BFD1054

CFDFASTleader, as far as i am aware, Verplanck TL46 is the only Bronto in Westchester. I do believe that i saw a picture of a Bronto from Rockland, i will try and find it, although i could be mistaken. I do not believe that Verplanck has had any major problems with thiers, other than operator errors. Believe it or not, Verplancks Bronto gets used pretty often, not much in thier own district however lol. I know when Peekskill has a job, VFD TL46 is usually 1 of the first Trucks to go M/A, wheather it be to the scene or to cover the City. I believe that its first fire was the old YWCA building on Main St. in Peekskill like a year or so ago (you guys were there as FAST). I tell ya what, it certainly impressed me, it has a lot of maneuverability, although i don't know a hell of a lot about ladder trucks. As far as Montreal's bad luck, that definately sucks. The article stated that they are taking thier departments fleet of 12 bronto Sky-lifts OOS. I am just curious as to how many Truck companies they have other than the Bronto's? I am sure that this will put a dent in thier Truck company responses.

Thanks Tommy. I'm not a big fan of using names over the radio, but in the case of getting an address, as you stated, it may be necessary. However, in the case of transmitting a patients name along with thier symptoms, i believe that should be avoided at all costs. Its funny how other members have touched upon using names over the radio in small communities. I can remember a time when small communities, such as Verplanck, would request a residents last name so that they could find the house. Again, i see no problem with that, since in those cases everyone knows everyone, and hearing the name may mean getting a rig there quicker. Thanks for the note regarding first responder agencies, i actually never thought of that. I guess this is because HIPPA really only concerns agencies that have a billing process?

alsfirefighter: after i read your post, i looked through my EMT book. Since it is the newest edition (10th), i figured there may be some good info on HIPPA. In the Brady 10th Edition Emergency Care book, in regards to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), it states that: - "You will discuss patient-specific information only with those whom it is medically necessary to do so." There are also other rules listed as far as agency privacy policies and such. From what we were taught, it is pretty much just using your common sense as other network members have talked about. The patients name should never be broadcasted, especially with that patients condition. You really want to refrain from saying over the air things like "we are en-route to your facility with John Smith, a 50-year-old male whos chief complaint is a rectal bleed...." As most of us know, when you "key-up" a hospital, lights flash and things beep, so that the ER staff can actually know when a bus is en-route. The volume on the radio is usually really loud, so now, when you come in, everyone knows that your're the rig with the rectal bleed or whatever. Thats just common sense and stuff you want to stay away from. ALS: i know you are a Paramedic, but i hope that maybe, just maybe, my little bit of info helped some. Like i said, we were told not to use names and to just use common sense when transmitting information. The doctors and nurses at the ER really only need to know vital information, so if it is not vital, you could always tell them when you get there.

Preparing for Line of Duty Death Class to be held Saturday, June 21, 8am - 4pm @ the Westchester County Fire Training Center. For further information/registration, please visit: http://www.westchestergov.com/emergserv/bu...letins/LODD.pdf Pre-registration is mandatory! Class size is limited to 30 students!

Date: 05-28-04 Time: 1645HRS (TOD for PD), 1647HRS (TOD) - 1734HRS (all PFD units 10-8/10-2) Location: Bear Mountain Parkway NB IOA Highland Ave. Frequencies: 46.26 & 453.225 (FD), 460.100 (PPD) & 46.14 (Ops) Units: Peekskill FD E134, Cars 2341, 2343, 2349, Peekskill EMS w/2 BLS rigs, 39M1(PFD), 39M2(PFD), Stat-Flight Air-1, Peekskill PD Cars 258, 232, 250 (Supervisor) & 259, Continental Village FD E231, Car 2132 & Sellicks Auto Body. Description: Peekskill PD dispatched units to the BMP between the Annsville bridge & Highland Ave. for a reported 10-16 (PDAA) or 10-17 (PIAA), possibly multiple vehicles. Units on scene reporting MVA requiring extrication. 1647HRS-Peekskill E134 dispatched. 1648HRS-E134, Car 2343 10-17. 1652HRS-39M1 requesting STAT-FLIGHT on s/b. 1653HRS-39M1 now requesting Stat-Flight to launch, advising LZ will be Uriah Hill Elementary School (paralel to the BMP). 1654HRS-Car 2341 requesting to use the Annsville Circle for an LZ. 2341 advised that Annsville Circle was too soggy. LZ now confirmed to be the Reef restaurant (old Reef and Beef) parking lot. 1656HRS-Continental Village FD dispatched to set up the LZ, operations will be on 46.14. CVFD Car 2132 will be the ground contact. 1702HRS-60-Control advising Car 2341 that Continental Village is to set up the LZ, Stat-Flight approx. 04 minutes out. 1707HRS-Car 2349 advising Stat-Flight is almost on the ground. CVFD E231 10-19. 1708HRS-Stat-Flight Air-1 on the ground awaiting the patient. 1717HRS-Patient en-route to the LZ. 1730HRS-CVFD Car 2132 advising 60-Control that AIR-1 is airborne, signal 10-30, all CVFD going 10-8/10-2. 1732HRS-39M1 advisng he will be OOS until further, he is en-route to HVHC to restock. 1734HRS-Car 2343 advising 60-Control that all Peekskill FD units are going 10-8/10-2 from the BMP. Writer: BFD1054

