x242Steve

Every generation has something historical that was announced and/or watched during school. Whether it was the JFK or MLK assassinations, the Challenger explosion, the OJ verdict (I only mention that one because I watched it at the Rye High library)... these are the events that shape a generation. Granted, people of all ages were and still are effected by the events of 9/11/2001, but when I think about everything that went through my head that morning, that day and in the last seven years I can only imagine what it was like for a grade school child or a young teenager witnessing the world changing in an instant, then another instant, then another, then another.

Giving a shout out to anyone else who had to work today! Just got off the 7-3 and am looking forward to a few beers and some BBQ tonight. -Steve Loddo Public Safety Dispatcher, UAW Local 2377 From www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm: It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation's strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.

Recipe for a trip to Buckout Road... 1 Friday or Saturday night 1/3 dozen bored teenagers 1 mid-to-large sized sedan (can substitute SUV if necessary) 6 12oz servings of American Lager (whatever you can "borrow" from your dad's fridge in the basement or garage) 1 designated driver 2 new steel-belted radials for after you peel outta there! FYI- Google Maps has the Street View function available for that area... Oh, also I found a listing for one of the newer houses there... $2.7 million Sch Dist: Harrison Elem School: Purchase High School: Harrison Est. Sqft: 7,000 Acreage: 1.66 Est. Taxes: $33,564 Year Built: 1997 Parking: 3 Car Attached Rooms: 11 Amenities: Alarm System, Clubhouse, Eat in Kitchen, Fireplace, Lake/Pond/Stream, Sprinkler Sys Lawn

While probably not the oldest, Rye Fire Headquarters on Locust Avenue was originally completed in 1908. From our department history... In 1907, Mrs. William Parsons offered a piece of land on Locust Ave to act as the Headquarters for the Department. Upon receipt of the land the taxpayers approved $40,000 to build the headquarters. The building was state of the art including an auditorium, two meeting rooms, engine room, and stables to accommodate six horses. The house had the latest in technology including ridged concrete flooring designed to keep the horses from slipping as they started to pull the heavy fire engine. ...that ridged concrete flooring was still in place until the 2005-2007 renovations. Other than a brand new high-strength concrete floor these renovations included updating the entire building to comply with OSHA, NFPA and ADA standards. Special attention was paid to making the career staff's quarters more livable. The original look of the "auditorium" (now the George Ballantoni Memorial Hall) was restored and an elevator was installed. One notable side-effect of these renovations is that Headquarters can now house only 3 vehicles (Currently E191, L25 and L26) whereas previously there was also room for E193. Luckily, when the Milton Firehouse was renovated earlier in the decade, its apparatus bay capacity was expanded to allow 4 vehicles to fit comfortably.

I was not on scene, however according to a very reliable source who was, the officer's injuries were far from serious and he was in good humor considering what happened.

So because of his rank and experience he has skin made of Kevlar and corneas made of Lexan? All humor aside, and with due respect to that person- No excuse for lack of proper PPE!

Not to get off topic, but just so non-Connecticut people are aware... here's an excerpt from Connecticut DMV regulations... Sec. 14-36a-1. Special license endorsement Each holder of a Class D motor vehicle operator's license who operates or intends to operate any fire apparatus vehicle may apply to the commissioner for a special license endorsement, to be designated as a' 'Q" endorsement. The' 'Q" endorsement shall authorize the operation of any fire apparatus vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of over 26,001 pounds. No such endorsement shall be issued to any such person until he or she demonstrates personally to the commissioner, or to the commissioner's designee, by means of testing in a representative vehicle, as author­ized by the chief of a fire department, that he or she possesses the skills necessary to operate such fire apparatus vehicle.

SPOILER ALERT - Below text does not give away major plot, but still- be warned! I don't know if anyone else noticed, but in the scene when the prisoner transport convoy encounters an obstruction in the road, which happens to be a burning Ladder Truck... it is Ladder 46 from Backdraft. (The Dark Knight was filmed in Chicago.)

Well, ok maybe its not the EXACT same truck, especially since it was probably a miniature... But it looks the same, has "46" on it, and is in the Chicago-obvious Gotham.

Westchester County Police Dispatcher Exam Towns, Villages and the Cities of Peekskill and Rye. Exam #62-084 Last Filing Date: 8/8/08 Exam Date: 9/6/08 http://www.westchestergov.com/csexam/exann...exams/62084.htm

Date: 7/21/08 Time: 1143 Location: I-95 NB between South Road bridge and Exit 19 (Playland Parkway) Frequency: 46.26/FG-3 Units Operating: 2421, E-193, L-25, U-39, State DOT, Vincent Garage Description Of Incident: Rye FD called for washdown after truck carrying non-frozen chicken parts was involved in accident and spilled its contents on the roadway. [Writer's note: It smelled pretty fowl... er, foul.] Writer: 242steve (O/S)

Rye: Engine 191, 1994 Pierce Lance Rescue Pumper http://www.ryefire.com/content/apparatus/191.cfm

Photo by: George Rizer/Boston Globe Staff Photo from a fire today in Chelsea, MA... Yet another great example of aggressive laddering.

