post4031

Hello, I do believe a few years ago OFPC was given the authority and funding to set up regional Technical Rescue Teams. I have not heard of any updates or progress on this and was wondering if anyone has additional info. Also, while we are on the topic of Technical Rescue, how does your department address this area? Do you have members specifically trained for this task or do you train all members in these areas? I am interested to see how other departments handle these incidents when they do occur. Thanks! Scott

I concur.......

But yet they are going to lay off Police...Chicago will just become another Detroit.....

That would be a plus, I did not know that could be done. Do you know how one would be able to credit outreach courses towards the 229? If so, please share or feel free to PM the details to me. Thanks!!!

I don't see it happening anytime soon....especially with the way Albany runs... I would think there would need to be some concessions on the career training requirements that Chief Pells has mentioned. I would think it would need to be more uniform and there would have to be some credit for training already completed such as state courses that would be credited towards the 229 hours. Or there would need to be a part time academy that could be completed, kind of like law enforcement.

Definitely agree on FASNY and other groups, matter a fact that was my response to them. We has some of the same experience with LOSAP but fortunately a lot us don't care about LOSAP and do what we need to do points or not.

You are correct, however a paid call system creates other legal conflicts when it comes to fire districts and protection districts. There are no provisions for it in the laws that govern these types of local governments.

I saw that as well and I inquired about that with the OFPC. I couldn't get a difinitive answer from them on it.

As I understood it villages or cities can as they would be considered part time employees of that entity, Fire Districts or Fire Protection Districts can not. Also, villages and cities can pay stipends where as fire districts and protection districts can not according to the interpretation we got. I did hear of a district upstate that was doing paid-call but I couldn't verify it. This system does work well in other states. However, most that I have asked about require some type of actual time put on shifts to cover apparatus. It all depends on how the department sets it up. I did attend a legislative investigative committee meeting about issues with volunteer departments with several members of the State Assembly, FASNY, OFPC and Local Officials. These issues were talked about at length along with others. One thing that was clear during that meeting once you mentioned paid-call or part time staff, the gentlemen representing FASNY were adamantly against it because it would ruin the image of the volunteer fireman. They would rather obtain funding and have an advertisement campaign to create excitement and attract new members. Let me also say this, I am not anti-volunteer myself being a fourth generation volunteer and being part of the service for 23 years. However, I do feel there needs to be other options for a department because most do not have the resources for a full career staff. Most members of a department these days need to have part time jobs in addition to full time jobs to make ends meet. We often lose quality members because of their personal committments and time constraints and their inability to put in the time required. If a member's part time job was with the fire department he/she would not only be taking care of their needs it would also fill the departments needs as well. A win win situation for both in my opinion. It may get the department further down the road per say and be cost effective. It is a complicated issue that's for sure!!!

I should be interesting to see how this turns out. It is not legal in NY currently and the way the LOSAP laws are written someone cannot be receiving pay and credit towards LOSAP. My department posed this question to the Association of Fire Districts Attorney some time ago and he not only stated the above but also stated it would open up a can of worms because it would conflict with a host of other laws in New York. Your either have volunteer or career personnel or both in NYS, no part time or paid call. I do feel that there should be a provision giving a fire district the ability or in between step for paid call or part time staff.

Hello, I am interested in learning what Stamford Fire & Rescue Firefighters like or dislike about Engine #6 2007 HME Quint. Has there been any major issues? Any pros or cons about the engine? How has the manufacturer been to do business with? How is their service and have they dealt with warranty issues promptly? Any information would be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks!!!!

I am comparing manufacturers of Quints and gathering information for future purchase. Our requirements are a 75' ladder, 500 gallon tank, 1500gpm preferably on a short wheelbase. It seems HME and Seagrave have the shortest 192", I even saw a spec on one with 186" wheelbase. Most of our department has Spartan chassis and we do like them. I am just looking into other options as well.

East Fishkill Fire District http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=495565570382

My thoughts exactly...

Agreed!!! :angry:

The State should clean their house before they worry about everyone else's.

New York should take a few lessons from this guy!! Our current Commissioner of Corrections refers to jails as CAMPUSES not jails, not prisons but CAMPUSES. Campus 1 : the grounds and buildings of a university, college, or school 2 : a university, college, or school viewed as an academic, social, or spiritual entity 3 : grounds that resemble a campus <a hospital campus> <a landscaped corporate campus> New York the LIBERAL STATE!

I just watched it at www.megavideo.com. It was very good!!

This State is a joke, they need to ALL be replaced.

No criticism taken...I agree 100% with you. It could have been managed better by the State especially since this snow fell in a localized area. More resources could have been brought in to assist with that specific area and the local departments that were getting slammed already could take care of their own problems. Scott

Anytime there is a backup the town becomes jammed with traffic thanks to the GPS. This was another problem during the snowstorm as people were getting off and creating another incident on local roads because they got stuck, ran off the road, etc.

Chris, We got hit pretty hard here and during the height of the storm there were very few plows on the road. We have two vehicles outfitted with plows that were busy responding to alarms so apparatus and ambulances could get to the incident locations. From the onset of the storm to now we have recieved approx. 75-80 alarms. Also, we were extremely busy getting the elderly and invalids to shelter. We sustained heavy tree damage and most of the town was out of power and still is. Our Town E.O.C. was open however it was basically a center for fire department operations and we did have communications with the PD. We recieved a request from the Dutchess EOC for the snowmobile to transport water and blankets to stranded motorists and check the welfare of the occupants, also to transport them to a shelter. We responded within 15 minutes to the request along other neighboring departments. There was no Unified Command to my knowledge with the exception of the communications between the fire departments. The Thruway Authority and NYS Police requested our assistance and were the authority over the incident. We did have contact with some units on scene but no command structure to my knowledge. By the time we received the request the Thruway Authority had already started to redirect motorists through turn arounds to the eastbound side and off the highway. We were prepared to transport stranded motorists to a warming center at our HQ's until shelter was established. Most refused to leave their vehicles and the Troopers were not forcing the issue. The storm severly taxed our resources and the resources of our area. We had members in stations from Thursday afternoon until Saturday evening when we sent as many as we could home and returned to stations Sunday morning. Given the scope of the storm and the damage it caused I do believe we did as much as we possibly could and if there was a true medical emergency we would have made every attempt to get access to the patient. Just an example we had to remove one resident in a rowboat with a few guys acting as reindeer because nothing could get to where he was located. I am thankful for the dedication of our department members and their willingness to rise above the obstacles they face. If you have further questions feel free to PM me Scott Post

You're right!! Just need a few hours...

I'm ready for bed...