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A SARASOTA, FLORIDA MAN, and future-Darwin nominee, failed to follow the check list when he held up a gas station Sunday night.
David Hampton, 23, forgot to fill up first before he pulled out a 12-inch Bowie knife and threatened a gas station attendant, taking his money.
David Hampton
Police found him nearby after he ran out of gas.
The Herald-Tribune has the STORY.
TWO SATELLITES CRASHED IN SPACE YESTERDAY (Wednesday) marking the first time ever that orbiting spacecraft have collided. Both of them were destroyed leaving two huge clouds of space debris about 500 miles over Siberia.
One of them was a communications satellite privately owned by the American firm Iridium Satellite LLC. It was operational at the time. The other was a Russian spy satellite launched in 1993, weighing more than a ton and including an onboard nuclear reactor. While a collision could release nuclear residue, experts have argued for years that the chance of radioactive debris surviving a fall through the atmosphere is very small.
Each satellite was traveling at 17,500 mph and they collided at a right angle, resulting in a catastrophic destruction.
More than 220 active commercial satellites now orbit the globe, in addition to hundreds of military and scientific satellites.
Russia Today News Service has this good video report (in English language) that has graphics showing what the satellites looked like plus some more information about the wreck:
THE SOUTH SALT LAKE CITY FIREFIGHTERS and EMS rescuers were called to a TRAX light-rail station Wednesday for a man who was injured and trapped between a rail car and the platform.
KSL-TV
Charles Sherner, 41, was attempting to board the train after its doors had shut in preparation to start moving. Despite the doors being closed and the warning signal sounding, Sherner, holding a bicycle with one hand, tried to pull the train car’s doors open as the train began pulling out of the station.
His bicycle was snagged by the moving car and both he and his bike were dragged down and pinned along the rails.
The Fire and Rescue workers were able to inch him out from his entrapment without having to lift or move the train car. Sherner is in serious but stable condition with a head injury in the hospital this morning.
KSL-TV
KSL has the full story and a photo gallery HERE.
KTVX Ch. 4 has this video report:
A PMT AMBULANCE WAS STOLEN LAST NIGHT outside a hospital emergency room in Scottsdale, Arizona. The thief was arrested about an hour later when the ambulance was found outside the hotel where the man was living.
Police say that Frank Vultaggio, 55, was in the ER waiting to be looked at when he began making vulgar remarks to the hospital staff. He was then thrown out of the hospital and when he failed to find a shuttle bus to take him back to the hotel, he and his lady friend got into the ambulance and drove away. The ambulance’s doors were unlocked and the keys were left in the iginition.
The ambulance was undamaged and all the medications and equipment were intact. KTVK Ch. 3 has the video report:
A MOTEL 6 IN COLUMBUS, OHIO, BURNED TO THE GROUND early this morning in a 3-alarm fire caused by falling power lines.
WBNS-TV
The severe wind storm that swept across the central U. S. last night brought down electric lines everywhere, but it is being considered that a high-voltage line that landed on the roof of the two-story motel is what triggered the blaze around 11 pm Wednesday night.
Residents, many of whom were in town for a major soccer World Cup qualifier match, say they heard an “explosion” and then shortly after the building was ablaze. The fire was moving so fast that the entire complex was on fire before the FD arrived and rescued several people from the second-floor walkway. Transformers started exploding one after another for a while preventing any measurable attack on the fire at first.
The fire was brought under control shortly after midnight. Hotel management says that not all of the guests have been accounted for yet.
Update, 5:30 pm:
Latest reports from this afternoon say that nobody was injured and it is believed that nobody is missing.
The Columbus Dispatch has the STORY.
WCMH-TV has some raw video of the fire HERE.
When I launched the Gimme A Dollar! campaign to help restore the horse-drawn ambulance yesterday, I figured that it would be a couple or three days before collections could be made and then sent in to our PayPal account. But I was wrong (again)…. I boot up the computer this morning and there’s a batch of donations waiting already! That’s just terrific.
