boca1day

The problem with the SCBA facepieces was not that there was an issue of inferior workmanship. After a number of LODDs and serious injuries NIST did some investigation and determined that the tests that a facepiece required to pass NFPA certification were inferior to those that the rest of the PPE needed to pass. After some some hard work by NIST and their work with the NFPA committee the most recent SCBA standard (1981-2013) greatly increases the performance requirements of SCBA. All facepieces now being sold are compliant with the standard. The IAFC issued an alert on the subject a few years ago and recommended that fire departments budget to replace facepieces upon adoption of the new standard. I know some have done so.
Does this have anything to do with the most recent LODDs? Only time will tell.
What must be remembered is that even with the advancements in PPE in the last 40 years if you are in a flashover with even the best PPE you have less than 20 seconds. Gear is so good now that firefighters that have found themselves in some of these "flow-path" incidents have actually received fatal burn injuries inside their gear that did not degrade. The true weak link in the whole ensemble is the human inside the gear.
My personal opinion is our best defense is the smart firefighter that is able to understand the situation and match the strategy and tactics they employ with the situation they find.
Sorry if I sound like a broken record.

Never mind 3am. What about 2pm on a weekday? I've seen departments roll out with two full engines and a full truck at 3am and can't even get a driver in the afternoon.

"The plan couldn't even get the votes of the estimated 100 volunteers of the Yorktown Heights Engine Company No. 1, which serves the district."
That is the most telling part of the entire story.

OK where to begin:
Flake the kinks out your hose. in the door is not the time for a nozzle change. Also the combination tip works just fine if thats what you got on the hose. Don't just stand around. 1:00 min mark: don't leave your helmet on the ground and walk away from it. After 2:00 mark, is that sound electric wires arcing or just random background sounds the mic is picking up? don't shoor water at a sparking wire. No communications about venting. I will assume from the looks of things that a inside attack was not going down so it is not like you were cordinationg with a hose team 2:51 min in. Don't do that with your nozzle, ever 3:40 min in. Don't ask for more pressure if you have 20 kinks in your line. Unkink your line. Try not to let the fire get away from you door control Fire - don't just stare at it, put it out. alot of non-fighting going on here. Choose the right size hose for the job. Where is your 2 1/2"? Big fire means big water. OK i know some of these are kinda knit picky but i just gave it a quick watching. I am not gonna say you guys suck or that was horrible cause everyone in the county is working short staffed and heavily rely on mutaul aid. Was this firemen a probie? was it his first job? These are all things that change the way we view these "mistakes" . I would expect a fresh out FF1 kid to not know everything there is to know. He is gonna stand around and wait to be told. A seasoned guy is gonna get it done and move with purpose and speed.
I hope this is seen as constructive. I tried to give real advice and insight. All we can see is a snippit of the whole picture. clearly there is alot going on in this house (as seen form the smoke coming from otehr parts of house).

First of all.. if you are a fellow brother and you have a "source" who was there... then you should know that the information regarding a fellow brother's medical condition is PRIVATE and it's NO ONE ELSE's BUSINESS, including yours. It is unfortuante that we live in a world where the press out's someone's information. Just because it happened, doesn't mean its fair game or fodder for all the loads of verbal vomit that has followed here. Worse are the individuals who come up on this site and begin to monday morning quarterback a horrible situation.. questioning the Department who put the pro in professionalism when it comes to fire suppression and rescue operations. Those at the FDNY are the best of the best and we all know it. A fellow brother is hurt and needs to heal. For those of you who don't know when to just shut up and let it be... take some somber refelection of this situation and think about if it was you, your family, your friend or child. Would you want their information out there, or people who, regardless of their experience; were not there and are now spouting all sorts of mouth diarrhea about their opinion of the validity of the incident or how it should have been handled?
Just because you are able to give your opinion doesn't always mean you should. Let's all just keep our fraternal brother in our thoughts, lets keep respect for his privacy, respect that his fellow brothers and sister's did the right thing and the best they could in the situation; and hope the best for his recovery back to a normal life without pain or permanent disability.

Not going to question your opinion but would you please elaborate with some details for everyone why you feel that the information is not accurate. Do you have any addition incident details, observations or information that you can share?

My dad did it 75th In 281-h Omaha beach ,Bastone,Ardan Forest, Battle of the Bulge, Silver Star, 2 purple harts . 18 years old and kicked some ass !

