M' Ave

Just to expand on what the brother said here:
We had the light weight hose in service for about 2 years (give or take), however, it was discovered that the hose (where it meets the coupling) was deteriorating at an incredible rate and leaking. So far, they seem to blame the fact that our roll-ups are stacked outside and exposed to the elements all the time. So, we went back to the tried and true. No one minds, it always works
MOST important? It's a good tool, I'll give ya that, but I'd say that the Control Man's best friend is a pipe wrench. When all else fails (wheel, vice grips, spanner, ect.) the pipe wrench will get the stuck cap off and water flowing. Water will still get to the nozzle, pressure gauge or not. Worst cast, maybe you just test the will of the nozzle-man

Thank you. The cost savings in the 1st few years would be minimal, if any. Their would need to be a lot of additional equipment, radios etc. to standardize. You are correct, a number of departments are not legally able to enter burning buildings do to lack of staffing.
While, in the long term there was fleet savings, again it was in the less than 1% range, in part because many of the apparatus were at the end of their service life, also we identified more than 1/2 the houses needed massive rebuild or replacement.
The goal was to see if we could get up to the standards for response/staffing and we were pleasantly surprised to see that the costs to do it were approximately the same as what we were collectively paying now.
I agree, their are many other areas for consolidation. unfortunately while Albany claims they want consolidation and the tax cap is designed to force it, they still will not acknowledge that under current state laws City's can not merge with towns or villages (including just services like fire).

Just to expand on what the brother said here:
We had the light weight hose in service for about 2 years (give or take), however, it was discovered that the hose (where it meets the coupling) was deteriorating at an incredible rate and leaking. So far, they seem to blame the fact that our roll-ups are stacked outside and exposed to the elements all the time. So, we went back to the tried and true. No one minds, it always works
MOST important? It's a good tool, I'll give ya that, but I'd say that the Control Man's best friend is a pipe wrench. When all else fails (wheel, vice grips, spanner, ect.) the pipe wrench will get the stuck cap off and water flowing. Water will still get to the nozzle, pressure gauge or not. Worst cast, maybe you just test the will of the nozzle-man

Based on some of these posts, I can't help but wonder if some of you were dropped on your heads as babies. What is even more concerning is how little some people know, armchair quarterback and jump to conclusions.
I have a fairly good amount of training regarding trains and train emergencies. I have - what I believe - is a wealth of knowledge of the fire service, including resources in this county and around us. I also have responded to and run a handful of incidents involving mass-casualties.
I have never - nor has 99.5% of you - had an incident like this. The people running it did a TOP NOTCH JOB, and the fact that some of you are sitting back, typing away and criticizing any decisions of the Incident Commander or any others at this incident just fortifies why I have little faith that we can ever become better as a county. Some of you posting here are officers, past officers or - God help us - aspiring officers in your respective agencies. As the Maitre D' in Ferris Bueller's Day off said, "I weep for the future."
/rant
And for the record, this is me, as a person, voicing my opinion which has no reflection of any affiliation I have or have had in the past.

The IC should have called a full alarm response from the city of White Plains. they are the closest fully staffed dept. Put your egos aside and think about the people on the train. This is not a dig at any of the 1st responders that were on scene, but if I was the IC I would want more then less on scene

Ossining has a lot of firefighters and a lot of apparatus. And being that many units directly surrounding Valhalla were called in, It makes sense to bring in 1 & 1 from OFD. Armonk and W. Harrison are better left alone in a situation like this to cover other calls, especially since they're both responders to the airport (which the county considers a big deal). You also have to remember that you can't strip all of your neighbors of equipment and manpower. Sometimes you have to call in someone from a few towns away so you can keep responders available for everything else. It's really like a game of chess when you bring in mutual aid and stand by companies.

In addition to 3 lengths of attack hose (with a 4th as an option for some buildings with long stretches) Yonkers would often carry an extra wheel and pipe wrench in case the wheel was missing or the operating stem rounded. E306 carried a male NPT to 2 1/2" NY Corp. nipple since often the brass fittings were stolen. We made up a short length of 2 1/2" hose with a 2 1/2" by two 1 1/2" wye so we could flow water immediately, bleed the garbage out the open side of the wye and then be ready to quarter turn the valve to the attack hose once the officer called for water.
The nozzle was a smooth bore 15/16" tip.

Or admin staff going to back to line positions and increasing the level of service provided.
Same number of people, more in the firehouse or on the street!

