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Morning Lineup – March 18

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Earlier this week, on Monday we carried a report (HERE) on two separate multi-vehicle pileups in Germany.  While looking over all the photographs that were available from those crash scenes, I noticed that in both instances the fire departments had set up tents like you usually see for firefighter decon. and triage shelters.  That seems like such a good idea to me.

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I was impressed that these two incidents were a couple of hundred miles apart, therefore it might be a wide-spread practice in the country.  At least in those departments that cover the freeways which are famous for their news-making wrecks.  The weather was definitely a factor in these incidents because you had literally hundreds of other motorists caught in the traffic backup for hours at a time, stranded in the middle of nowhere with very cold temperatures.   The Red Cross and the police saw to it that there were hot beverages and snacks available inside the shelters to provide relief for the stranded travelers.

While on the surface it looks like an excessive expense and effort to do that, I would argue that it is like preventive medicine in that they are preventing potential exposure emergencies, etc., from occurring and then complicating the ongoing emergency.  Off-hand, I don’t know of anybody in the U.S. who does this as a matter of routine.  This type of event is rare here and unlikely to involve the same fire/rescue deparments repeatedly.  But it is a good item to file away in your mind’s data-bank as something to consider when you have your own incident to handle.  First thing you do is review what units (usually haz-mat squads) carry triage shelters.  What do you think?  Do any of our readers already practice this added response to remote incidents?

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At our Lineup on February 21 (HERE) we mentioned the cellphone providers upcoming move  to their 4G networks, while most of us are still placing calls at 2G speeds.  There have been a couple of announcements this week that I wish to pass along, keeping in mind that I don’t have a firm grasp on this phone-tech stuff, I only repeat it.

The Wall Street Journal filed a report yesterday saying that Sprint will be the first network to offer a 4G phone and they will introduce it next week.  All of the major carriers are building out their networks now, but they have generally been operating on having them functional and commonly available early next year.  This surprise announcement may just force the others to accelerate their schedules.  I still don’t know what’s so important about having a phone that sends data 10X faster than it does now, but I suppose there are a few people who are really keen about downloading movies while they are stuck in an airport waiting lounge.

Seriously though, I think it has more to do with the phone companies being able to handle the increased traffic load that is building up on the current networks.  Much like a congested 4-lane highway being widened to 10 lanes suddenly and giving instant relief to the traffic problem.  Anyway, Digital Trends has a concise explanation of what’s going on and just what the devil 4G is (HERE), if you would like to learn more.

All right, we’d better get back to our 1G check-sheets and get this equipment checked out.  I’m going over to the 2G Bunn-o-Matic and get some more coffee going.   See you in the day room in a little while.

Posted by firegeezer on March 18, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Technology & Communications, morning lineup • Tagged: ,

Another VFD Embezzled

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TWO MEMBERS OF THE CATTARAUGUS FIRE DEPARTMENT near Buffalo, New York, have been arrested and charged with stealing $30,000 to $80,000 from the department.

John Finnegan, 52, the treasurer of the VFD, and Edward Holtz, 39, a member of the department, were in charge of operating the Bell Jar Ticket Game, a fund-raising device.  Holtz pleaded guilty to 3rd-degree grand larceny, but Finnegan was scheduled to be brought back to court today  or another hearing.

WIVB-TV Ch. 4 has this video report:

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Posted by firegeezer on March 16, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, crime • Tagged: , , , , ,

170-Vehicle Wreck in Germany

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Update:  Another one today, scroll down.

GERMANY HAD ONE OF ITS WORLD-RENOWNED MULTI-VEHICLE accidents Friday morning on the freeway that connects Stuttgart and Munich.  As the traffic was flowing near Augsburg, a patch of thick fog descended over an icy patch of roadway and the collisions began.  When the fog lifted there were 21 trucks and 37 cars piled up in one heap and a total of 170 wrecked vehicles along a 1-kilometer stretch of the A8.

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Welt.com

Seventeen people were injured, but none of them were very serious.  One eyewitness described the scene as “absolute chaos” and the entire highway was shut down for hours as the mess was cleaned up.

The fire department set up R & R tents and the Red Cross transported hot drinks and food to provision the hundreds of travelers who were stranded in the wintry countryside.

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Welt.com

There is a video report available HERE.

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Welt.com

Welt has the story and a 17-image photo gallery HERE.

Update:  Another pileup in Thuringen
Another multi-vehicle pileup occurred at 4am this morning near Gottingen when 42 cars and trucks started sliding in the icy weather and ended up in a tangled mess.  About 80 to 100 people were in the vehicles and 20 of them were injured, 2 seriously.  The cause was similar to the previous accident, sudden deterioration of road conditions during a winter storm.

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A video report on this second accident is HERE.

Prepared by Christian Lewalter

Posted by firegeezer on March 15, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Rescues, rescue • Tagged:

Antique Expertise Requested

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ONE OF OUR READERS, Richard B. took this photo of a hose cart at the Bodie State Park in California’s Gold Rush country.

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He would like to know why that reel of rope is mounted just under the drawbar.  This was obviously a hand-drawn cart, as just about all of them were, so it probably has nothing to do with harnessing.

If you know why the rope is there, please tell us in the Comments section.

Bodie is a gold-rush era ghost town.  In 1962 the State of California took possession of it and preseved it in toto as a State Historic Park to illustrate the way of life during those heady years of the mid- to late-19th century.  They have an excellent website HERE that is worth the visit.

