helicopper

I believe that last year was the first time that it was in, and approved in, the Executive Budget. It always found its way into the legislative package. It will be very interesting to see whether or not it survives this year's budget battles in Albany. Hopefully it does but as was said, this year is tougher than years past.

Establishing road checks and giving out flyers or asking if anyone saw something at the location is a common tactic in cases such as this or significant motor vehicle collisions...

Great post, Cogs. You made a lot of good points but the last one, quoted above, is perhaps the most important as BNechis explained. On the subject of centralized dispatch services... Imagine a single 911 PSAP serving all of Westchester, including the cellular 911 calls, and regional police, fire and EMS dispatch. For law enforcement, it would mean that all the cops in a geographical area would learn of an incident and be able to respond - or look for fleeing suspect vehicles at the time of dispatch instead of having to wait for a hotline to be transmitted. If all the local PD's put their civilian dispatchers into the system and put their police officers back on the road, we'd have more cops on the street and existing dispatchers could all become part of the new system. The fire service could be organized by Battalion so everyone in a given area knew what was going on and who was in service, out of service, etc. EMS could be tied into this or operate on its own channels. On large incidents, all the responders could be networked together to improve incident communications and have things like perimeter groups, operations groups, command nets, staging, etc. I'm told that the State of Rhode Island has just one 911 PSAP. If it can work for a STATE, it can certainly work for a county like ours. A pipe dream I know, but maybe some day... Like when the FD uses transporters to be beamed instantly to the scene...

This is highly unusual for that area. Garrison is a hamlet in the town of Philipstown and is sparsely populated and mostly rural.

Date: 01-01-09 Time: approximately 0630 Location: Bronx River Parkway northbound area of Wakefield. Frequency: multiple Units Operating: Westchester County PD, Yonkers PD, Yonkers FD, Empress EMS, NYPD Description Of Incident: Fatal MVA Writer: Chris192 Two subjects fled from accident scene leaving victim who was ultimately pronounced DOA. YPD has two possible suspects on McLean Avenue. BRP closed in area and investigation underway.

There's no requirement in NIMS or ICS for the use of letters or numbers specifically although it would fall under the standardized communications section. There should be one common standard in our area so we're all on the same page. We discovered the same problem in law enforcement with different ways of describing things in the tactical environment. Again, should be one common and agreed upon method to do that. The year certainly started off with a bang. There were jobs (PD, FD, EMS) EVERYWHERE!!!! Wow, much busier than last year that's for sure... Hopefully that was just as spillover from 2008 and not a sign of what 2009 is going to be like. Happy New Year!

It is in the works...

Fascinating idea but the thing that will probably prevent it from happening is liability and insurance requirements. EMTBravo would have to insure it if it carried the corporate name and I don't think it could ever be used as a front line piece of apparatus for liability reasons - but hey, I'm just the grammar police. What do I know?

I'm not a career FF so I don't know if I will be lumped into that generalization but anyway... 1. It isn't the career FF who perceive these things to be "payment" or compensation. It is the IRS, just ask them or your own accountant. 2. As a public service agency there should be no "secrets" and the "benefits" received by the membership should be public knowledge. It may improve recruitment/retention and it may also avoid the perceptions that there is any impropriety. Case in point, the NY Newsday series on the fire service made some blistering allegations about "perks" being received by members. Had the FD's announced that these things were being done, for whom, and based upon what criteria there would have been no news story. So, what's the big deal? The only big deal I see is if you're paying for membership at a gym but still have unfit members. What are you getting for your money then? To those who question the merit/appropriateness/etc. of this thread - go read the thread about "Brainstorming". This is apparently just what the membership wants. The ability to ask questions and seek information so why are you criticizing it?

This was brought up in a different thread and moved here to keep the old thread on topic and start a new discussion on this point. Does your apparatus have enough portable radios so each member entering a hazardous environment has the ability to call for help, communicate with their supervisor or the IC, or others on scene? If not, why not? Thanks to x129K for bringing up the question!

It is curious that the City Council and City Manager seem to be following the direction of a segment of the volunteer ranks. What is the impact on the volunteers by such a civil service classification for two career FF? If the issue is command, there really isn't an issue because the volunteer chief is in charge isn't he? NIMS is irrelevant here because the issue isn't incident management but rather the administrative management of a municipal department. To not have someone in charge is absurd. To think that hydrant inspections (and service) and code enforcement isn't happening in a city like Peekskill is just plain scary!!!

Perhaps some of you missed the above post. One of the functions of the moderating team is to keep threads on-topic. That's what's been done in this thread. If you'd like to start a new thread to discuss anything else, please feel free to do so. It isn't censorship because you're free to post your questions/concerns in the appropriate place. What's being done here is nothing more than housekeeping.

We have virtually no examples of consolidation to speak of, at least in our area. But if you look to the south and west many places are served by "County Fire Departments" in all areas not covered by a "City Fire Department" and while those areas are geographically and socioeconomically different, they have a single command structure, single communications structure, standardized training and equipment, comprehensive response plans, and economies of scale. And not having a great example to turn to isn't a reason not to try it - we may become the example for others to follow. Someone has to be first after all! Ironically, I haven't heard of any cries for layoffs or cuts in those areas but we're suffering from it right now - and it will only get worse. If you think you're exempt because you're a volunteer service and don't have big payroll expenses in your tax bill you may be surprised when taxpayers start challenging the softest target on their tax bill - the FD. Just a premonition but it could become a reality. Just talk to our colleauges in Millwood who have been trying to build a new firehouse for what, years?