We will be holding the helmet out for donations through the end of this month, just over two weeks. We call it the Gimme A Dollar! fund because it’s a simple task to just go around to each of your co-workers and ask them to give you a dollar for a good cause.
If you missed the original story on the ambulance, we wrote about it HERE on Tuesday. The Lambton (Ontario) EMS paramedics are holding a fund drive to pay for the restoration of one of the last remaining horse-drawn ambulances in North America. Click back and read the story if you haven’t already and look at the pictures. It’s a real beauty and we’d all love to see it back in its original fitting.
At the end of the month I’ll be converting all the collected funds into Canadian dollars and sending it up to them along with a list of everybody who donated and the amounts. So you’ll get proper credit and they will see who all their new friends are. If you’ve never used PayPal before, I can assure you that it is a safe way to transfer funds via your credit card. They accept all major credit cards and the transfer is instantaneously. Your card number is never displayed or shared with anyone. It’s just like buying something online.
So let’s patrol the day room while you’re waiting for breakfast to get ready and you folks in dispatch work the ready room at shift change. I’ll be posting daily reports on how we’re doing. Remember, it’s only a buck. Thanks.
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On a quick trip through the grocery store yesterday I noticed that the “microwave-ready” potatoes are still only $1.49 each. While most food prices have been creeping upwards lately, these symbols of Yuppiedom have been holding their price. And while there seemed to be plenty of them there, the fact that they are still being offered indicates that somebody is buying the things.
Longtime readers know of my disdain for the Yuppies who want everything but cannot provide anything for themselves. Fixing dinner is one of those thngs. The family has to eat, but they can’t even get the beans out of the can if the electricity goes off. I talked about the microwave-ready potatoes along with the pre-sliced onions back in September HERE.
Soon Easter will be here and you’ll see the stores selling the blister packs of six tiny plastic cups to be used for dipping the eggs in to color. Man, are they easy to fleece.
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Folks are signing up for Twitter like crazy. I’ll be doing an update on it later today. But for now, let’s get the equipment checked out. I need to start some more coffee.
SIRIUS XM, THE LONE SATELLITE RADIO PROVIDER, is reported to be ready to file for bankruptcy protection any hour now.
While strong reports and rumors have been dogging the space radio service, it intensified yesterday when it became apparent that it was imminent and the stock plunged 45% this morning (from 12 cents to 6 cents).
Don’t worry about your signal suddenly going dead, though. It is expected that somebody will buy up the firm’s assets and keep the business going. The company is too successful to not find a savior. It’s problem is a massive debt that is scheduled to be paid on next Tuesday and there are some other satellite-related firms ready to step in and pick the plums. Remember that they own a bunch of satellites up there and have 20 million subscribers.
CNNMoney has a good, simple explanation of the behind-the-scenes drama that is taking place over this power-play HERE.
THE FEILDING AERODROME, LOCATED ON the North Island of New Zealand, was the target of aviation fuel thieves Sunday night. Their prime target was an air ambulance owned by Air Manawatu, a Piper Navajo.
The vandals drained about 100 gallons of fuel from the tanks and in the process caused measurable damage to the valve and plane. They also inflicted damage on four other planes and the fuel pump.
Air Manawatu chief executive Michael Bryant with an air ambulance that was set to fly Monday morning until a pilot noticed aviation gas had been stolen from it. (Manawatu Standard/Warwick Smith photo)
The Manawatu Standard reports:
Police have arrested two teenage men in relation to the incident and charged them with burglary.
The fuel has since been found.
Aviation gas is used by some car enthusiasts to give their vehicles more power.
Constables have arrested a 17-yr.-old and an 18-yr.-0ld. Both of them are appearing in court today charged with two counts of burglary.
The Manawatu Standard has the STORY.
…. WHAT’S WAITING FOR YOU AT THE SCENE. How many times have you responded to “just a dumpster fire” and found that there’s a lot more to it than that?
And that goes for medical responses, too. When Butler County, Ohio, fire and ambulance crews were dispatched on “another car crash” they found a most unusual scene awaiting them.
