A CAREER FIREFIGHTER IN RHONE DISTRICT, FRANCE, was killed Sunday afternoon along with his three children when his car was struck by a passenger train at a rural crossing. His wife was critically injured and remains in an induced coma at the hospital.
Captain David Gutty was assigned to the St. Priest fire station. It is not known why he pulled onto the crossing with the train approaching at 60 mph. The train driver applied his emergency brakes when he saw the car in the crossing, but when he struck the Opel it cut the car in half and traveled another 200 meters before coming to a stop with half the car still embedded in the front cowling of the locomotive. Capt. Gutty, 37, was killed instantly as well as the three children ages 7, 5, and 3 months.
Captain Gutty began his career in Lyon in 1997 and was transferred to St.Priest in 2009.
Nobody knows why Gutty was on that road because it does not lead to his home. The railroad says that the crossing has less than a dozen autos per day going over it. The train was deadheading and the two drivers were not injured.
Update: Funeral held Saturday.
The funerals for David Gutty and his three children, Maxine, Jeanne and William, were held Saturday in Bagnols. Firefighters from the entire Rhone region were in attendance for the somber service.
Investigation is continuing into the circumstances of the accident, including why Gutty was driving on a deserted road away from home and why he drove his car into the path of the train.
The first (and only) Continental brand apparatus I have ever photographed, this rig features a rear mounted LDH hose reel. Known as “The Pipe Line”, this rig is shown here making its’ last appearance at a wetdown prior to be replaced with a 2011 KME Predator.
A closer look reveals that the rig has a Federal Signal siren (the kind you’d typically find on a firehouse) mounted atop the cab – powered by the onboard generator, the siren was fully functional (and quite loud!!) throughout the wetdown.
This website is devoted to many aspects of firematic photography with a particular emphasis on unique fire trucks (hence the name) whether it’s a unique color, a “one-off job” or a rig with a storied past.
Updated, 1 pm Pacific: 2nd building on fire; video added. Scroll down. Update No. Two, 3 pm Pacific: Add'l info. and more videos added.
Final Update, 7 pm Pacific.
AN UNKNOWN MAN IS HOLED UP in a house in Washougal, Washington (near Vancouver), and shooting at anything around him after setting the house on fire. The fire was first reported at 8:06 a.m. (Pacific) when a neighbor saw smoke and flames coming out of the roof of the building. A neighbor said that they tried to make contact but that a man told them to leave. The neighbor believed they then heard shots fired.
The Columbian
When the first fire engine arrived on the scene they heard gunshots and called police, then retreated. Police are surrounding the house and keeping the area around it clear while everything is going on. An early report from The Columbian tells:
As the incident unfolded, police worked to secure a wide perimeter of safety and also to find out more about who might be behind the incident, and what the motives might be.
As of 9:30 a.m. there had been a report of one minor injury to a police officer.
The Washington State Patrol, Clark County Sheriff's Office, Washougal and Camas police departments, and several fire departments are on the scene. The Portland Police Bureau's bomb squad has also responded.
Camas FD firefighters stage behind a shopping center
awaiting the 'all clear' to move onto the fireground. (The Columbian)
KATU-TV has this early video report from the scene:
Update, 1 pm Pacific:
A shop building that had been a concern of the FD has also caught fire and is burning. Shortly after the fire got going, a large explosion occurred that is believed to have been a propane tank. Unknown of it was started as an exposure fire or was set. No word on the activity or mortality of the gunman.
The neighbors have been quarantined in their houses all day with the danger of gunfire around them. One of them took this home video of the fire during its early stages and then presumably went to the other side of the house and uploaded it to YouTube. You can hear several of the gunshots being squeezed off during the video:
Update #2:
Additional information has been released. The Daily News reports:
One man who tried to alert his neighbors that their Washougal house was ablaze said he saw the shadow of a man inside who yelled "Go away!" Several gunshots were then fired from inside the home through a front window, with one bullet shattering the window of an arriving police car. The officer suffered minor injuries from the breaking glass, police said.
Firefighters stood a safe distance away because of the gunfire. No one outside was hit, and officers did not fire their weapons, police said in a statement prepared by Clark County sheriff's Sgt. Scott Schanaker.
The house is completely burned down and has gone out. There is no indication of any human activity around it.
There is an unusual news-gathering situation here. When the organized news media arrived, the police had cordoned off a wide area for safety and none of the newpapers or tv stations could approach the house to assess it. But the neighbors have been captive in their houses next to and nearby the scene and they have been taking home videos and sending them out via YouTube. Following are some of those:
This video by Jenny McCullough captures the burning shop building
in its early stages. One of the gas bottle explosions takes place early in the video
* * *
* * *
Clark County tax records identify this house as the location
of the incident. Created by The Columbian
* * *
Final Update, 7 pm Pacific:
As darkness fell, the activity declined at the fire scene. Both the house and the shop building have burned down and self-extiguished from lack of fuel. There has been no sign of anybody from the house and police think it is probable that the culprit did not survive the fire. They are also certain that he did not escape their perimieter either, but cannot be sure until they locate a body.
The sheriff's office says that the flurry of gunfire at the beginning of the incident lasted for 90 minutes and there were more than one firearm used. The Columbian reported on the wrap-up of activities:
There were no arrests following the incident at 3275 F Place, but there were no signs the suspect was still active, nor that he had escaped, said Clark County Sheriff's Sgt. Kevin Allais, with the major crimes team.
