you for your service to our country Mr. Buckles ... May you rest in peace ...

Who else besides Seagrave Aerialscope even makes a true Tower Ladder? Most "Tower Ladders" we see in service are "Ladder Towers" and there's no way that design could withstand the rigors the FDNY puts their TL's through.

Great news. The recent poll shows very strong support for gov't workers to retain the rights to collective bargaining. BAD news for Scott Walker! (and remember this came from the very pro-business and now Rupert Murdoch owned Wall Street Journal)
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/03/02/wsjnbc-poll-strong-support-for-bargaining-rights/?KEYWORDS=collective+bargaining+poll

The Aerialscope has served the F.D.N.Y. well for many years. It's only a shame that they have a Seagrave rig rather than a Mack CF to attach it to. There is nothing out there that compares to the Mack CF's we used to have ... they were work horses that couldn't be killed.

Terrible incidents such as this (as the post mentions) spurred the growth of unions. Nowadays, the well paid commentators on talk radio as well as certain cable news shows bash unions and blame them for many of our Nation's financial woes. It's true that some unions got out of control over the years and have some very costly clauses in their contracts, but there are many unions whose main function is to insure a safe work place along with fair wages and benefits. It's very apparent how these 'media experts' blame the unions but never mention why unions were formed nor do they bash greedy corporate types who stuff their own pockets while underpaying and laying off hard working people.
God bless all of the victims of both of these tragedies and remember all of the Firefighters who had to deal with the victim recovery. If you've never had to perform that function, I can assure you that it is very sad and it stays with you.

I agree with you 100%. In fact, F.D.N.Y. attempted several times over the years to make such a purchase and trained firefighters were already in place, but the N.Y.P.D. brass didn't want the F.D. to have that capability and assured them that they would provide whatever air support F.D.N.Y. needed.

For someone who professes to be, "Young and gung-ho" ... your post shows you to be wise beyond your years. 'Buff stuff' is fine, unfortunately our main function as firefighters is to protect lives and property. This is an awesome task that requires constant training on new issues and techniques as well as continued practice on the skills (bread & butter) that we already should possess. As I was told by a senior man (old-timer) as a brand new Probationary Fireman (that was our job title back then) just out of the fire academy, "Hey kid, this is a dangerous job where we all must rely upon each other for survival. The people who call us for help need us to always be 'on top of our game'. The minute that you think that you have it all figured out and have nothing left to learn, you'll have to make an important decision: either retire or 'get back into the job' and study. Nobody on this job will ever know everything, those who think they do will get them self or somebody else killed." In closing 'JohnnyOV', you sound like you have the right attitude to be a success in this profession. If I wasn't retired, you would be the kind of Firefighter that I would want to have working with me when everything goes to s**t in seconds. Keep your head where it's at, don't be swayed by lazy, negative types!

For someone who professes to be, "Young and gung-ho" ... your post shows you to be wise beyond your years. 'Buff stuff' is fine, unfortunately our main function as firefighters is to protect lives and property. This is an awesome task that requires constant training on new issues and techniques as well as continued practice on the skills (bread & butter) that we already should possess. As I was told by a senior man (old-timer) as a brand new Probationary Fireman (that was our job title back then) just out of the fire academy, "Hey kid, this is a dangerous job where we all must rely upon each other for survival. The people who call us for help need us to always be 'on top of our game'. The minute that you think that you have it all figured out and have nothing left to learn, you'll have to make an important decision: either retire or 'get back into the job' and study. Nobody on this job will ever know everything, those who think they do will get them self or somebody else killed." In closing 'JohnnyOV', you sound like you have the right attitude to be a success in this profession. If I wasn't retired, you would be the kind of Firefighter that I would want to have working with me when everything goes to s**t in seconds. Keep your head where it's at, don't be swayed by lazy, negative types!