Posted by firegeezer on March 14, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, antique apparatus • Tagged: ,

Close Call For Firetrucks

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THE NORTON, OHIO, FIRE DEPARTMENT knew that they needed a new building to house Station 1, so they have been planning and acquiring land.  Everything is all set for a groundbreaking later this month with a hoped-for opening in November.  But it won’t be happening any too soon.

On February 24 the on-duty firefighters heard a loud crack coming from the roof.  When they went up to inspect it to see what was wrong, they found that nearly all of the roof trusses had snapped.  About 30-seconds later, the drywall in the station started splitting.  They immediately got all of the trucks out of the station, three ambulances, a rescue truck, two fire engines, a tanker, and a brush truck. 

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Some citizens came by to help the FD load up
and move their equipment out of the building.
(Akron Beacon Journal photo)

The next day a structural engineer said that the building had been infiltrated with dry rot and was in danger of collapse.  Everything else was then removed from the building.  Some of the apparatus were moved over to Station 2, but the rest had to be located in a heated building that was quickly rented.

Yesterday, Thursday March 11, the roof collapsed sometime in the early afternoon.  A city councilman was driving by the vacated firehouse and saw a hole in the roof.  He called the fire chief and the firefighters drove over to see what it was.  As soon as they got there, they had to leave on a fire call, but when they came back the entire roof had collapsed.

WEWS-TV has today’s video report on this latest event:

Read more on Ohio.com HERE and HERE.
Norton Fire Department WEBSITE.

Posted by firegeezer on March 12, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Videos, fire stations • Tagged: ,

NYC Tries Once Again to Remove Street Alarm Boxes

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street box c city noiseNEW YORK CITY FIRE COMMISSIONER Salvatore Cassano told the City Council at a budget hearing on Wednesday that he plans to seek approval to remove the approximately 15,000 street alarm boxes from service.  He believes that it will result in a monetary savings of $6 million in the first year.  The Claims Journal reports:

Of the 12,931 calls from alarm boxes in 2009, 85 percent — or 10,997 — were false alarms, the fire department said.  And of the fire department’s 26,666 calls reporting structural fires in 2009, less than one percent — or 140 — came from an alarm box.

The city tried to do this 15 years ago, but an activist group filed a court injunction claiming that to remove them would severely impact deaf people.  The court then prohibited the city from deactivating the system, but they also said the fire department could later apply to lift the injunction if it showed that deaf and hearing-impaired people had another adequate way of reporting fires.

Cassano told the City Council that he believes that gains in technology, such as mobile phones, means that the city can finally get rid of the system.  “We are confident that call boxes can be deactivated without jeopardizing public safety,” he said.  In addition to getting approval from the federal court, the City Council would have to repeal a law that requires a street box to be placed every four blocks.

Posted by firegeezer on March 12, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, dispatch • Tagged: , ,

230-yr.-old Fire Department Ordered to Shut Down

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THE FRIENDSHIP ENGINE & HOSE CO. has been serving Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, since 1780 and is one of the oldest fire companies still active in the state.  Friendship is one of five VFD’s in the borough, but it is also the only one that has refused to bring its membership up to the minimum standards mandated by the Chambersburg Fire Chief.

In the mid-1970’s Chambersburg took over most of the financial obligations of the town’s 5 volunteer companies while combining four of them in two borough-owned firehouses.  The 5th company still operates out of its own house.  Chambersburg also owns most of the appratus and provides paid drivers for the engines.  The McKinley St. station where Friendship operates out of is also used by the Good Will Fire Company. 

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The borough also requires the volunteer firefighters to meet minimum standards for training and personnel requirements such as background checks.  Fire Chief William FitzGerald has given Friendship until April 10 to remove the fire engine that they own and until September 1 to qualify its members properly.  Chief FitzGerald tells WHTM-TV: 

“We’ve gotten past the point of talking to them about meeting the standards,” said FitzGerald.  He says their volunteers do not meet national standards in things like CPR and Hazmat.

“Most of these things are not hard to get. We provide the computers — most can be done online,” said FitzGerald.  But he says they also have not fulfilled bare minimum borough requirements.

“The biggest stepping stone is we need to have a full background check, a physical and we need them to sign an arson affidavit,” FitzGerald.

The time for talking is over after several months of discussions and no attempts being made by the volunteers to meet the minimum standards.

WHP-TV Ch. 21 has this video report:

The Chambersburg Public Opinion has MORE HERE.
Friendship Engine & Hose Co. WEBSITE.  (Recommended, click on the History Page button.)

Posted by firegeezer on March 12, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Fire-ology, Firefighter Safety & Health, Videos, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: , ,

Morning Lineup – March 8

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It’s going to be a busy morning at Firegeezer HQ, a lot of little items got backed up over the weekend and we’ll be trying to get them posted in between the news items today.  For starters, perhaps some of you might have become interested in the on-again, off-again tv series Trauma that NBC network started showing back in September.  The premise of the series is based on a rather implausable group of San Francisco paramedics and their wandering ambulance, but it evolved into a soap-opera story line that a lot of people liked.

When the series started, the plan was to show 13 episodes, but a month later the network canceled the series after 4 or 5 episodes.  Then in November, following some complaints from viewers, they changed their mind and  re-started the series along with the announcement that they contracted for an additonal 3 episodes for a total of 16 to be shown.  In January they suddenly found an extra hour to fill every night because of the Jay Leno fiasco, so they ordered four more Trauma episodes bringing the new season’s total up to 20 episodes.

The series resumes tonight on NBC at 9 pm Eastern and they will be showing all new episodes until the season finale on May 10.  Unless they change their muddled minds again.