Full Story: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/ci_9904982 As mentioned in the article, the patient was on the fourth floor of a construction site, and SFRD's Tower Ladder was utilized to remove him. Good work to all SEMS and SFRD personnel involved, and best wishes to Mr. Bidwell and family.

Last Filing Date: 7/21/08 Exam #: 60-340 Exam Date: 9/6/08 Full Info: http://www.westchestergov.com/csexam/exann...exams/60340.htm

Goose- I try to stay open minded, and obviously you are educated about the topic and do have some valid points. But personally, I can't see it happening. I remember the HUGE resistance from a large group of Rye residents when there was serious talk back in the 90's of the Rye and Rye Brook Police Departments merging... You can still see the "Rye PD = My PD" bumper stickers on older cars... Despite the recent influx of "new money", there are still a lot of Rye residents who have deep-seated roots in the community and have a lot of pride and a "lets keep things the way they have always been" attitude. Heck, I can name half a dozen people I know in Rye who can trace their Rye ancestry back to the 1600's... whereas Rye Brook has only existed since 1982 when they spilt from Port Chester. Since then they have had various Public Safety issues, and are still working on putting the Rural/Metro disaster behind them and sorting things out, to some degree, with Port Chester. For the intents and purposes of this thread, there really is no relationship between the City of Rye and the Village of Rye Brook, and I just cannot see the governments or majority of voters from either place ever going for such a drastic change. I think the best thing for the City of Rye would be to implement many of the ideas that are in the study that was mentioned earlier in this thread, in regards to both the Fire and Police Departments. As far as Rye Brook goes, thats your area of expertise and obviously a community you care about, and I hope things work out there as well. Who knows, I could be wrong and you and I will be stationed together someday!

For those of you not familiar with the area, Rye and Rye Brook have one border, on Ridge Street at St. Mary's Cemetery<-- Link... Link-->Here is another Google map illustrating the distance from the Rye Brook firehouse (Point B ) to the far Southwest border of Rye at the Village of Mamaroneck line (Point A)... The route I plotted takes you entirely through Rye Brook and Rye and does not use any highways. Just wanted to illustrate the sheer size of a hypothetical Rye/Rye Brook Fire District. Feel free to use this map to form your own opinions on the matter! Reason for edits: Typos and automatic smiley removed.

This morning around 0730 I was sitting here reading this thread and my power went out! No joke. It was restored by 10am, but pretty funny timing!

What time can you make it? Its a long parade route with a lot of divisions/depts/bands/etc... late arriving spectators who stand at the end of the route (Mamaroneck Ave @ Boston Post Rd) can still see a lot...

Great shots Tim! Sharp looking rig...for a Pierce But seriously... Glad they had a nice day for their event- and congrats and best of luck to the members of Lodi FD.

A quick (but perhaps not-so-simple) question for my fellow dispatchers over at 60-Control... What criteria do you follow to determine whether a call is dispatched as a Possible Structure Fire vs. an Inside Investigation?

Full Story: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/localnews/ci_9714542\ ------- After working with the new system for only about 7 hours now, I think its a huge improvement! Crystal clear transmissions, and very easy to use- with a lot of those "why didn't they think of that before" features. For those of you wondering what we got... Its what Motorola calls an "ASTRO® 25 Mission Critical Integrated Voice and Data Network." Consoles operate the MCC 7500 Elite software, Mobiles are XTL 2500, and Portables are XTS 2500.

Is that in order to attain a specific "Class" level? Or for any and all Fire Depts, no matter what their rating? Thanks.

I wasn't going to "chime in" either, but if you are going to accuse the Career FF's in Rye, all of who I have worked side-by-side with for several years and many of who I have known since I was a kid, of "bashing and complaining", then I need to correct you and set the record straight for other readers of this thread... I think in light of the inherent issues of safety and lives on the line they have been very proper and cool-headed about their approach to the City. As a Volunteer Officer I have never once found any one of the Professional Firefighters to any less than that - professional - on the fireground. Sure there may be an occasional personality issue or argument back at the firehouse during downtime, but this happens in every firehouse, and in any workplace at all for that matter. I'm sure I'll get some slack for my views because, yes, I am on the list. But truly my views have nothing to do with my potential career, they have to do with having many friends and family in Rye and wanting them to receive proper protection, and also my wanting the Career FF's to feel safe in their everyday duties... That is the very least you can ask of any job.

24-hour shifts, 4 groups, 4 career FF's per group (Minimum staffing is 3 on at any given time) Career-staffed rigs: E191, E192, L25 The 17th Career person mentioned in the article is the Lieutenant, who is also the City Fire Inspector.