I am going to get on my very young and gung-ho soapbox right now and speak my mind. Feel free to let the flame war ensue since I'll be opening Pandora's Box right now.
Currently we have numerous, very active threads going on in the main board and that is fantastic. I am happy to be part of a very active discussion board that allows for open discussion on any topic we so choose totalk about. There is always a new post or discussion or someone chiming in on something that provides a new direction, or insight on the topic.
What does bother's me though, is the priorities that I feel many people have, as to what is actually important to the fire service, and it reflects on the types of threads posted and the activity of each thread. Currently we have threads about types of colors on chiefs cars, blue lights, other secondary/tertiary discussions as to who should have what. I have no problem with these threads as they enlighten others as to certain laws and other regulatory information.
What does bother me though is when you have a member post a topic about resources in the county and what department has special teams, only one person answers… Why? Do we really care so little about preplanning and foresight before an incident that we would much rather discuss the correct angle of chevrons over running an incident efficiently and smoothly? I know I personally was really looking forward to seeing what departments have around the county, so in case my department ever needs assistance to something we cannot ourselves handle butsomeone else can, they can be called upon.
We also have the "Tactical considerations" forum, which is a fantastic idea, but it rarely gets used, and when it does, only 2-5 people chime in with an answer. If you're wrong with an answer, who cares? It's only online training and you'll learn from your mistake. It's better done here, then out at an actual incident.
Sure I like to "buff out" every now and then as much as the next guy and get ideas from apparatus photos, but I think proactively talking and learning from other people about pre planning actual operations, or what an IC would have done differently at a fire is much more important then who won what at who's parade. There is such a vast wealth of knowledge on this board, it puzzles me that no one wants to actually release information for whatever reason they so choose.
Not a day goes by where I do not learn something new about the fireservice, and this board has definitely supplied me and numerous other people with a plethora of information. I can only hope that more people talk about the operational and tactical side of the fire service, as to me this is what truly matters and where departments stand out. The general population does not care about your roto-ray, or your undercover chief's car. They want their fire put out quickly and efficiently and their family member cut out of their car without any more harm being done. Sure things look cool, but to me, what is far, far more important is providing a homeowner or taxpaying company relief when we show up because operationally, we look like an organized, well oiled army doing everything in our power to help them out.
I'm not sure if I'm totally off base here and singling myself out, and this is no way a shot at anyone in particular but this is just an observation I have been making over the last few months and felt like it was time to share my opinion.
edit: transfered from M.Word and the format was screwed up

Can a New Rochelle Brother explain the alarm order....The I.A. states 2nd alarm on arrival, and 5th alarm with fire showing through the roof. Was this a progressive alarm increase, or were all NRFD units committed upon the 2nd, and as M.A. Companies began arriving in the city, were they special called to the scene; did this constitute technically a 3rd and 4th alarm? As NRFD spare units activated were they treated as an alarm increase?
Just curious.
Looks like a tough night, the fire commanders and firefighters had their hands full from the beginning; keep in mind NRFD rolls with only two firefighters and an officer, or three firefighters (or has that changed) and from the company officers, chauffers, firefighters to 2302 to 2301 I'm sure their full professional experience was called into play in making some very important choices to prevent this fire from becoming a conflagration in the 2-3 exposures. Is it true there was a water company issue on the other side of the city? And you guys managed to get big water on a big fire, let's here it for straight tip streams...ALL of Westchester should take a look....
Congratulations to the FD's involved, with an apparent lack of serious injuries....sorry to the Church members, I'm sure there are many broken faith-tested souls out there today. May they find Peace with the Lord after this test.

I spent a lot of my career working in a very busy F.D.N.Y. Truck Company and finished off my last 6 years in the Rescue. I enjoyed (Spelled L-O-V-E-D) working in both companies. I did lot's of fire duty and worked at many unusual emergencies.I worked with some of the best, most knowledgeable firefighters while in both of these units. That being said, every firefighter anywhere who is worth their salt puts their life on the line every-time they go to work, regardless of how busy or slow their unit is. It's great to have company pride as long as we don't lose sight of the fact that we are all in the same business and should not be in competition.. .
Stay safe Brothers ...

Thanks for posting the links. Sounds like a great job by F.D.N.Y.'s EMT's & Firefighters.
BTW: How does F.D.N.Y. continue to do such a great job when they don't equip any of their ambulances or fire apparatus with 'Roto-Ray's' ??? LOL

Thanks for posting the links. Sounds like a great job by F.D.N.Y.'s EMT's & Firefighters.
BTW: How does F.D.N.Y. continue to do such a great job when they don't equip any of their ambulances or fire apparatus with 'Roto-Ray's' ??? LOL

My link

I'm glad to see him gone from office. I hope that every member of congress who fought against the Zadroga 9/11 Health Bill loses their bid for re-election ...
My link

My link

My link