"We don't know where he is at," said Allais, but police do not think he escaped.
Allais said there were "multiple rounds from multiple guns."
Police and firefighters are still at the scene. Neighborhood streets are closed, but Evergreen Way, a main thoroughfare, has reopened. The SWAT team is in the process of doing a safety check of the neighborhood before allowing people to return to their homes.
Allais said a motive for the shooting had been established, but he was not going to release it until the investigation was further along. The investigation will continue Thursday, with major crimes detectives and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms expected to be on scene.
A FIRE IN A CATHEDRAL CITY, CALIFORNIA, STRIP MALL leveled half the shopping center early Tuesday morning after a presumed backdraft explosion blew out all the front windows and led to a roof collapse.
Desert Sun photo
A patrol car discovered the fire around midnight and turned in the alarm. The first-arriving units found heavy smoke in the building that has a common attic. It was shortly after the Cathedral City FD arrived that additional oxygen got into the smoke and triggered the blast that caused the structural damage. Aside from the blast, the fire was relatively easy to put out and had been extinguished an hour later.
While the investigation continues into what caused the fire, firefighters have pinned down where the blaze originated. They believe it began in the plaza's meat market. "Our original report was that it was at the carnaceria," said Cathedral City Fire Department Battalion Chief John Muhr. "A passerby which happened to be one our police officers drove by and saw the smoke, so we're pretty certain that we have a good idea of the origin."
It took firefighters about an hour to put out the fire. In the process four firefighters were in for a surprise. They were knocked off their feet by a back draft explosion that occurred in the strip malls' Chinese restaurant. "In the case of the fire last night, we had an attic that was filled of flammable smoke and it found an ignition source and the rest is history," said Muhr.
About 35 to 40 firefighters from Cathedral City, Palm Springs and CalFire fought the blaze.
KPSP-TV Ch. 2 posted some raw video from the scene:
The Desert Sun has the STORY plus an extensive photo gallery.
A 2-ALARM FIRE BROKE OUT IN THE Detroit Dept. of Transportation's westside bus yard this morning (Wednesday) at 4:30 am. The fire was noticed in its early stage when a mechanic saw the smoke and then alerted the other employees that were there.
When the fire units arrived they found six buses on fire inside a "holding" building. Early reports say that it appears to have been a mechanical malfunction that triggered the fire in the undercarriage of one of the buses and it spread to the others. The buses were all new or almost-new and worth $350,000 each. Some reports are saying that as many as eight buses have been destroyed.
Detroit Free Press
The fire eventually caused a partial roof collapse of the building and possibly included some diesel fuel and hydraulic oils (unconfirmed). A haz-mat level 2 response was added to the dispatch.
Problems with water service were hindering efforts to put out the blaze, Detroit Fire Department Senior Chief Michael Herron said. The sprinkler system inside the building did not work properly, and there are few fire hydrants on or near the facility, he said. McNulty said investigators will be reviewing workers' claims that the sprinkler system did not go on until the fire began to rage through the building.
WXYZ-TV filed this early video report while the fire was still burning:
The fire was reported to be knocked down by 7 am, but it is still a working incident and no other information is available yet.
Google Street View of part of the complex.
The property extends back several hundred yards, but has no
yard hydrants or any other water source for fire protection.
* * * * * * *
A Great Deal on Hitchcock Films!
Alfred Hitchcock – The Masterpiece Collection – 52% off
14 Classic hits digitally remastered for this special DVD set.
With 14 films, each supplemented with numerous documentaries, commentaries, and other bonus materials, Alfred Hitchcock – The Masterpiece Collection will be the cornerstone for any serious DVD library. Packaged in a beautiful, conversation-starting velvet box, the individual discs inside come four to a case, decorated with original poster art. No doubt opinionated fans will argue about what should fall under the rubric of "masterpiece" in Hitchcock's body of work, but with the bona fide classics Vertigo, Psycho, and The Man Who Knew Too Much, there's plenty of timeless movie magic here. Eye-popping transfers and gorgeous sound make this set one of the must-have releases of the year.
CLICK HERE to read the details, full listing, and to order yours!
The National Hockey League Board of Governors (basically the team owners or their representatives) voted on and approved a major team realignment for next season. We mentioned back when this season began about the problem created when the Atlanta team relocated to Winnipeg over the summer. The league had no choice but to continue with the locked-in schedule for this year that has Winnipeg playing in the Southeast division along with the two Florida teams, Carolina and Washington.
The league took this necessary change to take care of another problem that had been around for a long time, and that was the situation where Detroit and Columbus were in the Western Conference which caused them lengthy travel to play teams that are 2 and 3 time zones away. The entire situation was taken care of by a major change to the groupings of teams into conferences. The current layout that has been in place since the last league expansion has two conferences, Eastern and Western, that each have three 5-team divisions with most games being played against division rivals, a few games between other conference members and very few games against teams in the other conference.
The new layout has the league divided into four 7- or 8-team conferences and no divisional subdivisions. The four as-yet-unnamed conferences are better grouped geographically and restores several traditional rivalries that have existed for a long time and are popular with the fans.
Reuters
The new conference groupings are:
(A) – New Jersey, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, NY Rangers, NY Islanders, Washington and Carolina.
(B) – Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Buffalo, Florida and Tampa Bay.