I'm a huge fan of consolidation of certain services. There are simply too many little kingdoms around here. I'd venture to say that a consolidation that didn't save money, isn't really a consolidation.
You can cut administrative staff, for one. There should be fewer chiefs and some redundant bureaus, such as a detective units, IAB, ect would be trimmed from 2 - 1.
Yup, it means admin staff losing their jobs, hopefully only due to attrition. The only way to save money (real money) is to employ fewer people.

ok, Maybe in the writers area or mind the fire service is alive and vibrant. From what I see, the fire service is in deep trouble. Volunteer membership is declining, career depts. are being cut to the bone, or are stagnant.
I believe todays firefighters are much better trained, and are more dedicated than previous generations. But there are not enough of them to fill the voids, at least in our area. Due to the increase in call volume, training, state and federal mandates, the fire service is finding itself hard pressed to keep up with todays conditions. We have too many Commissioners, Chiefs, and elected individuals, who are more worried about money and votes than fixing a broken system. A house fire today requires mutual aid. when there was more members in the dept. there was pride in taking care of your own business.
State and federal mandates, Bailout systems, 2 in 2 out, fast, NFPA, have been enacted to create a safer fire ground, But no more ff's to do the job. The patch on your uniform says XYZ fire dept, yet the truth is XYZ plus 5 surrounding depts. is what is needed for your average house fire. The writer doesn't like the bashing, but what is actually being bashed? the truth? The public is fed up with high taxes. Police depts. are consolidating, At some point, somehow the laws will have to change to allow fire depts. to do the same. Then and only then, at least in this area, will fd's be as alive and vibrant as the writer states.
This is just my opinion, let the bashing begin lol.

Good question......you'd need 160 psi, just to overcome friction loss. Add the 70 +/- psi at the nozzle and you've got the engine screaming and you're only going 400'
Our bed has 2 loads that lead with 1 1/4". They're both 6 lengths of 1 1/4" over 10 lengths of 2 1/2". Some places will use fewer lengths of 1 3/4" and more 2 1/2", but always 16 lengths. With our standard 15/16" smooth bore tip, we'll need a minimum of 220psi at the panel to achieve the flow we want. That leaves you 30psi to account for additional elevation (higher floors). 250psi is the limit without authorization and a lot of safety procedures....

Good question......you'd need 160 psi, just to overcome friction loss. Add the 70 +/- psi at the nozzle and you've got the engine screaming and you're only going 400'
Our bed has 2 loads that lead with 1 1/4". They're both 6 lengths of 1 1/4" over 10 lengths of 2 1/2". Some places will use fewer lengths of 1 3/4" and more 2 1/2", but always 16 lengths. With our standard 15/16" smooth bore tip, we'll need a minimum of 220psi at the panel to achieve the flow we want. That leaves you 30psi to account for additional elevation (higher floors). 250psi is the limit without authorization and a lot of safety procedures....

Good question......you'd need 160 psi, just to overcome friction loss. Add the 70 +/- psi at the nozzle and you've got the engine screaming and you're only going 400'
Our bed has 2 loads that lead with 1 1/4". They're both 6 lengths of 1 1/4" over 10 lengths of 2 1/2". Some places will use fewer lengths of 1 3/4" and more 2 1/2", but always 16 lengths. With our standard 15/16" smooth bore tip, we'll need a minimum of 220psi at the panel to achieve the flow we want. That leaves you 30psi to account for additional elevation (higher floors). 250psi is the limit without authorization and a lot of safety procedures....

Good question......you'd need 160 psi, just to overcome friction loss. Add the 70 +/- psi at the nozzle and you've got the engine screaming and you're only going 400'
Our bed has 2 loads that lead with 1 1/4". They're both 6 lengths of 1 1/4" over 10 lengths of 2 1/2". Some places will use fewer lengths of 1 3/4" and more 2 1/2", but always 16 lengths. With our standard 15/16" smooth bore tip, we'll need a minimum of 220psi at the panel to achieve the flow we want. That leaves you 30psi to account for additional elevation (higher floors). 250psi is the limit without authorization and a lot of safety procedures....

Good question......you'd need 160 psi, just to overcome friction loss. Add the 70 +/- psi at the nozzle and you've got the engine screaming and you're only going 400'
Our bed has 2 loads that lead with 1 1/4". They're both 6 lengths of 1 1/4" over 10 lengths of 2 1/2". Some places will use fewer lengths of 1 3/4" and more 2 1/2", but always 16 lengths. With our standard 15/16" smooth bore tip, we'll need a minimum of 220psi at the panel to achieve the flow we want. That leaves you 30psi to account for additional elevation (higher floors). 250psi is the limit without authorization and a lot of safety procedures....