Sorry XCAPT133, i know 1 rig was en-route and they were attempting to get the 2nd out. 1075thebox, Peekskill PD dispatched cars before FD got it. Peekskill PD and 2343 may have gotten on scene around the same time, but i know the 1st arriving PPD units advised of the entrapment.

Date: 05-28-04 Time: 0820HRS (approx.) Location: 4 Dove Ct. (Amberlands complex) c/s Albany Post Rd. Frequency: 46.26 Units: Montrose FD E-121, R-51, Cars 2272 & 2273, Cortlandt VAC & Cortlandt ALS & Cortlandt Code Enforcement. Description: Montrose FD dispatched to Dove Ct. on a reported MVA. 0825HRS-Car 2272 10-19 reporting car into a building. Car 2272 requesting ETA on EMS & giving staging orders to E121 & R51. Car 2272 advising 1 patient. 0830HRS (approx.)-Car 2272 requests Cortlandt Code Enforcement to the scene. 60-Control advises Code Enforcement advised, 15-20 minute ETA. 1 patient transported by Cortlandt VAC to Wetchester Medical Center w/unknown injuries. approx. 0930HRS-All Montrose FD units 10-8. Writer: BFD1054

If anyone knows of any upcomming CFR or EMT courses in the area, i would greatly appreciate any info! I myself am looking to get into an EMT or CFR class and i know some guys from my department have also showed interest in entering a class. Any info would be apprecaited! BFD1054

2004 Firehouse Expo - Baltimore, MD July 13 - 18, 2004 2004 Event Schedule Hands-On Training: July 13 & 14 Pre-Conference and Chief’s Leadership Program: July 14 Conference Program: July 15 - 17 Exhibit Hall: July 15 - 17 Parade and Flea Market: July 18 Exhibit Hall Hours Thursday: 11 am - 5 pm Friday: 11 am - 5 pm Saturday: 10 am - 3 pm For further information, visit: www.firehouse.com

October 25-30, 2004 - Atlantic City, New Jersey FDIC EAST October 25 - 30, 2004 Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Authority 2314 Pacific Avenue Atlantic City NJ 08401 2 days of H.O.T. 3 days of classes 3 days of exhibits For more info/registration, visit: http://fdice04.events.pennnet.com/

WAS967, its funny you said that lol! Personally, i didn't realize how big of a parade it was going to be, until someone from my FD told me while we were on our way up lol! I believe it was a big anniversary parade for Protection Engine Co. of Fishkill, hence the size of it! I know the guys at my FD were all hollering at us to hurry up and get on the bus so we wouldn't be late. Well, needless to say, we were not late at all, more like very early! We left our FH at 1:30 and step off was supposed to be at 3:00. Well, we got up there and were staged in some residential neighborhood with about 20 other depts! All i know is we went up Rt. 9, got onto I-84 & got off the 1st exit i believe and were stuck behind departments from all over the place. The bus was crawling through the masses of apparatus to find our spot to await the start. It was totally unreal, there were fire trucks from like 5 counties all over the place. It was actually kind of nice because we were "early," we got to clean the trucks, again, have a few beverages & watch the rest of the companies go by. We actually didn't step off until sometime after 4:00 i believe. We were like #5 in the fourth division & i believe there were something like 6 or 7 divisions, it was outrageous! I am not too familiar with that area, but like i said, we started off in a residential neighborhood parallel to I-84. To be honest, i'm not usually a parade guy and i hate the heat, but the parade route didn't seem all that long. We walked along a highly commercial road with many store fronts and a small strip mall, as well as a supermarket (shop-rite?). We ended the parade in front of a bar (Foleys) and had to cross Rt. 9 to go to the pen. That was quite interesting, a crap load of fireman in full dress uniform & a line of fire trucks waiting for the traffic light to turn green so that we could cross Rt. 9, all four lanes of it lol! If you are going north on Rt. 9, there is a Taco Bell on the right hand side, just past I-84. Well, the pen was in a large field just south of the Taco Bell. It was real nice because there was a big fair/carnival going on with rides and games & K-104/K-107 were there playing live music. And yes, i will openly admit that i sweet-talked my way, along with another FF, onto those elevated swings ride! I am still a kid a heart, so it was a good time. But anyway, i don't know the exact route, but for the amount of departments, it didn't seem like all that long of a parade, just took forever to get them all moving!

