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More tales from the tailboard

THE BOYS CLUB

In 1973 the citizens in San Jose, CA, rightly voted to add a forth fireman to its 28 engines and a fifth to its 7 trucks. At that time, before the computer boom, San Jose was a city going from a small agricultural town with wonderful orchards and flower growers to a major population expansion and industrial boom. I had taken tests all over the Bay Area and had only been to San Jose once before I put in my application. By adding the extra people, I was placed in the… Continue

Added by mike simms on December 11, 2009 at 8:15pm — 4 Comments

Calling out for help

Hello All

I Am a firefighter with a small department . .The department is small and funded by the members. The gear we have now is old and worn out and some without gear.

We need some help so we can try to get these firefighters in some gear and try to replace some of the old stuff so they can fight fires the only problem is we dont have the funds to get any gear at all .

We have filed for grants and had no luck so im turning to the brother hood for some help .

If any… Continue

Added by christopher on December 11, 2009 at 7:00pm — 3 Comments

WTFD lost one of our own RIP Brother

Members of the Washington Township Fire Department are mourning the death of Firefighter Jason W. Kirby. Firefighter Kirby died Wednesday, December 9, 2009 at his home.

Jason was first hired by Washington Township in August 1991. He served the fire department and the community in many capacities, including part-time firefighter, emergency medical technician and assistant fire instructor. He was a member of Ohio-Task Force 1 Urban Search & Rescue Team.

He was an active member and… Continue

Added by John on December 11, 2009 at 2:26pm — 11 Comments

Tips for the clinical portion of your EMT/Paramedic certification

Smooth Certification: Tips for the clinical portion of your EMT/Paramedic certification

By Scott Cook

So you’ve decided to go for your medical patch: EMT, EMT-I or EMT-P. EMS is part of what we do, and I’m still working on getting my paramedic certification, so this month, I want to share some tips for making your clinical experience a success.

First, a little background about me so you’ll know where I’m coming from: I’ve been a student… Continue

Added by Fire Rescue Magazine on December 11, 2009 at 8:00am — 1 Comment

Tempe AZ Firefighter Killed while Elk Hunting

Tempe FD lost a ff Monday night. He had been elk hunting with a friend for 4-5 days E of Camp Verde when the blizzard started. The pair hunkered down for the night and about 2230, a 70 foot section of a ponderosa pine tree broke off about 20 feet above the ground landing on Skylar Stark's head and chest. His tent mate was uninjured and said Skylar never made a sound so it is assumed that he was killed instantly. The tent mate shot a hole on the tent that was now on fire as a result of a… Continue

Added by Mike on December 10, 2009 at 12:14pm — 5 Comments

Cell phone usage policy!

I am looking for a sample policy regarding the use of personal cell phones and other electronic devices while on duty. If you have a policy for this I would appreciate you forwarding me a copy.

Added by Gary Mayor on December 10, 2009 at 11:32am — 3 Comments

Race Track Venues

Our District has a new race track that wants us to contract Fire & EMS services at venues. I have read NFPA 610 on race venues and have some idea what is needed. Does anyone have contract ideas or any other thought or ideas for race track venues, thanks

Added by Glenn Fluhr on December 10, 2009 at 3:55am — 1 Comment

flame retardant material

Hi.I am from Malaysia looking fire retardant material--Can any one help me to source for it in US--Beside Nomex fm Dupont I am looking another supplier! U can mail me-stanleynov@yahoo.com
Rgds

Added by pereira stanley on December 9, 2009 at 9:00pm — No Comments

Budget Time: Part 1

It is Budget Time for FY 2011. Hard to believe it is upon us already because it seems like we ust got done working on last year's budgets. In the County I live in, the Commission I sit on is responsible for for "scrutinizing" 5 volunteer department budgets and then reporting our recommendations to the Board of Supervisors (BOS). You can say we are sort of the middle man in the process. Does the process work, no. Do the departments get what they ask for regardless of what the Commission says to… Continue

Added by Brady Matthew Grim on December 9, 2009 at 7:31pm — No Comments

Notes from a Rookie Firefighter

Notes from a Rookie Firefighter...December 9, 2009

Remember the other day when I made a note to self about snow and my driveway?

Well, my driveway was just plowed at 1:00.

I worked from home today.

At least I can get out now if we are dispatched.

Second note to self - Thank God that I have a great boss.