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Several of the bloggers who made it to the EMS Today Expo the other day have posted photos and comments about their experiences there, but if you just want to check one of them, I’d recommend that you go The Fire Critic’s website HERE.  Rhett has a good, comprehensive roundup on who was there along with a lot of links and photos from the weekend.  So click the link and check out his report.  He even has a couple of pictures of me on there, but it’s still worth reading anyway.

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What better way to start off a Monday than with a report on….coffee!  One of our blogging colleagues, Joe Schmoe (probably not his real name) published the Report on Conditions website (linked on our blogroll) and he’s got a story today on how to improve your coffee experience by roasting and grinding your own coffee beans.  It must really be delicious coffee to be worth the effort of going through all that.  He has step-by-step photo series explaining how to do it the right way, including some shots of the guys at the station down on their knees coaxing the roaster along.  They’re doing it outside so that they don’t set off the smoke detector.

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I’ve seen those $8-lb. beans in the store, but just maybe they’re worth it.  CLICK HERE to read the story and see what you think about it.

Meanwhile, we’d better get this equipment checked out now while I so start some of that ol’ store-bought coffee.  See you back in the day room in a little while.

Posted by firegeezer on March 8, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, morning lineup • Tagged: , , , ,

Multi-National Underwater Recovery Training

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ON MARCH 4 A UNIQUE ICE-WATER RECOVERY DRILL was held on Lake Purr in Italy.  Participating in the extensive training exercise were fire/rescue departments from Slovenia and Austria, as well as several Italian FD’s.

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The drill included setting up a special inflated building that is used as a treatment area and FF rest and recovery zone.  The dive teams  then practiced cutting holes in the ice and going below the surface to search for and recover any victims.

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Included in the drill was a stringent practice of utilizing the Incident Command System (ICS).  (Yes, they are doing that over there now, too.) 

Participating were divers from Friuli Venice Giulia (Itay), Carinzia (Austria) and Capodistria (Slovenia).  Also surface teams from Trieste Udine Gorizia and Pordenone (Italy).

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To view the entire set of photos posted by the Vigili del Fuoco, click  HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Posted by fireball on March 7, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Training, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: , , , ,

Arrests in Cicero Fire Deaths

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THREE WEEKS AGO TODAY ON FEBRUARY 14, Firegeezer reported HERE on a deadly fire in Cicero, Illinois, on Valentine’s Day.  The fire broke out in a house that had been illegally converted to separate living units and the fire spread to the next building over that had been altered similarly.  Altogether nearly 30 people were crammed into the tenements and when the fire was extinguished there were seven dead inside the house.  Roughly 20 people escaped, but the exact number isn’t known.

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See Larry Shapiro’s 180-image photo gallery of this fire HERE.

This past Wednesday March 3, two men were arrested and charged for arson and murder in the case.  One of them was the owner of the buildings Lawrence Myers, 60, and a maintenance man, Marion Comier, 47.  According to the prosecutors, Myers hired Comier to set the fire in exchange for $3,000 to $15,000.  The prosecution says that Myers was in financial difficulty, behind in mortgage payments and facing foreclosure on two other properties that he owns in other towns.  His motive was to collect $250,000 in insurance that he held on the Cicero house.  The Chicago Tribune reported:

“It was done at the wrong time,” Lawrence Myers said in a secretly taped conversation with the maintenance man, Marion Comier, according to prosecutors. “I didn’t want any of this to happen.”  Myers had instructed Comier to burn down the apartment building during the day “when the children were at school and the women were at work,” according to one of the recordings, prosecutors said.

The two are also heard on the wiretaps talking about how much Comier would be paid, anywhere from $3,000 to $15,000, Cook County Asst. State’s Attorney Mary Lacy said in court.

And they discussed how Comier used a mixture of gasoline and oil to start the fire in an attempt to disguise the smell. “I dumped it on there, threw in a match and that was it,” Lacy said, quoting Comier’s statement.  The fire started in the rear of the first floor of the building, which was empty, Lacy said. But it raced up a back stairs, cutting off the only escape for people on the second floor.

During one taped conversation, Myers repeatedly discussed plans to take the insurance money and flee to West Virginia, where he would live without a mailbox or telephone so he would be difficult to find.

In the days after the fire, three witnesses came forward and told Cicero police they had heard Myers and Comier discussing burning down the building, prosecutors said. One of the witnesses said Comier admited setting the fire.

Witnesses also described hearing Myers repeatedly calling Comier before the fire and asking him to do it, prosecutors said.  A witness agreed to wear a wire and, on five separate days, recorded the two making statements implicating themselves, prosecutors said.

Both men were arrested Wednesday evening at 6 pm and are charged with seven counts of 1st-degree murder and two counts of aggravated arson.  Read the full story in the Chicago Tribune HERE.

The men were arraigned Friday afternoon and WFLD-TV Ch. 32 filed this video report:

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Posted by firegeezer on March 7, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Law & Justice, Videos, arson • Tagged: , , , , , ,

Firetruck Crash Kills Firefighter(s)

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Update, Friday 9 pm:  More photo links and new information.  Scroll down.

SHORTLY BEFORE 1 PM  ON FRIDAY (local time) A FIRE TRUCK FROM THE THALFANG (Germany) Volunteer Fire Department left the roadway and flipped over while responding to an emergency call.  The driver of the truck was killed and the other FF on board was seriously injured.

