SECTMB

According to the information provided, this vehicle responds to the vast majority of their calls and other apparatus in the department has a greater GVW than this truck. All I am asking is for them to provide the real reason they want to dispose of this truck rather than the lame reason they put forth.

I hope that the media and public continue to exert pressure on the commissioners to provide a truthful answer to their decision to take out of service a first line apparatus and replace it with a spare or reserve. Obviously from the comments of the Chief and the assurances of the manufacturer and DOT and the information regarding their other apparatus, negate the stated reason for de-commissioning the apparatus. So with that excuse gone, what is their rationale now? Too bad the commissioner who would speak was not more forthcoming regarding the closed door discussions, if there were any, prior to a vote regarding this issue. Perhaps its time for some new commissioners and the members of the department and their extended families should be active in finding and supporting new candidates for commissioner next time positions are available. This appears to be a microcosm example of what is wrong with our 'public officials' right down to the most local of levels. Individual wants/needs/desires are put before those of the general population for which these 'public officials' are in office to serve.

Good outcome, never lose the paperwork.

Good advice. He gave you a break by citing failure to obey a traffic control device rather than running a red light. What is worth more, your lost time or the money to pay the fine?

Rank in the fire service means you have to wear many hats or helmets at different times for different purposes. You may need to be 'Boss', 'Leader', 'Mentor', 'Teacher/Instructor', 'Administrator', 'Friend', 'Counselor', 'Arbitrator' and more. The ability to balance the duties of the office under social, business, non emergency and emergency activities with the myriad personalities of your membership is as daunting a challenge as anyone can face. I would like to think that I was a good Captain, as were most of the others in my Company. We had one though who particularly excelled at all the qualities I have mentioned and who we unfortunately lost to illness much too soon. We have the Ron Jankowski fund in his honor to perpetuate his memory, influence and ideals. Occasionally you get a special person of 'Rank'. He was one.

What are the Rochester Protectives and who manufactured that truck?

This is just one more example of the so many that confirms to me that we have gone past the tipping point. Common sense / practical thinking no longer factor into much of the decision making taking place these days.

In some of the recent posts the electric or gas utility has been requested to the scene to provide cut off of services. The response time provided by the utility is sometimes excessive and in most cases will do nothing to assist with the suppression of the fire. So my question is, why don't or can't the utility companies provide emergency (lights and siren) response to a scene in order to cut the utilities to provide for a safer scene? Can't certain supervisors or foreman who can make the cut off be equipped with pagers or get texts when necessary and have a company vehicle equipped accordingly to get them to the scene more quickly with the necessary equipment to get the job done?

Who would have thought, a hockey game broke out at a fight.

Looks like an old Chrysler air raid siren.

'Celebrity medical experts' have done much harm to the vaccination programs in this country.

If they built it, I would buy it. Would be a nice replacement for my FJ Cruiser which is no longer in production.

Just amazing. It's the "rush to flush" our tax dollars as quickly as possible down the nearest toilet. The Governments (Local, State, Federal) have ceased being accountable to the citizenry. We let it happen, and now it can't be fixed.

According the the Incident report, Goldens Bridge responded with their tanker. I'm sure it must have been a 'satisfying' feeling to be able to return the assistance they received in their time of need.

Yada Yada Yada, I got to the part where they say there are flaws in the system and there is no point reading further. As if NYS's self serving, corrupt legistature will ever address a problem and come up with a reasonably correct fix. Years from now they can run the same story and just change the numbers and names to reflect the current reality.

Briarcliff had a nice C-95 as Engine 93 to go along with B-85 Engine 94 and B-85 Ladder 40 and Engine 92 was a CF. Engine 94 was replaced with another Mack in '81 and that was the last Mack, all since replaced by other various manufacturers. Just the 1940's era Mack squad truck is left. Still don't understand why they went out of the firetruck business. I would think just building for FDNY alone could keep a facility open and profitable.

A news story earlier in the week mentioned that Marion County in central Florida is also experiencing retainage issues. The average firefighter is only staying for six years so they are losing their experienced firefighters. Starting firefighter/EMT salary is just under $30K, firefighter/paramedic is just under $36K. in 2011 the union agreed to a 3 year salary freeze, new contract talks are set to begin shortly.

Before I was a firefighter, my father send us out with a shovel and we cleared the hydrant. I don't know who is 'responsible' but how hard is it to have whomever clears your snow away, clear your hydrant as well. You never know, you may be the one who needs the water.

Congressman Henry Waxman of California has announced he is retiring this year after 40 years in Congress. Since 1974 he has participated in shaping this country. He is not alone, his 40 years is not unusual. Whether you like his politics or not is immaterial. My point is that at what place in the timeline of serving in Washington do you lose touch with the people you were sent there to represent? At what point does it stop being about the electorate and start being about yourself? All of the issues before Congress today have been the same issues before Congress for decades. Health care, immigration, spending, borrowing, education, whatever. They (Congress) never seem to some up with any solutions, just band-aid fixes. We are always in the waiting room, we never get to surgery to fix the problem. But, we keep sending them back, year after year, term after term and the results are always the same. The only thing that seems to change is that the longer a person is in Congress, the more out of touch they become and the wealthier they become. It's remarkable how many enter with little assets and leave quite wealthy all on a 'reasonable' salary while maintaining homes in two locations? Insider trading for one way, illegal except for Congress. There have always been two sets of rules, one for them, one for the rest of the Country. Anyway, I agree with the clip, we used to be the greatest nation, we could be again, once we get rid of those who have worked the system from within for the past 20, 30, 40 or more years. Same for the State Houses. Personally I would love to have a job with the pay and benefits and lack of accountability that they all enjoy.

