Another Misguided Move to Bring Notoriety to Your FD
Update, Friday: The fire department has said that the incident with the Venice fire engine took place between two and three years ago, but has just recently been brought to their attention.
THE LOS ANGELES CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT is looking into the recent, unauthorized use of one of their engines, from Station 63 in Venice, that was used as a prop for some video antics featuring a porn movie actress. KNBC-TV broke the story:
LAFD insiders recently tipped off NBCLA that several firefighters allowed porn producers to use their fire engines in two adult movies that are available on one of the world’s biggest porn websites.
NBC4
In one of the movies, shot at Venice Beach, LAFD Engine 263 is used as the backdrop by an actress performing lewd acts. Firefighters "set it all up ahead of time" with "the film crew" because they thought it was "good clean fun,"an insider told NBC4 LA.
For several minutes of the movie, the actress appears to have free access to the engine, and asks numerous passersby to fondle her. "Look, I think we have more friends," she says, as a group of men stop to fondle the actress.
This video report from Channel 4 (un)covers it all:
"Stupid" runs from coast to coast. Dave Statter at STATter911 has been documenting a recent YouTube folly from Macon, Georgia, that has led to one firing and four lengthy suspensions. If you haven't caught that one yet, CLICK HERE to see what's going on with that.
I meant to show you this three weeks ago, but other stuff kept popping up along with the 9/11 commemorations and it just slowly slid down the InBox pile. The head of our search team, Mark Donovan came across this unusual antique fire engine that is currently being cared for in Gorham, Maine. This is Big Red – The Monster Fire Truck.
Big Red has its own Facebook page where we are told that it is taken to parades and other outdoor events and used to generate contributions for several local children's charities. The owners provide this description of the beast:
The 1937 International fire truck is a 100% operational fire aparatus with 350 gallons of on board water. Big Red was originally in service with the Danville, Ky. Fire Dept. Measuring nearly 40 ft in length, 12 ft 4 in wide and 11 ft 9 and 1/2 inches tall, this "Big Red Monster" weighs in at 35,000 lbs. Unlike most other retired fire engines however, this one was turned into a monster truck powered by Cummins Diesel Engines.
Big Red is owned by Shaw Brothers Construction in Gorham, Maine. Glenn Meehan is the man behind the wheel when Big Red is out doing parades or involved in different events.
This monster has already broken several Guinness World Records including the world's heaviest and longest monster truck.
The body and frame are all original, but that suspension…. wow! The tires are 66 x 43 x 25. Just 3-½ yrs. ago it sold at auction for a mere $26,000. Talk about a great parade piece, eh?
They have a lot of photos on their FB page, so when you get a chance, click on over there and take a peek.
Since they keep it fully operational, I wonder what their daily check sheet looks like? What do you suppose some of the items on that one are?
Well, we'd better look at our morning checksheets now and make sure our own monsters are ready to go. I'm going to get some more coffee started, then we'll meet back in the day room.
One of our goals this year is to celebrate the proud history of the fire service by showcasing hand, horse and motorized antique fire apparatus. We will be displaying many of these units during the fire expo. More info. on website: http://www.2011pastateconvention.com/
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Cape Girardeau, Missouri, is Hosting Their Annual
To order you can contact one of the people listed above or you can email to: dkoerber1@gmail.com. Orders will be ready for pick-up at the fire truck rally anytime after lunch. Thanks for your support and we look forward to seeing everyone at this year's rally.
WPI Firefighters' Fund 7th Annual Stop-Drop-n-Roll Chili Cook-Off
When? Saturday, October 15th, 2011 10 am – 5 pm
Where? Parking lot of Bass Pro Shop in Grapevine, TX
Update: Chili Team Registration is now open!
An October Texas tradition, the annual Stop-Drop-n-Roll Chili Cook-Off brings in thousands of rabid chili enthusiasts nationwide. Admission is free, and all-day chili sample cups are $5 a pop. Every dollar contributed or donated goes directly to the WPIFF: no expenses, no red tape, and no neglected firefighters.
$20 to register your chili team, prizes awarded to winners, vendor booths, kids activities, live music, raffle, and much more!