It's for sale if you're interested.

its all rps. Medic one requires an ambulance for the contract as per the towns. so the ambulance is from rmc. which is a sister company of rps. as far as medic 31 the truck you may have saw was a captain's take home vehicle that is letter as an rmc vehicle. I hope that this helps you out...

The Westchester Special Operations Task Force(WSOTF) is a mutual aid group consisting of 11 Career FD's. The departments are divided into squad companies. Every squad is trained in Hazmat/WMD, Trench, Building Collapse, Confined Space & Rope Rescue. Each Squad is equipped with Hazmat/WMD equipment (except Yonkers handles it outside the squad). Greenville, New Rochelle & Yonkers squads have collapse rescue units in addition (which carry Trench, Building Collapse, Confined Space & Rope Rescue equipment). White Plains Squad also has collapse (but I am not sure if they carry trench).
The squads are assigned as follows:
Squad # 1 Yonkers
Squad # 2 New Rochelle (with Larchmont & Pelham Manor recently being added)
Squad # 3 Mt Vernon
Squad # 4 White Plains
Squad # 5 Eastchester / Scarsdale
Squad # 6 Fairview / Greenville / Hartsdale
Each squad must respond with a minimum of 5ff's & 1 Off. But some respond with more.
Yonkers Squad Responds with a Collapse Unit. Their USAR Trailer responds with the Rescue and a USAR Task force to support the squads.
Both Greenville & White Plains have collapse units.
New Rochelle Responds with either hazmat/WMD support unit or Heavy Rescue and Collapse Rescue unit. New Rochelle was also designated for swift water rescue, has been equipped and officers have been trained as instructors. Members will be training this summer.
The system is set up so that their are approximately 54 trained/certified responders on duty in the different depts. available to respond.
Many of the squads have responded as far as Delaware County. NRFD has responded as far as Canada.
We can be requested via 60 Control. Dispatch times are generally under 5 minutes to get sent out of district.
When a tornado hit California Closets in Hawthorne (17 miles from NRFD Sta. #1) 60 Control Requested us immediately and YFD, GFD & NRFD had 50+ responders and equipment on-scene in under 25 minutes.

Funny you should mention training, Capt32. I learned water rescue using a boat when I was about 16 years old. That's 50 years ago, but this was the first rescue of a swimmer in trouble I ever made. My son is on the VBFD Tech Rescue team and learned the evolution a few short years ago. When the rescue was being made, we were both exactly on the same page. Each knew what the other was doing. Communication between us was clear and concise and both of us knew the drill step by step. That was an operation conducted by two generations of firefighters.
You might need your training today, tomorrow, or maybe 50 years from now. When the unusual situation comes along, it usually comes quickly "Whoop...there it is." Ours is the only profession that has to commit every training course to memory and remember it forever. Do you remember high school trig? Probably not. But do you remember the signs of impending backdraft? I bet you do...forever.
Tommy Brennan (RIP) used to say that a good firefighter has to fill his head with "stuff" and be able to get up at 2am from a sound sleep and be able to pull that "stuff" back out.

Please, take the 20 minutes and watch the attached video. I was left speechless and in awe of MSG Benavidez...as I'm sure all of you will be too.

As we all prepare celebrate Memorial day 2014 with barbecues, parades and a day off I thought it might be fitting to put this day in perspective with a few facts.

1) Memorial Day was originally known a Decoration Day because it was a day when family and friends would gather to decorate the graves of the fallen as a remembrance. Food was often taken along and set out on sheets in the grass to foster a sense of community.

2) While the first Decoration Day events were held after the American Civil War in both the North and South, Waterloo New York was officially credited by Congressional act in 1966 as the birthplace of the tradition
3) A day set aside to remember the sacrifices of those lost became a national event in 1868

4) The term Memorial Day was first used in 1882 although for many the older term of Decoration Day remained in use until after World War 2. Memorial Day became the official name by Federal law in 1967

5) Traditionally Memorial Day is May 30. This along with 3 other holidays was changed to a specified Monday in 1971 by Federal law to allow for convenient 3 day weekends.

6) On Memorial Day, the flag of the United States is raised briskly to the top of the staff and then solemnly lowered to the half-staff position, where it remains only until noon. The half-staff position remembers those who gave their lives in service of their country. At noon, their memory is raised by the living, who resolve not to let their sacrifice be in vain, but to rise up in their stead and continue the fight for liberty and justice for all.