Denise Broesler

Added by Denise Imperiale on December 9, 2009 at 1:35pm — 2 Comments

The "Brotherhood" of Labeling Your Food...

We had just returned from a particularly gruesome call. Kids in our area like to go “hill-hopping”. That’s when they take daddy’s Beamer to the roller-coaster-like hills in the rural, wooded area of our district and go fast enough to grab some air. Sometimes they land back on the pavement, and sometimes they don’t. When they don’t, we get called.

Looking for a little respite, the boys trooped into the kitchen.

“Hey, check this out,” shouted Al as he peered into the… Continue

Added by FireDaily.com on December 9, 2009 at 10:59am — 1 Comment

Help Help Help Small Department Needs Help

Hello All

I Am a firefighter with a small department . . The gear we have now is old and worn out. We have 8 firefighters without gear and we need some help so we can try to get these firefighters in some gear so they can fight fires the only problem is we dont have the funds to get any gear at all and we dont want the firefighters to have to buy it out of there pockets we have filed for grants had fundraisers and no luck so im turning to the brother hood for some help .if any one out… Continue

Added by christopher on December 9, 2009 at 3:11am — No Comments

Chump Change --- for Safety's Sake!

If you are a Fire/Rescue Chief, Commissioner, President, Fire Officer or in a leadership role of a Fire Department or Fire Company, you have the responsibility of ensuring firefighter safety.

With the holidays right around the corner, here’s a cool opportunity for your organization to provide something to your members, and support the work of the Safety, Health and Survival Section of the IAFC. By policy, the IAFC does not fund the section, the section must raise all of their own… Continue

Added by Tiger Schmittendorf on December 9, 2009 at 2:12am — 1 Comment

Ahead of the curve

Two years ago, I bought my first set of personal bunker gear new on Ebay. Because it is the best, I bought Morning pride. Last year, our county Command staff spec'd new gear for the county CAREER fire fighters, and who did they use? Morning pride. I am proud to be ahead of the curve in my department!

In other news, it is beginning to appear that the IAFF local has no intention of letting the county command develop the Volunteer Division in any meaningful way, which means that it will… Continue

Added by Joel C Kelley on December 8, 2009 at 8:05pm — 2 Comments

Firefighter Combat Challenge winners, Team MonctonMoves, detail the year leading up to their big win

By Jamie Richford, Team MonctonMoves

In the spring of 2009, Team MonctonMoves, which consisted of only two members the previous year (Matt Dunfield and myself) in a department of just over 100 (the Moncton Fire Department in New Brunswick, Canada), was excited to start the year with the addition of two more members (Marcel Dupuis and Jason Bergeron) from the previous year’s recruitment class.…

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Added by Fire Rescue Magazine on December 8, 2009 at 5:00pm — 1 Comment

Become a Fan of the IAFC on Facebook

The IAFC has created a fan page on Facebook. It is open to everyone, so sign up today and keep current on what's happening at the IAFC.

Added by IAFC on December 8, 2009 at 2:25pm — 3 Comments

Notes from a Rookie Firefighter

Notes from a Rookie Firefighter...December 8, 2009

Well, I survived our firehouse's election of officers. I was voted in as secretary which makes sense because of my love affair with my laptop. However, I have roughly 26 days to get over my stage fright which includes reading minutes, correspondence, and roll call in front of 50 people.

No antidepressant works that good I can tell you that.

How did I ever speak in front of 400 people just three years… Continue

Added by Denise Imperiale on December 8, 2009 at 12:50pm — 7 Comments

how do you properly clean a scba regulator????

i have been a firefighter for many years latley with all the swine flu stuff going around it scares me to use an scba because of fear of catching something from one of my brother firefighters... our dept does supply disinfectant wipes to clean your mask but when i asked how to clean the regulator noone can give me an answer.. so can anyone shed some light on this simple subject????? thanks rich.

Added by rich smith on December 8, 2009 at 10:53am — 6 Comments

Truss Construction: Tactics You Need

FireRescue magazine's Fireground Operations Web column

Take Heed:What you need to know about truss construction to avoid making mistakes & causing injury

By Freddie LaFemina

In years past, the mantra of “putting the fire out no matter what the cost” resulted in the deaths and serious injuries of many firefighters. Sometimes, we didn’t learn from those incidents.

There’s a sign in our academy gym that reads: “There are three things you… Continue

Added by Fire Rescue Magazine on December 8, 2009 at 10:00am — 1 Comment