The parade features antique fire engines, modern fire trucks, antique cars, local ROTC groups,
the Kansas Firefighter Calendar contestants, food, drinks, games and more.
Do you have a fire-related event, muster, antique show, flea market, etc., coming up? Send us the info. to: geezerguys (at) yahoo (dot) com. Be sure to include website links, graphics and phone contact, and we'll post it in our Upcoming Events listings. (Special thanks to Collectors Weekly for assistance http://www.collectorsweekly.com/ )
OKLAHOMA POLICE AGENCIES ARE BEGINNING to think that the man who murdered Nichols Hills Fire Chief Keith Bryan may have mistakenly targeted the wrong man. When the killer walked into Bryan's home Tuesday night and shot him point-blank in the head, the murderer then turned to Bryan's wife and said, "I'm sorry. He should have given me the f—–g job."
The killer's statement lends belief that he was recently turned down for employment at the FD, but the officials there say they have not done any hiring since 2007, four years ago. It was then that other facts started falling into place:
Oklahoma City FD has been hiring lately.
Nichols Hills is bordered on two sides by Oklahoma City.
Nichols Hills fire chief is named Keith Bryan.
Oklahoma City fire chief is named Keith Bryant (one letter difference in spelling)
THE PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY FAST CAR that was stolen in Scotland and reported HEREon Tuesday has been recovered. The car which is the only one of its type in Scotland, was found Tuesday in an overgrown field completely burned out.
STV
Later the police identified a man who was involved in several burglaries in the area including the house where the emergency car's keys were kept.
STV reports:
George Halliday, 35, of Ferguson Street, Johnstone, has been remanded in custody following a brief appearance on petition.
Mr Halliday is charged with stealing the vehicle, and also with breaking into a house in the same street and stealing two sets of car keys, electrical items, two laptop computers personal papers, bank cards and a number of NHS documents.
Mr Halliday made no declaration during his brief appearance in chambers, represented by defence agent Charlie McCusker and was remanded in custody when the case against him was continued for further examination by Sheriff Colin McGrory.
The car and the equipment it contained are a total loss.
STV has the latest information and a video report HERE.
Review Tuesday's report on the theft with details on the vehicle itself HERE.
Update, 3 pm: Details of confrontation released. Scroll Down.
Update #2: Additional video added with later information.
Update #3: Police think the killer may have targeted the wrong man. See our detailed update on this strange twist in our later posting HERE.
NICHOLS HILLS, OKLAHOMA, FIRE CHIEF KEITH BRYAN died this morning (Wednesday) after being shot Tuesday night in his own house.
Mustang Police and OSBI agents are looking for the man who entered the Bryan's home at 10 pm last night, walked up to Bryan and made a verbal statement before shooting him in the head. The gunman then fled without taking anything in the house.
Keith Bryan (KOCO)
Police say that the killer entered the house through an open garage door and that his wife witnessed the event. She gave the police a description of the man and was able to provide a description of the car he left in. Chief Bryan died this morning at 6 am Central in the hospital.
No other information has been released yet. Firegeezer will update when we can.
KOCO-TV has the early report HERE. and this video report:
Update, 3 pm EDT:
It is now being reported that the killer walked up to Bryan in the living room of the house after entering through the garage door, then aimed the gun at his head and fired. The killer then turned to Mrs. Bryan and uttered: "I'm sorry. He should have given me the f—–g job." He then left the house directly and drove away.
The Nichols Hills Fire Department has released the following statement:
It is with deepest regret the City of Nichols Hills announces the loss of Fire Chief Keith Bryan. Chief Bryan passed away at 0600 this morning at OU Medical Center. Chief Bryan began his career at Nichols Hills 31 years ago, on August 20, 1980. Funeral arrangements are pending at this time.
We want to thank everyone who has offered support and encouragement. Obviously this is a very difficult time for the City of Nichols Hills and the Nichols Hills Fire Department. We have had many offers of support and assistance from all area fire departments to man our station, but our firefighters are on duty making calls.
Update #2: KOTV Ch. 6 has filed an updated video report that includes the description of the killer:
IRVING, TEXAS, FIRE CAPTAIN Billy Gene "Shakey" Holder will be running his last call this Saturday when he retires after serving the FD for 55 years. That's right, five-five years. Captain Holder is 77 years old and a local legend as what is believed to be the oldest front-line, active firefighter in the country.