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Geideis-TV

The driver, who has not been identified, was 45 yrs. of age and leaves a wife and three children.  The other FF is 33-yrs.-old and was flown to the hospital in critical condition.  An unconfirmed report says that the second firefighter has died, too.

Early reports say that the truck was responding with another VFD to a house grass fire when the truck drifted off the roadway, crashed through a guard rail and tumbled down an embankment.

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Geidies-TV

Volksfreund has the early story HERE.

Update, Friday 9 pm:
The truck was responding to a grass fire.  Still no confirmation on the mortality of the 2nd firefighter.

Volksfreund now has a 54-image photo gallery posted HERE.  (Hover your mouse icon over the photo to bring up the < and > paging buttons.)

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Another photo in the gallery (linked above) shows the scuff marks
beginning from the right-hand shoulder indicating the
possibility of an over-correction maneuver.
(Volksfreund photo)

 

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Volksfreund

Contributed by Christian Lewalter

Posted by firegeezer on March 5, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Vehicle Operations & Apparatus, apparatus, health & safety • Tagged: ,

Good Pals & Arson Buddies

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A BENNINGTON, VERMONT, MAN ALONG WITH HIS WIFE and a close friend who lives with them, were all arrested Wednesday and charged with several felonies including two arson charges.

Ralph Brown, 41, is associated with the Bennington Fire Department as a fire police officer, somebody who volunteers to provide safety and security at emergency scenes.  Brown, his wife Stacey Brown, 34,  their friend Joe Thomas, 26, and “several children” live together in a house that is owned by Stacey Brown.

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Ralph Brown
(Bennington Banner / Crabtree)

According to the police reports, on February 26 the BFD was called to Brown’s house during the day for a fire in the basement that was easily extinguished.  It was determined that it started near the furnace where two electrical wires had shorted out against each other.  The next day, February 27, the fire department responded to the home again for a fire on the 2nd-floor that ended up burning the house down completely.

The Fire Chief found this fire to be “suspicious” and told the police who then called in the Vermont State Police arson investigator.  At first, Ralph Brown denied any involvement with starting the fires, but after the other two started making some admissions under interrogation, Ralph changed his testimony, too.  The North Adams Transcript reports:

Bennington Police Detective Michael Plusch said he then interviewed Ralph Brown. According to the affidavit, Brown denied setting the fire, but then said he did not start the first fire, and that he was on the second floor of the home on the second day and extinguished a cigarette on the carpet, which may have been the cause.  According to the affidavit, Brown later said he started both fires because he wanted his wife to collect the insurance money so she could have a medical procedure that would allow her to become pregnant again. According to the affidavit, Ralph Brown said that he twisted wires above the furnace in the basement in order to start the first fire and used a propane torch to start the second fire on the second floor. Plusch said Ralph Brown was arrested and taken to the Bennington Police Station for further questioning. Plusch said that after being read his Miranda warnings, Brown said that he and Thomas had been planning the fire for some time. According to the affidavit, he said that Stacey Brown had heard some of the conversations, but thought the two were kidding.

According to the affidavit, Brown said that he and Thomas removed important or hard-to-replace items from the home on Feb. 25 and that the intention was not for the home to be a complete loss, but to only net enough from the insurance company to pay for his wife’s surgeries. Ralph Brown said that he and Thomas first cut power to the furnace, wrapped the wires together and then melted the wire nuts on top of the wires, according to the affidavit. He said that after that, they turned the power back on and left when the wires arced. He said that 45 minutes later, they heard the tone go out for the fire over department radios.

Ralph Brown said that an insurance adjuster said the damage from the first fire was $40,000, which he said Thomas reported wasn’t enough for the surgery and that a second fire should be started.

He then went upstairs and used a propane torch to start a fire in the closet.

Brown was arraigned Wednesday and charged with two felony counts of first-degree arson and felony counts of arson with intent to defraud an insurer, conspiracy to commit arson and second-degree aggravated domestic assault with injury.  He is being held without bond because of a parole violation for a previous conviction.

Joe Thomas was arrested and charged with first-degree arson and conspiracy to commit arson, while Stacey Brown  was arrested and charged with aiding in the commission of a felony.

Read the details of this unusual conspiricy in the North Adams Transcript HERE and the Argus Times HERE.

Posted by firegeezer on March 5, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, arson • Tagged: , , , ,

Fire Captain Arrested on CyberSex Charges

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A CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA, (Las Vegas area) FIRE CAPTAIN HAS BEEN suspended without pay following his arrest Friday.  Martin Vohwinkel, 55, was charged with using technology to lure children for sexual purposes.  He had placed a Craigslist ad requesting a “casual encounter” with a young girl.  A Clark County detective picked up on the ad and responded while posing as a 14-yr.-old girl.

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Martin Vohwinkel

The Las Vegas Sun reported:

Vohwinkel told the “girl” he was 45 and sent a nude photo of himself standing in front of a mirror, police said. In a later photo, Vohwinkel’s face was displayed and he was wearing a firefighter’s uniform, according to the arrest report.

Vohwinkel asked the “girl” where he could pick her up and stated that he wanted to have sex, investigators said. They arranged to meet Friday morning in a Henderson parking lot. He offered to bring marijuana with him, which he referred to as “chronic,” police said.

When police arrived they saw Vohwinkel pulling into the parking lot driving a white Toyota Tundra with a firefighter sticker, police said.

At the scene, police called the cell phone number Vohwinkel had provided for the girl. His cell phone rang.

Read the complete article HERE.

KVVU-TV Ch. 5 has this video report:

Vohwinkel has been a member of the Clark County Fire Department for 29 years.

