Jason762

FFPCogs, You state that the most important consideration in this whole mess is public safety, yet it appears to me that you are strongly advocating staffing firehouses with 18-21 year old college kids with little to no fire experience and training over a 3 or 4 man staffed career engine company. This strikes me as odd and does not fall in line with one who would place public safety first. Maybe I'm reading into this incorrectly, but this is the way I see it from what I've read.

I went through 2 Vulcans in about 6 years time, they are kind of light duty and their battery life was not so great. They would always seem to die half way through a job. Eventually they both just stopped working and taking a charge. I now have a Power Plus FD-1 light. I am much happier with the durability, brightness, and battery life. Yes they cost twice the price but it is great having a reliable flashlight. The only thing it doesn't have are the rear blue lights. Read more about them here: All Hands Fire

Another example of why the police should stick to doing police work. If the vehicle was truly fully engulfed as was stated in the article, then what is the use of dumping a fire extinguisher on it? Go direct some traffic and let the FD deal with fighting the fire...

No matter how you dice it up a 56 hour work weeks is terrible. I have friends that work a modified 56 hour work week and they consistently get stuck at work for 72 straight hours. I used to work a 72 hour work week (the standard work week for federal firefighters) which was 24/on 24/off with a 3 day break every 2 weeks. I'm much happier with my current 42 hour work week (24/on 72/off). Between the stresses of sleepless or very little sleep at night and being away from home for extended periods, I don't believe that the majority of people would like to work 48 straight hours on a regular basis. Also like Z19 brought up, what happens if there is OT and you get stuck at work for longer periods.

Ok so if there is no way of putting a career staff in place, now what? How about simultaniously dispatching multiple companies/dept's to a call right off the bat. By waiting until the second, third, or fourth tone we are wasting valuable time. Chances are a lot better that someone will be able to get a rig on the road if multiple companies are assigned to the call. If the dept. whose district the call is in can handle the call then cancel the other responding units. Pretty simple solution, no?

Not very often...it all depends on how many actors a given shift has. If a given shift only has a few actors and there are a lot of officers on VAC/Sick/etc. and there aren't any officers getting hired for OT, THEN a FF could be hired on OT to act. As you can see all the moons have to be in alignment for this to happen.

NWFD, yes all actors are paid at the rank for which they are acting as. Nick, Here is the hierarchy of filling shifts: Say a Capt. is on VAC, his spot is filled by a sworn LT from his house first, but if that LT is off or it is a single rig house then it is filled by a LT from another house and the acting is done on a rotating basis, based on whoever has the lowest amount of acting hours. Now with all that being said, if there is OT that day and say they are hiring 5 people (members are hired by whoever has the lowest hours) and a Capt. is in the top 5 on the "hit list" (this is the sheet listing members who signed up to work OT based on low hours) then he gets the OT shift and the LT's remain in the LT rank. If a LT is getting hired for OT then the regular duty LT will act Capt. and the OT Lt will work as LT. The same goes for filling a LT shift. Now there are times, especially in the summer when they run short of on duty officers and not too many people sign up for OT, during these times a LT may get hired to act Capt on OT, same goes for a FF acting Lt on OT. There is a downside to all this...if you are a Lt or Capt, or DC for that matter and say for example you have low hours (first on the hit list) but no regular duty officers are off, you get what we call "no-roomed", basically they pass you by (we cannot work below rank) and hire a FF with more hours. The higher you go up the chain the more often this happens. To make things even more confusing we can take partial shifts off which can make doing manpower a total nightmare. In the end it always seems to work out though. As for working in your own house, if there is an acting slot in your house then you get it, if there are 2 or more actors in the same house, then typically the junior of the two will get sent out to act in another house if there is an open slot. They also try to keep OT officers in their own house when possible. Also OT is at time and a half. Hope this answered your questions...