WKRC Ch. 12 Cincinnati explains:
Update:
One of our regular readers in Germany has sent along this video that follows the same theme of “just a dumpster fire.” Thanks, C. L.
Hmmmm ……. it looks like a little dissension breaks out on the fireground after the flashover.
A KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, LADY IS UNABLE to speak or walk, but she’s a good “watcher.” Mrs. Hayner has been confined to her bed since suffering a stroke but she keeps a whistle around her neck in case she needs to call her husband, retired police officer Harry, to her aid.
Tuesday morning around 3:30 she could see smoke and flames from a neighbor’s house through her window and blew the whistle.
KCTV Ch. 5 tells the rest of the story in this video report:
A 19-YR.-OLD WOMAN WAS ARRESTED YESTERDAY and charged with setting 7 fires on Tuesday morning in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. Amanda Gessner was charged with arson, causing or risking catastrophe, criminal mischief, and related charges.
Amanda Gessner
The teen was already on the Fire Chief’s watch list after having been seen at several fires over the past few months taking pictures with her cell phone. She was also known to spend a lot of time hanging around a local fast-mart.
Yesterday morning beginning at 3:05 am a series of seven fires were started in the town. Most of them were brush and trash fires, but one of them was more serious involving a lumber pile next to an occupied house that started the siding on fire. All of the fires were in proximity of Gessner’s home.
Investigators immediately focused on her. They first visited her known hangout at the market and went through Monday’s surveillance camera tapes where they found video of her buying cigarettes, coffee and singing a song: “The fire company is going to be mad at me…..The fire company is going to be mad at me….”
After taking the woman in for questioning, she readily admitted to setting yesterday’s fires. Gessner is unemployed and lives with her parents.
Upper Darby Deputy Fire Chief John Hicks said that a few weeks ago she gave firefighters a “hard time” at the Garrettford Station on Edmonds Avenue. “She enjoyed seeing fire engines, enjoyed seeing fires, and enjoyed taking pictures of fires,” he said. (Wait a minute !! That description fits most of my readers! ….Firegeezer)
She was arraigned yesterday and is being held on $100,000 bail.
The Delaware County Daily Times has the full STORY.
# 5,000
That’s what this is, Firegeezer posting no. 5,000. That’s how many stories, fables and commentaries that we’ve sent out into the digital universe since this site went online in March, 2007.
It sure doesn’t seem like that many, I’ve been having so much fun doing it. Looking back, our early postings seem so primitive compared to what we’re putting up there now. At first I wasn’t even able to put a photo on there effectively. And video? No way. But as we learned-by-doing and added more website skills, we’ve been able to give you something readable, I think.
But I certainly want to thank all of you for taking the time and effort to check in on us every day and reading our articles. We’re getting ready to “kick it up a notch” soon and take Firegeezer to the next level. So stick around and see what we get into next.
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Gimme a dollar!
You know that if you go up to somebody and ask them to give you ten dollars, you’re probably not going to get it. But I learned long ago that if you approach one of your co-workers or a friend and ask, “Gimme a dollar,” they’re likely to just hand one over without even bothering to find out what you need it for.
That’s what came to mind a couple of hours after I posted the article (next one down, keep scrolling) about the horse-drawn ambulance restoration project that the Lambton EMS paramedics in Ontario have taken on. They have raised a little over $1,000 of the $6 thousand that they need to rebuild the left-hand side of the ambulance and finish out the restoration of it. That’s such a modest amount that I’m thinking that the Firegeezer readers just might be able to give them a boost.
For many people it’s a real task to get to someplace where you can get a money order payable in Canadian dollars and then get it into the mail for just a few bucks. But if you can do it with just a click, then why not? And instead of dipping in to your wallet for a tenner or a twenty, how about just pulling out a dollar? Easier, eh?
So here is what I propose. Over on the right sidebar of this webpage, do you see that button that says PayPal-Donate? That permits you to send a cash amount via any credit card without any hassle. So here’s what you do: Go around to everybody on your shift (or better yet, meeting night!) and say “Gimme a dollar.” If they want to know what for, then tell them about the ambulance restoration project.
