The Fire Brigades Union is warning that attacks on fire crews will result in deaths if they continue. Any delay in carrying out rescues hugely increases the risk to anyone trapped in a fire.
FBU Assistant General Secretary Andy Dark said: “Fire crews have been subjected to attacks and threatened as they try to protect the communities they live and work in. It is predominantly poorer working class communities that are bearing the brunt of arson attacks.
“Fire crews are doing their best in the face of great risk to themselves. They’ve been attacked on the way to incidents, at the scene and there have been attempts to steal life saving equipment.
“Those who are torching homes, shops and workplaces need to understand they are seriously risking lives. There is a very real risk that this will result in a significant loss of life if it goes on.
“Fire crews are frustrated and angry that they cannot get to burning buildings, especially where people may be trapped. Fire crews have to be able to get through without fear of attack or serious injury or people will die. “We’ve seen businesses lost, many of them small retailers in what is left of our High Streets. Livelihoods are being lost and it’s jobs going up in smoke, not just buildings.
“We’re making a direct appeal to those involved to let the fire crews through and let them get on with the job. Fire won’t wait, and any delay risks lives being lost or the total loss of homes, shops and workplaces.
“All we have is kit to protect from the danger of fires, not from bricks, bottles or metal bars. We do not arrest people and we only use water on fires, we do not use it on those involved in these disturbances.
“In recent days the fire service has been overwhelmed in London. There is a clear risk this will also be the case in other cities if these disturbances spread further.”
Brian Humphrey notes an anniversary last week in Los Angeles:
The last movement by fire horse of LAFD apparatus from a fire station took place on July 19, 1921 when the legendary 1905 Gorter Water Tower was moved from Fire Station 24 to the municipal shops to be motorized.
Though it was proudly returned to service on October 13, 1921, it was without the familiar and in many ways beloved "clip-clop" of the faithful and bright-eyed fire horses that so proudly served our city.
A wildfire that started Thursday night has destroyed 1/4 of the occupied island of Brač in Croatia. Our correspondent Nenad Ilisic has sent us this report on the situation there:
Thursday July 14 a wildfire fire started on the island of Brač in Croatia.
24 Sata
A strong south wind spread the fire very quickly. Although more than 120 400 firefighters, 40 75vehicles, 4 CL-415 and 1 AT-802 airplanes were engaged, they couldn't stop the fire and the first day ended with more than 2500 burned hectares. Heavy terrain in combination with wind constantly changing direction are the reasons why ground forces were not able to get the fire under control.
24 Sata
Friday, early at sunrise, 5 CL-415, 3 AT-802 and 2 Mi-8 helicopters started to aid firefighters on the ground, who fought the fire all night, with minor success. 250 firefighters are at the moment engaged with more reinforcement on the way. More than 200 persons (tourists and residents) were evacuated. For now there are no reports of injured people. More than 250 sheep didn't survive. Many vineyards and olive groves are destroyed. Last information says that more than 4000 hectares are burned that is almost 1/4 of the island surface. Almost all air forces were engaged during the day to their limits until there was no more visibility to fly.
This Video Shows the Canadair Tankers Refilling From the Sea
Just another day at the beach!
The fire is easy to see from Split. Ash from fire ''snowed'' on the town 17 km away. There is one more night of uncertainty for all people on the island, firefighters included. The only hope is that if the wind weakens during the night, there is large possibility for firefighters to take control of the situation Saturday.
Additional photos available: 24 Sata has a 34-image photo gallery HERE. Jutarnji has a 30-image gallery HERE.
This graphic animation illustrates the area involved:
FY 2012 budget proposes allowing five of the eight engine companies to respond with a crew of three
PASADENA -
The city's Public Safety Committee will hold a special meeting 4:15 p.m. Tuesday to discuss the Pasadena Fire Department's proposed Fiscal Year 2012 Operating Budget, which incorporates $2 million in reductions, and the associated service level impacts.
The fiscal year 2012 Recommended Operating Budget includes a $2 million, or roughly 5 percent, reduction in the Fire Department's budget. The Public Safety Committee will meet to discuss the service level impact of the proposed reduction.
Like other departments, the money saved is by not filling up to five vacant fighter positions a day with overtime staff.
This link takes you to the 17 slide fire department budget presentation. There is a comprehensive literature review on 3-versus-4 person fire company staffing. Adobe Acrobat .pfd format: (HERE)
Station 39, a single engine house built in 1949, will be closed for 24 – 36 months.