Forgive me if I was unclear. There is without question a political dimension to this and it must be discussed. I was referring to discussing the idea of merging/consolidating local governments - that is a whole different can of worms. YES, we must discuss all the angles to this dilemma. Thanks!

Excellent point, Chief. I guess in an environment like yours (interior FF, haz-mat, etc.) that makes a lot of sense. On EMS calls, however, it is often deafening when the 3-4 people on the ambulance crew all have portables on at full volume.

If the villages are using these fire protection contracts as a source of revenue and not passing the funds on to the FD, there's a real problem. Perhaps someone should look at that! Let's not blur the focus of this thread - it's about the consolidation or regionalization of the volunteer fire service in Westchester. If someone wants to start a different thread on other disciplines or municipal governments feel free but let's keep this one on topic. Imagine if there was a single fire protection district (or fire district) for a town encompassing as much territory as Greenburgh? Standard responses, standardized training, compatible and uniform equipment, etc.

If any of the local Dutchess members are able to give Rob a hand on either of those nights I'm sure he'd appreciate it! He's putting in a lot of effort to promote these gatherings and we should all make an effort to stop by and meet each other face to face, exchange a few stories, have a few drinks and appetizers, and have some laughs. Thanks, Rob, for your efforts to promote the true spirit of this site!!!

Unless your FD has licenses for the PD and/or EMS frequencies or has a letter from the license holder (i.e. Police Chief or EMS authority) authorizing your use of their frequencies all those radios are illegal. Your FD license may not even authorize all the "stuff" you have; it's not hard to check either, go to fcc.gov and search licenses to see what your legally allowed to have. Now all this means nothing unless someone complains or your do something stupid and get caught. If someone complains to the FCC, you can find yourself in administrative trouble and have to remove all the unauthorized equipment, frequencies, etc. I know of one PD that had to reduce their transmit power because of a conflict with another PD in another state and both hold licenses so the FCC wields a pretty heavy hammer. And they won't care that you're the local FD, EMS, etc. To them you're just another license holder - or not a license holder with unauthorized frequencies in their radios. As for the scanners, if they receive police frequencies and are in a vehicle they are illegal. There're very few ways around it. The amateur radio license doesn't get you permission to scan PD frequencies either; it just authorizes the use of radios that are capable of being programmed. As others have said, it all boils down to common sense. If you have a scanner in your car and start showing up at jobs for which your agency has not been dispatched you can expect to run into trouble. If you have a scanner and hear a job and go to your firehouse to wait for the call, odds are you'll be fine. If you use the scanner to buff jobs in other communities for the sake of buffing, you may have to answer some questions and find yourself in hot water. Be smart about it. If you have radios that are programmed for PD frequencies, it may be wise to ask the powers that be if they're authorized so you don't get in trouble for their negligence or laziness!

It is a form of public transportation isn't it? At least he was trying to go home to his mom and not his drug dealer!!!

And these physicians consider "handcuffs being on too tight" as excessive force. I just wonder what they base their speculation on? Almost all of those surveyed concede that they have no formal training on the subject and I'm willing to bet that they've never been involved in LE training or received education on just how combative a drugged suspect can be. What do you do when the amount of force necessary to overcome physical resistance requires you to strike the subject? Stop and let them go? Sounds like an absurd study but I'm reserving judgment until I read it in January. The bleeding hearts are going to have a field day with this one... Meanwhile, a survey of law enforcement officers found that 99.8% of ER physicians take entirely too long to get to them or their suspect patients when seeking treatment.

True enough, but how about sitting down at a real table instead of a cyber one and discussing the issue for real and start making substantive changes instead of just paying the idea lip service? Even if as someone suggested it just started at the Town level and was for things like insurance, fuel, purchasing, etc. there would probably be savings.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is accepting comments on the National Incident Management System (NIMS) Guideline for the Credentialing of Personnel (the Guideline). The Guideline provides guidance on how to best credential the personnel who respond to incidents, including largescale terrorist attacks and catastrophic natural disasters that require inter-State deployable mutual aid. DATES: Comments must be received by January 21, 2009. NIMS_NPRM_Credentialing_Personnel.pdf DRAFT___NIMS_Guideline_for_Credentialing.pdf

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is accepting comments on the National Incident Management System (NIMS) Intelligence/Investigations Function Guidance Document (NIMS I&I). This document provides guidance on utilizing and integrating the Intelligence/Investigations Function while adhering to the concepts and principles of the NIMS. NIMS I&I presents information intended for the ICS practitioner that will assist in the decision-making process regarding the placement of the Function within the command structure, and provides tools that may be used while implementing the Function. The Function has aspects that cross disciplines, including traditional law enforcement, epidemiological investigations, regulatory investigations, and medical examiner/coroner investigations, as well as those conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board or other investigatory agencies. This Function can be utilized for planned events, as well as incidents. DATES: Comments must be received by January 21, 2009. NIMS_NPRM_Intel_Invest_Document___DRAFT.pdf DRAFT___NIMS_Intel_Investigation_Function_Guidance.pdf

[crickets] [/crickets]

Where is everybody? I thought this thread would have gone wild by now...