Capt. Holder
He came to work in the Irving FD on December 1, 1955 and has served proudly ever since. Today he still passes the stringent annual physical testing that all Irving firefighters are required to take.
Back in February of this year, KDFW-TV ran this video interview with "Shakey" and he explains how he got his nickname:
Firegeezer notes: In February we posted the announcement HERE that Franck Gaviot-Blanc, a fire research scientist in France who specializes in advanced research into fire behavior and extinguishment methodology, has invented a revolutionary new nozzle that is designed to suppress "flashover" conditions in a fire building and protect the firefighters inside from the deadly effects of the flashover. This is done by creating an engineered fog pattern designed to suppress and cool the fire gasses that are waiting for ignition and flashover.
Franck Gaviot-Blanc
This new nozzle is ready for the market now and it will be introduced tomorrow (Thursday) at the 3-day annual National Congress of Firefighters in Nantes, France (similar to the Fire Rescue International in the U. S.). Franck has chosen Firegeezer.com to publish the details of the nozzle today, one day early, as the official international announcement. Our European correspondent Laurence Delorme "Fireball" interviewed Franck Gaviot-Blanc about his new design and is posted here.
Update, October 14: Technical video added. Scroll down to end.
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Introducing the "Optimal Nozzle"
Fireball: 1. Why did you give it this name, Optimal Nozzle?
FGB: I wanted to give a short name to this nozzle but I also wanted to point out the term optimal related to this nozzle because of its ergonomics. With its shape of a pistol, this nozzle can be used easily with your 2 hands and the fact that there is no drain, this reduces the number of handlings. You will make fewer mistakes when you operate with this nozzle, especially when you will have to operate in the dark or in a building with a lot of smoke. The way the water is delivered, each setting has been built/designed to reach one goal, to get an optimal water delivery (flow rate) where you can fight fire or cool gasses. The training to use this nozzle is very short, just 1 minute for each probie or firefighter.
2. For what kind of fires will you use this nozzle?
FGB: this nozzle will be mainly used to attack what we call "under-ventilated" fires. (flashover conditions.) Let me give you some examples or scenario of a structure fire:
First scenario: I arrive at the structure fire and there are flames coming out of the windows of the structure.
Second scenario: I arrive and there is smoke and very few flames. I go inside the burning building and i do the vent-enter-search where there is a lot of smoke around me. Finally I find the seat of the fire which is not very intense or strong and i stop this fire.
Third scenario: I arrive at the firescene, there is smoke and nearly no visible flames. I go inside the building and i do V-E-S with a lot of smoke, and while i'm inside the building blazes up. The seat of the fire will become very large.
In the first scenario, most of the time the fire is large,strong, and the thermal radiance of the flames hamper the firefighters. They will have to use many nozzles from outside with a flow rate of 500liters/per minute for each nozzle. The Optimal nozzle has been designed for the scenarii 2 and 3. This means that when firefighters have to go inside a burning building and operate a nozzle, they will have to cool gasses around them.
3. How long did it take to you to design this nozzle?
FGB: I have asked my boss IFPEN to begin work on this project in June 2006. From June 2006 to February 2007 I have tried to find an industrial partner which could help me to create this nozzle and to sell it. A partnership was signed in June 2007 and a patent was registered. I'm the inventer, but the patent belongs to my boss, IFPEN. Many tests have been done,and the nozzle will be on the market at the end of this month, September 2011. It took me 6 years to realize my project from my first idea of this nozzle to today, where we have the final product, a fog nozzle for under-ventilated fires.
4. Will the nozzle will be sold on the European market only?
FGB: The nozzle will be sold by 2 different companies. One, Gallin, will be in charge of the distribution in France, and the other company, Pok will sell it in the other countries including North America.
5. Why did you create this nozzle?
FGB: In France, calls for fire are not numerous in the fire service. They represent 10% of the activity of a French firefighter. Less than 1% of the structure fires need to have firefighters inside the burning building. It is extremely rare that you have firefighters who need to operate inside the burning building. But when that happens, these fires are very dangerous and it is always hard to deal with them. You have firefighters inside the building and the fire spreads very quickly.