(C) – Detroit, Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, Minnesota, Chicago, Dallas and Winnipeg.
(D) – Los Angeles, Anaheim, Phoenix, San Jose, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Colorado.
The only real anamoly is having the two Florida teams spending most of their time along the Canadian border, but overall it is much better than the current divisions. Now here comes the best part. The league will be restoring the past practice of every team playing at least two games against every other team in the league, a home and an away game. That is a big improvement because then all the fans will get to see every current big star and leading team during the season. The teams will play all their conference rivals six times a year (three at home, three away) and then every other team twice. You can read the details of the new plan at NHL.com HERE. There will also be a major change in the seeding and scheduling of the playoff games, but the final decision on that plan will be made at the next Board of Governors meeting.
Ok, we have our own schedule to take care of now, so let's get started with the equipment check. I will make sure that the Bunn-O-Matic is ready for the next home stand. See you back in the day room.
WILKES-BARRE TOWNSHIP, PENNSYLVANIA, FIRE CHIEF JOHN YUKNAVICH had a bad day in court today (Tuesday). First, this morning he appeared before a judge's hearing relating to "protection from abuse" order filed by his former girlfriend.
Yuknavich was already out on bond from a previous complaint by his ex-girlfriend for harrassment, simple assault and making threats against her. He was under a court order to cease and stay away from her, but this past Sunday just before 3 am he was arrested after driving back and forth in front of her house, revving his car's engine. When police stopped him, he was intoxicated and charged with DUI. Today's criminal contempt hearing was for violating the court order.
As that hearing wrapped up and he left the court, State Troopers were waiting for him outside the door and arrested him on more serious charges of a different crime, stealing from his own fire department.
Yuknavich is facing charges of theft, receiving stolen property and access device fraud. State police allege Yuknavich illegally wrote himself $11,865 in fire department checks and spent $3,706 on a Sam's Club credit card.
Investigators said the investigation began in 2008 when state police were looking into financial irregularities in the fire department. Yuknanich refused to comply with a subpoena, triggering a series of audits.
Other fire department officials told police Yuknavich handles all the fire department finances and they were never given a look at the financial records.
The fire chief position is a volunteer rank and selected by the VFD with no control by the township mayor or council. He has been an embarrassment to the community by having been arrested 15 times in the last ten years, mainly for public drunkeness and disorderly conduct.
AN INDIANAPOLIS EMS UNIT was involved in a heavy crash Monday evening despite the driver's attempt to avoid the collision. The ambulance was on a non-emergency transport with a patient at 6 pm when a car that witnesses say was driving erratically down the road crashed head-on with the ambulance. The force of the crash knocked the car onto its roof. WTHR-TV tells us:
Police say the preliminary investigation shows the ambulance was traveling west on 21st Street, while the other vehicle, a full-size passenger car, was driving erratically in the eastbound lanes. The ambulance driver attempted to avoid the oncoming vehicle, but the car drove into the ambulance's path and struck it head-on, causing the car to flip over.
The driver of the car was taken to Wishard Hospital in serious condition. One of the workers in the ambulance was reportedly slightly injured.
WRTV photo
The Indianapolis Star has the story and additional photos HERE.
AN AMBULANCE IN CAMBRIDGE, MINNESOTA, WAS INVOLVED in a 3-vehicle crash Monday afternoon that injured three people. The Allina Ambulance was on an emergency transport between hospitals with its lights and siren on when an automobile pulled out into their path. The ambulance struck the car and careened into a garbage truck leaving the ambulance with heavy front-end damage.
Two of the three ambulance personnel were slightly injured and transported along with the patient who was not injured in the crash, but later airlifted to the original destination. The driver of the car was also injured and airlifted to the hospital.
KARE-TV Ch. 11 filed this raw video taken from their helicopter:
Investigators say the ambulance had lights and sirens on as it drove south on Main Street. They say as it approached 18th Ave. SW, a car driven by a 87-year-old Stanchfield man pulled out in front of them to make a left hand turn. Investigators say the ambulance veered to avoid the car, but ended up hitting it and then a garbage truck that was heading north on Main St.
A 4-YR.-OLD BOY ADMITTED THAT he was playing with a lighter when he accidentally started a fire in his bedroom that spread to two other houses before the FD arrived Monday afternoon. When the first units came on the scene around 2:20 pm Pacific they found both units of a duplex involved along with a third unit next door.
Crews began to attack the fire while also searching for anyone who may have been trapped in the homes. All the home occupants were able to make it out of their houses however, one of the families still had their dog trapped in the burning home.
A firefighter rescued the trapped dog from the structure and was bitten on his hand by the frightened animal. The dog was able to bite through the firefighter's leather glove, drawing blood. The firefighter was treated on the scene by an ambulance crew and received a precautionary Tetanus shot at an area hospital.
Nine adults and two children were displaced from the three homes and were provided overnight shelter by the Red Cross. The only injury reported was the above-mentioned dog bite.
The Modesto News was on the scene as the hose lines were being pulled and has posted this video report that includes good coverage of the fireground activities and a press statement by the Modesto FD battalion chief on the scene:
You can call me skeptical, but I am skeptical about the real existance of a supposed new product for club hoppers called the Photoblocker. South American brewer Cerveza Norte distributes their suds internationally and are known for their innovative and humorous television ads. Recently they have released a couple of ads featuring this device that they claim will prevent your image from showing up on someone else's Facebook page and causing a bit of embarrassment for you.
