Bill closely follows the daily activity on Firegeezer.com like a farmer checking his crops. In keeping an eye on the farm, I witnessesed the "Legeros Effect."
Less than 24 hours after posting, "Fall or Slip" had 2.1 MILLION reactions. I figured a post mildly critical ofDave Statterwould generate some additional looks, but this was amazing.
Mike pointed out that I responded to his original blog post:
Nice article Mike.
It is tough to be comprehensive, accurate and correct. It seems like some buff books are assembled from a collection of someone’s photos, with the captions coming from someone else.
The same situation exists with technical and textbooks. I remember cringing when reading the first edition of Fire Officer when preparing to write the second edition. While the writing got better, there are things in the second edition that make me hang my head.
Maybe the third edition will be perfect (… who am I kidding!). Always appreciate your work and perspective.
Mike Ward – 07/07/12 – 13:55
Thanks for the thanks, Mike. And we must admit to our influences and sources. I have stood and continue to stand on many shoulders.
With historical information, each core “fact” is going to “travel down the line.” Hopefully accuracy is preserved, and through citation and paraphrasing and rewriting.
But there’s this pesky problem with the authors: they’re human! Just, say, handwriting some notes in a library can introduce errors, or they can manifest when those notes are typed onto a computer, and then again when retyped in a manuscript, and then again at the hands of an editor. Etcetera. One day I shall enthusiastically shout “no more books! That’s it!”
Legeros – 07/07/12 – 14:04
The photo from the Legeros Man Cave/ Research Library includes a set of books we both appreciate.
History of Chicago Fire Houses by Ken Little and John McNalis. The comprehensive, four volume series, covers the fire stations established from 1858 to 2009.
Each station description explains the
building
companies assigned
significant events and related history that makes this fire house unique
on-duty deaths and awards
apparatus assigned.
Volume 1 is out of print, but you can still get Volumes II through IV at the Chicago Fire and Cop Shop.
Last year Dave Statter shared his experience about the 2007 line-of-duty death of Technician I Kyle Wilson in Prince Wiliam County. (Dave's article HERE). Dave is concerned that the Virginia Tech massacre overshadowed the tragedy at 15492 Marsh Overlook Drive.
I am re-posting my response because we will never forget. I am in the midst of getting the third edition of the Fire Officer textbook out. The lessons learned from Kyle's sacrifice remain vital.
<<<<<<<<<< >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The after-action analysis and discussions were painful, emotional and worthwhile. I closely followed the process and spoke to with many of the participants. They are my friends and colleagues.
My "bully pulpit" is a textbook that is used by many for their Fire Officer I and II training.
In Chapter 16, "Fire Attack" this is how the section on Smoke, Wind, Size and Fire Flow looks in the second edition (2010).
Let's start the Fire Department Instructor's Conference week with an in-station drill on one of these topics:
Burning Type V residential structure behavior in high wind conditions
Determining initial attack fire flow in high wind conditions
Austere crew (thin staffed) fire attack procedures
Why the NFPA 1710 single family dwelling does not match your first due (you can find an analysis starting on page 188 of the Prince William report.)
Fire departments should develop SOP’s for incidents with high-wind conditions including defensive attack if necessary. Weather can be considered as critically important when at the extreme, and relatively unimportant during normal conditions.
Wind has a strong effect on fire behavior which includes supplying oxygen, reducing fuel moisture, and exerting physical pressure to move the fire and heat. Wildland fire fighters are very familiar with these effects of wind on the rate at which fire spreads.
According to Dunn, “When the exterior wind velocity is in excess of 30 miles per hour, the chances of conflagration are great; however, against such forceful winds, the chances of successful advance of an initial hose line attack on a structure fire are diminished. The firefighters won’t be able to make forward hoseline progress because the flame and heat, under the wind’s additional force, will blow into the path of advancement.
