GRAIN ELEVATOR, THAT IS.  IN LYONS, SOUTH DAKOTA, THE ROSENBAUER AMERICA fire truck builder is expanding its facilities.  An unused grain elevator was standing on their property and on Tuesday evening they brought in 15 nearby fire departments for a massive drill while they burned down the huge structure.

KELO

The Lyons elevator was built more than 60 years ago to replace one that had burned down on the same site.  When Rosenbauer decided to remove the structure, they brought in nearly every FD in the county along with 100 or so volunteer firefighters to get their water drill.  Rosenbauer also used it to test some apparatus designs at the same time.

KELO-TV has the story and a video report HERE.

THE MIAMI-DADE FIRE RESCUE DEPT. IN FLORIDA faces challenges that are unique to their region.  One of these local hazards is the large population of alligators found throughout Florida.

Yesterday (Friday), one of these toothy critters wandered onto the front lawn of the fire rescue department’s headquarters building.  So, who ya’ gonna’ call?  You guessed it.

All photos courtesy MDFR

The MDFR issued a press release that tells the story:

At approximately 3 p.m., Miami-Dade Fire Rescue was advised of an alligator that wondered  into a grassy area in front of the MDFR Headquarters  building. The Venom Response Team (VRT) was called to help assist in securing the alligator.One of the VRT members used a snare pole to secure the alligator’s jaw while another team member simultaneously restrained the tail. VRT members then used rope to hobble the arms and feet of the alligator.

“The strongest points of an alligator are the jaw and the tail. We had to get them secured as fast as possible to ensure the safety of employees and visitors  entering and exiting the front of the building,” said Chief Al Cruz.

Florida Fish and Game was contacted and they sent a state licensed company to pick up the alligator.

Employees of MDFR’s Technical Rescue Team and VRT are trained in large animal rescue. 

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue WEBSITE.

THERE IS A NEW WARNING OUT ABOUT a dangerous and potentially explosive hazard associtated with portable propane cylinders.  Please read carefully the following information from the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA):

Propane cylinders commonly used on gas barbecue grills are being used by persons in the manufacture of methamphetamines. These individuals are using the cylinders for the transport and storage of stolen anhydrous ammonia, a key element in the making of the drug. 

Cylinders used for this purpose have been found in many states, including Mississippi, at cylinder exchange and refilling locations as well as in hotel rooms and mobile laboratories.

A blue-green stain on any brass portion of a service valve is evidence that it may have been in contact with anhydrous ammonia, which is a corrosive. The ammonia will deteriorate the brass valves and fittings located inside the cylinders, turning them into a potentially explosive hazard. (Note: Sherwood valves contain a green coated valve stem. Additionally, a green thread sealing compound is used on some valves. These valves should not be confused with those that have been exposed to anhydrous ammonia.)

 The pungent odor of ammonia on or near a cylinder is also an indication. If you suspect that a propane cylinder contains or has contained anhydrous ammonia, exercise extreme caution and restrict access to the area.  

Anhydrous ammonia can be extremely dangerous to human health. It can also be dangerous to move a cylinder suspected of having contained anhydrous ammonia, due to the unknown integrity of the cylinder’s service valve. 

If you determine that it must be moved, keep in mind that hazards due to valve expulsion can be reduced by pointing the end of the container in which the valve is placed away from yourself and others and towards the most safe direction.

 Firegeezer adds:  More and more people are using exchange stations instead of refilling their own cylinders now.  So these suspect valves can eventually work their way throughout the community.  Hopefully, the propane firms that refill the cylinders are training their employees to check for and recognize the indications of failure.  But you know how that goes.  Watch out for yourself whenever you are on an incident involving one of these portable cylinders.

If any of our readers come across one of these, please get a picture of it and send it to us with a narrative of the event.

Nashville TV station WSMV ran this excellent report a few weeks ago:

NPGA WEBSITE  page for Safety and Training Programs.

THE SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA, FIRE RESCUE DEPARTMENT has one of the best video productions for public education that we’ve seen.