Then when you’ve collected your contribution, just click on the PayPal button and send it to the Firegeezer account with the notation “ambulance.” After two weeks we’ll bundle them all into one transfer and send it up to those good guys that are doing this. I’ll take care of the currency-exchange fees and see that it gets there. When you send in your collection, be sure to tell me who all are donating, such as “C Shift, Station 3, Podunk FD” or “all the guys at Outback Vol. Rescue Squad” and I’ll make sure that they know who sent it. If you have another job, you could do this at work too, you know. So let’s get with it and put those guys in Lambton over the top.
After we get the equipment checked out, of course. While you get going with that, I’ll go start the coffee. We’ll meet back in the day room.
PARAMEDICS IN LAMBTON, ONTARIO, HAVE TAKEN ON a noble project for their community. Ontario’s last remaining horse-drawn ambulance is housed in the Lambton Heritage Museum in the Great Bend area. The museum acquired the ambulance about 20 years ago, but never had the funds or ability to finish restoration of it.
The Sarnia Observer tells us:
Lambton’s paramedics have taken on the task of raising funds to help protect what remains of the original structure.
With a fundraising goal of $3,000 to $6,000, the paramedics would like to see the ambulance fully restored. Work would include structural stabilization, cosmetic repairs, the rebuilding of one side, the installation of brass coach lamps and the addition of a fiberglass horse.
To date, they have raised a total of $1,600 from a variety of personal donations and special events. Corporate donations have also been made by Allied Medical, Canadian Emergency News and Crestline Ambulance.
“We are hopeful that we are able to raise a full $6,000 by the end of the year so that we can restore this ambulance to its former glory,” said Tom Moore, operations supervisor with the County of Lambton Emergency Medical Services Department and the paramedic who heads the fundraising campaign.
The ambulance was built in 1908 by the Petrolia Wagon Works Co. and was in use up until the first motorized ambulance was put in service.
The ambulance was originally commissioned by the Town of Petrolia and was used to bring the sick and injured to the hospital. It was kept with the fire apparatus at Victoria Hall. The men working in the oil industry surrounding Petrolia were particularly vulnerable to injury in such a dangerous occupation. The ambulance was needed to go out into the oil fields around town to retrieve injured workers and transport them in relative comfort.
If you wish to contribute to the restoration fund, send your donation to:
Lambton Heritage Museum
10035 Museum Road, R.R. #2
Grand Bend, ON Canada N0M 1T0
Indicate that it is to be directed to the “Horse Drawn Ambulance Restoration Fund”
Firegeezer says: $6,000 doesn’t sound like a whole lot, does it? Let’s try and put them over the top. I’m going to send them $10 tomorrow. Anybody want to match me?
Lambton EMS WEBSITE.
THE VIRAL-GROWING NETWORK THAT IS TAKING the world right now has suddenly become so successful that you kind of feel shunned if you don’t know what’s the big deal.
It’s All About Who You Follow
What is Twitter? Well, basically it’s a type of online social network that is comprised of contacts called “followers” who send messages to their peer group. When you post a message on the blog-like message board it only goes to the people who have chosen to follow you. One of the unique features of Twitter is that the messages – called Tweets – are strictly limited to 140 characters and spaces.
But you’re not looking for still another social network, you say. That’s right. When it comes to fire and rescue social networking, Firefighter Nation is the only way to go. BUT … the natural inventiveness of people, especially those who are inclined to serving the emergency services, have tweaked the tweeting programs and come up with new ways to utilize Twitter to enhance fire and rescue communications and training methods. And this is the focus of our series that we are starting today.
Over the next few weeks, or longer if enough things happen to report on, we will be showing you some of the different ways that fire departments and rescue squads are already using Twitter to improve their operations. Hard to believe? Yep, it is. But it’s happening and it is all so new that anything that crops up is trail blazing in a way, and by sharing our experiences with it, all of us will benefit and the methodology will improve as well.