I joined my fellow "Maroon Platooners" and marched in East Fishkill on Saturday. I must say, i am not big on parades, but this one was definately a great parade. The weather was great (a little to hot), the apparatus looked great and the bands sounded great! It was definately one of the bigger parades that i have been in and i must say that it was very well put together and a great day overall. There were so many departments from all over the place, it was a great opportunity to socialize and see what equipment other departments use. Also, i wanted to congratulate my fellow "tri-village" brothers from Cortlandt Engine Co. (a.k.a. Montrose) for taking home the "Best Overall" trophy! Congrats boys, you deserved it! Montrose has always been known to come out in full force for these parades and they always look good! From what i was told, the trophy that they received is actually a tree-trunk about 4' high that was carved into some sort of fire scene. Hopefully i will get a chance to see it soon, and maybe get a photo to share with everyone!

John, not for nothing, and i am not bashing, but i give you guys a lot of credit for dealing with PD dispatching. As CFDFASTleader said, the PD has enough to worry about and listen to & then to add the responsibility of the FD/EMS, that is too much! I dispatched for a PD for a short time, and let me tell you, it is not easy by any means! Not only are you listening to radios, but constantly entering data into the computers and answering numerous phone lines. Personally, i don't think any PD should dispatch an FD, for the simple fact that they have soo much to worry about already! PD dispatchers have lives in thier hands essentially, as do Fire/EMS dispatchers, and it is not very safe or fair for the officers who are on the road. God forbid an officer is calling for assistance, but the dispatcher doesn't hear them because they are tied up dispatching a fire or ems call. But getting back to Croton. As i said, i am not bashing, but there are some people at CPD that seem like they just don't listen to the FD/EMS radio after they dispatch something. After the call at Skyview the other day, Car 2082 was trying to advise PD of certain info, but they weren't responding. Then, when all units cleared, the dispatcher wouldn't answer any of them. I am surprised that they even heard Commands request for a general alarm or to switch fireground operations to a secondary channel! Again, this is all just my own opinion and i am not knocking anyone. I just believe that PD's should only have to be concerned with PD related incidents. Then again, 60-Control is busy as hell to, but at least they are familiar with Fire/EMS dispatching and that is what they are good at!

FF402, I know as far as IPN (Incident Paging Network) goes, members of thier network send out the "buff pages." I know i had looked into it and even had it for a short time. I used to have a Motorola Alpha/numeric pager before the nextels came out. I signed up on IPN because it was "free" up to a certain point. That was until i got my Pgenet bill and it was to the tune of approx. $1,200 lol!!! I didn't realize at the time (young and naive) that i didn't have unlimited alpha paging! I was able to talk myself out of that bill, but needless to say, i quickly cancelled my IPN subscription! But anyway, i didn't feel that it was a very reliable source of information. They relied on "buffs," who were listening to scanners, to send out pages. If people weren't listening to scanners, you wouldn't receive any pages naturally. Even when the pages were active, the info was sometimes old or inaccurate. The pages were mostly out of New York (the 5 boroughs that is) and never really incidents in Westchester, Putnam or Rockland. Anyway, hop that helped a little!

NYSAFC 98th Annual Conference June 9-12, 2004 Empire Expo Center Syracuse, New York For registartion/Further information, visit: http://www.nysfirechiefs.com/

We (Buchanan) have a FD chaplain who is a reverend & not a firefighter. He is however, a member of our Fire Police. I do not believe he is issued specific turn-out gear, but he is issued a white Cairns 1010 helmet with a "Chaplain" leather shield. He usually responds to major incidents, but usually coincidentally because he is a Fire Police member. He is a great guy and an excellent asset to the firehouse. Within the past 2 years or so, we have had some real bad fires and have gone mutual-aid to many other bad fires, some of which have been fatals. He was, and continues to be, concerned and supportive of our firefighters, especially some of the newer/younger guys. He has attended debriefings after fires and has always made himself available for those wishing to talk to somebody. I think Chaplains are an excellent resource in the fire department, but are sometimes overlooked.