Most of the nozzles that we use nowadays have not been designed for interior operations. To fight fire inside the building, those nozzles have been designed by people who just tried to adjust their nozzles to work inside burning buildings, so a lot of mistakes happen. Too many possibilities concerning the adjustment for the firefighter on his nozzle when he wants to fight a fire inside.
There is a lack of training concerning nozzles and a lack of time too. The nozzles have a lot of possibilities/options, and the firefighters do not have enough time to learn to use them correctly. I really think that technology could make life easier for the firefighters and not more difficult.
6. Give us some details about this nozzle.
FGB: This fog nozzle has only 2 flow rates, one for each setting. The flow rate of the peripheric setting (made of 4 holes) and which allows you to fight fires or to make long pulse is 250 liters per minute up to 6 bars (pressure) for an angle of 25 degrees.
Fire suppression setting
The flow rate of the central setting which allows you to make short pulses for gas cooling, or produce a fog pattern is 95 liters per minute at an angle of 55 degrees.
Gasses cooling setting
The nozzleman can easily switch from one mode to the other by turning the adjuster at the end of the nozzle. (Like the way American nozzles adjust their patterns….ed.)
The optimal nozzle can flush itself. In the European standards, when you have nozzles with a flow rate which can reach 250 liters per minute, they have to flush themselves.
7. What are the advantages of this nozzle?
FGB: a) easy to use. b) time of training is very short when you want to learn to use it. c) self-flushes itself. d) optimal efficiency.
Thank you, Franck.
National Congress of Firefighters (CSPNA) WEBSITE.
Update, October 14:
The technical video that was presented at the congress is now presented here:
I'm sure that you know by now that you should never, never, give out your password to any of your online accounts, including email, social networks, and financial accounts. But I want to re-emphasize it this morning because there are some really slick tricksters out there and they can still catch you if you get the least bit careless. And they stay right on top of whatever is popular at the moment.
Recently there has been a boost in people seeking connections in their LinkedIn networking accounts and it is not unusual to get requests from people you never heard of before asking you to Link In with them. But the other day I received what looked like one of these routine requests that immediately sent up the warning flags. You see, it arrived at a different email address from the one that my LinkedIn account uses. Very fishy. Then, treading carefully, I proceded into the Accept zone and this is what came up next:
Definitely a phishing site trying to steal passwords to email accounts. I'd bet that the contact they are using is a genuine LinkedIn member who has no idea that his account is being corrupted this way. This is life today in the internet era. STAY ALERT.
Now let's head for the daily check sheet and get this equipment checked out for today. I'll get some genuine coffee going for us.
A REGIONAL TRAIN IN LAUTERBACH, GERMANY, collided with an auto on the tracks Tuesday causing 3 of the train's 4 cars to derail with one of them tumbling into a meadow.
EPA
The incident was triggered when a car was stopped at the crossing waiting for the train to pass and a van rear-ended the car, knocking it onto the right-of-way. The driver of the car had just enough time to bail out and get away from the car before the train plowed into it.
Sky News
Nine people on the train were seriously injured and were transported by helicopter. Another 40 passengers were treated for minor injuries. There were about 70 passengers on the train when it crashed.
ABOUT 17 PEOPLE WERE SLIGHTLY INJURED Tuesday morning in Harlem, New York City, when a construction scaffold suddenly collapsed onto a bus next to the sidewalk.
New York Post
The btus was at a stop and the waiting passengers had just boarded when the structure came down, missing the near-victims by just moments. The scaffolding was covering a 5-story building on West 125th Street during a major renovation. The New York Timesreports:
A police spokesman at the scene said that eight of the injured people were passengers on the bus and that two police officers sustained minor injuries. He said it appeared from preliminary accounts that during work on the elevator shaft in building, bricks fell from building onto the scaffolding, knocking it down.
At the scene of the accident, a busy commercial strip lined with clothing stores and other retail stores, firefighters swarmed the bus and the collapsed scaffolding.
New York Times
The scaffold along with part of the building's facade came down without warning at 9:30 am, trapping the bus's 30 passengers. Fourteen of them were transported, all with minor injuries, along with two police officers who were already at the location and had immediately started to dig through the rubble. There are also reports that as many as four of the injuries were construction workers.
