mfc2257

This is the list of training for the most qualified volunteer I know. He's a 27 year old assistant fire chief. Pro-Board Fire Officer I, II & III Pro-Board Firefighter I & II Pro-Board Fire Instructor II Pro-Board Fire Inspector I Pro-Board HAZ-MAT Technician Pro-Board HAZ-MAT Incident Command Pro-Board Incident Safety Officer Pro-Board Aerial Driver/Operator Pro-Board Pumper Driver/Operator Pro-Board Public Safety Telecommunicator I PSFA Structure I & II PA DOH/PSFA BVR Technician EMT Now the happy medium is somewhere between what he's got above, and what's generally acceptable as a minimum. Again until the COUNTY sets the standard for minimum training, staffing, and response none of the arguments on this forum can ever move forward. Once the county sets the standard a census of needs can be done for each department in the county (career, combo, or vollie) and action can be taken to make sure that vollies have the physical health and certification needed, and that career apparatus is being staffed with enough FF's to be safe. Those departments that cannot provide what is required by the county will learn a hard lesson if the county has the balls to tell the taxpayers about the lack of service that they are getting.

We know the issues.... The way to get something out of this thread is to start working on solutions. A volunteer's pride won't solve a lack of training any more than a career FF's paycheck solves the fact that there are union Trucks, Engines, and Rescues rolling around Lower Westchester with only a driver and FF on board. SO: How does Mount Vernon get rigs that work with enough guys to get the job done safely (I know they get the job done.... focus on the word SAFELY) How do volunteer departments in Central & Northern Westchester start operating with a level of training that is uniform, enforced, and at a level approaching that of a career FF (leave the time on the job componant out of it stick to a level of certification first.) There are plenty of people on this board who can start pressuring the county and the County Chief's Association for change. You just have to get together and and start the process. You may not get the solution that you WANT but if you can move the needle toward better FF and civilian safety it will be a small victory. Lots of little victorys help to win wars. Start making suggestions to how to solve the problems that we all know exist based on the millions posts that have been made here. Volunteers stop worrying about every little thing the paid guys say. Career FF's stop worring about the fact that Vollies exist and that their world looks different than yours. Work together to make the best set of standards possible for a county that is decades behind the times.

I hear a lot of "caring" (sometimes confused with "complaining") on this EMTBRAVO about standards, actions, policies, SOP's, SOG's, me vs. you, etc. It's not just career vs. volunteer it's everything we discuss. Mutual aid, apparatus duplicity, standardization of equipment and practices, and just about everything else on this board and the hundreds of others like it around the nation. What I don't hear a lot of is taking this "caring" emotion turned into suggestions and following through with solutions. The status quo is maintained for decades because none of this stuff ever goes past the "caring" stage. I’ve said it many times before on this site and here it comes again: Until Westchester County as well as all the career and/or volunteer departments within it recognize the need for true leadership at the DES level then it’s never going to get anywhere. I’m sick to my stomach when people say “well we can’t have a county department because of some NYS law from decades ago”. Well guess what, just giving up because you can’t officially have a county department doesn’t cut it for the protection of citizens. The powers that be with Westchester and WCDES need to be pressured by each and every department in the county for leadership to start creating standards in order for and agency to be recognized as a department by the county. All the egos have to be checked at the door. It means that for the common good that departments that operate very independently with local dispatch have to give up a little control. It means that the city of Mount Vernon’s residents are going to learn some hard truths from the County about the type of risk the City is putting their FF’s and citizens at. It means that some of the departments with tower ladders in Mount Pleasant might need to be forced into buying a straight stick the next time around, it means that the county should say “no more mobile cascade units” it means that my boyz in Millwood might have to swallow a tough nut and downsize…. It means that everyone needs to take a look at what they are REALLY doing. If there is a big issue like the disparity in training across the county, put together a committee of volunteer and career representatives who are highly trained and lobby the DES to create stricter standards. Force departments to do a census on its active members and what their level of certification is. My bet is that the numbers are going to be ugly. Use this information to help direct funds towards training programs designed at meeting volunteers schedules. Use this information also to send a hard message to departments who aren’t providing adequate trained staffing. Getting a ladder from XYZ vollie department with 6 guys of which 2 have truck ops and can operate on a roof doesn’t help the IC who called for it. Same with getting a career ladder with a chauffer and only two FF’s who can’t perform all the jobs necessary due to lack of manpower. The county needs to recognize this and NOT allow these units to be dispatched to fill this role. AGAIN… get together and lobby the county to give you the tools, standards, and guidance needed. Without central guidance you are going to remain stuck in the mud forever. As individuals who write on this board you have very little control. As a group of organized FF’s who want there to be a standard you have limitless power to influence county and local government to provide the safest and most efficient structure possible.