The Photoblocker is a tabletop beer cooler that has a series of photoflash lights and sensors arranged around the top edge. According to Norte, they can sense the impending camera flash that is coming your way and it instantly sends out a brilliant counter-flash that washes out the image on the candid cameraman's HD disk. The brewer's advertising agency says the device is a real product that has been field tested and actually works. "We placed several beer coolers in different bars in the North of Argentina," says Maxi Itzkoff, executive creative director at Del Campo (ad agency). "People took lots of photos that ended up being blurry beyond recognition and then uploaded them to social media anyway."
Photoblocking technology has been put to actual use in other applications (such as the famous anti-speed cameras along the highway), so it is plausible that something like this could be real. Take a look at this video and see how it works:
I have checked around and have been unable to locate so much as a single photograph of one of these (other than the one issued by the ad agency), nor any information on its availability for purchase. Combining that with Norte's previous record for satire, I am naturally a little bit skeptical, as I said. But then again, it is just now being field tested according to the company. Maybe there are a couple of prototypes out there. I just don't know. What do you think?
I think we'd better get this equipment checked out now, though. I'm going to make some more Facebook-safe coffee for us. See you back in the day room.
Daimler Trucks is recalling (NHTSA #11V-465) some 2006 – 2012 Freightliner Business Class M2, Cascadia, Century, Columbia, Coronado and Sterling A-Line vehicles built with Meritor Wabco electronic stability control system (ESC).
Under certain road and driving conditions, vehicle body roll and road inclination characteristics may adversely affect the slip angle calculation of the ESC system. This might cause the ESC to perceive an over steering situation and therefore apply the outer wheel brake on the front axle until the vehicle is perceived to be stable. If the driver is slow to react during this ESC intervention, the vehicle may deviate from the intended line of travel increasing the risk of a crash.
Daimler Trucks will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ESC module with the appropriate software version as necessary, free of charge. An interim owner notification will be mailed on or about Nov. 1, 2011. The date for availability of the final remedy is subject to validation testing and parts availability. The safety recall is expected to begin on or about March 30, 2012. Owners may contact Daimler Trucks at 800 547 0712.
Daimler is also recalling (11V478) certain 2004 through 2008 heavy trucks equipped with EPA04 model MBE 4000 engines built with plastic low pressure fuel lines and fuel filters mounted near the center of the engine on the left hand side.
The plastic low pressure fuel line between the engine mounted fuel filter and the engine block may develop a substantial fuel leak.
Daimler Trucks will notify owners and the remedy will be performed by Detroit Diesel Corp. authorized repair facilities. Vehicles will be inspected and the plastic low pressure fuel line will be replaced with a steel low pressure line. This service will be performed free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule. Owners may contact Daimler at 800 547 0712.
Daimler is also recalling (11V-474) some 2011 and 2012 Business Class M2 and Coronado trucks equipped with Cummins ISX or ISL engines.
The V-band clamp assembly part numbers Q187684, Q187685 and Q187686, used to connect the inlet and outlet cone sections to the diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC)/diesel particulate filter (DPF) include a T-bolt which can fracture when subjected to stress or load. A fracture or failure of the T-bolt may cause the clamp to loosen and the inlet or outlet sections attached to the DOC/DPF housing to disconnect. If the inlet or outlet sections disconnect, hot exhaust gases can vent prior to exiting the tailpipe, creating the risk of combustion and fire. If both clamps fail there is a risk in some applications that the DOC/DPF housing may detach completely, creating a road hazard.
* * *
KME has an identical recall (11V-471) out for certain 2010 and 2011 Predator pumpers and 2011 5500 rescue trucks.
Both Daimler and KME are working with Cummins to identify and notify owners of the recall campaigns. Repairs will be performed by authorized Cummins dealers free of charge. Owners may contact Cummins at 812 377 5000, Daimler at 800 547 0712 or KME at 800 235 3928. Cummins recall campaign number is C1154.
* * *
Wheeled Coach is recalling (11V-470) certain 2004 through 2010 Ford E-350 Type II diesel ambulances originally sold or registered in all New England states, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, D.C., West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri for a potential corrosion issue on the secondary battery terminal. As the secondary battery terminal corrodes, the Wheeled Coach accessory power cable is affected and the siren, warning lights and interior patient compartment lights could be intermittent or fail to operate.
Wheeled Coach will mail retrofit kits along with installation instructions to customers, or repairs can be performed by a service center free of charge. The recall began on Sept. 30, 2011. Owners may contact Wheeled Coach Customer Service at 800 628 8178.
* * *
Cold weather is upon many of us. Remember the tips that I and many others have talked about in the past for preventing freeze ups. Mine can be reviewed HERE, HERE, and HERE, or by going to “Engineer’s Desk.” There are many others to be found in other publications and web sites.
That’s it for now. Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all. Stay safe….. Sam
HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS, (Houston area) is having an outbreak of home burglaries being carried out by people posing as utility workers, meter readers, and now fire marshals who approach residents and con their way into their houses.
Recently two different men have been reported as posing as fire marshals to get inside to check around and when left alone they have plundered the residents' valuables and left. KHOU-TV reports on one incident that occurred this past Wednesday:
According to the Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office, the suspect wore a khaki shirt with a fire marshal logo on the left pocket and displayed a fake fire marshal badge to target an elderly man’s home.