Fire fighters should change their strategy when encountering high wind conditions. An SOP should be developed to include obtaining the wind speed and direction, and guidelines established for possible scenarios associated with the wind speed and the possible fuel available, similar to that in wildland fire fighting. When the interior attack line has little or no effect on the fire, the line should be withdrawn and a second hoseline should be advanced on the upwind side of the fire. This method may require the use of an aerial ladder or portable ladder, if safety permits.
The major factors in the line of duty death of Technician I Wilson were determined to be:
• The initial arriving fire suppression force size.
• The size up of fire development and spread.
• The impact of high winds on fire development and spread.
• The large structure size and lightweight construction and materials.
• The rapid intervention and firefighter rescue efforts.
• The incident control and management.
Thanks to Dave Statter for making an important observation.
The barefoot guy with the fire extinguisher IS NOT a firefighter (as we would classify him), just a guy with an extinguisher.
It is NOT his car
"Clad in just his pyjamas and a dressing gown, Collin Pillay bound into action to battle a car fire in Carrington St, New Plymouth, yesterday."
Matt Rilkoff's story from the Fairfaz NZ news:
After months of waiting, Eric "Tex" Schwass managed just 20 kilometres in his reconditioned Ford Fairlane before it blew up.
By the time firefighters arrived at the car fire in Carrington St, in central New Plymouth, late yesterday morning, Mr Schwass knew it was too late to save his baby.
"I had just got it on the road," the New Plymouth RSA president said as smoke poured from under the bonnet.
"I was coming into town, it started to smoke, I pulled over and she burst into flames.
"I had come in from Inglewood; maybe done 10 or 15 miles."
While the fire made short work of the engine, an LPG tank in the back of the 16-year-old car was his main cause for concern.
Collin Pillay had watched the drama unfold from across the road at his home and rushed out in his pyjamas in a vain attempt to put out the fire with a small extinguisher.
This inaccuracy is an expected fallout from a recent June strike followed by a layoff of 1,900 journalists, printers and staffers working for Fairfax Media as the publisher moved from paper to digital newspapers.
Driving home near midnight, on a fantastic warm night. Windows down, sunroof open, satellite radio cranking.
Wishing I was at da' shore.
Distracted by a bright light coming from a fire station.
Engine bay is empty with the bay door open and all of the apparatus floor lights on.
A few minutes later, hear the unmistakable sound of Jake Brakes, air horns and 2QBs … my mirror fills with red and while explosions.
A rescue company, engine and command SUV pass by and immediately turn into a subdivision.
So do I ….
I don't smell anything as I follow the parade into an older single family subdivision, narrow winding roads filled with World War II era homes.
As the rigs stack up, I turn down another street. Do not want to get caught in staging.
End up at the other side of the incident, next to the pumper that is hooking up to a hydrant.
Up the hill there appears to be a movie shoot, half a dozen floodlights illuminating a house, with a haze of smoke rising from the front.
I almost feel the percussion of tools striking the door to force entry. My heart sings as I hear the saw spin up.
My God, I miss this …
Digital versus reality
In preparing tomorrow's Car-Toon, read this Corvette Blogger article by Mitch Taylor on how 21 year old Jordan Taylor prepared for his test to be a driver for Corvette Racing:
“When I was asked to test for Corvette, the first time was going to be at the Sebring short course and I hadn’t been there for probably two years,” he explains.
“So I got right on iRacing, went to the short course and did probably fifty or sixty laps just to get my mind around it and get used to the brake points. So when I went to the test, all I had to do was learn the car and not worry about getting used to the track again.”
Statter911 posts first arriving videos almost every week. Beyond the keyboard incident commanders, it is an opportunity to watch a lot of incipient structure fire events. I wonder if there can be an equivalent of iRacing for wanna-be company officers.
Later this summer we will be looking at a couple of emergency related DVDs.
Driving out of the subdivision, the car fills up with the odor of burning Class "A" material.
I see that the house has been opened up … how can a simulation create this experience?