Loyal Firegeezer reader Christian L. tipped us off on this program a couple of weeks ago and I really like what I’ve seen of it.  The SFFD produces a professional 30-minute program each month and it looks like it’s set up for broadcasting on their community access TV channel.

Each month Division Chief Jim Sideras explains what goes on in two or three different Fire/Rescue responsibilities and takes the viewers (citizens) behind the scenes on how the department operates.  In April’s episode he talked about R.I.T. and in February they covered the different challenges of ice rescue.

They do a terrific job and all of the past episodes are archived on their website so that you can view them (QuickTime player required).

Go to this page HERE, sit back and enjoy the show.

Note:  They also have several older episodes available in their own YouTube Channel HERE.

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN ITS 70-YEAR HISTORY, the acclaimed Oklahoma State University Fire Service Training Center suffered a firefighter death.

28-yr.-old Russell “Rusty” Topping was one of a group of 25 Dewey FD members undergoing live fire training on Saturday.  45 minutes after that last exercise, Topping was found on the floor and unresponsive by other firefighters.

FirefighterCloseCalls is following the story HERE.

DON’T WHINE IF YOU DID NOT REVIEW AND COMMENT

The very last chance to review and comment on the EMS Scope of Practice Educational standards will close May 30. This is the third and final draft before the standards are submitted to NHTSA. The scope replaces the National EMS Curriculum in 2011.

Go here to access the draft documents:

http://www.nemses.org/draft_standards/index.cfm

Two-thirds of the existing paramedic instructor-coordinators will be unable to run or supervise paramedic training programs when the states adopt the scope.

I would tell you why, but you need to read the standard yourself … or re-read this blog entry from last year:

http://firegeezer.com/2007/09/25/nursing-is-a-profession-firefighting-is-a-hobby-and-paramedics-are-caught-in-the-middle/

STAGING MOCK AUTO WRECKS ALONG WITH EXTRICATION AND PROP CARNAGE for high schools has been carried out for many years now.  Usually they are set up in front of the school to catch the students unawares as they are arriving for class that day.

The graphic depiction of the wreck and cosmetic injuries usually leaves an impression with them.

But when the Ridgefield, Connecticut, Fire Department held a similar drill last Wednesday, they left an impression that they hadn’t counted on.  Their faux crash scene included shutting down one of the town’s main streets for 2½ hours during the morning commuter rush.

“It’s tying up traffic. Some of us can’t get to work,” said a caller to the local newspaper about 9 that morning. “I’m still trying to get to work! I was supposed to be there at 8:30.”

Don’t do it at rush hour,” said another. “Don’t do it when people are trying to get to work!”

School and town emergency services officials admitted that the traffic back-up was worse than what they’d envisioned during planning sessions.

The Ridgefield Press has the complete STORY.
Ridgefield Fire Department WEBPAGE.

 

BUSTER MADE IT!

That’s right, Buster Martin, the geezer who claims to be 101 years old, finished the full London Marathon course in 10 hours, four hours ahead of his own prediction of completing it in 14 hrs.

His claim to be the oldest ever to run the London marathon has been marred, however, because the Guinness Book of Records committee has refused to recognize his given age.  He has not been able to offer any definitive proof of when he was born, so the official record of 98 yrs. still stands.

Buster’s boss at the plumbing company (yes, he still works a job) is also a boxing manager, so he became Buster’s trainer for the event.  The regimen consisted of running three times a week and warming up with half-marathons.

But Buster has an alien approach to the dietary practices.  A smoker since he was 7 yrs. old, he gets his lungs prepped for the race by taking a last-minute drag before the start.

Since Buster doesn’t drink water, only beer, his trainers had several stops set up along the route where he could take a break with a pint of ale.

But his achievement, recognized or not, has become an inspiration for geezers and gazelles alike.  Go, Buster!

Click to play this video of Buster taking
a mid-race break in a half-marathon last month.