Posted by firegeezer on March 2, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Videos, crime • Tagged: , ,

Killer Storm Rakes Western Europe

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A FAST-MOVING STORM CARRYING GALE-FORCE WINDS of 90 mph came out of the Atlantic Ocean Saturday that has led to more than 50 deaths, much flooding and structural damages. 

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The storm, named Xynthia, entered Portugal traveling northeast and raced across a tip of Spain, then across the Bay of Biscay and slammed into the west coast of France where it inflicted its heaviest damages.  Then it moved across Belgium, northern Germany and into Denmark.  The catastrophic storm created ancilliary damage to the southeast coastal areas of England, all of the Netherlands,  and southern Sweden.

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The storm surge caused heavy flooding along the French coast with many areas wrecked by the waters.  As of Monday morning there were 51 known deaths and at least 30 more unaccounted for.  After the storm passed, police and firefighters in boats went house-to-house and searched each of them.  In some cases they found the occupants drowned inside.

This video shows some of the rescuers at work:

La Vendée frappée de plein fouet par la tempête sélectionné dans Actualité et Culture

France has deployed 9,240 firefighters from across the country to the disaster zone.

On Sunday France’s President Sarkozy took the helicopter tour over the coastal disaster zone.  This video has some good views of some of the flooded area.  The people in the orange jackets are fire / rescue people.  The civilians at the end of the video are people who lost everything they owned to the flood waters:


Tempête : N.Sarkozy se rend à l’Aiguillon-sur-Mer.
Uploaded by lemediascope3. – Up-to-the minute news videos.

The other countries weren’t as hard-hit.  Portugal had one death, Spain 3, Germany 3 and one in Belgium.  However, damage was still high in all countries both from flooding and inland trees falling.

Here are more views from France

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Some scenes from Germany

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Prepared by Laurence Delorme
Additional information provided by Christian Lewalter.

Posted by fireball on March 2, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Rescues, Special Operations, Videos, current events, rescue • Tagged:

Railroad Train Smashes Ladder Truck Left on Tracks

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Updated:  Another video and photo added.  Scroll down.

A DETROIT, MICHIGAN, LADDER TRUCK was parked on a railroad mainline Monday shortly before noon, while the fire company was washing down a gasoline spill from an auto wreck, when an AMTRAK passenger train plowed into it, demolishing the truck.  Ladder 13 had been dispatched for the washdown and had been positioned on the tracks.  When they realized that there was a train approaching, the driver tried to move the truck, but was not in time. 

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Detroit Free Press / Jackson photo

The train was traveling from Pontiac, Michigan, to Chicago and carrying just over 70 passengers with a crew of 4.  There were no injuries on the train, but one firefighter suffered a gash on his head and required treatment at a hospital.

A visibly angered Fire Commissioner James Mack said, “I’m very upset.  It was a $600,000 truck, we’re trained professionals.  We should always be thinking.  I don’t think the citizens of Detroit are pleased that he parked on the tracks.  This was a disservice to the citizens.  It’s their fire truck, they paid for it.”

 

WUSA-TV has provided this raw aerial video of the crash scene from WDIV-TV:

There were also two police cruisers that had been thoughtlessly left on the tracks, but they were able to get them out of the way.

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This photo by Daniel Jasina shows L-13’s 2003 Pierce Dash
waiting to be offloaded at DFD’s apparatus shops.

This video report from WJBK-TV Ch. 2 interviews some of the eyewitnesses:

Posted by firegeezer on March 1, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Vehicle Operations & Apparatus, Videos, apparatus • Tagged: , ,

They Needed a Good Beating Anyway

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EARLY SUNDAY MORNING, A KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, fire company was called for a stuck elevator in a downtown building.  While they were inside tending to the call, a car came careening around the corner, sideswiped the firetruck, and kept on going.

The FF’s called it in and gave a description of the car which was immediately dispatched to the patrols.  Soon, a car matching that description was seen driving erratically along the street and the police gave chase.  When the car pulled over, the two men inside were taken down and as the officers were starting to cuff them, one of the passengers tried to tackle one of the cops and the fight was on.  The fight was off just as quickly after a police dog latched onto them and convinced the strangers that they should stop.

After talking with the men and the firefighters, the police decided that they had been chasing the wrong car and it wasn’t the one that struck the firetruck.  That car hasn’t yet been found, but the two men went to jail anyway.

KCTV Ch. 5 has the video report:

Posted by firegeezer on February 28, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, crime • Tagged: ,

Promotional Opportunities

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A (FORMER) DEPUTY CHIEF OF the Newport Fire Protection District in Lake County, Illinois, was sentenced Friday to 30 months probation after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography.  Joseph Hubbard, 53, had faced a maximum 5-year prison term before he came to a plea agreement.  A family member found the offending pornography on his home computer and called police.  He resigned his job after the investigation began in September.

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Judge John Phillips ordered Hubbard to register as a sex offender and avoid any contact with children younger than 18.  Judge Phillips also fined Joseph Hubbard $1,200 and ordered him not to use the Internet except for employment purposes.

The Chicago Daily Herald has the STORY.

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THE SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, CITY MANAGER is searching for a new fire chief to replace Chief Darryl Von Raesfeld who announced his retirement several months ago.  The FD has 34 stations and 700 firefighters.  Chief Von Raesfeld was earning $233,315 yr.