Mike "FossilMedic" Ward
THANKS to Nate Camfiord, a talented photographer and emergency services brother, for use of his photos. Check him out on Facebook (here)
FELLOW BLOGGER DAVE STATTER CELEBRATED the 5th Anniversary of his leading blog STATter911 yesterday (May 4). This is a real milestone in the online world because as we have mentioned before, only a small percentage of weblogs ever make it as far as five years. But Dave is just getting warmed up and will be around for a long time farther yet.
Dave Statter …. always on the job!
(Mike Legeros photo)
If you're a regular reader of the fire and EMS online publications, then you are familiar with his daily page of goodies. And no doubt you also keep clicking back to read his fascinating and informative postings every day. It's not for nothing that he has become the leading fire/EMS blogger in North America (if not the world). Speaking of clicking, he posted a good story yesterday on how and when he got started with the blogging movement and tells us about his path through the internet up until the present. CLICK HERE and take time to read his posting about his digital journey. He is also running a little contest for his readers, so take advantage of that, too. It's covered in the article.
And please join FossilMedic and Firegeezer in congratulating Dave for his terrific work so far. We are confident that it will only get better, so we will continue to check in every day. Good job, Dave!
BOSTON & Needham, Ma., USA Boston Ma.Firefighter (L29). Tweeting Local, National Fire News & MY Opinions, NOT those of L29, L718 or Boston Fire. For Wx tweets follow me @L29_SNEWeather
BOSTON_FF_L29 Normally I would have gone to sleep, but this fire seemed different from the start…and got worse by the minute (7:15)
NBC2 provides the background for this bad-outcome event:
The NBC2 Investigators first reported a billing battle between Naples Community Health and Collier County Emergency Medical Service in September.
NCH owes Collier County more than $175,000 for EMS ambulance transfers between its facilities.
Collier County Manager Leo Ochs told NCH officials by letter that inter-facility transfers would no longer be performed by Collier County EMS, effective October 1.
On October 3, 80-year-old Marco Island resident Paul Anderson died in the hospital after complications from a stroke. Family members tell NBC2 doctors were unable to operate on Anderson because it took too long for him to get to the hospital.
Please read the first part of the 65 page report provided by Marco Island, Florida, Chief Michael Murphy. You may share my rising tide of anger at a complex system that seemed to conspire to deny a prompt ambulance transfer.
The October 1 policy change by Collier County EMS was due to the unwillingness of NCH to pay Collier County for earlier transports.
Not clear if this means NCH is paying it's overdue ambulance bill.
I predict that all of the players that impeded the dispatch of an ambulance or medivac helicopter will end up spending ten times the amount of the unpaid transport fees for legal representation and settlement.
A sidebar in the rich history of the Prince George's County Fire Department
We need to update the formal history of the varsity-level game played within PGFD. A busy, urban county with many dedicated and talented members who achieve great accomplishments with profoundly thin resources.
Amazing stories. Many coal-into-diamond examples. Along with some disasters and tragedies.
If it was an HBO series, it would include the complexity and grittiness of The Wire with turf war ruthlessness of The Sopranos.
I treasure my copy of Ed Bosanko's Triumph and Tradition: Firefighting in Prince George's County, Maryland, 1887 – 1990.
I wish I had saved the great discussions on TheWatchDesk (TWD) with Fire Commissioner John A. Mutchler at the height of the two-hatter battle.
Return of the battle
The county has proposed changes in the structure and function of the Fire Commission.
That has brought the always-bubbling career-vs-volunteer vitrol to a boil on TheWatchDesk.
Including this tidbit:
Local 1619 Union headquarters carried as a tax exempt Volunteer Fire Hall
The top part of the Maryland Assessments and Taxations shows the structure is tax exempt and as a fraternal building:
Fraternal buildings MAY be tax exempt, from the DSAT frequently asked questions:
Q. Why does a religious, charitable, fraternal, educational or other similar type organization have to apply for a real property tax exemption if the group is already recognized as tax exempt for income tax purposes by the Federal Internal Revenue Service or the Maryland Comptroller's Office?