Only one of eight Pasadena fire stations meet current earthquake codes. Station 34 next to the Cal Tech campus.
In addition to vacating Station 39, Station 32 requires immediate retrofitting to avoid collapse in event of an earthquake.
Station 32 has a paramedic engine, truck company, rescue ambulance and the urban search and rescue team.
City allocated $800,000 to repair Station 32 and design a replacement Station 39.
Looking at a total of $59 million to upgrade or replace seven of the eight city fire stations. This obligation is on top of existing capital obligation for repairs to the Rose Bowl and school construction.
Not sure if the city is temporarily disbanding Engine 39. That represents 4 firefighter positions every day.
A 36,000 SQ. FT. BUILDING HOUSING the Nebraska Engineering Co., a business that makes machine parts, was destroyed Wednesday after an oil separator started burning sending what one worker called "a lake of fire" through the building in Omaha, Nebraska.
Omaha World-Herald
The initial alarm was dispatched shortly before 11 am and a 2nd was struck shortly after the units arrived on the scene. Within a half-hour there were four alarms dispatched as the fire intensified.
This early video report from the fire spokesman gives a good report on the first-alarm units' actions and the primary search of the building:
At one point, the fire extended to a set of outdoor tanks containing oils and chemicals. A total of 70 firefighters worked the job for four hours before it was brought under control.
World-Herald
There were 55 to 60 employees in the building when the fire started and all escaped safely. Three of the employees were taken to the hospital suffering from smoke inhalation and one of them had his hair singed. All three were treated and released.
Channel 3 News summarized the incident in this video report:
Eric Carpenter, reporting for the Orange County Register, reports on next week's closing of Engine 8 at the Riverdale fire station in east Anaheim, California.
Anaheim Fire Chief Randy Bruegman said removing the engine from service will save the city $1.9 million over the next year.
The move also helps avoid any layoffs; the four firefighters assigned to that engine will be put on rotation to avoid overtime costs throughout the department,
Bruegman said. It's the second Anaheim fire truck to be taken out of service in recent years: The department placed an engine stationed near downtown on reserve indefinitely in April 2009.
The Riverdale station houses Paramedic Engine 8, Truck 8, Battalion 1 and HazMat 8.
Their "first-in" covers a mixed area of industrial and hillside residential. Station 8 responds to both the 91 and 55 freeways, and has the potential of river rescues with the Santa Ana riverbed just behind the station.
According to the news article, Station 8 handles about 1,500 calls per year.
Truck 8 will morph into Quint 8.
Update (June 12) Truck 8 (tiller) is swapped with the reserve quint.
HazMat 8 will move to Station 6.
Quint 8 will probably be paramedic first responder capable.
The LAFD Deployment Plan was approved today by a 12 to 2 vote [of the City Council] with two amending motions.
The first amending motion speaks to restoring funding to the department to re-open resources. Should labor make contract concessions, those funds will return directly to the Fire Department. Specifically 6.9 million dollars in anticipated concessions from labor negotiations will be placed in the unappropriated balance account.
The Department will use the same data analysis system that was used to create the deployment plan to determine what neighborhood services will be restored.
The second amending motion was designed to maintain the position authorities without the funding. 318 position authorities remain unfunded.
This means that any savings that are found within the budget will be used to restore neighborhood resources. Those resources will be determined by the Fire Chief.
July 5th [2011] remains the implementation date for the LAFD Deployment Plan. The MCP [Modified Coverage Plan] will remain in place until that date.
Special Duty sworn furloughs were approved.
"After several hours of debate, I’m pleased that the LAFD Deployment Plan proposed by Chief Peaks was approved by the Los Angeles City Council," said Councilmember Tony Cárdenas.
"I applaud his leadership and vision in the development of a Plan that will save the City more than $50 million a year while enhancing public safety for all of Los Angeles." said Councilmember Tony Cárdenas.
…more than 100 members of the firefighters' union marched to City Hall to protest $54 million in budget cuts.
Dozens of members of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City packed city council chambers, wearing matching white T-shirts and applauding as council members expressed concern over the new fire department plan.
In order to increase the level of communications between the Executive Board and the membership, UFLAC has launched both a Twitter account and a Facebook page.
Please add UFLAC to your list of accounts and encourage other members to do the same. We will be adding links to these features directly from our website; http://www.uflac.org , in the near future.