The suspect, described as clean cut man in his 40s, drove a red Chevrolet pickup truck with fire marshal lettering on both sides.
The TV station also posted this video report from the latest crime location:
A PRIVATE AMBULANCE IN CANTON, MASSACHUSETTS, collided head-on with an automobile Sunday night, leaving two people critically injured and a third in serious condition. The accident occurred around 8:15 pm on Rte. 138.
A female EMT riding in the ambulance and a man driving the smaller car were medflighted, while a male EMT has been transported to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center via another ambulance. The two EMTs in the accident are young adults in their 20s or 30s, and the driver of the car is middle-aged, Canton Fire Chief Charles Doody said.
The victims who were medflighted sustained serious internal injuries, Doody said. The male EMT had serious injuries but was stable enough to receive ground transport.
There were no other passengers in either vehicle. The cause of the wreck is still under investigation.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is my duty to keep you informed with both bad and good. This morning there are two glum notes that I have to pass along to you. First of all, we must report that the oft-postponed Boobs on Bikes parade in New Zealand was rescheduled once again. The parade which is held in a different city each year in conjuction with the Erotica Lifestyles Expo, was expected to be held in Auckland in September. But it coincided on the same weekend with a major world-class rugby tournament and had to be shifted because of the logistics and the heavy crowds already expected to be there. (Review our most recent update HERE for more information.)
So the BonB was postponed until this past Friday, December 2 in Palmerston North. Permits were granted and Expo space was rented, but again they ran into a scheduling conflict. The next day, Saturday was the planned Christmas parade with Santa Claus and the public was understandably upset with the culture clash happening just as the town was filling up with kiddies looking for something quite different in their stockings.
Now once again we have to make a new note on the calendar for the parade and expo which will now be held on February 24 to 26, two months from now. You can rely on Firegeezer to keep you up to date with the important things.
* * *
The other "downer" for this Blue Monday comes from Japan where the fire and rescue units ran one of those calls that you never forget, this time a highway accident near Yamaguchi. A group of luxury sports car enthusiasts were enjoying a Sunday outing when they had an unfortunate mishap. Some are already calling it one of the most expensive car crashes in history. BBC News tells us:
Eight Ferraris, three Mercedes-Benzes, a Lamborghini and two other vehicles were involved in the pile-up in the southern prefecture of Yamaguchi. No-one was seriously hurt, but the road was closed for six hours after the accident. Media reports estimate the damaged cars are worth at least 300m yen ($3.85million) in total.
The sports cars – driven in convoy by a group of automobile enthusiasts – were on their way to Hiroshima, reports Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun.
Police say they believe the accident happened when the driver of one of the Ferraris tried to change lanes and hit the crash barrier. "A group of cars was doing 140-160km/h (85-100mph)," an unidentified eyewitness told Japanese broadcaster TBS. "One of them spun and they all ended up in this great mess."
As he spun across the roadway, the others piled into each other as they tried to avoid the crashing car. "I've never seen such a thing," highway patrol lieutenant Eiichiro Kamitani told AFP news agency. "Ferraris rarely travel in such large numbers."
Fourteen cars were involved and ten of them were wrecked beyond repair. RT News got most of them on video:
We'd better get our own luxury vehicles checked out now – with safe driving in mind, of course. It's Monday, so we're using the long check list today. I'll get the Ferrari of coffee-makers, our Bunn-O-Matic going with some more joe. See you back in the day room in a little while.
* * * * * * *
Big Savings on select Sony Camcorders
Prices Good Through December 10
CLICK HERE to view the models, sale prices, and to order yours.
THE CARMICHAEL BIBLE CHURCH in Carmichael, California, was ripped off big-time by brazen copper thieves who didn't realize who they were messin' with. Their over-confidence and greed (one of the deadly sins, you recall) did them in.
Last Tuesday night they visited the church's outdoor heating/AC plant and prepared for their heist by draining the freon out of the unit. Then on Wednesday they returned a ripped out as much copper piping as they could carry away. By then, Pastor Jeff Livingston was catching on to what was happening and reported it. But the crooks, not thinking anyone was around a church during the week probably, had left their tools behind and Pastor Livingston believed they did that because they were planning a return trip for more goodies.
A group of church members hooked up a baby monitor on the roof of the church aimed at the scene of the crime, retreated to the church hall around back and waited. Six hours later, around 4 am Friday morning the thieves returned. Pastor Livingston shows the tapes and tells what happened next in this video report from KOVR-TV Ch. 13:
Right now the church is without heat and has damages totaling around $50,000. The two culprits, Howard Sanders, 26, and Curtis Darnell, 36, are being held in jail and were each charged with felony counts of vandalism, grand theft and criminal conspiracy.
Not making it to the Pearly Gates are Sanders, left, and Darnell
EARLY SATURDAY MORNING AN OFF-DUTY Atlanta, Georgia, police officer found an unconscious (intoxicated) man in the Buckhead nightclub district of the city. He called for an ambulance and a Grady EMS unit was dispatched. The two medics put the man on a cot and placed him in the back of the ambulance where they both began treating him.
While they were treating him, a friend of the drunk's hopped into the cab and drove off with the medics in the back. Police were called for. The driver-for-a-day careened around town and ran over a pedestrian while making a turn. Finally, the medic crew convinced the misguided man to pull over and stop. When he did he was immediately taken into custody by a Georgia State Patrol officer.