A. The Maryland real property tax laws have special requirements for granting these types of exemptions that are different from those for an income tax exemption. The Maryland General Assembly has limited these exemptions because all other property owners are indirectly subsidizing any exemptions granted by reducing the base of persons obligated to pay taxes.
No organization is automatically exempt without first having to apply and demonstrate that the actual use of the property is within the limited purposes prescribed in the particular exemption statute. The fact that a property is being used for non-profit purposes will not merit an exemption unless the use is one specifically exempted by law.
In earlier battles, it was labor that searched property records and financial filings to support their position that some volunteer corporations were "not a going concern."
It was my second trip to a national fire training conference in the mid 1980s. The organizers promoted a networking opportunity at the local fire museum. For the 2011 equivalent of $50 I could rub shoulders with movers and shakers of the fire training community.
I showed up early, along with a handful of others. The organizer of the conference showed up, made sure that the food and drinks were present, and rushed off in his customized Escalade for a private dinner with the conference headliners.
The networking opportunity was like a freshman mixer … without girls … or beer. Did not meet any of the scheduled instructors at the conference.
Rachel Emma Silverman, writing for The Wall Street Journal posted a fascinating article with video about Steve Wolf's Stunt Ranch.
(2011 July 02) Melons Bursting in Air(probably need a Wall Street Journal subscription to access entire article)
Silverman notes the changes required due to the severe drought:
The five-hour, $250 class offers a glimpse of the secrets behind fireballs, squibs, other cinematic explosions and holiday fireworks.
But with a severe drought here, and a ban on most open fires, Mr. Wolf's Special FX International classes this summer feature "aquatechnic" effects.
Cue the exploding watermelons. The class rigs the melons with blasting caps, small explosives that typically help to trigger larger explosions but are quite potent in their own right.
Oops, we may have a snag ..
Students must be willing to submit to a federal background check before enrolling.
They have to fill out a questionnaire from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives including such queries as "Are you a fugitive from justice?"
Mr. Wolf requires that they wear safety goggles, hearing protection, closed-toe shoes and natural fibers, such as cotton, rather than flammable synthetics.
Big finale
Capping off the class is another aquatechnic effect, using high-energy liquid explosive, or Helix. The agent, a reactive powder mixed with a liquid catalyst, is rigged to the bottom of a large ditch that is then filled with about 500 gallons of water.
Students stand about 150 feet away and detonate the explosive with the Holatron, sending a 100-foot plume of water into the air and a rumbling shock wave beneath the class's feet.
What 5000 pounds of confiscated fireworks do when ignited.
More than 5,000 pounds of fireworks were detonated in one big pile at the New York Police Department firing range in the Bronx on Friday, July 1, 2011.
What it used to look like on FDNY's busiest day:
Rescue 3 July 4th, 1991, an Alan Simmons/Firestorm HD Production
Vintage footage of Rescue 3 shot during the week of July 4th, 1991. Featured are station scenes, receiving alarms, responding, and working at numerous fires in the Bronx and Manhattan.
This seven minute presentation contains selected scenes from the one hour feature available at www.firestormvideos.com
Tom O'Connor, IAFF Local 798 President, provides a memorable eulogy.
The remarks made by Lieutenant O'Connor at the funeral were moving.
photo by Jamie Thompson
The San Francisco Chronicle provides a summary:
Through the tears, there were moments of levity.
Tom O'Connor, president of the local firefighters union, brought knowing smiles and chuckles as he described Valerio as "a pony-tailed hippy who called himself 'The People's Paramedic.' He had a big heart and unbounded capacity to help the downtrodden.
"He was like Mother Teresa with a siren," O'Connor said.
Perez, O'Connor recalled, was "a fireman's fireman," who once ran an entire city block during a fire on Lexington Street to get a line to a water source when three of his colleagues were inside a building as the water was running out.
"He laughed about it and shrugged it off, never being one to take credit," O'Connor said. "But he should have taken credit that night, because he saved the lives of all three men who were on his engine company."
Perez was a laconic former Marine, Valerio a talkative, world-traveling free spirit.
