We have a couple of updates for you this morning.  The first has to do with the fishy battle to keep the Asian carp out of the Great Lakes.  This story has nothing to do with emergency responders or fires, etc.  But we got involved by reporting on this encroachment of the predator fish that have come up the Illinois River from the Mississippi and they destroy all the other fish in their waters.

You might recall that these are the fish that jump by the  dozens about 10 feet out of the water everytime a boat goes by.  That’s what brought us to the story in the first place.  It’s worth your time to watch the funny video that we posted with the original article HERE and then check the first follow-up report HERE (scroll down on that posting).

Yesterday (Tuesday) the U. S.  Supreme Court refused to order an immediate closure of the locks and gates while a solution is agreed on how to halt the migration.  The court gave no explanation for their decision that was issued in a one-paragraph statement, nor did they say whether they would consider hearing the case on its own merits.  The Washington Post has a good article on the action and it goes into detail on what has been done so far, and what the proposed solutions are.  Read the story HERE if you want to learn more.

The other update relates to the tragic accident in La Rochelle, France, that killed one FF and seriously injured another.  The event was triggered by some sort of backdraft-type explosion that has been reported initially as a flashover and a backdraft, but nobody has really decided yet what it was.  You may recall our posted interview three months ago with Franck Gaviot-Blanc, a French volunteer FF who is a research scientist specializing in fire behavior.  We asked him for his view on this explosive event based on what he has heard and seen from photographs.  He was not at the scene, nor has he investigated it, so has had only a scant observation.  But from what he has learned so far, he has passed along for you this evaluation.  We are leaving it unedited in his own words that he wrote in English:

 ”Two differents ways allow to obtained an explosive ignition of fire gas :

The first situation : Firing came after a sudden entry of fresh air into an under ventilated fire inside a compartment (windows broken, door opening by FF…) = this phenomena is called Backdraft, many FF know this way, but, it exist an other way : during an under ventilated fire in a compartment. Smoke filled a room. If a source of energy (e.g. little flame or hot coals suspended after spear …) get in contact with a inflammable pocket mixture (smoke fuel / air). A explosive ignition can be occured.

If you observe the resulting phenomena from outside the compartment, it is not possible to determined the ignition mecanism  (gravity current or energy). In the two cases you obtain an similar explosive phenonmena, and in the two cases the physionomy of the explosion is the same. I think that it is for that reason Backdraft and Smoke Explosion are often confounded.”

Not surprisingly, it’s still inconclusive.  But we thought you would appreciate a scientist’s viewpoint on it.  You may find his interview that we published back in October to be enlightening.  Take a few minutes and CLICK HERE to read it.

Now let’s take a few minutes to get this equipment checked out.  I’m going to get the coffee started.  See you back in the day room.