I'm a big fan of stacks on all apparatus. R-36 when the high idle is engaged burps out some nasty stuff and makes it difficult to get equipment out of compartments..... Literally makes your eyes water. It's not even that its thick smoke like when a diesel is cold, its nearly clear but the mixture of fuel to air in the motor makes for some tough smellin' stuff.

It looks like the overpass that heads into Half Moon Bay.

Millwood's old Mack "B" Model is pictured there...... I've gotta know if the guy will sell it. I two years ago I bought Gettysburg, PA's old B-85 and if I could find a way to get Millwood's back I would have the two B models from the two departments that I spent the majority of my life running with.

In Millwood we rarely knew if a hydrant was OOS. When I lived in PA, Adams County would make a morning and night broadcast on a non dispatch channel that would list all road closings, hydrants OOS, and apparatus that was OOS. Then if necessary the tour commander for communications would contact the chiefs of the department to recommend any box card changes if the closure or OOS was great enough to warrent it. It usually took a few minutes, but it was very helpful. Knowing this info can change your order of response for apparatus out of the first due station as well as the order and preference of additional apparatus as listed on the box card. Just one hydrant OOS in a non water district area can mean the addition of 3 tankers and a source pumper to what might have been a normal 3 engine, 1 ladder, 1 bls response to a residential structure fire. It's nice when the county is up to speed and knows to do this when they strike the first alarm assignment instead of waiting for the first engine to lay out and find that the hydrant doesn't work and hasn't been marked.

Although not in the NY Metro Area.... Don Gantz Vice President of the Gettysburg Fire Department and Past Chief of the Barlow Fire Department just south of Harrisburg, PA passed away at 0409 this AM after suffering a massive heart attack earlier this week. Don was in great shape ant it was certainly a big shock. Don was a dear friend of mine and will be missed terribly in Southern Pennsylvania. Although he has been a fireman for almost 40 years, he never got bogged down in the "that's the way we've always done it" attitude. He was very progressive, yet when he never lost his basic firefighting roots. He also welcomed new college students to the department and worked very hard to help increase our skill set when other folks hated us because we were outsiders only there for a 4 year tour. Don taught me more in 4 years than I could have ever expected. He is one of the folks that prepared me to be an officer when I returned to Millwood from College. Don also helped me to research and eventually complete the restoration of Millwood's 1924 Brockway Torpedo in Gettysburg as well as brokered my purchase of Gettysburg's old 1957 Mack B Model from the department 2 years ago. He was one of those rare folks that every member from every department in the county knew, respected, and turned to for advice. Rest In Peace brother. You helped a lot of people along the way. http://gettysburgfd.com/

Here is a long story for those who might be interested. For those who aren't the answer is yes I've used an old fashioned piercing nozzle to slow down a fire moving under a roofline at a refrigeration facility. Not that one in the article... But I've used a piercing nozzle once...in my college days in Gettysburg we were the first due truck and second due engine (the engine almost rolled over going through town but that’s a different story) to a refrigerated apple storage warehouse for Knouse Foods (makers of Musselmans Applesauce) about 15 miles away. At this huge structure there were several hazards that prevented the truck crew from opening up the roof quickly. Most importantly the refrigeration lines filled with Anhydrous Ammonia that were present in the building. A few months before this call the Chief of the very department whose box we were responding to was killed while working as a contractor and servicing one of these refrigeration lines when it ruptured. We were all a little on edge... Unfortunately the fire was running though the void between the cement ceiling of the refrigeration unit and the metal/tar roof. The building was preplanned by the first due department as well as our department being that we had first due truck responsibilities. A part of this included having diagrams of all the vital areas of the building. Using these plans and the help of the building manager we found a safe place to insert the piercing nozzle through the roof. The result was an impinging fog that bounced off the cement ceiling of the refrigeration unit and significantly knocked down the fire until the building manager and roof ops officer could determine safe places to cut into the roof without compromising FF safety with a potentially deadly leak of Anhydrous Ammonia

Everyone is off on a tangent here.... Here are the logical conclusions from everything that's been said: During suppression operations the incident commanding chief should not be inside. If there are multiple chiefs on scene and a proper incident command system can be established like the one myself and ALSFIREFIGHTER were talking about before then it is absolutely feasable for a chief to manage interior command. For the folks out there that are arguing that no chief at any time should be in a structure fire then you've got to sit down and take an Incident Command Systems Class & also take some time to sit and read the SOG's and SOP's of large city and county run departments where chiefs are routinely assigned to interior or roof operations as that division commander. Finally in the world of mutual aid, if a chief responds mutual aid with a piece of apparatus and the department commander who is recieving mutual aid does not need that chief to act as part of the Incident Command System, then that chief should be operating with his crew and not standing around doing nothing.

