Mark Z

I am sure that Mr. Feiner does indeed want it both ways, I am quite sure if you asked him he would be shocked at the idea of having to give up the no strike clause in the contract.

Gee, you mean people were allowed to have a sense of humour way back then????????

Consolidation is something that given overburdened towns and village budgets needs to happen in many places, I live in a town of five separate fire companies complete with chiefs and all. I don't see why there needs to be more than one fire/ems organization in each town and in most places a county authority would make more sense. I bet most of the complaints are nothing more than chiefs trying to preserve their little kingdom, history has shown us that it will take quite a bit of work and a rare leader to overcome this problem.

I agree that QI is not given the importance it should be everywhere but there is much that can be done that doesn't require funding. I am posting this link to the Medic 999 Blog because he is far more eloquent than I am.

Any idea what that thing is?

Congratulations!

I would mention some of the members of the FDNL I know, but don't want to damage their reputations! They are overall a hardworking bunch and I won't fault their skills as firefighters. I live in New London and if I was twenty years younger would love to be taking the test. I would definetely go for it.

Looks Good!

I know I have pissed off a dispatcher a time or two, three, four. . . . , but I can only recall once where I actually set out to piss off a dispatcher! I will plead young age and stupidity and throw myself on the mercy of the court ! But why would you set out to piss off the dispatcher except in a bout of temporary insanity!

Yeah, what he said!

Often I leave home and by the time I am on scene or sometimes even just close I hear the OIC placing the call under control and returning units, so it may be simply that some people just turn around and head home because they really don't care about how many calls they get credit for making. I know that I am of an age where I don't chase calls across town, so having a second tone for a working fire is often a good idea and might get some to make an effort to get to the scene and pitch in to help rather than deal with cross town traffic for what may be nothing.

It tells me more about you than the company that you posted the words you did, but it does tell me that they can inspire loyalty in good people and that says alot!

Because it totally SUCKS when the single radio with all the channels goes down in the middle of the **** hitting the fan! I have had to deal with a comms failure in the middle of trying to pin down the location of a cardiac arrest and it was in the days before cell phones were widely available for personal use so no I couldn't just grab my cell! I would never have a unit without at least 2 radios in it! Yes, three would be nice! BTW, I like the truck and wish them good luck with it!

Whether the keys were in it shouldn't matter. The fact an EMS vehicle was stolen should be considered an aggravating factor in any criminal charges that are filed, and the defense attorney shouldn't be allowed to use the fact keys were in the vehicle to help his client escape any part of the penalty.

Nice looking vehicle, what will it be used for? R-1?

10 calls minimum with another EMT in the back with them and then it goes to the Chief (FD) who makes the decision to clear you but it is pretty close to automatic at that point. which says more about how well they are trained then it sounds. I only know of one person who needed more than ten calls and a couple who might have been cleared with less but did the ten anyway.

If nothing else, I'm glad that I'm not the only one this drives NUTS!

I like it!

One of the things you will learn is that things like badges aren't as important as having a reputation as somebody who can be counted upon in a pinch. Badges aren't as important as having a reputation of somebody willing to pitch in when the work needs to be done. Badges aren't as important as having a reputation of being willing to learn from those more experienced. Badges aren't important because it takes more than a piece of tin to make you a firefighter. And always be willing to worry about the rules because they are important. I wouldn't worry about a badge because there is much to learn and the badge won't do much to teach you but flash it the wrong place or the wrong time and you may wish they never gave it to you.

Hats Off to RRFD for some real creative thinking and work!

Honestly I don't think the color of the lights matter, they ignore them all unless it is a vehicle that will give them a ticket! People just don't care and for the time they save you why even bother to use lights? (blue, green) If those few seconds really count then people deserve in house crews.

OUCH! Welcome to the modern era of doing without, the era of doing more with less is over! My guess is that about half that number will actually get cut. None will be in Manhattan and none will be in wealthy neighbor hoods.

I will admit it is an interesting looking machine, but I have to agree with Seth, it will have to prove itself. In the current economic climate if it starts to have problems it may never live it down. I want to see how it holds up in service for a couple of years before I would risk any budget money on it!

It is just like a couple of the old fire companies that say Steam Engine Co # whatever, it will be more a hat tip to the past than a statement of fact! Plus if I was BVAC I would keep the name for the goodwill factor instead of people wondering why you came in and took over questions, which you would never hear 90% of asked out loud. I also am assuming that BVAC still has to do fundraising? There are alot of reasons why a name change isn't neccessary and not even advisable, I came up with these reasons in just a couple of minutes, I bet BVAC probably has plenty more than I can come up with! Congratulations to BVAC!

I found this on another forum and hope it is OK to post here. BC King - St. Baldricks The New Haven County Firefighters Emerald Society is hosting our annual St. Baldricks fundraiser in February. Many of the guys in the Society are getting our heads shaved to raise funds for childrens' cancer research. Now I can hear the guys who know me say " Yea, he can shave with a tweezer!" I'm raising money by the strand, not the pound! Please help by donating to a tremendous cause. thanks jk __________________ John King West Batt. Chief New Haven Fire Dept. The St Baldrick's Foundation can be found on the net HERE