– Adam VanGerpen. Editor, The Los Angeles Firefighter
The kinetic energy from the moving airplane was transferred to the brakes in the form of tremendous heat, estimated to be more than 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit or 1,400 degrees Celsius.
As expected, the brakes glowed a bright orange as smoke poured out.
Firefighters arrived and were available to act in an emergency, but certification requirements called for the airplane to sit unassisted for five minutes.
After the airplane comes to a stop, it's estimated to be more than 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1,400 degrees Celsius) inside the brakes.
Shamelessly lifted from Matt Hardigree at Jalopnik.com
Ara Gureghian is a 66 year old Armenian who has been a personal chef, writer and photographer with a severe case of wanderlust.
In the eighth year of a journey without a finish line.
Our destination is unknown, it is the Journey that matters, it is our own growth that sits above it all and guide us through the many moments acquired these days.
We pretty much try to follow the weather, North in the Summer and South in the Winter. We have been fortunate to aquire some Land in Texas, near Big Bend, I call it “The Oasis” and it’s giant Fire Ring is the Center of my own Universe where Serenity, Peace and Love reigns within the Spiritual Space we spend some time of the year, sheltered from the harsher elements North of us.
Cooking, riding the motorcycle and sidecar rig, my dog Spirit, my Dear Friends, photography, writing, reading, roasting and drinking coffee, camping, sailing, movies… no television and Life itself… all of the above fills up our moments, one at the time.
Since 2008, the department's budget has shrunk by about $100 million and the LAFD hasn't hired a single firefighter.
In 2009, the fire department went on a "modified coverage plan," which closed fire companies on a rotating basis. Each day, 122 fewer fighters were assigned to stations.
The result was a chaotic system in which firefighters were shuttled all over town to work with people they didn't know – not a good situation for people who work in life-threatening conditions.
In LAFD there has been buzz about "hard closures" – permanent closing of companies – in the next budget year.
Cavanaugh explains the overall plan:
Fire Chief Millage Peaks' redeployment plan will permanently and selectively close fire companies based on the computer modeling data (from the last three years).
He'll reduce the number of staffed fire engines in areas where demand is low, and increase medical response in areas where demand is high.
Some 10 fire companies will be reassigned as paramedic resources – a reflection of the high number of medical calls.
The service closures will mean 106 fewer firefighters assigned to stations each day.
Instead, they'll fill in for firefighters who are sick, on vacation or in training, which will reduce overtime expenses.
By permanently cutting fire resources, the department will need 318 fewer firefighters.
(No one will be laid off, but position vacancies will not be filled.)
While NOT officially posted, it appears that 12 engines and six light forces (truck companies) will close.
Some positiona will be used to restore rescue ambulances that were closed in 2009. The article points out that 4 out of every 5 calls to LAFD are medical.
There is additional reorganization at the command level.
Need to dig to find the 22 minute clip – look for one starting with Bobby Halton standing at the podium in The Big Room. (HERE) Or use this link: http://bcove.me/0ryr4cko
Or click below:
Powerful! Agree with Bobby, this clip will show up at many training sessions and fire stations.
Dave, Rhett and Willie have posted their Wednesday experiences as they set up for the opening of today's exhibit hall at noon.
One of the corporate partners from my "day job" is based in Indianapolis, so much of my Wednesday afternoon and evening was spent with them. Sitting in a far north steakhouse, watched a violent thunderstorm with hail about 8:30 pm.
One of the things Borders immediately eliminated as they close the downtown store on South Meridian Street was the coffee shop and the eclectic spaces to write in the old bank. Sad.
Spent time in the FedEx Office store around the corner. Needed to use a scanner. Got an unhappy bonus as a garbled email was apparently sent to everyone on my gmail address list while using their desktop … sorry
A driver in Turkey has been hailed as a hero after leaping into action when a fuel tanker he was unloading caught fire at a petrol station.
This CCTV footage shows the terrifying moment flames shoot up out of the top of the tanker and everyone runs away. Everyone except Koçak, that is.
Realising a massive explosion could take out the entire station, Koçak jumped back into the burning vehicle and drove it 1km to safety.
As he drives off, leaking fuel can be seen catching light and it took 60 fire fighters to extinguish the subsequent flames which caused much damage.
Several witnesses have since congratulated Koçak and say his heroic actions saved many peoples lives. We are not sure the word hero quite does him justice.