Not everyone is on Facebook. And I prefer this type of format better. It's a lot quicker and easier to check.

Perfect example why these "mega complexes" are scary as can be. They get built super quickly, super crappy, and to huge scale.
Wonder what type (or lack of) fire stops were in place...

Having been there (well, not this serious), sliding while driving a 57,000 lb. rig....I can tell you, it's pretty unnerving. Good thing it turned out well in the end.....that's a bad hill.

Having been there (well, not this serious), sliding while driving a 57,000 lb. rig....I can tell you, it's pretty unnerving. Good thing it turned out well in the end.....that's a bad hill.

I can't say I'm suprised. This was a long time coming. Football being the exception, I really think people these days prefer venues located much more central to the urban center. New venues like Barclays and Prudential match the convenience of The Garden in terms of transportation access and other amenities like food and such....
There's just too much competition for Izod.

I'm sure that the curriculum is much more focused on YFD specific operations. I can't speak from experience, but I'm sure that easy comparisons could be made to FDNY Proby School. The basics are largely eclipsed by Dept. specific operations, such as positions in the ladder, positions in the engine and what each companies responsibilities are depending on being 1st due, 2nd due, ect....
I know from checking my transcript with the State OFPC, I didn't' receive many certs by attending The Rock. From my 6 months (yup used to be that long) in the academy I received:
National FireFighter 1& 2
CPAT
Building Construction (Both Combustible and non)
National Haz-Mat Ops.
When you are sent back for Chauffeur training school you don't even receive an EVOC certificate.
The point is, career academies don't have a great need for state courses. They're just too general and each large department has developed their own SOP's and a curriculum that suits their specific needs.
The Westchester Career academy has the challenge of teaching to a range of candidates who will encounter a wider variety of daily operations when they graduate to their individual departments.

I'm sure that the curriculum is much more focused on YFD specific operations. I can't speak from experience, but I'm sure that easy comparisons could be made to FDNY Proby School. The basics are largely eclipsed by Dept. specific operations, such as positions in the ladder, positions in the engine and what each companies responsibilities are depending on being 1st due, 2nd due, ect....
I know from checking my transcript with the State OFPC, I didn't' receive many certs by attending The Rock. From my 6 months (yup used to be that long) in the academy I received:
National FireFighter 1& 2
CPAT
Building Construction (Both Combustible and non)
National Haz-Mat Ops.
When you are sent back for Chauffeur training school you don't even receive an EVOC certificate.
The point is, career academies don't have a great need for state courses. They're just too general and each large department has developed their own SOP's and a curriculum that suits their specific needs.
The Westchester Career academy has the challenge of teaching to a range of candidates who will encounter a wider variety of daily operations when they graduate to their individual departments.

Yeah M'Ave I was 6 months also lol.

I'm sure that the curriculum is much more focused on YFD specific operations. I can't speak from experience, but I'm sure that easy comparisons could be made to FDNY Proby School. The basics are largely eclipsed by Dept. specific operations, such as positions in the ladder, positions in the engine and what each companies responsibilities are depending on being 1st due, 2nd due, ect....
I know from checking my transcript with the State OFPC, I didn't' receive many certs by attending The Rock. From my 6 months (yup used to be that long) in the academy I received:
National FireFighter 1& 2
CPAT
Building Construction (Both Combustible and non)
National Haz-Mat Ops.
When you are sent back for Chauffeur training school you don't even receive an EVOC certificate.
The point is, career academies don't have a great need for state courses. They're just too general and each large department has developed their own SOP's and a curriculum that suits their specific needs.
The Westchester Career academy has the challenge of teaching to a range of candidates who will encounter a wider variety of daily operations when they graduate to their individual departments.

I'm sure that the curriculum is much more focused on YFD specific operations. I can't speak from experience, but I'm sure that easy comparisons could be made to FDNY Proby School. The basics are largely eclipsed by Dept. specific operations, such as positions in the ladder, positions in the engine and what each companies responsibilities are depending on being 1st due, 2nd due, ect....
I know from checking my transcript with the State OFPC, I didn't' receive many certs by attending The Rock. From my 6 months (yup used to be that long) in the academy I received:
National FireFighter 1& 2
CPAT
Building Construction (Both Combustible and non)
National Haz-Mat Ops.
When you are sent back for Chauffeur training school you don't even receive an EVOC certificate.
The point is, career academies don't have a great need for state courses. They're just too general and each large department has developed their own SOP's and a curriculum that suits their specific needs.
The Westchester Career academy has the challenge of teaching to a range of candidates who will encounter a wider variety of daily operations when they graduate to their individual departments.