nfd2004

Too bad it was economically flaud study.
 
my favorite part is the claim that volunteers have increased statewide by 30,000 - 40,000. 

FASNY paid an economic research and statistical analysis company to write a glowing report about the excellent services being provided by volunteer fire departments. It's questionable as to how they came up with the figures presented that represent the cost of replacing volunteer departments with career departments. The response time information for volunteer departments isn't specific (Are they referring to the time the 911 operator received the call until first unit *not a chief's car* arrives on the scene, or the time the first unit signs on the air responding until they arrive at the scene? Are they referring to response time for all calls, just fire calls, just non fire emergencies, just EMS?). The bottom line is people rely upon fire, rescue and EMS services to respond quickly, be properly staffed, trained and equipped. Seconds count, and it's far more likely for a 24 / 7 career department to be able to provide an appropriate response in an acceptable time frame than it is for  a department that relies upon volunteers who in most cases must respond from their home or their place of work, to the firehouse before they can gear up and respond with the necessary apparatus. I volunteered for 17 years and am very aware of how understaffed departments are during normal work hours from Monday to Friday and how difficult it is to get a sufficient number of personnel to get out of their beds in the middle of the night for a call when they must be up for work or school in a couple of hours. I worked alongside many dedicated, well trained volunteers during those years, but regardless of how dedicated they are, work, school and family have to come before being available to get trained (initially), maintain annual training requirements (courses and drills) as well as respond to calls. 

A classic case of personalities over principles
 

 
  I can certainly understand how you say that L.I. is fortunate with the members of the fire dept they have. Many of those workers are available due to their work schedules. In addition to that by virtue of the nature of their work, many must maintain some type of minimum fitness level, plus they are geared and trained to deal with various types of emergencies. Long Island is a very special place that has the fortunate option of having many of these NYC workers. They are a part of public servants assigned to work in the most populated city in the United States. Many serving it's citizens under difficult emergency circumstances.
 
 On the contrary, my own brother, a Retired Bridgeport Battalion Chief who rose through the ranks. He fought fires in the busiest companies, during that city's busiest decade for fire duty. When he retired he joined a local volunteer fire department here in Eastern, Ct. He lived right near the firehouse, was available 24/7 and willing to work and give his time. Plus he brought with him years of fire fighting experience from one of the busiest depts in CT. To me, this department had just "Won the Lottery". But that was not the case at all.
 
 Instead many, including the chief, felt threatened and did their best to get rid of him. He was told NOT to touch their Seagrave rearmount ladder. The same kind he had driven for many years as well as was assigned a Lt in charge of busiest ladder co in the city.
 
  One evening a member of the dept was giving a class on that ladder, except when it came time to get the ladder out of the bed, guess who had to show him how to do it. Another time when the ladder had been extended operating at a fire, the operator could not get it back down. It was first thought that there was a mechanical failure of the ladder that's why it wouldn't come down. Guess who was able to get that ladder down in a few short seconds. He was a hero that day, but shortly after he couldn't take it anymore and quit. I imagine most of Long Island does NOT have those kinds of problems.   

Spending $500,000 to $1 million for a heavy rescue vehicle if all it does is carry an extrication tool and whatever non essential leftovers that don't fit on another rig is a senseless waste of tax dollars. Any full size pumper or aerial device can carry an extrication tool and cribbing. If a department reevaluates the left over stuff that's carried on their expensive rescue truck they may well find that much of it isn't needed and the rest is a duplication of items that are on other rigs or can be carried on the other rigs.

 
Actually what needs to be done through proper leadership is NOT do away with these Rescue Companies. But what must be done is realize that every fire company does NOT need a heavy rescue. 
 
Thst should be very easy to understand by the membership as well as easy to explain by using the example that if a city like New York with 8 million people can do it with only Five Heavy Rescue Cos, a place much smaller can certainly merge their equipment together with other nearby smaller departments.
 
As an example the City of Bridgeport, the largest city in Connecticut with a population about 140,000 people has One Heavy Rescue. While I compare my home town, Norwich, Ct with a population of 40.000 people with Three Heavy Rescues.
 
In addition comparing the same two cities Norwich has at least twice the number of Pumpers, one less ladder truck but five mini Rescues used for medicals , that they say saves where and tear on  fire apparatus. Plus three brush fire units. 
 
Norwich is slightly larger in square miles covered. 
 
I feel bad for the guys who  must learn to accept the fact that changes need to be made. But I also feel bad for all of us taxpayers that watch our money being wasted on totally unnecessary fire apparatus. 