But before we get into those kinds of details, we need to get everybody onto the same page. The Twitter page that is. What we want to do is get you signed up with your own (free) Twitter account and get a feel for how it works first. And that is what we’re going to talk about today. So let’s get signed up and started. OK?
First, go to the home page at www.twitter.com and click on “Join For Free” to set up your account. It’s easy enough for geezers to do, so you can do it too. Use your real name for “name” so that people can find you easily. Your Username is where you enter your nickname (like Firegeezer) and that is what will show on the postings pages.
Once you get your account opened, then log in and click on “Settings” to complete your profile page. Make sure that when fill out your bio. that you put some key words like “firefighter” or “paramedic,” etc. in there so that other Tweeters will be able to find you when they look for new contacts.
Now all you need is someone to follow. Go to “Find People” link at the top right, then click on the Find On Twitter tab. Enter “Firegeezer” and click Follow. Now do the same with “FossilMedic” and there you go…two followers already. After a few days you’ll pick up a few more as other people find you. When someone starts following you, you will get an email letting you know. And if you want to follow them too, then click on their thumbnail picture and click “follow”.
You can learn more about how it works at http://tweeternet.com/
OK, sign up and start practicing and we’ll add some tips for you during the rest of this week. We want you to get comfortable with it. Next Monday we’ll get into the nitty-gritty of how to use Twitter to make your emergency operations flow better. Any questions? Just put them in the Comments here and I’ll answer them. Keep in mind that I’m new at this, too.
A COLLISION TUESDAY BETWEEN A TANKER and a container ship five miles out to sea from Dubai has resulted in both of them becoming ablaze.
all photos Seawings LLC
The tanker that was approaching the port was carrying 30,000 tons of a petroleum distillate that is used to make plastics. The other ship was a smaller container ship that is used to shuttle loads between smaller ports.
When they collided the tanker burst into flame almost immediately and an intense fire ensued. Two of the crewmen were tossed overboard, but they and all other crewmen were safely recovered.
As the tanker’s product leaked through the breached hull it was burned off on the water. The fire was put out shortly after and both ships have now been towed out of the shipping channel.
The Associated Press has the DETAILS.
WHEN A 35-YR.-OLD MAN IN GERMANY got himself juiced up and sped his car into the rear corner of a truck last night near Aachen, the crash killed his buddy in the passenger seat instantly.
The driver though, was able to walk away without apparent injury. But he knew he was in trouble, so he grabbed his dead pal and pulled him out of the car and dragged him around to the driver’s side where he dropped him by the door.
When the police arrived he told them that his friend was driving and he was in the passenger seat. Observing that the passenger side of the car was demolished and he was unscathed, the police soon learned that the man was so drunk that he never noticed all those bystanders, including the truck driver, watching him go through the body placement maneuver.
He’s now being charged with negligent homicide.
The Hamburg Abendblatt has the STORY.
WHEN BRIAN GRIPPANDO WENT BACK to the scene near Paola, Kansas, where his brother died in an auto wreck, he was disturbed to find quite a few body parts still laying around.
The accident happened last week and the victim died on the scene after being ejected from his car during the crash. With the DOA, the ambulance left the scene without any further service. The Kansas Highway Patrol controlled the scene and called the coroner. The coroner pronounced the man and then called a funeral home.
The funeral home then transported the body to the morgue for the autopsy. And on it goes until the victim, Tony Wileford is eventually cremated. Now Grippando is upset and wants to know who is responsible for the oversight. So far everbody is pointing the finger of blame to one of the other agencies, but there is no clear-cut answer.
Grippando collected the pieces, put them in a paper bag and is storing them in his home freezer, wanting to know what to do next.
KCTV Ch. 5 has the video report:
Updated, Feb. 11: scroll down
A NEW MEXICO FIRE INSPECTOR IN THE STATE Fire Marshal’s office was stopped by Albuquerque police Saturday night when he was observed weaving over several lanes of traffic while driving his official vehicle.
This is the slow-to-learn inspector’s second arrest for DWI. He is now on leave from the FMO.