Read Firegeezer’s first report on Buster’s life story HERE.
To watch a TV interview (about 4 minutes) with Buster, click HERE.

BACK IN JANUARY WE TOLD YOU ABOUT THE DRIVING SIMULATORS used for emergency driver training made by the Doron Precision Systems (HERE).  Today we’ll tell you about another brand that we recently learned about.

The MPRI Simulations Group, based in Salt Lake City, Utah, makes a wide range of life-like simulators for dozens of different vehicles, from large military vehicles to tractor-trailer rigs, and police cars and ambulances.

Ian Gillespie of the London (Ontario) Free Press tried one out and he reports:

 (T)he DriveSafe Simulator puts the driver in a full-size seat in front of a detailed dashboard with a brake, accelerator, clutch and shifter (although it can easily be set to automatic transmission mode).

The user is surrounded by three 42-inch colour wrap-around screens that simulate a motorist’s ever-changing environment, including rear-view mirrors, gauges and a vibrating steering wheel.

The simulator also offers an astonishing array of settings, including more than 240 different types of vehicles (including ambulance, fire truck and snow plow), 60 different engine/transmission combinations, a variety of different driving environments (including urban, suburban, rural and freeway), vehicle circumstances (a flat tire or failed brakes, for instance) and weather conditions (including various levels of rain, fog, ice and snow).

The simulator was recently used by fire department officials in Windsor, Ontario, to help them reconstruct the circumstances that contributed to an incident where a fire truck, responding to an emergency call, was T-boned by another vehicle while travelling through an intersection.

They ran 80 drivers through the same scenario; almost half failed to avoid the collision on their first attempt. 

MPRI says that their FireSim Driving Simulator has the following features:

• Choose between fire truck or EMT vehicles
• Realistic driving environments train drivers how to recognize and anticipate hazardous   driving situations (180° view, using 3-channels, with 1024 x 768 image resolution)
• High refresh & update rates provide smooth image flow during any drive, at common   speeds (72 Hz update rate), creating comfortable training environments
• Glass dash in the simulator adds greater flexibility in replicating various types of   vehicles gauges
• SimCommander provides a user-friendly environment, via a touch screen, from which   the instructor controls the training process
• Truck like training environment; seat, steering wheel, brake,
• clutch and accelerator pedals, enhancing retention and application to the road

This looks to be a very good machine, also.  It certainly looks worth checking into before you buy one.

Read Ian Gillespie’s report HERE.
MPRI’s website with full information is HERE.

JUST AS GRAY’S ANATOMY IS PASSING THE 150-YR. mark (HERE), a digital upstart threatens to take over.

Newly released, The Visible Body is ideal for paramedics, both students and experienced.  The website that you can log onto for free is a 3-dimensional view of over 1,700 separate anatomical structures, including all the major organs and systems of the human body.

According to their website, The Visible Body consists of highly detailed, anatomically accurate, 3D models of all human body systems. The models were developed by an extensively trained team with decades of experience in medical illustration and biomedical visualization. All anatomical content has been reviewed for accuracy by our panel of experts, including physicians and anatomists.

When you log in to your account, the first display is the entire skeleton and then you can explore from there.  You can also select a specific bone or organ and isolate it.  It has the capability to let you “see through” bones and tissue that are in front of your chosen object.

 The website tour also says that with Visible Body you can:

Search for and locate anatomical structures by name.

Hide, rotate, see through, and explore parts of human anatomy.

Move the model in three-dimensional space, by either clicking directly on the model
or using the virtual joystick.

Zoom in and out, using either the on-screen zoom slider or a mouse scroll wheel.

Click on systems or structures to make them transparent or hide them entirely.

Click on anatomical structures to reveal names.

This sounds and looks like a terrific training tool.  The website says that you need to use Explorer for your browser, but reports say that Firefox works just fine, too.

If any Firegeezer readers have tried this, or decide to try it soon, please send us an email and tell us about it.

Read the full descriptions and explanations at Visible Body’s website HERE.  Click on the TOUR tab to get the full description.