I guess I should be more specific to say that I am put out, put upon, offended that I have to endure the disgusting disfigurements of smokers while I am trying to veg out with some mindless entertainment. It is unsettling to go from hot TV babe to stoma babe in the course of a few seconds. And yes I solve the problem by changing the channel.

There have been warnings about the dangers of smoking on the cigarette packages for over 40 years. People still smoke. I am actually offended by the deterrent commercials that I have to endure during my shows. I have little patience or empathy for those who suffer the consequences of smoking. You were warned. You chose to ignore the warnings. Same with drugs. As stated above, Hoffman was found dead by self inflicted overdose. Heath Ledger before him, Whinehouse before him, etc, etc, etc, etc. There is no shortage of high profile drug abusers who met an early death to accompany all the unknowns. And these are people who had the means for the best intervention treatment available. Won't change a thing. If you want or need to use drugs to satisfy some inner need, deal with the consequences. You won't get any boo hoos from me. As a medic, take in the run, do what you can, but you can not treat the underlying reasons for the persons having taken the drugs to begin with. You are an Emergency Worker, not a Counselor, Therapist or Psychiatrist. With the discovery of every new drug comes new abusers. Don't beat yourself up, you can't change it and now 'Society' wants marijuana as readily available as cigarettes and beer.

I hope there is more to the story and that we hear what it is. We used to call walk-ins 'still alarms'. We called dispatch and advised of our 'in service' status for the 'still alarm'. We did not seek, nor ask, for permission to respond to the call. Once the request for assistance is made at the station, the OIC calls the shots until relieved or countermanded by a senior officer. I've never heard it any other way, I hope the story is inaccurate, but wasn't there a story last year about some EMT's that wouldn't treat a woman because they weren't formally dispatched. Is this another example of legalities and potential liability getting in the way of rendering assistance. We have read many stories recently about the refusal or reluctance to render aid such as the woman found unconscious in the health club or a patient in a nursing home where the employees would not go against strict company policy for fear of losing their jobs by assisting and submitting the company to liability.

I presume he was on the ice with a "small" tractor with a blade cleaning of the ice. They have been skating the lake for generations.

While a professionally staffed 24/7 firehouse is the ideal, it is not going to happen any time soon in the smaller towns and villages of New York. The number of 'consequential' fires on a town by town basis will not justify the increase in property taxes to support a paid staff. While responses may be on the rise, many are due to automatic dispatch and most villages/towns have only one or two major fires annually, if any at all that would be considered major, and loss of life is thankfully rare. That the apparatus goes out with empty seats does not take into account the number of members who, hopefully, will respond directly to the scene rather than the firehouse because of their proximity to the call location and their knowledge that the apparatus is already responding. Whether from a central location or various locations, time of day, day of week, among other factors, determines your turnout. You never know the number or make up of your crew until it shows up. That's a drawback to the volunteer system, but apparently an accepted drawback in lieu of higher taxes to supplement full time staffing. Automatic mutual aid could also be considered automatic 'cover your ass' but regardless, the practice increases the probability that a response will occur, either by the home department or the mutual aid department and that resources, ie: apparatus and manpower, will be available to address the nature of the call. I'm out of it a few years now, but the level of volunteer training required and necessary today is vastly improved over when I began 40 years ago. Then, our physicals were 'turn your head an cough' and now it is a full on physical, soup to nuts and your level of participation is determined by the outcome. Likewise the variety and frequent availability of courses to continue to improve yourself are out there if you want to take advantage of them. I have lived in two different locations with County Departments. The typical house is an Engine and a Rescue (Ambulance). 3 staff the Engine, 2 staff the Rescue. The number of houses and amount of apparatus pales in comparison to Westchester County but they get it done and done well from the times I have observed them in action. Consolidation beyond automatic mutual aid needs to be on a case by case basis, as does adding or going to full time staff, depending on the make up of the areas to be protected. I can't see the elimination of the volunteer system any time soon given the onerous taxes already imposed on the citizenry, particularyl in Westchester. Now, as far as EMS....the volunteer system has seen it's best years. Transition to full time services is the only answer to the repeat dispatches for EMS crews.

My first engine was a 700 Series LaFrance, the ladder was a Maxim. Then a couple of Macks. Nothing lasts forever, they all had good runs, produced some great apparatus, much of which is still in service. There are still many long established and newly established manufacturers producing quality, state of the art apparatus. As long as there is need, there will be those to satisfy it. I hope those employees affected by the closing can be absorbed by other manufacturers or independent apparatus service companies.