WABC-TV posted this video report:
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Google Street View of the 4- and 5-story building
that is being renovated.
A SPECIALIST-CARE CHILDREN'S MEDICAL car was stolen from the home of a duty-call medic whose house was burgled during the night Sunday/Monday and the car keys were taken then. It was then driven away and hasn't been seen since, even though it is brightly adorned with ambulance markings along with flashing lights and a siren.
Daily Record
The (Scotland) Daily Record reports:
The Subaru Forester 4×4 – bought last year after major fundraising efforts – was nabbed by a thief who pocketed the car keys during a housebreaking. Last night, medics and charity workers who helped raise money to buy the rapid-response, all-terrain vehicle were "devastated".
The missing vehicle, which is decked out with intensive care equipment, is clearly marked as a kids' ambulance and has flashing lights and sirens. It was found to be missing at 7am (Monday) when the burglary in Thomson Avenue was discovered.
The ambulance is used to get sick kids from all over Scotland to the country's two children's intensive care units in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
The vehicle, operated by the NHS's Scottish Paediatric Intensive Care Transport Service, gets medical teams to sick children quicker than normal ambulances.
The ambulance was a gift donated last year from Subaru to the Yorkhill Children's Foundation, which raises funds for Yorkhill Childrens Hospital in Glasgow.
Shona Cardle, the Foundation's Chief Executive, told Sky News: "The theft of this life-saving vehicle is not just a car theft.
"This is a vital life-saving vehicle which is used to ensure the quick response needed to save the lives of sick children and babies from all over Scotland. Yorkhill Children's Foundation is appalled that the life of a child or baby could be put in jeopardy by this mindless crime."
"Speed kills…" - "Don't drink and drive…."
and all that other stuff.
A CALIFORNIA MAN WHO ALREADY HAD 2 DUI convictions and was scheduled for trial on a third offense, lost control of his 1999 Ferrari Sunday morning on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. He was driving at least 90 mph in a 45-mph zone when he entered a series of S-curves and sailed into a power pole.
AP
The impact ejected the driver Vladimir Skvortsov, 24, and his passenger Basil Price, 23, and broke the sports car neatly into two parts. The passenger was killed immediately and the driver was left in critical condition as the two halves of the Ferrari were tossed over a 30-ft. cliff onto the ocean beach below.
Police say that the driver is not the registered owner of the car, but there is speculation that the two men had taken it without permission.
KTLA-TV posted this video report from the scene:
Read more details of the incident in the Los Angeles TimesHERE.
A $1.5-million Ferrari Enzo took a bath in the Atlantic Ocean after its driver lost control and veered the bright yellow, custom ride off a Newfoundland road.
Zahir Rana, the car’s driver and owner, was competing in a stage of the Targa Newfoundland race Sept. 16 when he hit a gravel patch and spun into the water.
He and his navigator, Roland Linder, who was also in the vehicle, were not injured. Reports say the Ferrari was not totalled — just "a little waterlogged" with a cracked headlight.
ZR Auto caught the crash on video:
Jalopnik has more details on the crash and the car itself HERE. The Ferrari Enzo is reputed to be the world's fastest street car, capable of 240 mph.
Have you ever played with one of those computerized anagram locaters? Up until about 15 years ago, people old and young would sometimes have fun playing at finding anagrams within words or phrases. (AN-uh-gram, noun: A word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase.) It was not only fun, once in a while, but it's a terrific mind exercise for children. It gets them thinking as they try to find different words within the selected group of letters, and it helps build their vocabulary skills. Short, 2- or 3-word phrases are best because you have a lot to work with and by using your imagination you can come up with some funny sayings.
But with the intrusion of the personal computer into our daily lives, we don't have to think anymore and the game of anagrams is reduced to a punch of the button and a moment's pleasure in reading off the results. For instance, entering the word firehydrant (leave out spaces and punctuation when entering), will bring up over 530 anagrams, using a 2-letters per word minimum. Most of them are nonsensical combinations of words, but if you look through them you might find a jewel among the trash. Some people like to try it with the names of notable people (or their own name if it's long enough to be intersting).
