helicopper

Is that accurate and enforced? Look at FDNY, one of the busiest FD's around. Engines, Ladders, Rescues, Squads, Battalion, Division. Sure there are other designations but this is the majority. Pretty simple, straight forward and to the point, no?

Whatever is done its gotta be simple and easy to understand.

Just curious about how EMS is set up these days...

Wouldn't those forced air drying racks be a more economical option that would reduce the time it takes to dry?

The cost of a few reflective vests is negligible when you consider the added margin of safety they provide and how it will compare to the cost of an FF's medical/rehab/PT bills if he/she is hit by a car in a right-of-way.

Yes, we did use the FG4 for a couple of hours this weekend when we ran out of PD frequencies to use. Busy weekend around the county! Marine 4 does have a trunked radio and a technical issue for the helicopter is being worked out after which it will have trunked capabilities also. Right now we can use any of the fireground frequenies, many of the EMS channels (VHF), and of course PD frequenies. The V-Tac, U-Tac, and I-Tac radio frequencies are also available in the helicopter so there are a multitude of options if we're ever needed.

You guys didn't see the crawl on the bottom of CNN and FOX News reporting the outage? We made NATIONAL news!

But see post #2 in this thread. There is no consistency where there should be. Effective resource management is predicated on the ability to call for and receive the right resources for job. Calling for a rescue and getting an engine or vice versa complicates things for a commander who already has enough things to worry about. He shouldn't have to say send Engine XYZ from ABC Department because Engine QRS from 123 Department isn't suited to the task he is requesting for. It has to become the way it is done and not "well, we want to call it a rescue or rescue pumper or rescue engine or mini-attack rescue". Set the standards and either meet them or don't.

efd, thank you for your eloquent response to what could have been incendiary remarks (not a bad pun - and from a cop no less! ) I think your post should be the first and last response to those off-topic comments so this is the official notice that posts must be on the topic to remain. Please focus on the important issues and professional. The issue is being monitored by the staff and specific members will be contacted directly if necessary. Thank you for your cooperation.

Somewhere, in maze of dusty boxes reminiscent of the Indiana Jones warehouse for the lost ark, I have pictures of the Ram Charger fly cars when they were brand new with a couple of ambulances that were (at the time) almost new. If I get the courage to go rummaging I'll see if I can scan and post them. Boy, aren't digital pictures GREAT! If you know where your computer is you know where your pictures are. I also remember the old station in the garage opposite Yonkers General Hospital and a certain crew coming out for an early morning call only to find the ambulance cab completely filled with rubber glove balloons. Harmless fun but what a trail they left going down Nepperhan...

Does it bother anyone else that there is so much being made of what color helmet the Fire Coordinator was wearing? If I put on a white helmet and wander about a fire scene giving out orders, will they be followed simply because of the color of my helmet? Do we really elevate a colored piece of plastic that much? The comments about following NIMS and making sure our SOP's (or whatever we call them) are up to date are great but I think we also have to start getting away from the regal deference to a white helmet (or its wearer) and focus on the management process. The old, tired arguments about who's in charge and being in "command" need to be buried for good and true management needs to be the way we approach incidents in the future. Manage them or they'll manage you!

You keep saying this but you keep justifying your position in favor of the European modified crouch method while challenging the crawl method and it's proponents. You've stated your case, others have stated theirs and now people have a couple of options to consider when confronted with a challenging environment. Instead of agreeing to disagree - since that's not the issue, why don't we all agree that this has been a fruitful discussion and take from it what we can. Some people may opt for the crawl in certain situations and the modified crouch in others. Now we also have two more relevant topics to discuss: 1 - How to break tunnel vision during training and actual firefighting operations, and 2 - How best to go up/down stairs to protect yourself (sliding on your butt works for toddlers and may well work for FF too but if you fall you're leaving your spine very vulnerable to compression injuries as well as direct injury to the coccyx that may make self evacuation difficult/impossible.). In the spirit of keeping this thread professional, let's not cast judgments about departments or their tactics. Let's discuss the concepts as a whole! Thanks to all and especially jflynn for starting this thread.

