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Sounds like a classic you against me! LOL Volunteer Officers are one of my pet peeves..... elections are a historically and well documented flawed system...a popularity contest. But I digress... MY OPINION, is that a measley 3 years in a department is not enough to be a good canidate for leadership...5 is better, but still....it needs to be based on experience and training... Everybody wants to race up through the ranks and be a Chief.....at what costs though? Are you REALLY the right person for the job/position you are in? What about the Officers that get voted out every other year because the pissed some guys off, while doing their supervisory duties? Been there....more than once.. What these guys coming into a department dont think about - when you put on that Officer helmet...is you are ultimately responsible for the guys on that scene....if you order them into a building that isn't safe, because of your inexperience and FAILURE to recognize dangers...be prepared to deal with a negligence suit...and those guys that DO realize this...pull members out of buildings prematurely and go defensesive way to early! Guys - forget the shiny white shield - get some real fireground experience first - it can ot be replaced by classroom training! Let yourselves grow into being a true leader, get experience, respect....the rest will come when it is time. I coud go on all day about this........ EDIT for random thoughts; "Beware the 21 year old Fire Chief" I would like to see TWO year terms for elected Officers I beleive in at LEAST 5 years of junior officer terms before moving up to a Chief; 5 years as a Lieutenant and Captain... Once you make it to Officer - BE ONE! Supervise.....you should not have a nozzle, hook, saw, Hurst Tool, etc in your hand unless a lack of manpower dictates you must work! Let your FIREMEN do it...and supervise them. A recent picture posted on here shows a vollie Lieutenant on a roof with a saw, with 3 guys backing him up....Hey Loo - give up the saw, and monitor conditions on the roof! Your guys will love ya for letting them "Do Work" and you will gain supervisory experience...actions like that do not go unnoticed by senior guys...

As far as I know Joe is still @ the shops. His son is also on the job at AFD.

FYI... A fireman's bell cap is intended to be worn with the brim facing the front. No matter how cool you may think you look, it is never Ok to wear a uniform cap backwards. It is disrespectful to your uniform, your department, and the fire service as a whole. It may even be grounds for a solid smack upside the head. That is all.

I love beer. I love it an awful lot. Hard to beat free beer and dirty water dogs. I make a point to remove my coat, uniform shirt, and most times my bell cap before partaking in a cold beverage or 6. I found I tended to keep my white cap on more than my black. I am pretty anal about my Class A...it is kept in a garment bag at all times, and that bag is on my truck when I am wearing it...it goes back on hangers and zipped up, to hang until it goes back into the closet.

Correct. Any AFD members know how long that has been up there? It has been as long as I can remember.

LOL...yeah...

Absolutely fine so long as it is worn correctly, as Brother Ryan stated. Same standard applys to children. Nothing wrong with a family member sharing the pride of a Class A!

When I worked for Empress full time and Alamo (RIP) per-diem, I did the exact opposite...I would keep my window down a bit, even in the winter, so i could hear oncoming emergency vehicle sirens at intersection/junctions. (Yes, i still practiced defensive driving and excerecised due regard, but more than once it saved our asses. ) As the legendary Billy Rothschild always said - "Yeild to tonnage"

I may have pics - I took a bunch of them...will look later

This was my first time going last night - very, very nice fair, kids loved it...rides were reasonable and not hokey looking, food was good, and the people were well behaved.

You suck Jeffries.....where was this stuff 15 years ago!?

Sounds like they should put 2 more career men on and staff their own ambulance!

J - post the picture of the memorial @ R1 HQ if you can...it is awe inspiring and an amazing tribute!

Says the man who wants to be Gubna!

Kudos on a job well done! THATS what the job is all about!

Seth...just remember - a certain somebody (cough...cough...Billy Goldfedder) made a career out of Monday morning quarterbacking pictures.....

I dont like it one bit.....I understand it..but don't like it.. I find it has eliminated alot of converation here, good, bad, or indifferent...there have been many photos posted here i would have commented on..

Incident Alerts are usually posted from one side - Scannerland....the posters are typically not on scene...that is why...they rely on info recieved via a scanner, from dispatchers and units in the field... The name of the site is misleading......HOLY COW!!!!!!! Quick - call the EMS Police! maybe DOH will shut it down! The name is derived from the founder's email addy which is far older than the site! Really.....get over it K.

LOL at the article title...........

Same problem I have with my binoculars in the summer - they get cool from being inside the air conditioned truck...when i step outside to use them they fog from the heat... Solution...keep the lens at the same temp you will be shooting in....or...drivie with the windows down and not the AC...LOL

Brother, when you weep for me, Remember it was meant to be. Lay me down and when you leave Remember I'll be at your sleeve. In every dark and choking hall, I'll be there as you slowly crawl. On every roof in driving snow, I'll hold your coat and you will know. In cellars hot with searing heat, At windows where a gate you meet, In closets where young children hide, You know I'll be there at your side. The house from which I now respond, Is overstaffed with heroes gone. Men who answered one last bell, Did the job and did it well. As Firemen, we understand, That death's a card dealt in our hand A card we hope we never play, But one we hold there anyway. That card is something we ignore, As we crawl across a weakened floor. For we know that we're the only prayer for anyone that might be there. So remember, as you wipe your tears, The joy I knew throughout the years, As I did the job I loved to do, I pray that thought will see you through. -- Author Unknown

A small bit of good news for the Yonkers Brothers..but even better for the residents!

I saw this video a year or so ago and watched it over and over dumbfounded...I put a link to it on my FD's website,..if that is not an eye opener, i do not know what is!?

Ahhhh yes..NOW we are talking! Reading SMOKE is an OUSTANDING TOPIC and underused skill!!!!

VERY NICE INDEED... J - you know I need a few.