Ed, you are totally right, the VA is a great job and i am not knocking it at all, believe me. In fact, if i had my EMT certification, i would have applied myself. As you said, the pay is not all that great, but there is OT which can help your salary tremendously. On another note, money is not everything...well, maybe lol! Take for instance me, i have a very good paying job, but i must say that i am sure i'd be happier as a career fireman! So, money aside, guys gotta go for what they want and whats in their hearts! I too know alot of the guys from the VAFD, both current and ones who have since left. They are all a great bunch of guys and very, very knowledgable! I would love to work there, but unfortunately, it looks like the VA may not be around for too much longer :sad: And as you said, jobs like the VA are great stepping stones toward a firefighting career! There have been plenty of guys that have transferred from the VA to jobs all over the county such as Peekskill & Mamo Village, and even FDNY. But it is truly a shame that they are looking at the possibility of closing and i wish the guys at the VAFD the best! They are all highly trained in Fire and EMS, so i am sure if it comes down to it, they can all find other jobs real easily!

Date: 05-12-04 Time: Approx. 1630 (TOD) Location: 36 Smith Ave. c/s Main St./Lexington Ave. Frequency: 46.26 Units: E103, E105, L43, R31 & Car 2281 (Command). Description: 60-Control dispatched Mount Kisco FD to 36 Smith Ave. for a reported house struck by lightning with smoke coming from the roof. 1700HRS-Car 2281 advising 60-Control fire has been knocked down. Fire was in the attic area of a 2 1/2 story frame structure, fire k/d, holding all units for overhaul. 1748HRS-As per Car 2281, all Mount Kisco Fire units going 10-8. Writer: BFD1054 *Note: Unable to record further times/info due to extremely heavy radio traffic county-wide.

ocff75...I was told that they have hired a couple new guys and have filled the positions. I was told this by a reliable source, but i will attempt to confirm that 100%. But if i were looking for a career firefighting job, i wouldn't consider the Montrose VA too much. It has been all over the news that the Montrose VA will start to close certain buildings on thier campus. I believe they will eventually close the entire campus all together! Anyway, hope that info can help you in some way. http://www.thejournalnews.com/newsroom/050...vahospital.html

WAS967...Its funny that you made mention of "Rescue-Randy." It made me think of another prank. Rescue-Randy is of course great for training purposes, however it can sure come in handy for a good prank, just ask our current chief lol! Lets see, Rescue-Randy has been seen all over the firehouse. Like the time he "showed up" in the drivers seat of the Chiefs vehicle late one night after drill. Think about it, its late and dark, and as you walk to your "secure" vehicle, there appears to be someone in it, kind of confusing! Ah yes, and "Randy" has also been known to hang out in the mens room. You can go ahead and try this yourself...just take rescue randy and place him on the old porcelain throne, turn off the lights, shut the door & wait for some baffled remarks lol! Another prank i thought of....this one we actually did by mistake! One night we were conducting a search/rescue/mask-confidence drill upstairs in our meeting room. We used our new smoke machine (a.k.a. party-fogger lol), which actually works very well, and "smoked-out" the entire room. Well, as we finished an evolution, one of the ol'-timers came into the room. It was dark (lights were out) & "smokey," and all the guys were in an adjacent room. The ol' timer didn't see anyone, but saw lots of "smoke." He started hollering and carrying on, wanting to know where all the smoke was coming from. Well, we decided to play it out and since we were outside of the kitchen, we convinced him that one of the younger members decided to cook and started a kitchen fire. Well, it worked...i didn't know if he was going to run for the door or a fire extinguisher, or try and call 911 lol! Once we told him what it was, he got soo mad, called us all sorts of names and left the firehouse!