And yet politicians are talking about cutting police departments, even going so far as to lay officers off. Of course we can't be everywhere but you'd think we'd be able to stop one red minivan somewhere between Sullivan and Westchester Counties if we were staffed properly!

Date: 08/04/09 Time: approximately 2000 Location: LA Fitness Club, 1155 Washington Pike, Bridgeville, PA Departments: numerous Description: Mass Fatality/Mass Casualty Incident from Shooting. Gunman entered club, turned out lights and opened fire killing at least six and injuring several more. At least 5 in area hospitals in critical condition. Witnesses report hearing 40-50 shots fired. Gunman may have committed suicide inside the club - unconfirmed at this time. Links: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburgh...h/s_636758.html http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,537004,00.html http://www.myfoxphilly.com/dpp/news/local_...h_Club_Shooting Writer: Chris192

Here's a ridiculous question... Why do we call it high when marihuana is a depressant and ostensibly brings you down? Absolutely horrible information. To drive like that with 5 kids in your car. Simply incomprehensible!

Thanks for the reply! You require FF to wear structural firefighting gear while operating on a boat? Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that a lot like carrying an anchor if you fall in? There's no buoyancy in that PPE so can you actually swim while wearing it? Now we've got a topic! Oh yeah (thanks to an anonymous member for reminding me about this one) who has boats equipped to be out when there's ice on the water?

And in the age of cgi and photoshop, what you see may not even be real!

It was a civil conversation and this sounds like you just don't like the fact that people disagree with you about playing music during a response. Personally, it is just one more distraction to our already divided attention and if we need music blaring to keep us awake at 3 AM, we have bigger problems than what music to listen to.

Date: 07/31/09 Time: approximately 0530 hours Location: 855 Peekskill Hollow Road cross street Taconic State Parkway Frequency: 46.38 and ground channels Agencies Operating: Putnam Valley FD Kent FD Mahopac Falls FD Garrison FD (stand-by in Putnam Valley Station 1) Putnam Valley VAC Putnam County Fire Investigation Team Putnam County SO Westchester County Arson Investigation Unit Weather Conditions: Heavy Rain Description Of Incident: Suspicious structure fire in 2 1/2 story single family residence. Investigation continuing. Reporters: Chris192 Writer: Chris192 Link to Lohud Article Per 24-1-1, thank you to all those who responded to assist the Putnam Valley FD early this morning! (if anyone has any details they'd like me to add, please PM. Thanks)

Glad you're OK!!! If there's anything you or your Department needs, don't hesitate to call!

Does anyone else wonder what the end of his "safety harness" is tied to???

122.95 is the unicom frequency for HPN and many others. Listening to that will likely drive you to drink as you hear pilots all over the place asking for weather, active runways, if the restaurant is open, etc. (that's what goes over the unicom frequencies). Airport Ops has it's own frequency (not in the aviation band) and can come up on 46.26 and/or the trunked system as necessary. In the 20 years that I've been aware of the airport, ARFF has never been run by the County and to my knowledge the County has never sought to take it over. It has always been the responsibility of the contract management company.

Excellent post! The medevac safety issue has not gone away. Hearings have been held, information compiled, and findings should be released shortly. It will very likely impact the profit-motive operators more than the rest as it will require better equipment, training, and standards. We'll see when it comes out.

LifeNet is STAT-Flight. The company name changed a while ago and Air Methods (the parent company of both) operated them both anyway. It's kind of like "band-aid" or "Q-tip". We know it as STAT-Flight but it's been LifeNet for a while. We still have the service, it's just coming from different bases which will be mostly transparent to the recipient of the helicopter.

Good point. Maybe I'll try that approach next. Thanks!