Stamford is similar to Bpt. Vacancies are filled by: 1. Have an eligible FF or LT who is on the appropriate promotional list act in the higher capacity 2. Hire an OT Lt or Capt if there is: a. OT and b. that person has low enough hours to be hired 3. If neither of the above can be met then the vacancy is filled by seniority. We do have a minimum of sworn officers that must be on-duty at all times. If we fall below that then either vacation will be cancelled or more likely an officer will be hired back on OT.

City of Stamford, CT Fire Rescue Dept. 8192 runs probably something in the ballpark of 60% EMS first responder runs

Date:11/24/07 Time:00:15 Hrs Location:30 Station Pl Frequency:800 TRS Units Operating:E2, E5, R1, R2, Medic 1, Medic 901, MTA PD Description Of Incident:Units were dispatched to the Stamford Train Station for a report of a person struck by a train. Upon arrival E2 and Rescue 1 found 1 male under the train who was unconscious and unresponsive. Engine 5 responded with Rerscue 2 for additional high and low pressure air bags. After assuring power was shut down and all train traffic was halted, members of Rescue 1 crawled under the platform to the train and found 1 male DOA. Units remained on scene for several hours during PD investigation. Writer:Jason762

Date: 10/18/07 Time: 22:15 Hrs Location: Edgewood Ave Frequency: 800 TRS/154.13 Units Operating: DC3, E7, E6, R1, E1 (RIT), E32, Belltown FD, Springdale FD Description Of Incident: Working House Fire Writer: Jason762 DC3, E7, E6, Belltown FD, Springdale FD dispatched to Edgewood Ave, unknown house number, for multiple calls reporting a fire. E7 o/s reporting a working fire E1 dispatched as RIT, R1 dispatched to scene DC3 requests a Truck Co., Truck 1 rerouted from elevator incident R1 conducted primary searches with negative results Fire under control, incident handled by SFRD units.

All of our apparatus have an MDT in them. They are Panasonic Toughbooks which are hooked to our dispatch centers CAD system via a cellular connection and also have a haz-mat look-up feature, and a GIS map feature showing hydrant location and water main size. They also have actual pictures of each structure taken from tax assesor field cards and an aerial view overlay showing all property features. IMO they are a great tool. They reduce radio traffic greatly and put a large amount of information at your fingertips. We no longer have to sign on the air when responding, or when we are clearing from a scene. The computer uses a touch screen so we just hit the en-route button, on scene, etc. our policy for radio use is the first arriving apparatus on box alarms still has to give a full scene size-up upon arrival, but for still alarms it is basically a silent response radio-wise. Definetely a tool that busier depts. should look into.

Date:9/10/07 Time:06:34 Hrs Location:250 Harbor Dr Frequency:800 TRS Units Operating:DC4, E4, E1, E6, T1, T2, T3, R1, Unit 1, Medic 3, Medic Super 901, FM 105 Description Of Incident:Working fire in multi-story office building. Greenwich FD and Norwalk FD put on stand-by for ladder company to cover city as all 3 trucks were operating. Writer:Jason762

Here is my set-up: Gemtor Harness on bunker pants 50' of 8mm personal escape rope mini-ladder rack for a controlled descent rope and rack are in a small pouch that is stored in my left bunker pants pocket one end of the rope is attatched to the harness via a carabiner while the other end has a carabiner which needs to be attatched to an anchor point (this is the only step that needs to be completed before bailing out) the other option is you can lower another FF down on the free carabiner using yourself as an anchor, then tie a figure 8 on a bight and find an anchor for that, then bail yourself out (sounds complicated but its not at all with a little practice) The whole set-up cost around $250.

CT Combo vehicles are allowed on the Merritt only if they are under 7500 Lbs GVWR. Also no trailers and no commercial vehicles.