7) And most important of all:
Since the birth of our great nation 1,321,612 Americans have given their lives to protect our freedoms and defend our country. We owe them all a debt that we can never repay. But we can and should remember. So before we drink that beer or eat that burger let us take just a moment to honor their memory and their sacrifice by saying thank you.

To all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our Nation. Thank you for your service and thank you for my freedom

God bless America.

I used to visit my dad when he was assigned. there. I remember that if you walked in the apparatus door, to the left (the west side of the building) was the day room. On the right side (east) you went up a few steps and there was the company office. I used to play on that Ward LaFrance shown in the black and white photo above.

This is YFD Station 8, late 50's and early 60's. Eng 8's rig was later used as Rescue 1 between the old 1937 American LaFrance and early 60's Mack.

Prior Station-8.

Its called an I-Zone Hook.. Very popular on the west cost (I have seen about 6 different versions).
They use it when confronted with a wildfire that threatens multiple homes, when they need to hose down an exposure, then move 1,000 feet up the road to cover another one. They just loop the hose over it like it was a garden hose, then move up the road. Much faster than repacking or rolling it.
We do not have that issue here, but we go out on the highways, and instead of repacking it while out on the road, much safer to get off the highway sooner, and repack it somewhere safe (or warm or dry, etc.).
Also if the last 50 or 100 feet is dirty, its easy to hose it (and the rig off) before packing it back in the bed.
Here is another style:

I think the manpower aspect alone is valuable.
Automated stretchers...those don't give any patient value, but save a ton of wear/tear/injuries on our EMS staff... as noted before, you now have an extra pair of hands to do other things than CPR (and get tired doing it...let's be honest, a lot of EMS isn't in "top shape" to do CPR continually for an extended period of time)
At a minimum... imagine two back to back codes and doing CPR and then still having another 5 hours on your shift...
Not debating there's actual patient value here too, but it looks like per the above there are studies that debate whether or not its worthwhile - so let's at least consider other positive aspects of this.

NY10570, EMTBravo's May 2014 MOTM.

Lenny Joyner AKA "NY10570" was one of the most active, popular, and respected members of this site, always making well-thought out posts with solid facts and interesting insight. His posts enlightened many and shared his knowledge from which many EMS providers on this forum learned from. There is a huge void that can never be filled without him on EMTBravo.
His EMTBravo Profile, where you can find his excellent posts: NY10570 Profile
His very last post on EMTBravo, the day before the accident: "Questioning for infectious diseases as part of medical history"

Lenny Joyner was killed in a hiking accident in Colorado on or about July 19th, 2012. He was initially missing for several days before he was found by a helicopter search crew deceased after an 1,000 foot fall on July 24th at 31 years old. His last post on EMTBravo was on July 18th 2012. Members of EMTBravo expressed their prayers and support that he be found alive and express their reflections of his loss on this thread:

Thread: FDNY Paramedic and Distinguished EMTBravo Member NY10570 Missing In Colorado

Lenny was also was a well respected and distinguished Paramedic, known for his excellent clinical skills, serving with FDNY EMS Station 7, and a Volunteer Firefighter in Pleasantville. He was also an Eagle Scout. Before leaving for FDNY EMS, he was an EMT with WEMS. His ultimate goal was to become an FDNY Firefighter.

We honor the memory of Lenny "NY10570" and reflect on him being one of the pillars of this forum by awarding him May's "Member Of The Month". We know he still visits the forum everyday from up there. He is missed by all, and we want to make sure his legacy is remembered forever, and his knowledge is still used by those is the future.
Please, click "LIKE" to show Lenny is still in your thoughts and prayers.
Video tribute:

You are absolutely correct. The person communicating with FD/PD is most likely the pilot. I don't understand the confusion but it seems to be with which place on the ship the transfer will occur. It may be a problem with the ship's crew as opposed to PD/FD.
HE WAS RUDE??? He had a huge ship that was drifting towards land, shallows and other ships, and as they say in the maritime industry "A collision can ruin your entire day." His job was to regain maneuverability and get control of his ship. I thought he was being very calm in consideration of his situation. Also note that a collision could cost him his pilots license.