Population of Colonie, NY was just under 8,000 people in 2013. Not exactly a densely packed urban area, spread out among 50 plus square miles. 

Population of Colonie, NY was just under 8,000 people in 2013. Not exactly a densely packed urban area, spread out among 50 plus square miles. 

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

 
Sir, no matter how I try, whether I type in Village of Colonie, NY or Town of Colonie, NY, I still come up with the same number of people. That is 7,913 according to a 2013 censes.
 
And when we start to talk about Rescues, or the FDNY, I got a feeling "Bad Box" knows exactly what he's talking about. Both from a career, as well as a volunteer firefighters point of view.

 
 "babhits16", I couldn't tell you the call volume of the Rye Brook FD. But I sure think you told a great story in your post above.
 
 I must also agree with you that there are many volunteer firefighters that do a GREAT JOB. I give them credit for what they do. I have many friends, basically throughout the entire country, who are volunteer firefighters. Some have been career firefighters who I can only dream or wish that I had one tenth their firefighting and rescue experience. I have one volunteer firefighter/chief friend who owns a major insurance company, another who is an oral surgeon, another a retired U.S. Army Colonel, an accountant, a retired Con Ed supervisor responsible for the entire Westchester County area, a plumber and it goes on and on.
 
 These guys are GREAT people and their goal is to just go out there and help their communities and the people within them. They also show me a great amount of respect towards career firefighters and I myself, have the same degree of respect for them in what they do.
 
  Then I read here of a group of volunteer firefighters, led by a guy named Chief Quinn in Port Chester. This reminds me of the War Zone where I was a career firefighter. Years and years of battling over a thing called "the fire service". Where we are all supposed to do basically the same job. But where the term "Brotherhood" has been replaced with the term "Battlehood". Where are group of volunteer firefighters, led by some very jealous fire chiefs, had recently proposed the elimination of a 3 man career engine company, a fourth firefighter position in one of the busier engine companies, and eliminate four battalion chiefs positions for a total of 16 firefighter positions to be eliminated. These proposals were brought on by some of the same individuals who I know, took that same career firefighter test (in some cases several times), but were never successful in getting that job. So I guess the thinking must be, "if they can't have it, then nobody else should have it".
 
  I certainly wish all the best to those PCFD8 group of guys. Nothing would make my day better than for me to read on here that they win their lawsuit and all are hired elsewhere to work as career firefighters in a community where they will be much more appreciated for the job they do.
 
 As for the younger members of those fire departments in Port Chester who have a goal to become a career firefighter, "don't forget to give FULL credit to your fire commanders for just cutting your chances even more of reaching your lifetime goal". Maybe they couldn't get the job, but they shouldn't have cut your chances for what you wanted.

This has been an interesting situation to me.  I have heard great things about Rye Brook FD.  When they started their own service I'm glad they recognized the value in a career department.  There is nothing wrong with a department being volunteer, many do a great job.  However, my personal experience in the tri state reigon has really left a poor taste in my mouth and I assume Rye Brook recognized the boys club/ political climate and wanted to put guaranteed protection and citizen safety first.
 
I wonder/ hope that when the lawsuit settles Rye Brook settles the suit they hire the rest of the PCFD8 and become a fully staffed 24/7 agency and take the opportunity to become a premier FD in the region.
 
Question- does anybody know their annual call volume and what their normal staffing during daytime hours is?

 Any updates on what's the latest news on these laid off Port Chester Firefighters. The fund raiser has reached $5,320.
 
With word that these firefighters have NOT been given their jobs back, have they filed for some type of legal action ? With reported 4,300 signatures filed to hire them back, what is the argument given for not doing so.  However, even if they did, that is going to take time. Of course the longer this gores on, the more likely it is to cost the taxpayers much more should those firefighters win their case. I assume they are collecting Unemployment right now.
 
Have any applied for other firefighters jobs ? I assume there has also been an increase in response times ? Does the Port Chester Fire Depts respond to medical incidents as well ?

 
Of course that is GREAT NEWS and THANK YOU for keeping us updated. Now, Seven more to go.
 
So what does this indirectly mean for other guys. In particular those that want to become career firefighters as well. By laying off these eight Port Chester career firefighters, the competition just got harder for those younger volunteer firefighters within the border of Port Chester. Actually, by cutting these career firefighters, their own volunteer membership actually may have, indirectly, have hurt their own membership. Just maybe one less opening for a Port Chester volunteer firefighter to be hired in nearby Rye and begin a very satisfying and rewarding career. And soon there could be seven other positions somewhere nearby in which more career opportunities could be lost for those volunteer members.
 