"To say that Vince and Tony were very different people would be an understatement," O'Connor said. "I think the immortal words of St. Francis sum them up the best:
'Nothing is so strong as gentleness, and nothing is so gentle as real strength.'
Vincent and Tony were our gentleness and our strength."
How quickly can a salacious but "newsworthy" image spread?
Sirius/XM testosterone radio duo Opie and Anthony have provided a case study in digital distribution.
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Breitbart shows photo allegedly of naked Weiner
By Daniel Strauss – 06/08/11 02:35 PM ET
Conservative firebrand Andrew Breitbart revealed on Wednesday a photo that he says Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) took of his own genitals.
Breitbart showed the photo to the hosts of the Sirius XM radio show "Opie and Anthony" during a visit to the studio. The hosts took their own pictures of the photos and leaked them online through Twitter.
Breitbart had previously said that he had explicit photos taken by Weiner but would not show them.
Within three hours the tweeted image made it to all of the mainstream media sites. Often posted within the digital version of "above the fold" positioning.
Breitbart left the SiriusXM studios in New York and caught a flight.
Breitbart's response was posted hours later, long after the item showed up in the Guardian Manchester in the United Kingdom.
UPDATE: OPIE HUGHES EXPLAINS WHAT HAPPENED
UPDATE 2: BREITBART SHARES HIS PHOTO WITH OPIE & ANTHONY
IT IS NOT PORN IF IT IS NEWSWORTHY
While The Hill did not post the image, many websites used a simple bar to obscure the photo. You could click to remove the bar to see the goods, did not even have to tell them your age.
EMERGENCY SERVICE IMPLICATIONS
Fires, crashes and disasters seem to generate almost the same level of interest as naked private parts.
A dramatic picture or video of a newsworthy event may cross the globe before the incident commander declares the event under control.
A single compelling image lacks the story, background or context.
We emotionally respond to what we see and create a story based on our background and bias … and then blog, discuss, rant, and pontificate based on OUR point of view.
Sometimes the backstory is more compelling:
It appears that there was NO call for mutual aid when Raymond Zack killed himself in San Francisco Bay.
Water rescue resources were available, but never requested by Alameda public safety.
Sometimes the issue is more complicated than a sound bite.
Dave Statter provides a summary:
Now comes news from Northampton, Massachusetts that in some ways tops the Alameda story in that this is a case where union officials have posted a big kick me sign on the backs of its members.
IAFF Local 108 has filed a grievance after Northampton Chief Brian Duggan ordered an engine company to stay in service and help salvage some belongings from the snow damaged home of an elderly man.
Additional information provides a different picture:
The house has been unoccupied for years.
The owner of the house does not live in Northampton.
Family members are part of the public safety community
captfiremedic at IACOJ.com provides this description of the neighborhood:
Laurel Park is a small private area off North King Street, with privately maintained roads and what are essentially large cabins used as weekend homes.
Most, at least back in my time, were old, uninsulated structures dating back to the 30's.
The two leading satellite radio networks, XM and Sirius, are still attempting to seal a merger deal under heavy scrutiny from antitrust forces.
That job just became a little harder with a new shock jock scandal in the making that could make the Imus story look like a small blip.
XM satellite radio hosts Opie and Anthony recently broadcast a skit segment in which a homeless man visits the show and talks about forced sex with the Secretary of State Condi Rice—with the encouragement of the show hosts.
Opie and Anthony were suspended for a month. All of their past shows were immediately removed from Audible.com.
They vanished from the XM website. Personal discussion forum and social media accounts closed. Digitally scrubbed from the internet.
Hugh Panaro, CEO of XM, demanded that they be fired. They almost were.
Rhett “The Fire Critic” Fleitz BEAT Dave Statter in posting short clip on this two-alarm Sunday morning suspicious fire in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco. (Fire Critic) (STATter911)
This 14:07 clip includes the crowd shouting “where is the water.”