Operations Officer I agree on... I omitted it in error while typing fast. As far as these teams communicating through their proper "supervisors" I couldn't agree more. I think it is very important for Communications to provide the OIC with a rollcall of incomming apparatus... For communications to indicate to the apparatus who their contact is and on what channel when they "go responding", for apparatus to request an assignment as they approach the scene (just because E247 is from Millwood doesn't mean that it will automatically be filling the 2nd due spot behind E245 or E248... E105 from Mt. Kisco might already be onscene operating in the 2nd due capacity as per command's orders thus significantly changing E247's role), and for the the appointed contact for that piece of appratus to clearly instruct that team from the moment an assignment is delivered. This cuts down on freelancing and the unfortunate LODD's when people become unaccounted for because there wasn't an assigned officer monitoring thier progress.

Depends on the department, scenerio, and other chief's on the scene. Do chiefs belong inside when they are needed outside to run operations no. If there is a chief available to handle operations inside should they be there yes... Take the following example... We'll use my old stomping grounds for example... 2.5 story SFD with fire from the #2 floor. 2253 arrives first and establishes command, E245, E248, E247, E105 (Mt. Kisco) TL-27 Chappaqua, E270 FAST(Yorktown) are all on scene. When 2251 Arrives he assumes command from 2253. Now you in theory have 2252, 2253, a chief from Chappaqua (2061) A chief from Mt. Kisco (2281), a chief from Yorktown (2531) plus Millwood's Junior officers (2254 Captain, 2255-2257 3 LT's) 2251 Has command 2252 Has exterior operations 2253 Has interior operations (this is the controversial "chief inside") 2254 Is the officer on the search team 2255 Is the officer on the primary attack line 2256 Didn't make the call 2257 Didn't make the call TL-27's officer (person riding the seat) has roof ops 2061 Has staging 2281 Has Safety E105's officer (person riding the seat) is the officer on the backup line 2531 Has FAST ops

Gotcha.... Again wasn't trying to be a dick... Just pointing something out.

Porsha911gt3... You are incorrect regarding police package cars these days. There is no difference in the amount of power available in a Hemi Charger police package vs. a stock Hemi R/T.... It's 340HP. Now if you are Joe public and want more ponies yes you can buy an aftermarket chip, intake, and exhaust for the car. Eventually someone will start making a bolt on supercharger as well (if Paxton or Vortech haven't done it already)... If you want to spend a few grand more, you can buy the factory optioned SRT-8 model whose Hemi produces 425hp. More powerful horsepower motors for police cars went out the door in the 1970's. I'm not trying to be a dick but to you realize that you've spelled Porsha incorrectly in your screen name? The correct spelling is Porsche and if you're referencing the model its a GT3 with capital letters. Sorry as a former driver and owner of a Porsche race car I'm a little sensitive about butchering the name and nomenclature

Anthony's in Mamaroneck... Hands down. Kearn's Larchmont Deli...

Buyer be ware of alternative fuel vehicles.... Most of the time they are not more effecient than a straight gasoline vehicle. The point of most flexible fuels or mixtures is to extend the amount of fuel available. Often times it requires more fuel to go the same distance when replacing straight gas or diesel. There is a great article in Road & Track this month (link below) that debunks a lot of the myths about alternative fuel sources.... Including the amount of energy required to produce the fuel itself. http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp?se...article_id=4060

Done tons of diesel research.... I used to pull a 44 foot enclosed race car trailer with a GVWR of 18,000lbs. Chevy - GMC: Great motor made by Izuzu. It makes good power and is silky smooth and quiet. It just doesn't put the torque to the road as quickly as the others. This is the diesel you want if you are occasionally towing or doing heavy work but for the most part it's your daily driver and you'd like the quietest, smoothest, diesel on the market Dodge - The Cummins is the direct oppisite of the Izuzu in the GM rigs. It's loud, rough, and raw. Puts the torque down at the lowest RPM of any and makes gobs of power. Only comes with a 4 speed auto (instead of a 5 speed auto) if you don't want to row the gears yourself with the 6 speed manual. Ford - The Navistar Powerstroke is the best combo of what folks are looking for and it is why you see more of them than any other diesel on the road. All the teething problems with the new 6.0 Liter engine are gone. They get great mileage, they are relatively quiet, the make plenty of power. A great all around motor. It is also why you see an version of this motor in tons of new school busses, and medium duty commercial chassis like wreckers, utility bodies, etc.