It is the Park Police Division. It was already discussed a few weeks ago. http://emtbravo.net/index.php?showtopic=18380

17:24-DC3, E6, E2, E5, T1, R1 dispatched on Box 618 to the address of 9 Iriquois Rd for a report of an electrical fire in the basement. 17:26-Dispatch reports they are receiving multiple calls for a fire at that location. 17:29-E6 o/s reporting a smoke condition from a 1 1/2 story w/f SFD. 17:33-Working attic fire (finished occupied attic), RIT dispatched (E3 replaced by E4 who cleared from an earlier run), 1 LSO, second being stretched. 17:42-Primary searches negative 17:48-Fire under control 18:11-Units starting to free up.

Baltimore Fires Two More Commanders for Deadly Exercise ............ Annie Linskey, The Baltimore Sun The Baltimore City Fire Department has dismissed two more commanders for being "negligent" and "incompetent" in their roles at a live-burn training exercise in which instructors violated dozens of safety rules and a 29-year-old recruit died. This brings to three the number of fire officers fired in the wake of the Feb. 9 fatal exercise, a significant development for leaders at fire departments around the country who are monitoring what's happening with training in Baltimore as they decide how -- and even if -- they will conduct live burns. Lt. Joseph L. Crest, the lead instructor at the fatal exercise, and Lt. Barry P. Broyles, the instructor in charge of an ill-prepared rescue team, will lose their jobs effective Aug. 2 and Aug. 4. The head of the fire academy, Battalion Chief Kenneth B. Hyde Sr., was fired two weeks after the burn that led to the death of Racheal M. Wilson. "The message here is that this kind of incompetence is not going to be tolerated at the Fire Department," said Rick Binetti, a Fire Department spokesman. "They are asked to do a job, they are asked to follow safety regulations. When that is not done, people's lives are in danger." The developments in Baltimore are being disseminated to a network of national fire leaders via blast e-mails, online forums and trade journals. Jay Lowry, the editor of a popular industry blog Firefighter Hourly, said he regularly receives comments about Baltimore from leaders at midsize and large fire departments. "Baltimore is important," he said. "When it comes to training, Baltimore is going to stick out in the debate about whether or not the fire service continues to conduct live burns." He said that readers often ask: "Will [baltimore] spur any change?" Lowry noted that there is considerable speculation about the fate of Fire Chief William J. Goodwin Jr. "He's a respected fire chief," said Lowry, who used to be the fire marshal for the Charleston, S.C., Fire Department. "Obviously there is interest in whether or not the fire chief gets dismissed. Certainly based on that, [other chiefs] will make decisions in the future about live burns." Phil Welsh, the director of the Regional Emergency Services Training Center in North Carolina, said that when instructors talk about Baltimore, they express sympathy for the fire commanders but also use the fire as a reminder about following regulations. "It brings back the realization that you have to be really careful and stay on top of what you are doing," he said. "There is a reason the standards are in place." Baltimore fire commanders violated safety standards at virtually every phase of the live-burn exercise, according to an internal fire department report and a citation from the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, which determined that many of the violations were "willful." Fire instructors and consultants from Alabama, Connecticut and New Jersey have contacted The Sun seeking copies of those documents. Internal department documents showed that Crest and Broyles were charged with four internal offenses -- including being "incompetent or negligent in the performance of duty," failing to give "undivided attention to assigned duties," failing to "exercise good judgment" and violating department rules. Problems with Baltimore's exercise began when Hyde, then the training academy chief, selected a vacant building that had been ripped apart by an earlier class practicing how to tear holes in the walls and ceilings. It was a building that Hyde had previously deemed "unsuitable" for burning in an e-mail exchange with fire commanders. The three-story house was filled with debris, including brush, a tire, mattresses and a lamppost, and nobody cleared it out before burning the house. Safety standards say that all holes should be patched and debris removed. Recruits were not taken through the building, and emergency exits were never identified, violating other safety standards, according to the internal report and the state labor department's charging documents. Safety rules say that only one fire can be lit in a house during a live burn, but three Baltimore instructors ignited a total of eight fires in the house. Instructors started on the third floor where they lit two, moved to the second floor and lit five, then lit one more on the first floor, according to the state labor department's charging documents. The team of recruits that included Wilson did not have a radio, another safety violation. Other firefighters entered the house without proper breathing equipment and they did not have a backup hose ready if the fire got out of control, according to the department of labor. The rescue team was staffed by recruits rather than seasoned firefighters, a