Gloriaf09 added this commentary to her video:
This morning we encountered a fire raging up the street from our apartment. It took the fire dept forever to get the water to it from the exterior. I’m sure there was a logical explanation; I suspect Back Draft (the movie) would be a likely candidate to explain the reasons for the delay on the front exterior for wet/dry extinguisher deployment. The San Francisco fire department did their job and put the fire out!
Maybe Dave needs to develop a fireground commentator service for active events.
The Red Cross was on the scene and gave temporary accommodations to those displaced by the fire. These people might have been partially comprised of a group of barefoot Loinsters in homey clothes we saw watching the flames with sadness, while holding a cat in a pet carrier.
Everybody else was morbidly voyeuristically taking tons of pictures and videos (including us) and offering up unwarranted, armchair quarterback advice to the SFFD (surprisingly, as we’re smartasses, not us). Just for future notice gang, our firefighters have a pretty damned good idea of when to turn on the water.
SF Appeal: Red Cross Seeks Volunteers To Help 26 People Displaced In “Suspicious” Tenderloin Fire (HERE) Justin (TheHappyMedic) Schorr posted a response on Rhett’s blog:
After speaking to some of the first due folks, initial report was nothing showing from the street. Crews made entry to find the building charged with smoke, struck a working fire. Entry was delayed due to the entry door barricaded from the inside. Lines were eventually led through the window inside to make the door.
Crews were able to ventilate natural openings and a lot of heat made a search of the floor above trouble.
This looks to be a 4 story type 5, likely with 12 units. Zero clearance on the sides, no easy view of the rear of the building. Getting to the roof ASAP is the easiest way to do the “360″ and check all exposures, lightwells, secondary victims etc, hence the quick sticks.
While researching information on the Metropolitan Fire Department stumbled upon Statter’s Source of Scandously Salacious nonSuccinct Statements.
This is a New York Times headline from November 03, 1885:
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.; Completion of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade of New-York. Difficulties in the Work of Reorganization. Catalogue of the City and Suburban Companies. Thirty-five Steam and Five Hand Engine Companies, and Fifteen Hook and Ladder Companies. THEIR ORGANIZATION AND LOCATION Present Condition of the Paid Fire Department. The Fire Telegraph System–The Board of Engineers. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. SUBURBAN ORGANIZATION. MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS. NO MORE BELLS. STATUS OF VOLUNTEER FIREMEN. VOLUNTEER COMPANIES DISCHARGED.
So I am mistaken, I thought his endless headlines were to improve capture in seach engines.
I did not realize that Statter was continuing the journalistic tradition started over a century ago!
The internet allows ball-busting on an epic scale.
While we were at the Firehouse Expo, one of the captains covering for Rhett Fleitz back home ALSO runs a blog. Posted an item while he was working overtime for Rhett. read “Moonlighting” HERE.
Rhett was enthusiastically telling us about the blog, which is a great read, when Dave Statter decided to send a camp counselor report to Iron Firemen:
This is to inform you that Rhett is adjusting well to camp life. He is enthusiastic and participates in all activities.
Rhett has learned to make his own bed (but there is still the bed wetting issue) and does his cabin cleaning chores well.
He could use help on the working well with others department and does still cry when he doesn’t get his way.
I think camp will be good for Rhett and will help him mature.
We should inform you of an error that was made as camp started. Due to his physical stature we accidentally placed Rhett in a cabin with the youngest campers. We apologize for the mistake and have notified the parents of the other campers who may have felt threatened.
You may well know by now that our fellow fire-blogger and good friend Dave Statter (STATter911) officially retired from his rewarding career at Channel 9, WUSA-TV in Washington this past Friday. During the past week he has been posting some of his older fire/EMS stories that he pulled out of the station archives and they have been fun to watch. In his 25 years at the station he did a lot more than cover fire and police stories, even though he was the station’s resident go-to guy for that. Along with the hard news stories and the shenannigans of the politicians of which D. C. is filled with, he also pulled a lot of assignments interviewing celebrities from the world of music and entertainment when they were in town for performances and appearances. I’d be willing to bet you that those assignments are what he’s going to miss the most.