There are several anagram generators online such as this one, but you can find more by just entering anagram finder into a search engine. But for your kid's sake, teach them how to do it themselves first. Exercise their mind and imagination.
Rifftrax
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With this being the 20th of the month, I was wondering when Autumn officially begins. These solstices and equinoxes tend to land on the 21st or 22nd of the appropriate months, so I checked it out. This year Autumn arrives a little later than usual. In North America it begins early Friday morning, the 23rd just after 5 am EDT. Ok, so now we know.
We also know that we have to get this equipment checked out, so this is a good time to get going with that. I'm on my way to the coffee-maker now. See you back in the day room. (There are 35 anagrams for dayroom, including "a dry moo.")
CITIZEN JOURNALIST ROY BERCAW was strolling around the grounds of Hahvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with his video camera the other day where he documented the mind-set of the academic elite:
Roy reports: This shows the rear of two residential buildings owned and operated by The President and Fellows of Harvard College. With clearly displayed Fire Lane No Parking signs five VIPs park their cars on September 13, 2011 at about 2:30 PM creating a barrier for exiting these buildings in case of an emergency. It also blocks emergency workers from entering the buildings to help evacuate the residents.
Apparently there isn't much concern if the Little People are trapped and burned. The school has a waiting list, anyway.
DESPITE EXTENSIVE EDUCATION AND LOBBYING by the Calgary, Alberta, Fire Chief Bruce Burrell and others, the Calgary city council's special committee decided to drop the proposed legislation that would mandate sprinklers in new, single-family homes.
Calgary City Council (CBC)
The Calgary Herald reports:
The decision was made following meetings between the housebuilding industry and a city council committee.
Carol Oxtoby, president of the Canadian Home Builders' Association-Calgary Region, was pleased with the decision. The industry supports customer choice and encourages its builders to offer sprinklers as an option," she says. "It also believes the new Alberta Building Code has increased protection against the spread of fire and it would be premature to layer another set of fire protection measures – in this case, in the form of sprinklers – while we are still evaluating the additional protection offered by these changes over the past two years.
"But if a homeowner is not comfortable, they have the choice to improve that by installing sprinkler systems."
The meek city council then announced that their recommendation is to continue to educate homeowners on the benefits of fire sprinklers while allowing them to make a choice. Whereupon Firegeezer exclaimed, "They don't HAVE a choice, you dunderheads. Who buys their house before it is built?"
A HORSE STANDING IN THE MIDDLE of a Tulsa, Oklahoma, street was struck by a car Monday morning around 6:30 am Central. The impact tossed the horse into the oncoming lane where it was then struck by an EMSA ambulance coming the opposite direction.
Firefighter / Wrangler keeps horse under control while units
wait for veterniarian to arrive. (KOTV image)
None of the passengers of either the car or the ambulance were injured, but a veterinarian had to be called to the scene to put the horse down.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, FIREFIGHTERS RESCUED TWO residents from a burning home Sunday night, reviving one of them on the scene. When the first units arrived shortly after 11 pm Central Sunday night, they found a man on the roof just outside a dormer window and reports from people outside that there was still a woman inside the building.
WISN-TV
The truck crew immediately laddered the front and got the male victim off the roof while the inside teams began a primary search. The woman was located quickly and taken outside, but she was not breathing and had no pulse. The paramedics revived her on the scene and when they transported her she was awake and talking. She remains in intensive care with 3rd-degree burns. Three other people escaped the fire on their own before the FD arrived.
The fire began in the basement and Battalion Chief Hunnicut says that they did not find any working smoke detectors.
WTMJ-TV filed this raw video from the scene and about 3 minutes in the battalion chief on the scene gives an informative statement:
Yes, that's right. We warned you it was coming, and it's here … today ….International Talk Like a Pirate Day. If you'll recall (or even if you don't), we sent the warning shot across the bow last Tuesday HERE, so click back if you need to review the details. I hope you have been polishing up your "pirate lingo" for today, you're bound to come across some mateys and lubbers along the way. And if you're working in the firehouse today, be sure to answer the station phone with a mighty "Aarrrrr!" followed up with something like, "What are yer seeking, you scurvy bilge rat?" If your cheery greeting leaves the puzzled citizen a little breathless, then you continue, "Speak up, ye worthless bung hole, I ain't got time to wait fer some mangy cockroach to git off the pot! Aarrrrrr!"