Jordan Moore
The perp, Jordan Scott Moore, 26 went directly to jail without passing Go where he was charged with three counts of kidnapping, inerference with government property, theft by taking, hit and run, reckless driving, and failure to render aid.
The pedestrian was taken to the hospital where he remains in stable condition.
THE 2-TON BRITISH BOMB LAYING ON THE RHEIN RIVERBED in Koblenz, Germany, was successfully mitigated today and all 45,000 nearby residents have been given the all-clear to return to their homes, hospital wards and jail cells.
A member of the Rheinland-Palatinate bomb disposal team
inspects the 2-ton bomb Sunday morning while preparing
to begin the defusing procedure. (AFP)
Defusing operations began at 3 pm local time (9 am Eastern) on the large bomb, followed next by mitigating a 275-lb American bomb that was near it. During the de-watering yesterday a smokescreen bomb was also uncovered and, following the defusing of the two bombs, it was blown up on site. By 4:30 pm the All-Clear was sounded and the repopulating of the area was begun.
Despite the rain which stymied plans some had to spend the day outside, officials said that the evacuation of around 45,000 people by 9 a.m. was successful. It was the biggest such evacuation in Germany since the war.
Some 2,500 fire, police, medical and technical personnel as well as city officials were involved in organising the evacuation. Around 1,000 people spent Sunday morning checking to make sure everyone had left the 1.8 kilometre exclusion zone by 9 a.m. local time.
Bomb disposal experts were able to begin their work on the massive British bomb earlier than expected – and once they had defused that one, then worked on a smaller but more unstable American bomb nearby. After they were successfully defused, a smoke bomb also found in the area was blown up in a controlled explosion, marking the end of the dangerous operation.
Seven shelters were set up in schools in the city and the surrounding area, with space for 12,000 people.
Early in the morning ambulances evacuate 200 elderly residents of retirement homes. A prison and two hospitals had already been cleared over the last few days. All rail connections to Koblenz were suspended from 7 a.m. and roads leading to the city were closed.
Koblenz city center was a ghost town Sunday morning. (DPA)
Even after 66 years, finding unexploded Allied bombs is still common in Germany. Authorities believe there are still some 3,000 bombs buried beneath Berlin alone, and World War II devices are regularly discovered in the capital during construction work. In June 2010 Firegeezer REPORTED HERE on the early explosion of a 500 kg bomb that killed three disposal team members before they began their operation in Gottingen.
Earlier Firegeezer reports on the Koblenz evacuation and disposal operation are HERE and HERE.
Update, 2:15 Eastern:
This video interview with the bomb disposal technician who defused the bomb has English sub-titles:
Special thanks to Christian Lewalter of FWNetz for his assistance.
THE CLEVELAND, OHIO, CITY COUNCIL is going ahead with plans to install timeclocks in the firehouses to record the firefighters' attendance at their workplaces. Mayor Frank Jackson's plan is to utilize fingerprint-reading machines that hinder fraudulent timekeeping. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports:
The move follows an internal city audit, released in mid-November, that found some city firefighters collected pay for hours they didn't work, including one man who collected two years of pay while working a total of 11 days. Auditors also found that some firefighters failed to record sick time and violated the city's bereavement policy.
Officials representing Cleveland Fire Fighters Local 93 said late Friday they support the city's decision to install time clocks that read fingerprints.
Cleveland Finance Director Sharon Dumas said the city is looking at a time clock system made by Kronos Inc. It's expected to cost roughly $500,000 and could be installed by early next year, about the same time a second, more in-depth, audit of the Fire Department is out.
Even though the union Local 93 is fully supportive of and endorses the move, the mayor still goes out of his way to whack the entire force, blaming them for this problem because, " …. union employees handle the scheduling and payroll in dozens of locations." Then he goes into the usual tirade about the firefighters not sacrificing enough to help balance the city's budget.
There's an interesting article posted on STATter911 this weekend about that MCI in Indianapolis back in August where the sudden storm burst collapsed a stage at an outdoor concert. You might recall the event at the Indiana State Fair that was widely covered at the time (Firegeezer expanded coverage HERE) that left several spectators dead and chaos as people tried to escape both the storm and the collapsing stage.
One of the local tv stations has obtained a copy of the radio traffic tapes along with a partially-censored log from the fire department that exposes several apparent shortcomings including what looks like a lack of any pre-incident plans for handling a mass evacuation or multiple casualty incident. Despite the fact that the State Police had a large presence and command authority there, an EMS supervisor ended up in charge of the incident by default. Read Dave's report on this revelation HERE.
I'm left wondering just how many more such incidents are going to take place before all the police/fire/EMS agencies accept their responsibility to have plans in place and on-site command structures at potential incidents? It takes more, much more, than just having a plan in place. You have to drill, rehearse and experience the plan before you need it. When the disaster hits, you don't have time to pull out the notebook and start looking up the prescribed actions.
I recall that fateful day in August 2005 when Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans. After the brunt of the storm passed by, the levees started failing floodwaters began pouring into the city proper. The warning was sent to all citizens to evacuate the city immediately. And you know what followed next. Complete gridlock and non-action by the police department. While that fiasco was mounting, I went online to the New Orleans city website which was still up and running at the moment. In there I found a magnificently produced evacuation plan in case of just such a massive flooding, and it was only about a year old. It was part of the police department's responsibilities and was so detailed that it spelled out which intersections would have a police officer stationed to control the traffic. It included extensive routing for a city-wide evacuation along with providing the means to transport the evacuees. One of the primary modes was for the city's school bus drivers to pick up their buses and proceed to pre-designated locations to shuttle people to safe havens. All of this was to be done before the hurricane hit, after the storm warning had gone out.