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ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND, FIRE CHIEF JEROME W. SMITH announced that he will be retiring effective April 1.  Chief Smith has worked for the AFD since 1967.  The Baltimore Sun reports:

Smith, 66, an Annapolis native, became a volunteer firefighter in 1966 and served one year before joining the paid fire service. Promoted through the ranks, he was named acting chief in 2005 and confirmed by the city council in 2007. During his 43-year-tenure, he worked with the city’s Code Enforcement Division to write legislation on sprinklers and upgraded the emergency medical services. He also chaired the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Council, taught at the Anne Arundel County Fire Academy and worked as an assistant state fire marshal.

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HANNIBAL, MISSOURI, FIRE CHIEF TIM CARTER will be facing suspension and impeachment hearings at a City Council meeting on Tuesday night.  And then a later date will be scheduled for a vote on whether he will keep his job.  Carter has been on paid administrative leave since November, but he claims that he doesn’t know why.  Neither he nor his attorney have seen the charges that are supposedly filed against him.

The Hannibal Courier-Post tries to explain it all HERE.

Posted by firegeezer on February 27, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, labor • Tagged: , , ,

This time next Friday …

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UnoChicagoLogoI will be in Baltimore and headed for the Uno Chicago Grill at the Inner Harbor.

This is a special EMS Today related gathering that is open to all Fire/EMS bloggers, friends of bloggers, EMS 2.0 advocates and Chronicles of EMS fans.

Starts at 8 pm at:

201 East Pratt Street
Harborplace’s Pratt Street Pavilion
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-625-5900

Just east of the Baltimore Convention Center.

Sponsored by The George Washington University – Emergency Health Services Program, JEMS and FireEMSBlogs.com.

Draft Beer, Non Alcoholic Beverages and Appetizers will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Additional food and a cash bar will also be available. We’ll have a special area sectioned off for our bloggers as part of a larger area of the restaurant that will be ours where everyone can connect

Proud To Be A Sponsor

Wearing my “day job” hat, I am proud to be one of the meet-up sponsors.  I am looking forward to meeting Justin and Mark (these guys),

Also excited to place some names and faces together.

gw_r1_c9EMS 2.0 Higher Education Information

I will bring information about GWU’s distance education bachelor’s degree in EMS Management and master’s degree in Emergency Service Management.

We can talk about the EMS professional development model developed by FESHE at the National Fire Academy.

NEED A HEAD COUNT

If you are planning to stop by the meet-up next Friday, please post a message below.  I need to provide a headcount by Tuesday.

Hope to see you there!

Mike “FossilMedic” Ward

Posted by fossilmedic on February 26, 2010 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Blogs, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Technology & Communications, Twitter, beer, culture, fun • Tagged: , , ,

Oldest Active Fireman?

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EVERYONE IS CERTAIN THAT JACK LINDSLEY OF LAMBERTVILLE is the oldest active firefighter in New Jersey.  But at age 98 it is possible that he’s the oldest volunteer FF in the world.

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Jack first joined the Columbia Fire Deparment in 1934.  He took time out during the 2nd-World War to serve where he piloted a landing craft at Omaha Beach on the D-Day invasion.  Returning back to Lambertville, he rose through the ranks of the VFD where he eventually served as Chief and Fire Marshal.

“Well the only thing I can do now is when the whistle blows is make coffee and sandwiches,” Lindsley tells WPVI-TV in this endearing video interview HERE.

The Hunterdon County Democrat has even more in this ARTICLE.

Posted by firegeezer on February 26, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Fire-ology, Videos, culture • Tagged: , , ,

Fire Officers Arrested for “Gross Negligence”

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IN ENGLAND, THREE FIRE OFFICERS of the Warwickshire Fire & Rescue Service were arrested Wednesday, but not charged, in connection with a fire in November 2007 that killed four firefighters.  They are being questioned on suspicion of gross negligence, manslaughter and offences under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

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Press Association photo

The fire occurred on November 2, 2007, at a food packing plant near Stratford-on-Avon and fully-engulfed the structure.  Early on, firefighters were inside searching for victims knowing that there were often people in there during the night.  The roof collapsed trapping four of them.  Four of the firefighters were buried alive under the roof and debris.  All of them were “retained firefighters,” similar to what we refer to as Paid-on-Call firefighters.

Initial search for the four men was delayed by more than a day because of the lack of structural integrity of the building.  After structural engineers were brought in and equipment able to move the heavy steel, the search began for the victims.  Firegeezer covered the tragedy HERE and HERE.

Two days later, working under dangerous conditions with the building still shifting, USAR teams located three of the firefighters.  Four days later the final FF was located and retrieved.  (Firegeezer report HERE and HERE.)  One of them was the son of the first-due company’s station commander.

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On November 28, 2007, we reported (HERE) on a press conference held by the police:

(The) police superintendant in charge said that they will be searching the destroyed building possibly as late as the end of January.  When one of the journalists asked him if the Fire Brigade could possibly be facing criminal charges,  Det Supt Ken Lawrence made the bizarre statement that: “It is possible. We are exploring every single possibility and ruling nothing out.”  He added: “I still don’t know what started it. I am erring on the side of caution, treating it as if it was arson, but clearly I would add that I am open-minded about that.”

On January 16, 2008,  the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) office has issued an “improvement order” to the Warwickshire Fire & Rescue Service.  The Press Association news agency reported:

Speaking at a press conference, Alan Craddock, head of operations for HSE in the Midlands, said: “As a result of our work on this investigation, HSE has formed the opinion, based on the evidence we have seen, that the current arrangements employed by the authority do not comply with the statutory duties to provide its firefighters with all the information they should have to assist them in making the appropriate decisions when attending a fire.”