If I recall correctly, Conrail used to provide the passenger service on the Hudson, Harlem, and (not sure) New Haven... until 1983 when the MTA took over. Also, I think someone mentioned that the Harlem line is all commuter, but I doesn't the lumber yard off 684 get it's deliveries via freight? I think there is some freight service on the Harlem line

This isn't intended to be condecending, but there are some people who don't know how air brakes work (some of whom are probably driving apparatus with air brakes)...... Here is the over simplified version. First: When you hear the emergency brake applied and a large rush of air is heard, this is not air being put into the system, but air being removed. The way the emergency brakes functions is that heavy springs hold the brakes on. Air pressure is used to hold the springs back when the emergency brakes are off. Thus the rush of air you hear when the emergency brake is applied, is the removal of the air pressure that was holding the springs back. Second: When there is a leak in a modern air system, or in the case of the aforementioned 1971 Maxim, when the system drains, there is no longer enough pressure to hold the emergency brakes springs back and the brake is applied. In actuality its a very safe system

Thats a myth.... Air horns have a seperate tank than the brakes. Hence the reason why if you are on the horns for too long blasting little old ladies off Queens Blvd, the air horns will run out of air, but the truck brakes are unaffected. There is no way that an emergency vehicle would ever be built with a device (airhorn) that could cause the brakes to fail due to human stupidity (hangin on the horns)

Disclosure: There are plenty of folks who read this board who I've been the chauffer for or have been mine when I'm in The Seat.... I am 0occasionally guilty just like every body else of taking my frustration out on the "Q" and the horns.... This being said..... The simple answer to this is that it's a decision that needs to be made based on each situation. On Queens Blvd, no matter how much noise the guy riding the seat made, that lady wasn't going to get across any faster. The result... A jerkoff move by the officer. On the other hand, there are times where the situation requires emergency apparatus to drive in the wrong lane of travel, through an intersection with multiple approaches of oncomming traffic, etc. where a once up and down on the "Q" and a few toots on the air horns just aren't going to do it. Use your brains... If you are making noise to protect your crew and the public then fine. If you are making noise for the sake of making noise... Well, eventually you'll get pinched.

As of my last trip home.... Rescue 36 (Headquarters) - Full preconnected Lukas set including spreaders, cutters, rams, etc. Gas powered backup unit for the same. Port-A-Power and Rabbit tool as well. Engine 248 (Station 2) - Gas powered Lukas Combi Tool On order OR in the budget - Another full set of Lukas tools like Rescue 36's that will go on E-248 out of Station 2 and the Lukas Combi Tool will come back to E-247 out of Headquarters.

I was on both the WP and the Briarcliff Jobs.... WP w/R-36 at 18 years old. Briarcliff w/E-247 as Captain Unless you've actually seen it in person, it's hard to imagine what a 9000gal tanker looks like after it's come apart. I'd prefer to not have to see that kind of damage again.

This is a true story. The Yacht was/is owned by the parents of a former co worker of mine. I can't confirm this part, but I believe the missing flag problem began several months after September 11th when as a courtesy, some officials went to return the flag to the people who owned the boat. When they saw the flag they indicated that the flag couldn't have been the one taken off the boat on 9/11/01 because it was too big. Regardless, whomever has the flag should do the right thing here.

Outside NYC when you hear a box card read over the air today most often it will include the company #, followed by the geographic area the alarm is in, followed by any special notations.... For example a common format in the DC, Baltimore, PA, MD, VA metro areas might be Tones followed by.... "In box 20-8-30 at 43 County Line Road for a resported structure fire in a single family dwelling.... Company twenty is due, also alterted to fill the box, Engine 1-1, Quint-1, Carroll County Truck-5, Medic 28, Engine-Tanker 21, Tanker 14, Tanker 2 in place of Caroll County Tanker-6" All of this becomes very easy to identify on a map..... The call in in Company 20's first due, in thier box area #8. Now the last number would indicate anything... in this case the "30" indicates that the address is in an un-hydranted location. if it were down town in a hotel the 30 might be replaced by 70 to indicate that it's a high occupancy building. Finally, the list of apparatus is what the dispatcher sees that the chief has indicated his first alarm structure fire assignment is for box 20-8-30.... In addition, Tanker 2 is not on the first alarm assignment rather it is the first tanker on the 2nd alarm assignment and has been dispatched in place of Caroll County Tanker-6 which is either on another call or OOS. The amount of info that can be contained in a single box card on a CAD or simple filing system is limitless.