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Both.

Austin-Travis County EMS (TX) took delivery this morning of (2) 2010 Ford F-450 Super Duty Extended Cab/Wheeled Coach Type I's with air ride suspension. ATCEMS has been using International 4400/Wheeled Coach ambulances, and with the exception of these and three Dodge Sprinter/Wheeled Coaches, the Internationals, with some Freightliners, make up the entire frontline fleet. These ambulances will be used for evaluation for future fleet purposes. Also, the Rescue, Hazmat, SWAT, etc medics probaly won't have enough room for their gear, so they will probaly not be assigned these units. (Click on photo for larger version)

The new Ford's are experimental for them. Here's what they are currently using in their frontline fleet: Austin-Travis County EMS Medic 6-2009 International Navistar 4400/Wheeled Coach: I wonder if the lifespan will be any different. Typically, these ambulances are expected go 250,000 miles (I'm not sure what the frontline/reserve ratio is) and are replaced which usually occurs every 5 years. But, every ambulance has a station/quarters to go back to, so a lot of this is true mileage and not "posting time" unless it's a Demand (Peak Load Time) unit.

Please, if you know of any experienced towers looking to work for one of the Hudson Valley's leading towing and recovery companies, please pass this information along to them. Thanks!

So, does Cassano have to technically "retire" from FDNY, or is this a promotion and can he maintain his same civil service status?

Great photos, Truck4....always great to see photos from you! Also, great work by the truck companies on scene..wow!....great aerial placement, three raised and operating- 1 100' RM stick and 2 75' midmount TL's- despite the grade, trees, and wires. Ladder 74 seems to be able to get that aerial into anywhere! Also, I love seeing ground ladders being used and not collecting dust! Kinda reminds me of a Boston incident where every truck on scene has it's aerial operating, lol.

This is a tough time to be a Fire Commisioner in any city, let alone New York. He has a tough road ahead of him, but I've heard lots of good things about him so I wish him the best of luck!

I know some departments already do this. But, should two sets of turnout gear be standard? With today's gear, it really is a custom fit. If gear gets wet, it can take a while to dry. If you have to wash it, that can take a while. And if it sustains thermal damage, that can take weeks to fix. Should having two sets of gear be standard for each firefighter???

And one more shot. Hope to get some in better lighting after the holiday. (Click on photo for larger version)

Another sudden celebrity loss. Brittany Murphy, the girl from "8 Mile" and "Clueless", died after being found by her mother unconcious and not breathing at her Los Angeles home today. Los Angeles City FD EMS transported her in full cardiac arrest to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where she was pronounced. Only 32 years old. http://omg.yahoo.com/news/coroner-brittany-murphy-dead-at-32/32963?nc

Interesting article in Westchester Magazine about 630. Great article, and paints the often not-seen part of the response in a positive light. And Ricky's answers were very professional. I worked with Ricky for several years, and he is a GREAT guy and good friend- glad to see him spotlighted like this. He is also one of the very first members to join this forum. http://www.westchestermagazine.com/Westchester-Magazine/December-2009/Hello-911-Dispatcher-Ricky-Variara/

Did this incident affect Somers FD or WEMS Dispatch at all? http://www.emtbravo.net/index.php?showtopic=34775

Even if we do nothing all shift, we still do something. We are there at the ready, 24/7/365. We sacrifice time away from our families on holidays, nights, and weekends. The nature of the public safety profession takes it toll on our health. For you guys in NY, it costs a fortune to live on many of the salaries. Yes, civil service may look like a "cake job" to some, but there's a reason why we deserve what we recieve for compensation. People do need to be more concious about social networking and how they present themselves, and this is becoming a huge issue nationwide. Many departments are adopting policies about members use of social networking sites, some even prohibiting members from using it off duty. We do have a responsibilty to be transparent to the taxpayers. If you're going to work overtime details, do something to try and keep busy and document it. Hold a citizens fire or police academy to educate the municpal and civic leaders as to what we really do, what we need, and why. And if you're going to represent yourself online, do it in a professional manner. Social networking is becoming more intergrated into our lifestyles every day, and it can be a bad....or very good thing. We must keep in mind that the public and media can read anything we do online while at work. News media across the country are feeding on this, even members personal emails to family members and bank statements. It can all be seen and used to your and your departments disadvantage if you use your work computer. As for that statement, going through the fire or police academy, or especially most paramedic programs, and all the associated training, is just like going to college. Even though the intial requirments may be a HS diploma, many members, the longer they've been on the job, have more relevant training then a college graduate with a Bachelor's degree.