Mr Craddock said the fire service had four months to improve their arrangements for providing information on aspects such as locality of the incident, particular hazards of the buildings involved and where a water supply can be found.

Eighteen months later, in May 2009 four migrant workers from Poland were arrested and charged with arson with intent to endanger life.  The three men and one woman were suspected of being disgruntled after one of them was fired from his job.  (Firegeezer HERE.)

While the three officers who were arrested Wednesday were not identified by name or rank by the police, they have been described as being managers who played a commanding and organizational role in operating at the fire.

The national Fire Brigades Union (FBU) issued a statement saying,  “We are concerned at the move to arrest these individuals at this stage when all other key players have not even been interviewed. Evidence from our own investigation suggests there may be systemic failings.”

The FBU also identified the three officers, all members of the union, as “managers who were involved in the incident command process.”

Posted by firegeezer on February 25, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Law & Justice, Major Incidents, labor • Tagged: , ,

Updates and Around the Fire Web

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We have several loose-ends and links to pass along this morning, so let’s get started.

PROSECUTORS IN CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, have announced that there will be no criminal charges filed relating to the unfortunate incident where a hose line fell from a pumper and struck an 82-yr.-old woman, inflicting fatal injuries.  See the Firegeezer report from last month HERE and our update with video HERE.

Middlesex County District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr.’s office issued a statement yesterday saying:

Based on the facts and evidence that have been developed during the investigation conducted by the Cambridge Police Department and the office of the Middlesex district attorney, there is insufficient evidence that a crime was committed.

The Boston Globe has MORE.

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A STRANGE STORY HIT THE INTERNET YESTERDAY about a misguided California Highway Patrol officer arresting a fire battalion chief after he refused to order a pumper to move at an accident scene.  The fire engine was positioned to provide a safety barrier for the police and fire personnel working the accident scene.

A CHP officer is doing some PR repair calling it “regrettable and embarrassing.”  STATter911 has full coverage and related video on this story HERE.

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Peter Brown

Peter Brown

THE NEXT STEP IN THE PROSECUTION OF AN ACCUSED ARSONIST/MURDERER in England took place yesterday.  Firegeezer first reported, with video, back on September 6 HERE about the horrible deaths inflicted on two young jockeys when the apartment where some of them were attending a party was set afire and the doorway was blocked.

On November 28 we reported HERE on the arrest of Peter Brown, 37, of North Yorkshire and his being charged with murder.  Yesterday Brown appeared before the court briefly while the prosecution advised that they plan to to add alternative charges of manslaughter and arson with intent to endanger life.  The trial is scheduled to begin on April 26 and is expected to last two weeks.

The Press Association has this video update:

Posted by firegeezer on February 24, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Law & Justice, Videos, arson • Tagged: , , , ,

Too Late With the Memo

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ALBUQUERQUE (New Mexico) FIRE CHIEF JAMES BREEN WAS AT HIS DESK writing out a new internal policy on off-duty behavior for firefighters when he got a phone call from one of them, Lieutenant Martin Salazar.  The phone call was his “one free call” that Salazar was permitted from the Santa Fe County jail to tell the chief that he’d be late for work.

martin_salazar aKOB-TV reports that the 11-yr. member of his department was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct after Salazar attacked the policeman in a hotel bar Sunday night with a full bottle of beer.  The incident took place on the Pojoaque Pueblo and it was a pueblo police officer who made the arrest.

KRQE-TV further reports:

He was arrested in his room at the pueblo’s posh Buffalo Thunder Resort, according to a friend who wanted to remain anonymous.  Salazar’s friend told KRQE News 13 that Salazar and his wife had been celebrating her birthday at the resort north of Santa Fe.

The friend said the Salazars and three other people had gone to the room after a night of dinner and gambling when officers knocked on the door.  When Salazar answered the door, police came in with their guns drawn and ordered everyone to the floor.  Salazar, who reportedly got into a confrontation with officers in the bathroom, ended up in handcuffs and needed medical attention for cuts and bruises.

Chief Breen says that he is “very disappointed” and that these charges are “out of character” for the Lt.  Whenever Salazar gets out of jail, he’ll be put on administrative work duty at the city’s animal shelter.

KOB-TV filed this video report:

Posted by firegeezer on February 23, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Law & Justice, Videos, labor • Tagged: , , ,

Drag Race Spectator Killed By Flying Tire

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A WOMAN SITTING BEHIND THE STANDS AT FIREBIRD INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY in Chandler, Arizona, died Sunday following a freak accident on the drag strip.  The race track was hosting the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Arizona Nationals, a major circuit event.

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The errant dragster a moment before the wheel came off.
(all photos from Roger Richards / CompetitionPlus.com)

During a race between two Top Fuel Dragster category cars, the left rear wheel came off one of the dragsters, sending the car into a flaming tumble down the track.  The wheel started bouncing, hitting the barrier and then bouncing over the grandstand and landing on the woman who was sitting at a picnic table next to a motor home behind the stands.

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She was immediately attended to by a Gila River Reservation ambulance and then transferred to a helicopter where she was flown to the hospital.  She died shortly after.

ABC15 has this video report with additional information:

The NHRA is investigating the cause of the equipment failure, but has not determined what happened yet.

Posted by firegeezer on February 22, 2010 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Videos, cars, rescue • Tagged: , , ,

Plane Crashes, Burns House in Illinois

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A SINGLE-ENGINE AIRCRAFT APPROACHING THE St. Louis (Missouri) Downtown Airport crashed into a home five miles short of the airport Sunday evening.