Mayor Nagin's infamous flooded fleet of school buses. (AP)
I took the time to read the entire document and it was obvious that it was not being used because not one single action was implemented that whole time. To me, it was obvious what had happened. There must have been a federal mandate to the city to design this plan, and probably a grant to pay for it, so they went to all the work of preparing it …… then filed it. Nobody in the police department ever took it seriously and they definitely never had any training for practice runs utilizing the plan. I seriously doubt whether any of the patrolmen even knew such a thing existed. Let that be a lesson for you. Make your plans and drill with them. Not just once, but at least annually. Spare yourself the shame and ridicule that the NOPD earned for themselves.
We'll start by getting this equipment checked out now. I already know the route to the Bunn-O-Matic, so I'll get going with that. See you back in the kitchen in a little while for the Sunday breakfast.
A SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, APARTMENT BUILDING BURNED Friday night and was damaged to the extent that it may have to be torn down, according to one fire official.
WMAFirephoto
The fire began in a 3rd-floor bedroom and was reported at 4:14 pm. The first units in found fire showing at the third floor of the 4-story building and began an interior attack. The flames rapidly extended to the top floor and into the attic/roof area. After about 30 minutes the FF"s were pulled out with the roof in danger of collapsing, which it did later on.
Sheryl Chase, the property manager for the apartment, said it had recently undergone a heavy renovation and was in the process of accepting new tenants.
US Bank foreclosed on the property in January and evicted most of the tenants. Since then it had invested what she said was a significant amount to make repairs.
Chase said three to four new tenants were scheduled to move in Saturday.
The fire broke out in one of the two apartments that had tenants, she said.
The lone tenant in the fire unit was out of town when the fire started in his apartment. The other occupied apartment had three residents. All four people lost all of their belongings.
WWLP-TV Ch.22 posted this video report:
Nate Arnold of WMAFirephoto was on the scene and tells us: The fire had been auto-venting for some time prior to the SFD's arrival and made it into the apartment above on the 4th floor and eventually through the roof requiring a defensive attack.
One side note to this job, this fire marked the first time Ladder Co. 1 had the opportunity to really put their brand new 2010 Pierce Velocity tower through her paces. Also, thanks to the District Chief establishing a collapse zone early on and ordering Ladder 1 and Engine 10 repositioned for fear of collapse debris hitting the rigs, Ladder 1 was saved from heavy damage when part of the 4th floor apartments window casing collapsed onto the street where Ladder 1 had been parked.
WMAFirephotos
Nate has a 112-image photo gallery of the fire posted HERE. (worth the visit.)
Firegeezer note: This is a continuation of a story begun Friday about the defusing of more than 20 bombs and mines that were exposed in the River Rhein during a record-dry month in Germany. Preparations have been made to evacuate 45,000 residents, half the population of Koblenz while two vary dangerous mitigations take place on Sunday. If you haven't read it, we urge you to read Part 1 from yesterday HERE before you continue.
* * * * *
THE TWO-TON BOMB WAS surrounded by a sandbag cofferdam on Friday so that the water around it could be pumped out. The bomb must be out of the water in order to be defused.
On Saturday the water was pumped out, exposing the bomb in preparation for the mitigation operation on Sunday. The bomb has the explosive potential to create a crater 60 feet wide and 16 feet deep and demolish a city block, authorities said.
The evacuation of the city areas affected, a 1.6 km radius, was begun on Friday with a target time of Sunday 9 am for completion. About 2,500 fire, police and volunteers are guiding the evacuation. The Local.de reports:
The city has already started getting its people to safety. That includes around 700 people in two hospitals – including some very ill people in intensive care.
The hospital evacuations took place on Saturday (dpa)
"This has already started, as it takes a lot of time, but it should be completed on time – most people will be on their way to other hospitals on Friday," (A fire dept. spokesman) said. "The old people’s homes, where we have around 520 people to move, will be evacuated on Sunday itself – we will have around 300 vehicles including ambulances to move them."
Around 200 prisoners will also have to be moved from the jail, which houses people accused and convicted of crimes from theft to murder, spokeswoman Andrea Kästner told The Local.
"We mostly house people in investigative custody, so they have not been convicted, but they are accused of a very broad range of crimes, from theft to murder. Of course some of them could be considered dangerous," she said. "We are gathering information from other prisons in the state about how many spaces they have. It will be a huge operation. We have people working here who have been here since the 1970s and there has certainly not been anything like this in that time."
She said normal prison buses would be used to take the prisoners to other jails where they would spend the night, but then be returned on Monday.
The regular citizens have already begun their self-evacuations and will be gone from the danger zone by morning. For those without their own transportation there will be buses running from 6:30 am until 9 am on Sunday morning to take them to the designated shelters.
There is a live webcam aimed at the site (not visible until daybreak around 1 am Eastern time) but it will be deactivated during the most crucial time of the defusing operation. CLICK HERE to watch it.
Updated postings will continue. Check back on Firegeezer Sunday morning.