I'm sure you know the drill by now. And if you forgot to bring along yer uniform, the Cerritos Patch has quick instructions on how to make a paper pirate hat HERE.
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Mark D. passed along an article from the Biddeford, Maine, Journal Tribune about a 1st-responder fire/police/ems training video that was being taped on the Maine Turnpike last week. Matt Kiernan of the Journal Tribune wrote in part,
The Southern Maine Regional Planning Commission hired Kennebunk-based Video Creations production company to film an eight-minute movie to train (police and firefighters) on how to close lanes, position their vehicles and establish safety in multiple emergency response scenarios. In the works since February and costing $10,000, the film was paid for by the SMRPC and a MTA transportation grant, according to Tom Reinauer, SMRPC transportation director, and is expected to be released soon after its December completion date.
At noon on Monday, filming began on how fire trucks should be parked when a totaled car lay in a ditch, leaving a passenger possibly hurt. Saco, Wells and Kennebunk EMS and fire departments participated in the shoot, along with state police.
"Firemen and police will be able to sit down, view the video, and discuss it amongst each other afterwards," said Lt. Kevin Donovan of the Maine State Police, adding that the idea has been well-received by police and firefighters.
Local agencies have already hosted 15 training classes during the last six months in Saco, Biddeford, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Ogunquit, York, Wells and Kittery, according to Reinauer, and the video will provide a visual source of education. "It’s good to get everyone on the same page if they’re the first to show up to an incident," said Reinauer.
Press Herald photo
You might wonder why, with all the info. already available out there, they are going to all this trouble to make still another training guide for lane closure? But a specific goal in this production is to coordinate all the agencies in how the work will be done and standardize the radio nomenclature so that everybody is understanding each other and speaking "the same language." And $10K isn't a whole lot of money to get a good training resource like this. In the past couple of years we have seen some disgusting videos from other states where police have treated the fire units as literal enemies going so far as to arrest fire captains for their refusal to stop blocking a traffic lane to protect the fire and EMS people working the scene. I never had that problem in the state where I worked, and most places don't. It's good to see the Maine State Police making sure it doesn't happen there, either.
We don't need a video showing us how to get this equipment checked out, though. So let's get started on that while I fire up the Bunn-O-Matic for one more pot. See you back in the day room. Slow down and keep to the left.
A CHAIN-REACTION PILEUP ON THE A5 Autobahn in Osthessen, Germany, Sunday afternoon left more than 30 people injured, several critically. One was an infant that was revived on the scene and flown to the hospital.
HR-Online
The crash happened around 1:45 pm when more than 20 cars and 2 motorcycles driving on the rain-soaked freeway ran into each other, leading others to pile up behind.
One of the firetrucks responding to the scene, a tanker-pumper from Grunberg slid on the wet highway leading to the autobahn and rolled over injuring the three FF's on board, at least one of them critically.
photos via HR-Online
A second wreck around 2:30 pm when a breakdown that was pulled over to the shoulder was struck from behind by two other cars. That added six more to the injury list. At least six helicopter ambulances worked the accident along with several ambulances.
As of Sunday evening no fatalities had been reported.
HR-Online has the story and more photos HERE. Osthessen News has MORE.
Grunberg Feuerwehr Tanker apparatus website PAGE.
The day we have been alerting you to has finally arrived. This is the final day that the tv episodes of Emergency! will be available for free on the internet. After today, all episodes will be moved over to the Hulu-Plus service and will be charged for downloading.
It's been a great 20 months that we have been riding along with Roy and Johnny. They are just like other members of our shift by now. The Geezerguys are glad that you were able to ride along with us. After today the entire Sunday Emergency! category archives will be disabled, too. So pull up the computer chair for 49 minutes and 44 seconds and enjoy this episode.
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Season Three – Episode 14
Computer Error
The computer makes a mistake and paramedic Gage's dinner costs $842
THE TERLTON, OKLAHOMA, FIRE CHIEF who disappeared the same day as the FD's bank account has been caught in New Mexico.