 Besides the fact of those Port Chester citizens lives and personnel valuables are being put at much more risk. Besides the fact that a fire leadership is willing to put their own members lives at more risk.  We now see another smaller price that a few younger volunteer members may end up paying. LESS opportunity for them to become a career firefighter. All because of a leadership within their own ranks that are more than willing to let them down.
 
  By the way, "how's Chief Quinn doing" ?

 
  I would hope that anyone who is following this story is well aware that these EIGHT Port Chester firefighters were NOT Fired. I think it's always been pretty clear that they did NOTHING WRONG. They are actually the innocent victims of what some may consider "a lynch mob". They were just a group of guys trying to do the job they had done in the past. Just helping the people of Port Chester. I think that is clearly displayed no one was fired by the fact that Rye Brook has already hired one former Port Chester Firefighter.
 
  That career department was disbanded. Those firefighters had no control over that. It was never mentioned that they were "FIRED".

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

A friend of mine (RIP) did a comparison study of a career county fire department in Maryland that is a twin to Nassau County and found the career county department operated with a budget half the size of the amount it costs to operate all of the Nassau County's VFD's. The FDNY operates FIVE rescue companies in a city of 8000000 people, Suffolk County with 1,200,000 people has OVER ONE HUNDRED rescue trucks and no career fire departments. FDNY has an average of 10,000 rescue responses annually. I don't believe that Nassau and Suffolk County have anywhere near that amount. 

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

 
 Even those cold winter nights ? Those back tailboards were even covered in ice. Ice all over the place. The tailboard your standing on, the cross bar your holding on to, in addition to a human body wearing firefighting gear covered in ice. After spending a few hours following water, at least to me nothing sounded better than riding back inside of a heated cab of a fire truck. And sometimes that wasn't even the case with an open cab.
 
  Well, honestly, I know of one guy that won't be buying one or two of those T-shirts. I'd much rather see my money put to good use in such things as the firefighter cancer fund. You could also send your money to that as well, for a somewhat different purpose. In case anybody wants to do that instead it's www.ffcancer.org .

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

Wow !!!
 
But it's all done for FREE right. On a smaller scale kind of reminds me of a place I am very familiar with in Eastern, Ct.

 
 Even those cold winter nights ? Those back tailboards were even covered in ice. Ice all over the place. The tailboard your standing on, the cross bar your holding on to, in addition to a human body wearing firefighting gear covered in ice. After spending a few hours following water, at least to me nothing sounded better than riding back inside of a heated cab of a fire truck. And sometimes that wasn't even the case with an open cab.
 
  Well, honestly, I know of one guy that won't be buying one or two of those T-shirts. I'd much rather see my money put to good use in such things as the firefighter cancer fund. You could also send your money to that as well, for a somewhat different purpose. In case anybody wants to do that instead it's www.ffcancer.org .

 
 Even those cold winter nights ? Those back tailboards were even covered in ice. Ice all over the place. The tailboard your standing on, the cross bar your holding on to, in addition to a human body wearing firefighting gear covered in ice. After spending a few hours following water, at least to me nothing sounded better than riding back inside of a heated cab of a fire truck. And sometimes that wasn't even the case with an open cab.
 
  Well, honestly, I know of one guy that won't be buying one or two of those T-shirts. I'd much rather see my money put to good use in such things as the firefighter cancer fund. You could also send your money to that as well, for a somewhat different purpose. In case anybody wants to do that instead it's www.ffcancer.org .

 
Yes, "SECTMB" is totally CORRECT. The problem then was there was NO HEATED Cabs to ride inside of like today. In most cases there wasn't even a place to sit. I can tell you, "it really was no fun riding that back step in the middle of some Sub Zero night coming back from a job. Trying to hang on for dear life with turnout gear (as it was called) and gloves covered in ice with frozen hands under them. "They didn't tell that story on those T-shirts".
 
  Then came those super hot humid days, and a totally different story. No nice cool air conditioned cabs to cool down in.
 
  Take it from a guy who "DID" ride the back step. It really didn't take too long to realize, "this really isn't that much fun anymore'. To my Brothers out there that did ride the back step, "you know exactly what I'm talking about". For those that DIDN'T, "just be very thankful for the simple things you have today". And just try to remember, it's not that those guys that rode the back step were plain stupid. It's just that there was NO OTHER OPTION.