KRQE Ch. 13 has a video report:
Update, Wednesday:
Upon learning of Romero’s arrest and discovering a lengthy record of moving violations including the prior DWI, the state Public Regulation Commission voted late yesterday to fire Romero.
KRQE Ch. 13 has the latest report:
AT LEAST FOUR PEOPLE ARE DEAD AND 70 injured in South Korea after a deliberately-set grass fire got out of control.
About 15,000 people were attending a triennial festival at Hwawang Mountain about 170 miles from Seoul Monday night in which a pampas grass fire is started to see how fast it burns (We are not making this up….FG).
The Great Full Moon Festival celebrates the first full moon of the lunar calendar and it is believed that if the grass burns fast, no problems will arise during the coming year. However, the grass burned more than “fast” and quickly got out of hand, advancing on the crowd of spectators and causing a panicky stampede.
Reuters reports:
“Seven to eight minutes after the event started, a gust of wind came and whipped the fire up toward the tourists,” a local official, who asked not to be named due to the sensitive nature of the subject, told Reuters by telephone.
Local authorities had set up fire-proof fencing but that was not enough to stop the flames from heading toward the crowd, local media reported.
Police said they recovered the four charred bodies of those who were suspected of being trampled in the stampede and burned to death while scores of others suffered injuries caused by the crush of people fleeing and the flames.
The Korea Times has the details HERE.
Updated, post-fire video added. Scroll down.
THE DEVASTATING FIRE THAT DESTROYED the new luxury hotel in Beijing yesterday was ignitied by fireworks being set off by the staff of the company that was building it. (See yesterday’s Firegeezer report HERE.)
The Mandarin Oriental hotel was part of a brand-new complex of buildings occupied by the state-owned China Central Television agency (CCTV). The 44-story high-dollar hotel was scheduled to open in a few months, but yesterday’s fire has almost completely destroyed the building at a loss of up to $800 million.
The oddly-shaped headquarters building of CCTV next to it suffered exterior scorching from the fire, but it did not extend into the building that the citizens mockingly call “the Boot.” The hotel was designed and built by a Dutch architectural firm that spent seven years on the project.
As was mentioned yesterday, it was the final night of the annual spring festival and the entire city was awash with fireworks set off by the citizens. BDGlobal reports:
Chinese investigators are now blaming illegal fireworks, set off by state broadcaster CCTV’s staff as part of celebrations to mark the end of the Chinese Lunar New Year, for the blaze.
In a statement issued today, CCTV said: “Beijing Fire Control Bureau says CCTV staff responsible for the construction of the new TV complex, hired staff to ignite large festive firecrackers outside the building, and caused the fire. The move did not receive approval from related authorities.
Luo Yuan, the deputy chief of the Beijing fire control bureau, told a press conference today that the workers who lit the fireworks were being questioned by police. He said four camcorders had recorded the ignition process and firework display.
He said the fireworks were much more powerful than those usually sold and the display should have had special permission because it took place in a built-up area.
“Owners of the property ignored policemen’s warnings that such fireworks were not allowed,” he said.
Associated Press / Yuan
Tragically, one of the Beijing firefighters died while fighting the blaze. Details of his death are not yet available. Since this fire was caused by and involved the official state information agency, they are embarassed by this event and are releasing information slowly and grudgingly.
Bloomberg News has a recent video report:
See yesterday’s posting HERE for more videos of the fire.
Update, Wednesday:
The Associated Press has filed this video report showing the aftermath of the blaze:
Yesterday was one of those days where I had more things to do than I could handle. You know what I mean, running late with everything. As a result, I failed to get my promised posting up about Twitter. At first I thought I’d try to get it together before I went to bed, but I was just too tired. So I send my apologies and assure you that I’ll have it posted before most of you log on this morning.
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Finally the backbone of winter is behind us. In my latitude winter is at its worst for only six weeks or so, anyway. With the temps. in the 50′s and 60′s all this week, it’s beginning to feel spring-like. Sure, there will be some more days where it dips below freezing. But that will only be for a day or two at a time, no more extended freezes for a week or more.