violation of department policy. The hose for the group was coiled in the back of a pickup truck instead of being filled with water and ready to go, a safety violation noted in the state documents. Capt. Stephan G. Fugate, the president of Baltimore's fire officers union, said that he is asking the city's civil service commission to reinstate Broyles and Crest. "My role as the union local president is to defend their position," he said. Still, Fugate said that he believes Crest, who was in charge of the exercise, should shoulder more responsibility than Broyles. "I think Barry [broyles'] role is far less than Joe [Crest's]," he said. "I think Barry's role was less contributory." Broyles, a 32-year veteran, said in an interview yesterday that he did not help set up the Feb. 9 fire because he had an infected toe. He also said that he was "not all that familiar" with the national safety standards governing live burns off the academy grounds. Broyles, who was in charge of the rescue team, said he doesn't believe the department's policy requires that the team have a charged hose. He said that the team was staffed by recruits rather than fully trained firefighters because there were not enough firefighters available. The citation document from the department of labor said that not enough instructors were at the scene. Broyles noted there was a live-burn exercise conducted the day before the fatal drill, and said that on that day, the rescue team was also made up of recruits. He said that Hyde, the former training academy chief, had requested back up support from fire companies, but he was told that the on-duty fire engines could not be put out of service. Binetti, a Fire Department spokesman, said that there were many problems with the burn, but said that Broyles had a responsibility to object to the conditions. "It is about the inaction of the members there; that is what the trial board found," Binetti said. Hyde is facing separate scrutiny in Anne Arundel County, where he is considered a "person of interest" in a criminal investigation into the finances of the Riviera Beach Volunteer Fire Company that he once led, according to Mark Shawkey, a county police spokesman. Fellow firefighters said that he used the firehouse's credit card to pay for personal expenses, but he has said that he repaid the money. So far, one former treasurer from that firehouse, Kelly McColl, has been charged with writing checks from the volunteer company's account to pay for his mortgage. Separately, the Baltimore Fire Department is being audited by the city's comptroller because of an off-the-books spending account it kept with Draeger Safety Inc., a fire equipment company. Records published in The Sun showed that the Fire Department accumulated $250,000 in credits from items it returned, rebates and purchases that the city paid for but were not delivered. The department then used the fund to make unauthorized purchases, according to the records. Anthony McCarthy, a spokesman for Sheila Dixon, said the Fire Department may be in store for additional dismissals and changes. "I think that still is an open question about what direction the mayor takes with regard to the Fire Department," he said. McCarthy said that the mayor will not make any decisions until Howard County Deputy Chief Chris Shimer completes his investigation into the training and safety practices at the department. The report, requested after the death of Wilson, is expected to be finished in about a month, McCarthy said. annie.linskey@baltsun.com Find previous coverage at baltimoresun.com/recruit timeline Feb. 9: Racheal M. Wilson is killed in a live-burn training exercise at a vacant, city-owned rowhouse at 143 S. Calverton Road. Also injured are Wilson's instructor, Ryan T. Wenger, and another recruit, Stephanie A. Cisneros. Feb. 12: Baltimore City Fire Department halts all live-burn training. Feb. 14: Baltimore City Fire Department suspends without pay the head of the training academy, Division Chief Kenneth B. Hyde Sr., and the commander in charge of the fatal exercise, Lt. Joseph L. Crest. Feb. 15: Fire Department suspends without pay Lt. Barry P. Broyles, a fire academy instructor who was in charge of the rescue team at the fatal burn. Feb. 22: Mayor Sheila Dixon fires Hyde. She asks Howard County Deputy Fire Chief Chris Shimer to lead an independent investigation into safety and training practices at the Fire Department. Feb. 23: Fire Chief William J. Goodwin Jr. releases internal report showing that the Fire Department violated 36 national safety standards during the fatal fire. March 9: Goodwin moves 14 new instructors to the training academy, secures $80,000 grant for new radios, increases staff of the safety office. March 29: Goodwin announces shake-up with the midlevel fire commanders, requiring 16 of the department's 18 battalion chiefs to move to new commands. April and May: Fire unions hold series of no-confidence votes in Goodwin. May 7: Goodwin announces need for cultural change at the Fire Department, including encouraging firefighters to speak out about safety concerns and ordering safety office to make more frequent inspections at firehouses. May 31: Trial Board recommends terminating Broyles and Crest. June 26: Maryland Department of Labor charges the Fire Department with "willful" safety violations after five-month investigation. July 5: The Sun learns that Goodwin has fired Crest and Broyles, effective Aug. 2 and Aug. 4, respectively.