Speaking after the accident Koçak said: “The fuel tank went up in flames instantly. At that moment, I said, ‘Let something happen to me, instead of the people nearby,’ and got behind the wheel.
“The tank turned into a ball of flames, but I managed to take it to a secure place. But some cars were burned as a result of the flames jumping from the tank.”
The Japanese Government has declared a nuclear emergency.
Japan’s quake-hit nuclear power plant Fukushima Number 1, about 250 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, “may be experiencing nuclear meltdown,” Kyodo News reported, citing the nation’s Nuclear Safety Commission.
NHK World Japanreported that cesium elements have been found around the site (unable to capture audio segment)
Cesium is the material used in control rods. The Cesium rods control the speed of a reaction adn the temperature of the reactor.
Finding elements of cesium around the reactor is an indication of the start of a primary or core meltdown.
Newsletter March 12 (Sat) 11:14 delivery (translation)
Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (NISA), the first nuclear power plant damaged by earthquake Toukyoudenryoku Hukuzima East (town Ookuma Fukushima Futaba town) in Unit 1, soluble in hot fuel rods “meltdown” has occurred likely announced.
According to NISA, No. 1 around the detection of radioactive cesium on NIRS team. Cesium is contained in nuclear fuel rods, because of its high melting point, it is estimated that the likely cause meltdown.
According to the Safety Agency, said nuclear power plant Unit 1 reactor water level decreased from 12 am. Temporarily exposed surface of the cooling water from nuclear fuel rods were damaged nuclear fuel is a concern.
Melting cesium control rods lead to the overheating and partial meltdown at Three Mile Island (1979) as well as the explosion of the Chernobyl reactor in 1986.
The two-vehicle accident involved Jewel and Erath County Commissioner Jim Pack, who was operating a Harbin Volunteer Fire Department fire/brush truck and responding to a grass fire on US Highway 67.
Harbin Volunteer Fire Department is a new, rural department:
STEPHENVILLE (August 05, 2009)-A new Volunteer Fire Department was commissioned by Erath County for operation in the Dublin/Harbin area.
Erath County commissioners voted in a July 27 meeting to approve the new department.
The new agency will cover the small community located 4 miles east-northeast of the city of Dublin along F.M. 847.
The department will be added to the 911 call center between Monday August 3rd & Friday August 7th.
A BAR BQ Fundraiser is planned for Saturday August 15th at the Electric CO-OP in nearby Stephenville it’s open to the public and anyone who wishes to Volunteer is urged to attend.
March already! Yep, Spring is right around the corner. But I had a spring of my own yesterday. When I got home after a shopping jaunt in the afternoon, I came in through the basement patio door and immediately smelled something very moist. It was because of the water all over the floor. It only took me a handful of seconds to track it down to my water heater where I immediately shut off the water line running to it and the inline valve for the gas pipe.
That is something that you never do really need to have happen to you. Unfortunately, water heaters seldom give you any warning signs of their imminent demise. This one might have set a record, though. It was a 15-yr. tank but it lasted 23 years. Anyway, I did a bit of mopping up and then went back out to Lowe’s to get a replacement installed and they didn’t have one. The salesman called the other Lowe’s in town and they didn’t have one either. Can you believe that? It’s a standard-size, 40-gallon gas heater. Next stop was Home Depot and they not only had plenty, but I have a plumber due at 9 am this morning to install it and take my old hulk away. At least that’s what is supposed to happen. We’ll see.
* * * * * * *
Long-time readers may remember the story that we covered extensively over several days about a food processing factory arson that killed four firefighters in Warwickshire, England, in 2007. It was a drawn-out affair because they couldn’t retrieve three of the bodies until a couple of days later and the fourth one wasn’t found until four days after the fire. One of the fatalities was a son of one of the incident commanders. It was 12 months ago that the Warwickshire police announced that they had detained and questioned three of the fire officers who commanded the scene. We published the outrageous activity HERE. If you don’t recall the incident, take the time to read it.
Press Association
Yesterday the Crown Prosecutor (same as our district attorney) disclosed that they have arrested and charged the three officers with manslaughter by gross negligence. Sky News reports it:
In total, 12 people were questioned by detectives about their conduct during the operation to bring the fire under control.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said the remaining nine people have been told there is insufficient evidence to take action against them. The CPS’ Michael Gregory said: “I have reviewed the evidence of the case very carefully and I have decided that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge Paul Simmons, Adrian Ashley, and Timothy Woodward with gross negligence manslaughter.