Charles Badgwell has been on the lam since the 8th of this month when the Pawnee County sheriff opened an investigation into his disappearance along with the money.
Firegeezer posted a video report HERElast Tuesday outlining the incident.
The Tulsa World is reporting:
Charles Dean Badgwell, 54, and girlfriend Janet Lynne Kirby, 58, are awaiting extradition to Pawnee County after they were arrested in Deming, N.M., on Friday, said Pawnee County Sheriff Mike Waters.
Pawnee County prosecutors filed embezzlement charges against Badgwell and Kirby on Friday, court records show.
Badgwell has been incarcerated twice in Oklahoma, according to Department of Corrections records. He was sentenced to four years in the mid-1980s on a stolen property conviction and was sentenced to one year in 2002 for false impersonation.
A 19-YR.-OLD VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER in Decatur, Alabama, was arrested Friday and charged with five counts of Rendering a False Alarm, a Class A misdemeanor. A second youth, age 17, is also expected to be charged with making two more of the false calls.
Clint McAbee (Decatur PD)
Clint McAbee was quickly identified as the culprit after the Morgan County dispatch center began noticing several false calls beginning in June and all of them involved the Punkin Center VFD. After working with the phone company to review the phone logs, it was determined that McAbee made most of them and the case was turned over to the Decatur Police Department.
WAAY-TV filed this video report:
McAbee had been a member of the VFD for seven months and had shown no tendencies to questionable actions while he was going through his initial training. He faces up to one year in prison on each of the five charges.
Google Street View
WAFF-TV has the STORY.
The Decatur Daily has MORE.
Sunday Morning – Are You a "Friend" or Just a "Subscriber"?
Facebook is tinkering again, but this time it's to our benefit. They announced Wednesday that FB will be adding a new feature to their connections options called "Subscribe." It will allow somebody to follow your postings (or you to follow theirs) without having to become Friends. This could be called the Twitter Option because that is the result of becoming a subscriber.
With the competition heating up between the three major social networks (well, Google-Plus isn't a major network yet, but they will be), This is Facebook's belated attempt to keep up. PCWorld describes it better than I can:
On Facebook, there are two different classes of subscribers: your friends and everybody else. Your friends are already subscribed to get your updates as they always have, and you, in turn, are subscribed to their updates.
If you choose to allow public subscribers, then those people will only see the content you share that is marked public. Let's say Jim subscribes to the profile of Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg. Jim will then see all the public updates that Zuckerberg shares such as status updates, game activity, photos and videos, and life events such as marital and employment status. Zuckerberg, on the other hand, will never see Jim's updates unless Jim has allowed public subscribers to follow his profile and Zuckerberg chooses to subscribe to Jim. This is basically the follow-followers model that Twitter uses.
If you're concerned about strangers subscribing to your profile against your will, you can rest easy. A Facebook official said the social network will not force you to allow people to subscribe to your public updates. This is an entirely opt-in part of the new subscribe function.
This is nice, and long-overdue. As you might expect, I have a lot of FB Friends who follow me to get the story links that I post. And to be honest with you, I really don't care so much that they need 20 more buckets of slop for their pigpen at Farmville.
The buttons are starting to show up on everybody's profile pages and by the end of next week, just about everybody will be hooked in. There is still more to learn about this, but I am slow in picking this kind of stuff up. I'm sure we will all be exposed to some directions on it, but I can't get going until I get some more coffee.
So let's get started with the equipment check and I'll get that java going. See you back in the day room.
Calgary City Council Sells Out Its Own Citizens
1 commentHomebuilders Association "Pleased"
DESPITE EXTENSIVE EDUCATION AND LOBBYING by the Calgary, Alberta, Fire Chief Bruce Burrell and others, the Calgary city council's special committee decided to drop the proposed legislation that would mandate sprinklers in new, single-family homes.
Calgary City Council (CBC)
The Calgary Herald reports:
The meek city council then announced that their recommendation is to continue to educate homeowners on the benefits of fire sprinklers while allowing them to make a choice. Whereupon Firegeezer exclaimed, "They don't HAVE a choice, you dunderheads. Who buys their house before it is built?"
Read the announcement in the Calgary Herald HERE.
Thanks to Mark D.
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