Why is this probably a truss roof? It appears that this fire has been burning long enough so if it was a truss there would have been at least a partial collapse by this time. As we all know trusses can collapse in as little as 5 minutes time from when the fire starts attacking the structural members. Therefore I believe this to ba a regular stick built home. IMO from this one single picture you can't ge a complete feeling for what is going on, but based on what we can see I feel it should be safe to allow members to operate on the "A" side roof only. Having proper, aggressive, vertical ventilation will greatly reduce the beating the interior teams will take, thus making the whole operation go much better and reduce the chance of making a parking lot. Hopefully the roof team would have enough sense to report if conditions were bad and retreat from the roof. I would at least allow them the chance to ventilate this buidling.

How about the fact that when using the fog setting at 100psi NP you only get 135 gpm. I'm not a fan of TFT's myself but at least you can get 180+gpm @ 100psi NP.

Not sure how this is the "storm of the decade", it's f---ing raining out, big deal.

Good points, Also not to Monday morning quarterback, but what was with the application of water. It would have been far better to set the bucket down near the ground and operate the stream up and into the building instead of raining it down on top of the building. Roofs are made to keep out water and in some of the pictures it appears that the stream is not even close to being applied to the fire. The pictures are just snapshots in time and may not represent what actually took place, but from the looks of it, operations did not go too well.

Date:02/24/2007 Time:20:12 Hrs Location:18 Edgewood Ave Frequency:800 TRS and 154.13 Units Operating:DC3, E7, E6, E1 (RIT), E5, E41 (Belltown), T31 (Glenbrook), C511, E52+R54 (Springdale), Medic 3, FM107 Description Of Incident:Chimney Fire extended to house, collapse of chimney Writer:Jason762 20:12-Units responded to 18 Edgewood Ave for a reported chimney fire. While enroute dispatch advised of multiple calls reporting fire on the roof and a collapse of the chimney 20:38-E1 requested for RIT 20:42-C511 requests an additional engine to scene (E5) 20:54-All units accounted for. Fire has extended to chimney. 21:10-Fire under control, units conducting overhaul

Date:2/24/07 Time:14:13 Hrs Location:109 Richmond Hill Ave Frequency:800 TRS Units Operating:DC3, E3, E2, E6, T3, R1, E1 (RIT), Medic 1, FM 107 Description Of Incident:Working fire in a 2.5 story wood frame duplex Writer:Jason762 14:13-Units dispatched for a reported fire in a closet at 109 Richmond Hill Ave. While units were enroute, dispatch received multiple calls reporting a fire in the house. 14:17-E3 on scene reporting light smoke from the A side, stretching a line 14:19-DC3 reports working fire on the first floor, requesting RIT 14:28-DC3 reports fire under control, holding all units 14:48-DC3 requests Health Dept and Red Cross to scene 14:52-Units going back in service when ready