“Mr Simmons and Mr Ashley were watch managers and Mr Woodward was a station manager at the time of the fire, but they all acted as incident commanders before, during and after their colleagues were sent into the burning building.
“In that role, they were responsible for making operational decisions while their colleagues tried to put out the fire.”
When they made the annoucement last year that they had made these arrests and interrogations, I used the Lineup to rant about this insidious practice of charging fire officers for not being perfect at an ongoing, major fire. I finished up by saying:
If this is successfully prosecuted, just look at what the consequences of the action will be. First of all, there will be a large drop in the number of people willing to take supervisory positions. Perhaps not even enough to fill the slots. UK relies heavily on part-time and volunteer firefighters. Do you think for a second that you will be able to recruit any volunteers if they know that they could be sent to jail, thus losing their livlihoods and families, if they so much as make a bad decision? This is nonsense.
Read the entire Lineup commentary about this newfound pursuit by the police HERE.
Before you get too steamed up over this, we had better get this equipment checked out. I’m going to get more coffee started. We’ll finish this discussion back in the day room.
America OnLine (AOL) set up their first headquarters in Tyson’s Corner’s, the closest thing to a central business district in an urban county that spreads to 499 square miles.
8619 Westwood Center Drive
A four story, 97,000 square foot, sprinklered office building at the end of a cul-de-sac. My first encounter with AOL was standing by on Engine 29 as a helicopter was positioning a huge auxillary generator at the rear of this building.
The generator was the size of a locomotive. Lifted from the front of the building to the rear. It supplemented an existing back-up generator that would normally be used by a community hospital.
Brand new Seagrave pumper and 100′ tiller were assigned to the Tyson fire station when it opened in December 1978.
They were replaced after six years of brutal workload that included responding to 20 to 35 alarm activations every day. Alerts came from the smoke, fire and waterflow monitors that covered 30 million square feet of office and retail space.
New occupancies were announced with a flurry of activated alarm responses, up to six a day, until the alarm system was sorted out. It would take weeks for some occupancies.
By time I got to Engine 29, the department was on its third program to control the false/faulty alarm problem. A “Faulty Alarm Ordinance” with a progressive series of sanctions was passed by the Board of Supervisors. Recurrent alarm system problems would compel a complete retest of the fire alarm/detection system by Fire Prevention at a price designed to encourage early correction of problems.
You cannot come in here
Some tenants do work for the federal government that require extraordinary security. The most extreme worked in buildings or floors where the fire department was completely denied access.
Fire-rescue emergencies were coordinated with the on-site security team. There were few response problems within the truly top-secret facilities.
Not so for many of the places posing as a secured facility.
Graveyard AOL Dogs
For whatever reason, the overnight security team at AOL rarely followed the activated alarm protocol developed by Station 29 and the building manager. They would reset the alarm before the fire department arrived and denied entry into the building.
When the events were rare and months apart, it was an irritation. We documented their actions and notified the building manager and fire prevention.
Now I was seeing them once every couple of weeks. They were still clearing the alarm before we arrived and not letting us in. Issued fire company level “Notice of Violation” report after every encounter and started a log for Fire Prevention.
In anticipation of a continuing problem, I dusted off my supervising fire marshal guide. Made sure I had copies of the county ordinance and state statute.
“Engine 29, we are getting notification of another alarm activation”
It was after 1 am. I do not remember if we were still on the scene or a couple of blocks away when dispatch notified us that they were getting another alarm activation at 8619 Westwood Center Drive. It was the sixth alarm activation in 14 days, second one since midnight.
The central monitoring station reported that it was a different alarm type/location than the one we just cleared. I requested the duty fire marshal and the balance of a first alarm assignment.
Informed the security supervisor that I believed there was a fire or dangerous situation in the building and was ordering an evacuation. Provided a copy of the ordinance and indicated that failure to immediately comply with this order will be handled as a charge of obstructive behavior by the county police.
Suggested that he may want to notify the building manager before I call him.
Dozens of unhappy technical staff were standing in the parking lot as the balance of the first alarm arrived.
Anti-climatic resolution
Dirty smoke detectors were driving the increased alarm activity. The different type of alarm that triggered the evacuation was a trouble signal after a dirty detector shorted out.
The new graveyard shift security force supervisor had no problem following the activated alarm guidelines.