We were lucky this year, only one real snowfall that stuck to the ground for more than a day. And that is fine with me!
There aren’t many benefits to winter, but one of them that I like a whole lot is called Oyster Season. We’re not far from one of the lower-Chesapeake oyster fleets and getting fresh oysters is not a problem. I bring this up now because last night I had fried oyster subs for dinner. Oh, that is heavenly. Truly one of the great pleasures of life.
People from the inland look at oysters and see a rather disgusting-looking blob and can’t understand why anyone would even think of eating one of those things. There’s an old saying about the bravest man in history being the first one who ate a raw oyster. But once you get past that little hangup it’s a real treat. Most people can handle the fried ones easily enough.
Are we going to talk about food all day? We’d better get this equipment checked out first. I’m going to start the coffee. See you in the day room.
All photos courtesy Watertown Daily Times
It was just over a week ago, on Jan. 31, that Mark Davis, 25, was wantonly killed – murdered – by a patient that his ambulance crew had been dispatched to. (See the Firegeezer report HERE.) This horrendous crime took place in a small village in upstate New York on the U.S./Canadian border, a place where violent crime is rare.
Even more rare is a mortal attack on an EMT like that. This event had a profound effect on emergency responders world-wide. One of these was Captain Tom Lindtveit from the West Hurley Fire Dept. in Ulster County, New York. In his travels as an instructer, Tom has been in the Thousand Islands area, but he did not know Mark personally. But like more than 1,000 other EMT’s and firefighters, he felt compelled to attend the funeral services this past Saturday and was gracious enough to send us this report and his impressions of the memorial. Thank you, Capt. Tom Lindtveit:
Whenever we lose one from our ranks we all feel the loss. Whether it is from our own agency, a neighboring agency, or a distant one, we all feel the loss in some way. The variety of responses to this loss varies with each and every individual. I need not explain this as we all know the range of emotions we go through. Today, Cape Vincent Fire Department, Thousand Islands Emergency Rescue Service (T.I.E.R.S.), Guilfoyle Ambulance Service, and all Jefferson County, New York, Fire, Rescue, EMS, Police, and Military Agencies said goodbye to one of their own.
Mark Davis was 25 years old and had finally found his calling in the EMS world. By all accounts he loved the job and he loved the people he worked with as well as those he served. Mark was an active EMT serving with 3 agencies while also attending classes to become a Paramedic. Mark answered the call for the last time at about 11:30pm on January 30th, 2009. It was a ‘chest pain’ dispatch. While Mark and his partner were treating the patient, the patient became agitated and left the room. At the time, the to EMT’s did not know exactly why, but when they heard the sound of a round being locked into a chamber they both attempted to retreat. Mark didn’t make it out in time and the patient fired 2 rounds, killing Mark with one of them. Another EMT tackled and restrained the patient until PD could take him into custody. Little else is known at this time, but the details don’t really matter, what matters is the aftermath.
Mark left behind a Mother, Father, Sister and Brother, as well as a large number of close friends in Emergency Services. It was on this day, and in this place that they all came to say goodbye, each in their own way while trying to make sense from a senseless act. Mark was taken from us at what should have been the beginning of a promising career. The depth of his loss was evident on the faces and in the words of those he left behind.
The Cape Vincent Fire Department did a fine job for Mark by organizing and executing a memorial service that will be talked about and remembered for many years. Well over 1,000 uniformed personnel from all over attended to bear witness to Mark’s value. From Long Island, Boston, FDNY, and Canada they came to Honor Mark and pay respect to his family. Over 175 pieces of apparatus filled the procession back the the Fire Station from the memorial service which had to be held in the High School as it was the only place large enough to handle the assembled. As it was, the auditorium was overfilled and expansion seating was arranged in a second area with closed circuit TV. Small villages are not used to, or equipped to handle events such as this, but Cape Vincent did a wonderful job. It appeared that everybody in town prepared food for the reception which followed (how do you feed 1,500 on no budget?). Even the weather cooperated with 40 degree temperatures in contrast to 20 below just 2 days before. In spite of this, the 20 mph wind that came steady off the River and the Lake put the wind chill in the ‘very uncomfortable’ category for those who were ‘standing the line’.