I’m glad to know that the STATter911 website will remain “in business,” though. During its first three years of life it was a part of Channel 9′s official archives and as such it was confined to following the station’s policies and legal restrictions that are placed on all broadcasters. But now Dave will have free reign to follow his nose and talk about anything he wants to, and it will be fun to see where he goes with it. The address will remain the same. Sometime today make sure that you read his posting from last night where he tells about how he got started in all this and passes along the recognition to some of the people who played major roles in his career. It’s a good ARTICLE HERE.
Please join with me in congratulating Dave on his retirement from a successful career. And the best of luck and good wishes for his next endeavor along with the welcomed continuation of STATter911.
* * * * *
I want to pass along a reminder about our new Fan Page on Facebook. We are closing in on 400 fans already and we’re just getting started. If you are signed into the Facebook universe, enter Firegeezer Fans in the search box and join up. It’s on that page that we post some things that don’t make it onto the Firegeezer.com website and, most importantly, it is where you can post some related things and your favorite photos for the rest of us to enjoy.
Old firetruck pics seem to be popular, so dig out your digital pics and share them with us.
Now it’s time for us to share that morning activity called “equipment check.” We need to get that going and I’ll go start some more coffee. See you back in the day room in a little while.
When I was on the job we had a senior chief officer that announced he was retiring “soon.”
Twenty months later, at a meeting with field command officers, a battalion chief who was about to retire asked the senior chief WHEN?
Dave’s Last Day at Channel 9
While Statter always had a target retirement date, it seems that I have been hearing about his retirement for almost as long.
That is because Dave is a fellow traveler through the DC area emergency service universe.
We became ALS providers in the very early days of paramedicine – he was a Cardiac Rescue Technician in PG and I was a Cardiac Care Technician in Fairfax.
When we were learning how to start IV’s, Channel 9 TV (with Sheldon Levy’s overnight videos) and WMAL radio (AM 630 – with Larry Krebs predawn conversations with Bill Mayhugh ) were the go-to media sources for the best reporting on incidents and public safety.
Dave’s posting of vintage Channel 9 fire/rescue stories from the archives reinforces my perception that Statter, like Letterman, provided a regular nightly commentary on my world.
I will always remember Dave’s initial reports from the Pentagon attack on WTOP radio. In the cacophony that morning, he provided the first clear assessment of what was happening. (Statter HERE) (JEMS article) Clarification from Dave, he was reporting for WUSA 9 and was simulcasted on WTOP radio.
The WatchDesk Days
TheWatchDesk.com forum exploded in activity when the two-hatter issue bubbled up in PG eight years ago.
Statter was a poster on the forum, and we had on and off line discussions about what was happening.
Later, Dave attempted to mediate a conflict I created over the Kentland VFD ambulance case study.
I was “persona non grata” to a former KVFD chief.
At least, that was what he SAID he was doing. It felt more like he was busting my chops.
Blog God
STATter911 is the digital go-to for fire/rescue information. Exceeds old-school mass media by providing a timely, better referenced and well described source of both breaking incidents and knowledgeable analysis.
Instead of listening to the 6:20 am overnight report from Krebs on AM radio, I am accessing Statter911 on my smartphone.
A Digital Second Career
The FireEMSBlogs meet-up at EMS Today and the Fire Department Instructor’s Conference are just the beginning of an exciting evolution that started with overnight reporters and videographers working the police beat after “The Big War.”
I am excited that STATter911 is part of this evolution. The most exciting developments are …. (embargoed)
Please come by and say hi to Dave at Booth 738 at Firehouse Expo. July 22 to July 24 in Baltimore.
LAST EVENING THE PUBLISHER OF STATter911, Dave Statter announced publicly that he will soon be retiring from his employment at Channel 9 News. Dave has worked at the Gannett-owned CBS affiliate WUSA-TV for 25 years and has established himself as a popular and trusted journalist. After spending all those years in front of the camera lens, he is instantly recognized throughout the Washington, D. C. area and is respected by literally millions of viewers over the years.