If you follow updates on Twitter, the hashtag is #bombeKO
A WOMAN IN NOTTINGHAMSHIRE, ENGLAND, WAS SURPRISED, then upset, and now is disgusted after an ambulance arrived at her house for a scheduled transport to take her husband to a medical facility. The problem was that the man has died nearly four years ago.
The Press Association reports:
Doris Keeley, 65, said: "My husband had never been for any such appointments. I took his death badly at the time and, you know, you just get on with life, and then this comes and brings it all back. I'm very upset. If it had happened six months after his death I'd have been finished.
"I saw George's name on the pick-up list along with our address and postcode and was told the ambulance had been requested by Barnby Gate Surgery in Newark. We had never used that surgery."
A spokeswoman from the surgery confirmed that they had booked an ambulance two weeks in advance, but for a different patient at a different address.
The East Midlands Ambulance Service has started an investigation into what caused the snafu.
A MAJOR FIRE IN THE VILLAGE OF PULASKI, Wisconsin, is still burning this morning but appears to have been contained. Fire departments from four other counties are assisting the Pulaski Tri-County Fire Department at the incident.
WLUK-TV image
The fire started around 11 pm Friday night in a bowling alley in the center of the block and spread to at least five other buildings. There are twelve buildings in the block but the FD thinks they have stopped the spread.
WLUK-TV has this early video report from the scene:
Pulaski has hydrants in town, but the large fire flow quickly depleted the water supply and they have been relying on a tanker shuttle to supply the multiple master streams and hose lines.
This updated video report from WLUK-TV has additional information plus more tanker coverage. (Firegeezer loves a good tanker shuttle.)
While they are certain on the location where the fire started, it is not yet known what caused it.
The Green Bay Press Gazette is reporting that shortly after 6:30 am Central, Brown County Emergency Management officials said 16 county (departments) were involved in fighting the fire, and that firefighters from Shawano, Oconto, Outagamie and Calumet counties also had been called to the scene. In all, 23 (fire companies) are battling the blaze.
Two firefighters have been transported for injuries received working the fire.
The fire is still burning at the time of this posting. We will update the story when more information becomes available. Check back later for more.
Update, 1 pm Central:
The fire was knocked down to just hot spots by 9:45 am, according to the Green Bay Press Gazette.
All news sources are reporting that the FD is certain that the fire began in the Wood Lanes bowling alley. The state fire marshal office is sending assistance for the investigation which will probably begin on Sunday.
About 40 people have been displaced from their homes and apartments following their evacuation during the fire. Several people who lived in rooms and apartments over the businesses involved in the fire have lost their residences.
WLUK-TV has filed an extensive updated video report (with more tankers! ….ed.):
This Google Street View shows the block affected by the fire. The Wood Lanes bowling alley is the brown building second-from the right:
Has your station been having any small-engine problems lately? Recently we were sent this request from one of our readers:
We have had a ton of problems in the past with the new gasoline and its high ethanol content. Our ppv fans and Holmatro power units were always out of service because of the clogged jets in the carb. We switched to a product called Tool Fuel and now use SEF94. I have heard that this high octane product has some problems that come along with it as well. Can you find out if anybody else is having this problem, and what they are doing about it? Thanks.
After doing a little initial checking around, we have picked up a few ideas. Check with your chief mechanic and share yours with us. I will list what we have so far and invite you to join in with your observations and/or solutions:
* That product is marketed by ESI, the well known Holmatro distributor. It's blended for them by a racing fuel company in Delaware. All of the folks at ESI swear by that Tool Fuel.
* The shop that does all of our small engine repairs says, "STAY AWAY FROM IT!" They say they get quite a few saws, fans, etc. from their other fire service customers that have used it, and the engines have suffered considerable internal damage. They will not honor warranties on any of the products they sell if Tool Fuel has been used in them. They recommend using regular gas with Sta-Bil.
* The man who takes care of our power tools says to use high grade Sunoco gas for our Holmatro power unit.
* For our 4-cycle engines we use regular gas (Sunoco) and add Sta-Bil. We use the same gas on 2-cycle engines, with oil containing Sta-Bil. Most oils sold as 2-cycle oil have it already in, but the label on the oil should state "Stabilizer Added" or words to that effect.
* Our own expert, Engineer Sam adds: Run all your equipment once a week and replace any gas that is six months old. Also, if you have Honda engines on any equipment, you need to learn and strictly follow Honda's shut down procedure.
Ok, there's a start on the topic for you. Pass along your thoughts, experiences, or new questions and I will update the thread as long as it stays active.
For now, we have to get all of our equipment checked out for the day…and the Saturday shoppers. So let's get started and I'll make some more coffee. See you back in the day room.
* * * * * * *
Big Savings on Power Tools!
Save up to 50% through December 31 on select
Milwaukee Power Tools and Accessories
CLICK HERE to view these price-buster offers and order yours.
Captain David Gutty was assigned to the St. Priest fire station. It is not known why he pulled onto the crossing with the train approaching at 60 mph. The train driver applied his emergency brakes when he saw the car in the crossing, but when he struck the Opel it cut the car in half and traveled another 200 meters before coming to a stop with half the car still embedded in the front cowling of the locomotive. Capt. Gutty, 37, was killed instantly as well as the three children ages 7, 5, and 3 months.
to read the details, full listing, and to order yours!
to read more and order yours!
to view these price-buster offers and order yours.
Recent Comments