Duty, Honor, and Respect. This is what we teach in the Fire and EMS service. That Mark performed his Duty with Honor or treated his fellows and his patients with respect is not in question. What remains to be seen is will we, as responders, be able to Respect the lesson he gave his life to teach us? Will we remember Mark always in our jobs and pass that lesson on to those who come after us. Will we Honor his memory by using his example while we perform our Duty? Mark has done his part. He has answered his final alarm. The task now falls to us to carry on his Duties, perform with Honor, and Respect the lesson he would like to know that we have learned.
Respectfully,
Capt. Tom Lindtveit
Update: Three videos added, scroll down.
A NOT-YET-OPEN 44-STORY LUXURY HOTEL is burning from the first to the top floor today. The fire started around 9:30 pm Monday evening China time (8:30 am Eastern) in the Mandarin Oriental hotel that was due to open later this year. After the flames were first spotted, it was but 20 minutes until the entire building was alight.
Reuters
The streets of central Beijing were filled with merry-makers celebrating the last day of the annual spring festival. The entire sky was filled with fireworks all evening, but it is not known if that was a factor in the fire which is still burning. One spectator, Li Jian said he saw smoke arising from the 44-story hotel’s roof shortly after a huge burst of fireworks showered it with sparks, though it was not clear if they started the fire.
“Smoke came out for a little while but then it just started burning,” Li said.
The 241-room hotel is part of China Central Television’s new headquarters complex and is located right next to the CCT headquarters building. Some early reports say that the TV building has also become involved in the fire, but that has not been confirmed.
Associated Press
Beijing usually restricts the use of fireworks in the downtown area, but waives the rules each year during the Lunar New Year holiday. Monday, the final day of the exemption period, marked the first full moon since the Lunar New Year, and massive fireworks barrages exploded between buildings and in open spaces throughout the city.
At the time of this writing, the fire brigade has the fire under control and has knocked the bulk of it down, but areas are still burning.
This story will be updated later when more information becomes available.
Reuters has an early report HERE.
Reuters
A HOT-AIR BALLOONIST DIDN’T GET ENOUGH lift in his loft Sunday evening when his craft drifted into a 138,000-volt power line near the Terre Haute, Indiana, airport.
The pilot was losing altitude when he attempted to increase the burner that generates the hot air, but the valve was stuck and would not function. As he was trying to start a backup burner, the balloon drifted into the electric lines and immediately caught fire.
When the basket dropped to the ground, the pilot and his passenger were able to run away from the burning wreckage, but the passenger suffered burns and had to be hospitalized.
The first-in firefighters extinguished the remainder of the fire with hand extinguishers and by shoveling dirt onto the debris.
WTHI Ch. 10 has a video report:
WHEN A WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, AMBULANCE CREW, along with a supporting fire engine, responded to a medical call for chest pains, their initial assessment began not with the patient’s vital signs, but with the sizable stash of firearms laying about the house.
They immediately called for police assistance and retreated from the house. When the police arrived they found about 80 weapons sitting out in the open and a suspcious parcel in the refrigerator. After obtaining a search warrant for the entire house, they began a thorough search and found more weapons in virtually every one of the home’s eight rooms. They also called for the state police bomb squad and the state haz-mat team.
The Worcester home of Paul Mateiko
(Telegram & Gazette photo)
By the time they were finished several hours later, they had retrieved 101 firearms including seven machine guns, four of them in working condition. The bomb squad removed 3/4 lb. of C-4 plastic explosive and detonated it in a nearby parkland, leaving a 4-foot crater in the ground.
The resident, Paul D. Mateiko, 54, has been arrested and was charged with four counts of illegal possession of a machine gun and possession of an infernal machine (C-4 plastic explosives). He will be arraigned today.
The Worcester Telegram & Gazette has the story HERE and HERE.
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