(I still could not log into AOL while sitting in the fire station a quarter-mile away – oh the days of dial-up service)
Fire department units responded to a reported vehicle fire on West 45th Street, west of Seventh Avenue. Observing numerous indicators unusual for a typical car fire, firefighters did not approach the vehicle. Because of the suspicious nature of the vehicle, all streets were closed within the shaded area. This created gridlock and delayed fire unit and police bomb squad response.
Figure 1 “Terror Awareness Pays Off at Times Square Bomb Incident” Fire Engineering January 2011
“Old School” Trade Publication Advantage
One of Fire Engineering magazine’s enduring competencies is providing well-written major incident reports by the firefighters involved. The editorial staff employ a comprehensive vetting process with appropriate subject matter experts.
It is worth the wait. You may be able to access an online version of the article HERE
Another old-school training publication
With New York Firefighters (WNYF) is the quarterly official training publication of the New York City Fire Department.
“(WNYF) contains articles of interest to anyone involved in the fire service. Oriented to those directly involved in fire operations and fire safety, WNYF publishes articles of technical or practical importance to those individuals routinely engaged in providing firefighting services.”
Here are some of the articles we’re working on for the 1st/2011 issue of WNYF:
Runs & Workers for 2010, compiled by Captain John Regan
Revisiting the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, by Assistant Commissioner John Mulligan (retired)
The FAST Pak, by Lieutenant Mark Gregory
September 4, 2010, Manhattan Box 33-0913 Sanitation Pier Fire, by Assistant Chief Ronald R. Spadafora, and Deputy Chief Daniel Donoghue
May 26, 2010, Staten Island Collapse, by Deputy Assistant Chief James E. Leonard, Brooklyn Borough Commander
May 1, 2010, Times Square Car Bomb Incident, by Assistant Chief Joseph Pfeifer, Deputy Chief Daniel Donoghue and Battalion Chief John Esposito
Lessons Learned at January 10, 2010, Brooklyn Box 1199, Commercial Vessel with Implosion of Onboard Ethanol Tank, by Deputy Assistant Chief William Seelig and Battalion Chief Michael Buckheit
Rooftop Challenges & Remedies, by Battalion Chief John J. Salka, Jr.
At last! The WNYF DVD is for sale. An FDNY training and historical resource, this DVD includes all issues of WNYF since its inception in 1940, through and including the 4th /2009 issue. This comprehensive reference provides 69 years worth of history about the NYC Fire Department.
Use the PDF search tool in the index to find articles by your favorite author. Or, type in a key word or phrase to find all articles on the subject matter of choice.
The DVD is priced at $149. There is a special discount for WNYF subscribers – Pay just 125 per DVD. There is $5 shipping and handling charge for domestic orders; international rates vary.
We should establish a policy on when to release the last words of a working firefighter to the public
Twelve nights ago I was sadly sitting in my office. Someone I occasionally worked with died while performing a primary search during a well-developed apartment fire in Baltimore County.
If you worked with Mark Falkenhan, or listened to the eulogies, this was a profoundly skilled and experienced firefighter/paramedic and teacher.
To process this loss, I listened to a digital recording of the radio traffic and started a timeline.
Dramatic audio on civilian rescues (Squad 303 + Truck 1)
Two civilians in distress in first floor, one civilian physically removed from second floor over ladder (side Alpha), one or two on side Charlie
“303 portable to command … a lot of heat on ????? >>>covered by another unit calling for a medic unit>> “303 asks which floor is rescue” [2 Alpha] “303 continuing search on (third) floor”
“Truck 8 urgent” (multiple units transmitting – getting water supply to Side Charlie, ems crew to side 1 for civilian rescue, Engine 17 arrives asks for orders)
Truck 8 makes 2 or 3 additional urgents .. one sounds like a low air alarm in background
rescue complete on second floor “heavy fire in the hallway”
“All units evacuate the building” (18:41 hrs) – tones
If you were there, or listened to the unedited digital recording, you know that the first Mayday call is made by Mark (Squad 303 portable 1) immediately after command calls for the evacuation.
WHEN SHOULD THE LAST WORDS OF A FIREFIGHTER BE SHARED?
Josh Tomon TFPA 78 - Tidewater Fire Photographers Assoc
This is a significant event where the digital recording is posted before the event is declared over. The first 72 minutes were available before the municipality could announce that there was a LODD.
Even a mainstream media source announced the death, pulled down later but not before the comments section included condolence messages naming the deceased firefighter.
