FireRescue magazine's Technical Rescue Web column

Aircraft Down! The miracle on Beech Street

By Harold Schapelhouman



“Aircraft down”—two simple words that tend to get the immediate attention of most responders and generally cause concern for most urban emergency responders who live in areas where private and commercial aircraft are…

Day One:

Theres a group of FF's sitting in the Fire House kitchen. Talking everyday stuff, just doing what FF's do. A racialy diverse group.

A person of rank walks in and sits with them.

One of the FF's say's, "Hey Sir, what did you think of the new hiring exam?"

He answers, "Ever sence that judge got involved, you know because of the sp---ks, nig---rs and other minorities, they've had to dumb it down. Their ruining…

We Remember: A look back at fires that have shaped our nation’s history

By Cindy Devone-Pacheco



This month marks the anniversaries of a couple noteworthy fires that took place in the southern portion of the United States.



The Great Fire of 1901

Today marks the 109th anniversary of the Great Fire of 1901. On May 3 of that year, Jacksonville, Fla., was the setting for one of the worst fire disasters in Florida history and…

Wow!

Thanks to my FireEMSBlogs.com partner Bill Carey of Backstep Firefighter for hosting the second edition of the First Due Blog Carnival. The topic was “Influential Fire Reports” and several top notch contributors stepped…

Put to the Test: A 6-alarm fire reveals the importance of command, control & preparation

By Deputy Assistant Chief Robert Maynes



The fire service believes size-up or situational awareness begins long before your arrival on the fireground; it can start with the receipt of the alarm or with your commute to the firehouse. Size-up is an integral part of acquiring accurate situational awareness. (Situational awareness is simply defined as…

My goal is to chronicle, as best I can, some of the many great experiences I had last week at FDIC-2010 in Indianapolis, Indiana. There's so many of them flowing through my brain, some of them are short snippets while others I remember as full-length features, and I plan to present them accordingly.

My FDIC-2010 experience ranks up there with some of the greatest memories of my career and life. Full of laughs (my stomach still…

On site at FDIC

Success as a Company Officer: It starts long before you get the badge

By Cindy Devone-Pacheco



Often in life, we can’t plan our future; we just have to work hard and hope for the best. But according to Ray Gayk, Deputy Chief of the Ontario (Calif.) Fire Department, those who hope to promote to the company officer level someday should probably sit down and start making some plans.

Beware the…

When last we met, my buddy Jim Brunelle was awaiting delivery of a pair of Black Diamond firefighting boots to test out, while my fingers and brain took a mini-vacation from blogging (my imaginary trip to my own private Idaho was lovely, thanks very much).

Jim sent me an email with his thoughts regarding the boots, and I opened it, fully expecting a knuckle-dragging Cro-Magnon-esque male perspective.

You know; something along the lines of "Boots good. Feet…