Here in Texas, they'd be arrested for failure to render aid, probaly immediately. THEY could have AT LEAST still called 911 and stayed with the patient. I know how the NY Post significantly slants stories though, so this situation could have been totally different from what was reported.

Congrats to everyone who gaduated from this class and will be serving their community. Congrats to Pete Rovida on his appointment to Ardsley PD! It seems like ages ago when we worked at Empress together...and Pete is a longtime Greenburgh PD EMS medic amongst other places. It's rare Ardsley PD sends someone through the academy, and I'm glad he's serving in my former hometown and the same department where my father and grandfather retired from. Is the Frank Califano from Yonkers PD THE Frank Califano x701? http://www.lohud.com/article/20091218/NEWS02/912180411/50-year-old-is-Westchester-s-top-cop-recruit

AWESOME! Congrats, Frank....a long time coming, you deserve it! Best wishes for a great career!

Curry Ford Building in Yorktown was unsafe and in the process of being taken down after the multiple alarm fire. Demoliton company put a Cat 320 Excavator into basement of building on top of wooden beamed floor. Performed by Stiloski's with their 2008 Kenworth-Jerr Dann 85 ton rotator. Photos © John Stiloski and posted with permission

Excellent photos by ONLOCATION, and unique perspective by Chris192! Definetly looks like a tough location to get into.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20091218/NEWS02/912180411/50-year-old-is-Westchester-s-top-cop-recruit Congrats to all and best wishes for a safe,healthy, and happy career. Also, very small class! Congrats to Chris Mentrasti,almost that whole family is HFD now, lol. Chris was formerly a longtime volunteer with HFD and waited for his name to come up until after his college graduation. His brother Tim got on with me and is currently a career firefighter there who also previously served as a volunteer with HFD and spends about 90% of his time when he's not working doing fire service and spec ops training or training others. And their father is currently a commisioner and volunteer firefighter with the department. Also, good to see this class got at least a little blurb in the paper this time.......

There has to be something said about Pierce introducing more and more aluminum aerial products to their line, and another manufacturer about to come on line with some aluminum aerial products. One thing about aluminum from a price standpoint, it's usually less expensive because aluminum is less expensive, easier to fabricate, and easier to welder then steel. Also, from a weight standpoint, it is a lot lighter.

Wow! That's AWESOME! Definetly some needed space and glad to hear this longtime plan is finally a reality....now hopefully next we'll see a new ambulance for Elmsford! If I remember correctly, that space was previously rented out to the post office for sorting??

I agree, and that's what I'm going to do. I may experiment with some new features and make some minor changes, but nothing major.

Awesome! Thanks for sharing the photos! There are defintely some specs we could learn from over here. I really like the cone compartment. Heck, I love the whole truck. Very functional. Maybe I will get to see it in person one day, I hope. Who built the body on this?

Snow is nice when you don't have to work, shovel, clean off your car, or drive in it!

I find your reply compltely unrelated to this situation, and a dig at this forum and law enforcement officers as a whole. I don't exactly understand your post. Who is "they"? Sounds like you are using this situation to point out your distaste for LEO's, which in this situation, is dispicable. I'm not condoning this officers actions at all, as 90+ MPH is in a majority of places in the northeast excessive, but there are times where gaps in coverage or ONA's sometimes get the officers going a little faster then they should. This officer was charged with manslaughter, so it's obvious "they" aren't above the law. Two innocent people lost their lives. This is a tragedy for all involved.