Our local subject matter expert, Dave Statter, points out that mainstream media will quickly file Freedom of Information Act requests to get fireground and 9-1-1 recordings.
Back in the day, you would not hear the actual recordings until months later, as part of an American Heat case study or attached to a comprehensive after action report.
FDNY resisted releasing radio transmissions and oral histories from the 9/11 tragedy, claiming the release would violate firefighters’ privacy and jeopardize the prosecution of Zacarias Moussaoui. (USA Today August 11, 2005 “FDNY releases 9/11 oral histories, recordings”
Hearing the actual voices carries a stronger impact than reading a transcript.
If we do not want to see it, why do we want to hear it?
A recurring issue on STATter911 is the use of on-scene images when reporting incidents. Dave Statter repeatedly points out that mainstream media is trending away from pictures of gore or dead bodies.
The last time this discussion occured was in response to the actions of a state trooper to a local news camera team:
With almost 200 comments, I would say that the issue was discussed.
“No one should see this”
Jules Naudet was creating a documentary film on Probationary Firefighter Tony Benatatos, assigned to Tower Ladder 1. Engine 7 and Battalion 1 are also in the house.
Naudet was riding with Battalion 1 and got the closest picture of the first plane hitting the WTC. It occurred while Battalion 1 and other units were investigating an odor of gas in the street.
He stayed with Battalion Chief Joseph W. Pfeifer as they entered the WTC lobby. The video shows the members reacting and looking to the right. Two civilians are screaming and on fire.
Between 100 and 200 occupants jumped or fell from the towers in the first 90 minutes. It appears Naudet catches the first one about the 39:25 minute mark in the documentary. It is a startling loud noise that echos through the WTC lobby/fire command post.
When “9/11″ was first aired on CBS in March 2002, the Naudet brothers mentioned an effort to minimize the number of jumper impacts heard.
In dozens of memorial pictorials collected after the disaster, there is just one image of a detached foot in a shoe. Some narratives talk about the carnage in the plaza.
National Incident Management System Training Plan (Draft) Released for Public Comment
The National Incident Management System (NIMS) Training Plan (formerly Five-Year NIMS Training Plan) has been released for a period of public comment.
The NIMS Training Plan (Draft) is located at www.regulations.gov, Docket #FEMA-2009-0012. Comments must be received by February 22, 2011.
A well-developed NIMS training program that both guides and promotes NIMS training is vital to a successful nationwide implementation of NIMS. Therefore, the National Integration Center (NIC) asks that you take time to review and submit any comments, questions, and/or recommendations to assist with its improvement.
In addition to describing preexisting training requirements and detailing a practical approach for the development and maintenance of a NIMS curriculum, NIMS Training Plan (Draft) provides assistance and insight to stakeholders on current and future NIMS training. Core competencies will form the basis of the training courses’ learning objectives and personnel qualifications that validate proficiency.
FEMA recognizes the national NIMS training program must be more than a plan to train emergency management personnel to the ICS. As a result, the NIC releases this NIMS Training Plan (Draft) to define a national NIMS training curriculum, core competencies, and personnel qualifications as well as assemble and update the training guidance for available NIMS courses (organized as a core curriculum).
If the pose looks familiar, that’s ’cause they were photographed at a two-alarm fire five years ago in the same location. Might have been the very same building that burned. Remember that pose they struck?
Far right is Jeff Harkey. He’s the editor and founder of FireNews, and also helped create Carolinas Fire Page way back when. He’s a lifelong buff and veteran fire photographer, and helped form a Raleigh Fire Department Photo Unit around 1990. You should see his scrapbooks! Jeff’s an architect specializing in major event planning and operations as well as web designer by day, and he has a big hand in working with the South Atlantic Fire Rescue Expo each year.
Center is Lee Wilson. This guy’s been photographing firefighters and fire apparatus for 21 years now. If you’re not from around here, you probably met him many years ago, when he was travelling the state and seemingly trying to photograph every fire engine to be found. He’s a photographer for the Raleigh Fire Department, as well as Wake County EMS. As for all those older apparatus pictures, he’s presently scanning and identifying a couple hundred Macks that he has photographed. More on that in a moment.