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KTVI-TV

There was a rainstorm occurring at the time and neighbors say that the Piper’s engine was making a strange sound just before it plunged into the house in Belleville, Illinois.  The house is located on a private airstrip that is part of an aviation community that shares the grass landing strip.  It is possible that the pilot, knowing he was in trouble, was attempting to put down at the private runway.

The plane crashed into a hanger that was attached to the house, setting both full ablaze.  The occupants of the house were not at home at the time.  Early indications are that there were two people in the turboprop Piper Meridian that seats six passengers.  A spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration said the aircraft was flying from Vero Beach, Fla., and was scheduled to land at the St. Louis Downtown Airport where it was based.

KTVI-TV Ch.2 has this video report from the scene:

The Belleville News-Democrat has the STORY.

Posted by firegeezer on February 22, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Fires, Videos, aircraft, fire

Texas Church Arson Arrests

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AUTHORITIES ANNOUNCED A SHORT TIME AGO that two arrests have been made in connection with the string of church arsons east of Dallas, Texas.  The arrests come nine days after the ATF and Texas investigators released sketches of three suspects wanted for questioning.  See the Firegeezer report from February 13 HERE.

At least nine of ten church fires have been identified as arsons that were all committed since the first of January.

The Tyler, Texas, Fire Chief has a press conference scheduled for any minute now.  We will update this report following it. 

CNN is reporting:

Jason Robert Bourque, 19, and Daniel George McAllister, 21, were charged with one count of arson each in a February 8 fire set at the Dover Baptist Church in Tyler, Texas, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Authorities say they believe the men are connected to nine other church fires that have been set in the area since January 1.

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McAllister (left) and Bourque (right)

Bourque and McAllister also are suspects in the attempted break-ins at three separate churches earlier this month, said Steve McCraw, director of the public safety department.

Authorities on February 12 released sketches of three people sought in connection with the fires. On Sunday, officials said that those “persons of interest” are not related to this weekend’s arrests.

The Texas Department of Public Safety has just issued the following press release:

Texas Department of Public Safety
Press Release
February 21, 2010

Authorities have charged and arrested two men in connection with one of the 10 church arson fires that occurred in East Texas beginning on Jan. 1, 2010. Three other churches were targets of attempted break-ins, and investigators believe those and the remaining nine burned churches are also connected to these men. The investigations are ongoing.

The two men arrested are Jason Robert Bourque, 19, of Lindale and Daniel George McAllister, 21, of Ben Wheeler. They had attended the First Baptist Church in Ben Wheeler together. Bourque was arrested without incident in Van Zandt County and transported to Smith County and McAllister was arrested without incident by Texas Rangers in San Antonio and also transported to Smith County.

“By working closely with our local and federal partners, we brought tremendous resources to this investigation, working around the clock, and culminating in these arrests. The arsons of these houses of worship were despicable and cowardly acts, and Texas won’t stand for this kind of criminal activity,” said Steven C. McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“Clearly this effort shows that Texas law enforcement has mastered the art and science of working together, sharing information, and dedicating the necessary resources to bring cases such as these to a successful resolution, and these officers are to be commended,” McCraw said.

The men were arrested by the task force created to find these individuals and stop these arsons. The task force includes hundreds of local law enforcement officers, more than 200 personnel from the DPS, including Texas Rangers, Highway Patrol troopers and Criminal Investigation Division agents, fixed-wing and helicopter aviation assets and the DPS Communications and Fusion Centers, and numerous FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents and specialists. A call to a task force tip line alerted investigators to the two men.

Agencies involved in the arrests included the DPS; FBI; ATF; Tyler Police Department, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office and Fire Department; Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office and Fire Department; Wills Point Police Department; Smith County Sheriff’s Office, Fire Department and Fire Marshal’s Office; Athens Police Department; and the Canton Police Department.

The task force was formed on Jan. 20, and investigators worked cases in a three-county area covering 2,648 square miles and an estimated 713 churches. Investigators from numerous agencies worked together to develop leads, and local agencies assisted with nightly patrols of churches in the area to prevent additional arsons.

Dates and locations of arsons:
· 01-01-2010, 9:02 AM – Little Hope Baptist Church – Canton, TX;
· 01-01-2010, 11:05 AM – Faith Baptist Church – Athens, TX;
· 01-11-2010, 10:40 PM – Grace Community Church, Athens, TX;
· 01-12-2010, 12:09 AM – Lake Athens Baptist Church, Athens, TX;
· 01-16-2010, 6:30 PM – Tyland Baptist Church, Tyler, TX;
· 01-17-2010, 6:33 PM – First Church of Christ Scientist, Tyler, TX;
· 01-20-2010, 7:37 AM – Prairie Creek Fellowship, Lindale, TX;
· 02-04-2010, 5:23 AM – Russell Memorial United Methodist Church, Wills Point, TX;
· 02-08-2010, 8:47 PM – Dover Baptist Church, Tyler, TX;
· 02-08-2010, 9:44 PM – Clear Springs Missionary Baptist Church, Lindale, TX.

In addition to the arsons at the above listed churches, there were attempted break-ins at the following churches:

· 02-07-2010, 12:19 AM, Heritage Baptist Church, Tyler, TX;
· 02-08-2010, 9:19 PM, Clear View Baptist Church, Tyler, TX;
· 02-08-2010, 9:39 PM, Pine Brook Baptist Church, Tyler, TX.

Posted by firegeezer on February 21, 2010 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, arson, investigations • Tagged: ,