Throughout his career of covering stories and conducting interviews of every imaginable topic, he has consistently been assigned to cover the public safety agencies including fire, EMS, and police stories. Those assignments were first earned based on his many years as a volunteer firefighter in Maryland and his acquisition of the CCT rating when that new advancement toward paramedic skills first became available. In that time he has earned the trust and admiration of firefighters and paramedics in all departments along the mid-Atlantic seaboard.
Reading the lead-in of his announcement HERE, you might first think that the website is about to be retired also. But that is not the case. Dave will not only be continuing with STATter911, but he will be making it better and introducing some things, I’m sure, that he’s always wanted to do with the website.
But for now he has to undergo the windup of operations at Broadcast House and share some memories with his co-workers. I hope the station broadcasts one of those “career-in-review” stories that they usually do as a send-off for retiring reporters. I want to see some of those early clips from when he was really skinny. I’ve kind of forgotten what he looked like back then.
But I want to pass along a heartfelt “Congratulations, Dave!” for a wonderfully successful career and the best of luck with your next one.
Dave Statter over at STATter911 has one of the niftiest gadgets going over at his website. Near the top of the right sidebar is a video box that has a set of three video thumbnails just below the player. One of his colleagues at WUSA-TV Ch. 9, Emily Cyr is constantly on the watch for fire/EMS-related news videos that come across the newswire and if they fit the blogsite profile, they are entered into the video loop that runs in that player. At any given moment there are 30 videos loaded and you can preview them by just clicking on the > button to skim the thumbnails. Almost every day new videos are added, and therefore older ones are removed, and you have a constantly-changing selection to choose from.
Since I don’t have the luxury of a staff of hundreds (Ok, dozens) to do this kind of stuff, I can only sit in envy while I skim through the daily video library selections. It’s a great way to cover some current happenings – right after you get your Firegeezer fix for the day – and I hope you check it out, if you haven’t already.
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Shame on me…I meant to point out that yesterday was just two weeks ahead of St. Patrick’s Day. That means the many fire department pipe and drum bands are getting ready for this year’s parades that take place during the middle of the month. And it kicks off the marching season for most of them after the winter layoff. So get ready for some good outdoor entertainment in the next couple of weeks.
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It was just a little over two years ago in January 2008 that we first told you (HERE) about an unusual house for sale in San Francisco. Back in 1974 a pair of artists, Robert and Marilyn Katzman bought a decommissioned firehouse (Engine 33) from the city and converted it into a home. The all-redwood constructed building still had the pole and some other amenities in it, so they kept the FD theme in their remodeling. A few years later they bought a 1955 Mack pumper, converted the hose bed into a 15-seat passenger area and began running a history-tour guide service.
Our article was prompted by the Katzman’s decision to put the firehouse, pumper, and tour business up for sale as a package offering for $3.3 million. They made this promotional video for the sale that gives a nice tour of the firehouse:
We bring this up today because we have learned that the Katzmans, who are anxious to retire and start taking it easy, have just reduced the price of their unique home by a whopping 70%. But they have separated the real estate from the tour business and are now offering the old engine house alone for $975,000. Don’t quote me, but I am guessing that includes the fire memorabilia collection as well.
The tour business is being offered separately for $249,000.
Before you start calling your financial manager to see if you can swing the deal, let’s get this equipment checked out. I need to get some more coffee started. See you back in the day room.
….. One of America’s most-deadly hotel fires occurred in Atlanta, Georgia. The Winecoff Hotel, a supposedly “fireproof building,” had an early morning fire that killed 119 people.
Two years ago on this anniversary date, Dave Statter published a good historic review of the fire and an interesting side-note to the occasion that happened just two days before his posting in STATter911.
CLICK HERE to read the poignent story of the fire and the subsequent story of the amateur photographer who won a Pulitzer Prize because of it.
Nice article Mike.
The photo from the Legeros Man Cave/ Research Library includes a set of books we both appreciate.
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