Left is Mike Legeros. Moi. While in college, he got a job at Traffic Patrol Broadcasting. One of his duties was monitoring a scanner. You can guess where that led. Narrowly avoiding a career in radio, he instead joined the Raleigh Fire Department in 1989. Worked a couple years as a city firefighter (Stations 19, 15, 5, 16) and went back to school. Next career was the software industry, first as technical trainer and now as a web guy. Mikey got bitten by the history bug around 2001 and got serious about incident photography around 2005. He’s the Raleigh Fire Department’s historian as well as one of their photographers. Ditto as a photog for Wake EMS. Ergo the blue helmet. He also has the longest of these three bios. What an ego on that guy!
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I did not know that Mike was a city firefighter … but he does have a twisted sense of humor … is a tech geek …. favors loud Hawaiian Aloha shirts.
Always appreciate the support Mike provides to Firegeezer.com
Watch your step. Be careful. Be safe, indeed – and watch what you read.
Today the fire service critic lives in a protected area: the internet – and is not required to have any fire experience to draw upon. Like birds awaiting Momma’s feeding, fire service critics sit with mouths’ open, ready to chew on whatever mistake or omission is provided them.
How does that happen? How do we collectively know it is wrong and still allow it to exist? Does outrage serve as amusement? Is it the accident we cannot look away from that draws us in?
A senior firefighter once remarked upon being interrupted:
“The Firefighters are talking now”
This might have something to do with reactions after the Sing Way Laundry collapse with the loss of Firefighter Edward J. Stringer and Firefighter/EMT Corey D. Ankum from the Chicago Fire Department.
I provided my perpective in The Facts Matter, with this summarizing plea:
It is our nature to be passionate, obsessive and opinionated about our craft. Everyone can express their point of view, it is how we live.
For topics as sensitive as LODD events, it would be nice if we made sure our facts match our outrage before we hit the “send” button.
My friend Art “Chief Reason” Goodrich was more colorful in his Fire Engineering Training Community blog Doin’ the Monkey Fling!
Ray compressed our comments down to the urban fireground essential:
“The Firefighters are talking now”
Ray detected a “Clog”
McCormack’s December post in the Fire Engineering Training Community provides the background for his “Who’s Talking Now?” assertion
In Detecting a Clog, McCormack reflected on an article where a writer, explaining how safe the operation was, revealed ignorance on how to safely conduct extinguishment operations.
Ray points out:
The problem was the writer was unaware of how to safely conduct extinguishment operations–and that is what turned this blog into a clog.
Fireground operations vary throughout the country, but there are some practices that are universal because they are sound.
The problem we face is two-fold. First we have people who make bad decisions on the fire ground and that is a local issue you must deal with where you work.
The bigger issue is when unsafe tactics are broadcast via the Internet to anyone with a home screen by people who do not know that they are doing things incorrectly.
I filed away his analysis of fire service blogs for another use, but it rings true here:
Although we need people to discuss all aspects of the fire service, operational blogging is different. Operational blogs demand competency and awareness of the subject matter.
Unfortunately, many blogs fall into categories such as:
“Green Blogs” which rely on recycling the same material over and over
“Bandwagon Blogs” where the blogger jumps on board and champions an already-launched idea or program
“Sometime Blogs” are where the author sometimes has an original idea
“OPP Blogs” which specialize in using parts of Others People’s Posts
“Advocatory Blogs” where you sense the blogger is secretly working for a special interest group
1923 2nd St NW from Elliot Goodman DCFD.com
We are part of a huge family, but the brothers and sisters working within crumbling cities have a far different set of skills and experiences.
Less than 15% of the 1.3 million firefighters in the US work full-time in urban centers.
Their craft is honed by daily urban suppression incidents. Their incident workload and working conditions are profoundly different than 85% of the firefighting universe.
Details, Data and Perspective
Part of my day job is looking at big city 9-1-1 ambulance services. I have been able to spend time in some of the busiest and best systems. They are large, complex organizations with significant workloads and operational issues.
I spent four years as an EMS administrator for a large urban county. With each ride-a-long I am reminded how different inner city ems is … and how trivial my experience is when looking at big city operations.
Other members of the firefighting family can observe, reflect and respond to issues, incidents or conditions within big cities. But do not be hurt when the response from the big city family member is:
“The Firefighters are talking now”
Mike “FossilMedic” Ward
Correction: Initial post incorrectly identified the photographer. Corrected now, apologies to Elliot and thanks to Dave Statter for the observation.
“We’re making a direct appeal to those involved to let the fire crews through and let them get on with the job. Fire won’t wait, and any delay risks lives being lost or the total loss of homes, shops and workplaces.
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