February 2011 Blog Posts (67)

Know the Tool Cache Manager’s Roles & Responsibilities

A tool cache manager can be invaluable on the extrication scene, organizing tools, coordinating resources, acting as a safety officer and much more

By Todd D. Meyer

The cook who supports the cattle drive. The pit crew that supports the race car driver. The administrative assistant at Station #51 who keeps the BCs inline. The ground support crew that keeps the fighter jets in the air. My… Continue

Added by Fire Rescue Magazine on February 4, 2011 at 6:00am — 1 Comment

Whats your worst call?

Q: What Was Your Worst Call?

(Squad) My first call with the squad was an unconcious/unresponsive in the summer of 2010. The ambulance responded with 4 people, and myself and 2 other members responded in our support vehicle. When we arrived on scene, we came across approx. 12 people standing outside the house, 2 of them (which i knew) said "He's in the attic, please hurry!" We grabbed our gear and rushed up the steps into the attic. We found a 20ish year old male laying on the bed; head… Continue

Added by Cody Reiger on February 4, 2011 at 12:38am — 11 Comments

CIS Policy

I have been given the assignment of creating a CIS Policy for my department. Does anyone have one in place that I can study?

jason.zinger@kitchener.ca

Added by Jason Zinger on February 2, 2011 at 2:49pm — No Comments

Winter Storm!

It's freezing, there is snow and ice everywhere. I decide to cross the road just to get the mail. As I turn around, a guy speeds past me, skidding all around the road. And he wasn't the only one. Is it me, or do people drive recklessly during these storms? He was going WAY over the speed limit in the first place, and some others nearly crashed into a car pulling into a driveway. Can't people SLOW DOWN?

Though this storm is nasty, I had a good laugh when I walked by a tree and ALL of… Continue

Added by Sarah on February 2, 2011 at 10:58am — 1 Comment

Factoring Weight-Per-Firefighter When Choosing Handlines

Factoring Weight-Per-Firefighter When Choosing Handlines

By Skip Dorgan

Editor’s note: In an article in the February 2011 issue of FireRescue magazine (“Let the Pump Do the Work,” p. 62), Skip Dorgan provided the results of some comparisons between 1¾", 2" and 2½" hose, specifically comparing 2" vs. 2½" handlines noting… Continue

Added by Fire Rescue Magazine on February 1, 2011 at 8:00am — No Comments

Why We Search: Shared Post Courtesy of CMD-FD, on Squatter Resourcefulness

Camden squatters and the resourcefulness and creativity which they have attained.

We are adding to our "Why We Search" page with a very well written post from Gabriel Angemi of the Camden, New Jersey Fire Department and his blog CMD-FD. We thank Gabriel for allowing us to pass along this latest detailed coverage of squatters thriving in… Continue

Added by Bill Carey on February 1, 2011 at 7:32am — No Comments

January on Backstep Firefighter

A monthly review of our popular postings and the editorial cartoon.

magazine4f76ed726f12910dd07b35b49c0b127e1902c0bf

January was an interesting month of issues for Backstep Firefighter as we looked at the vacant, abandoned building searches and hyped-up commentary as well as victim survivability profiling. Dave LeBlanc reminded us that a significant part of our job is search and… Continue

Added by Bill Carey on February 1, 2011 at 7:30am — No Comments