My name is Vincent Antonecchia, I am a Sergeant with the Westchester County Police and the Commanding Officer of The Westchester County Police Aviation Unit. After being alerted to the content of this forum, I am compelled to respond professionally, clear up any false information or misconceptions and provide accurate details about our capabilities and the mechanism for requesting our services.
We are still very much assisting regional jurisdictions and municipalities. The Unit consists of six police officers, including myself and we are all trained as Tactical Flight Officers. One officer is our Unit mechanic. He is A&P/IA licensed through the FAA and has extensive experience and training in the commercial aviation industry. We currently have two Bell 407 helicopters and there are four commercially rated helicopter pilots with varying backgrounds, training and experience. Safety is our number one priority and we strive to be available and provide whatever resources we can to Police, Fire and OEM's. Recently, at the request of the Westchester County DPW, we used our infrared FLIR technology to locate a large underground steam leak at the Westchester Medical Center and prevented the need to dig multiple and costly search holes.
We are available 24/7/365, but obviously limited during inclement weather, high winds, crew availability and concurrent operations. Due to manpower limitations, calls for service and budget constraints, we staff the Unit five days a week from 0900/2400 hours. Our services are FREE as we are a regional asset and regularly operate outside of Westchester County. Any municipality requesting air support should contact the WCPD Desk Officer at (914) 864-7890. Any specific questions concerning the Unit and our capabilities can contact me directly at (914) 995-5019.
The following is a list of our most commonly requested services and capabilities in no particular order:
Bambi-Bucket (fire fighting) operations. We do not require Forest Ranger of SEMO authorization to be called, but requests should be based on common sense, severity and requesting agency protocols FLIR (Infrared) searches (day & night) - Great for locating suspects, lost hikers or "Hot-spots" at fire scenes Ice/water rescue Scene Illumination Aerial photography (Video and/or stills) Surveillance and/or reconnaissance Live video microwave downlinking Project Lifesaver Special Response Team and/or equipment insertion or extraction Scene Illumination Locating and identifying fuel spills/contamination of waterways Force multiplier We are currently conducting hoist training with the WCPD Emergency Services Unit and Marine Unit and will have this completed in mid-May.
Thank you to all who have supported our cause and utilized our services. We look forward to providing whatever regional air support is necessary to increase safety and enhance or further your mission success.

A fight......in hockey. Part of the game. So?
By the way, two cops selflessly rushed into a building yesterday investigating a fire. When they were overcome with smoke while stuck in an elevator, firemen rushed in to help our brothers in blue.
This is the story of reality on the street everyday. Two agency's that work hard along side each other.....
......oh! Sorry, let's get back to the completely unheard-of occurrence of a fight during a hockey game. (A game that ended with hand shakes and hugs all around)

Respect, for authority, for tradition, for others, for yourself and for just about anything else is something that should be ingrained at a young age. There was a time when it was in the home that you learned these things, then with both parents working and time a precious commodity it fell to schools, churches and the like to teach these things. Then came political correctness and the "everybody's a winner" mentality...and now society is reaping the fruits of sowing those seeds. As I said before we can't do much about that really, other than raise our own children to understand respect and conduct themselves appropriately. But we sure as hell can "enlightened" the uneducated or ignorant about the kind of conduct and behavior we expect in our firehouses. It's no different than the experience, knowledge and fireground prowess "senior guys" are expected to and do pass down newer members about the work. I'm by no means the coddling type, but If a guy doesn't understand what respect means or how to conduct himself because "society" or mommy and daddy never showed him, well than we need to take them by the hand and show them ourselves. It is up to us to put in the effort keep traditions alive, or more to the point here, to set the standard for conduct and teach that standard clearly to everyone from the moment the walk through the door for the first time. From there, as FirNaTine says, we have to police ourselves firmly and fairly, along with practicing what we preach, to ensure our members conduct themselves in manner befitting the uniform they wear and the service they represent.

It seems we don't police our own anymore. This yrs ago was done by the Senior men but unfortunately the "so called" Senior guys of today don't feel that it's their Job anymore to reprimand the younger guys and new recruits or even show them the ropes. The Senior guys of today are no way in hell like those of yester year. Many are just as clueless whether it's dealing with an issue like this or even their knowledge of the Job! Many today can't teach the younger and newer recruits anything cause they're just as f****** ignorant and dumb!

He needs a good ol fashion ass whooping is what he needs. Or perhaps a lesson on what that memorial stands for and what it means to most of us.
I did plenty of stupid s**t when I was younger, believe me. But I could never understand people who destruct property or downright disrespect memorials and other sacred things.