Task Force 7....thats too funny man! A little messed up to do maybe, but funny, definately! That reminds me of something a buddy of mine used to do. He was able to download pager tones on the computer at the Ambulance Corp. We would be there eating lunch, hanging out or whatever, and he would go on the computer, tune the speaker volume all the way up and play the tones! Man, he got me every time, no matter what, i always fell for it! =D> As far as pranks my department (Buchanan FD) has pulled..... We have always had an on-going prank with Verplanck FD (yeah, the ones with the slime-green trucks #-o lol). Both of our departments have always looked for ways to mess with each other. Verplanck FD has alot of Irish heritage & thier trucks bear shamrock & the Fightin' Irish decals. Well, for the longest time, Verplanck guys would pull a fast one and paint huge shamrocks on the apron of our firehouse, not to mention other FD's in the area! It wasn't enough for them to just do it any old time, they would do on say, the night before an inspection or parade or other special event lol! They would also pull this prank when we would call them to cover our house when we were on extended alarms. I am now convinced that they carry a can of green paint, a paint brush & a shamrock stencil on thier mutual-aid engine! Well, now to get into where we get our payback! For those of you who don't know, Buchanan FD's nickname is the "Maroon Platoon," for our maroon uniforms. So when Verplanck would paint these shamrocks, our guys from Buchanan would sneak onto thier apron late at night/early morning where they proudly display thier shamrock paintings. Ours guys would paint a huge circle around thier shamrock, with a slash through it, and paint in big, maroon letters "Maroon Platoon." This went on for years and years, although it really hasn't happened in awhile, so you never know when they're gonna strike! Well, they are hosting the Westchester County convention parade this year, so we'll see what happens lol! Thats just a way we have gone back and forth to mess with one another, and to show our comradarie lol!

Saw this on Firehouse.com, and thought i'd share it. The pictures speak for themselves! http://cms.firehouse.com/content/article/a...98&sectionId=45

BILL HOFFMANN Courtesy of New York Post May 4, 2004 -- A fearless firefighter crawled through a burning Queens house to rescue a frail 90-year-old man who'd fallen out of his wheelchair and was minutes from death. Thick black smoke was pouring out of the two-story Colonial at 148-11 35th Ave. in Flushing when Ladder 129 arrived at 10 a.m. - and veteran smoke-eater Jim Walther raced into action, smashing down the back door. "You couldn't see your hand in front of your face the smoke was so thick," Walther, 37, told The Post. "I began crawling on the floor of the kitchen, feeling in front of me, and I felt a wheelchair and realized someone was in there - somewhere. "The heat was intense. I went in another 10 feet and found a body lying face-down. "I pulled him out and down the stairs and saw that he had burns on his face and his breathing was labored, so I took my mask off and increased the oxygen flow and put it over him." Suddenly, the elderly victim, Dominick Scaperotta, "began choking and went into cardiac arrest - so we began CPR," said Ladder 129 Capt. Pat Lyons, who was assisted by firefighters Louis Capozzi, Fred Hess and Fred Bischoff. Meanwhile, firefighter Rob Chiolo and a team from Engine 273 extinguished the intense blaze, which gutted the living room and caused heavy smoke damage. Scaperotta, who lives alone, was rushed to New York Hospital of Queens and later transferred to Jacobi Hospital in The Bronx, where he received hyperbaric oxygen therapy. He was listed in critical but stable condition last night. Investigators believe the inferno was sparked when an electrical cord under a rug became overheated. Lyons called the lightning-fast work by Walther, who's a 51/2-year FDNY vet, "an excellent rescue. "He went into a totally unprotected area without a hose line and with zero visibility. And the victim couldn't have survived in that smoke and heat for much longer." But Walther - the father of a 3-year-old girl who's expecting his second daughter this July with wife Jennifer - insisted it's all in a day's work. "This is what I'm trained to do, but it's a little humbling," he said. "I felt like did something that was one of the reasons I took this job - that maybe I could help somebody." The victim's grandson came to the scene minutes after his grandfather was whisked off by ambulance and emotionally thanked Walther and his fellow heroes for their life-saving actions.

NBC's webpage has further info on this incident, including video footage. On a side note, i hope a quick recovery for those injured in this accident. These people were only doing thier job, to bring breaking news to us, the public, when this occured. http://www.wnbc.com/index.html

Date: 05-04-04 Time: 1520HRS Location: 527 Dyckman St. Frequency: 46.26 & 453.225. Units: E130, E131, E133, L45 & Car 2341, Car 2343 & numerous Peekskill PD units. Description: Working Fire, rear of the structure. Private Dwelling. 1529HRS-Units have located the seat of the fire, attempting to knockdown, ventilaton under-way. 1534HRS-Units requesting additional ventilation for the #3 floor, ventilation has been accomplished on the #2 floor. 1536HRS-Interior units reporting possitive fire on the #3 floor. 1545HRS-As per authority of Car 2341, Signal 10-30 has been transmitted. Cause & Origin Zone-4 also assigned to this job. Writer: BFD1054