E106MKFD

The MTA Metro-North Railroad has announced job openings for the position of Firefighter/EMT (Fire-EMS Officer) in Grand Central Terminal. 
 
Job posting and additional details on the position can be found at the MTA Careers Page: https://new.mta.info/careers
 

It took me a while to get the data but better late than never. Runs & Workers

The MTA Metro-North Railroad has announced a new job posting for Fire-EMS Officer. This posting is for a FF-EMT position with the Grand Central Fire Brigade.
 
Grand Central Fire Brigade FF/EMT (Fire-EMS Officer) job posting. See details below. 
MTA Metro-North Railroad has the following employment opportunities:
• Fire EMS Officer 
• Associate Engineer, M of W Track and Structures 
• Associate Engineer – Maintenance of Equipment (Multiple Openings) 
• Associate Engineer – Positive Train Control (Multiple Openings) 
• Security Specialist 
To apply, please go to the MTA Employment Portal at: https://lnkd.in/dEi3UAM and click on Metro-North Railroad.
 
To search for posting check out the following link:
MTA.info/employment (Search Under Metro-North Railroad).
 

The MTA Metro-North Railroad has announced a new job posting for Fire-EMS Officer. This posting is for a FF-EMT position with the Grand Central Fire Brigade.
 
Grand Central Fire Brigade FF/EMT (Fire-EMS Officer) job posting. See details below. 
MTA Metro-North Railroad has the following employment opportunities:
• Fire EMS Officer 
• Associate Engineer, M of W Track and Structures 
• Associate Engineer – Maintenance of Equipment (Multiple Openings) 
• Associate Engineer – Positive Train Control (Multiple Openings) 
• Security Specialist 
To apply, please go to the MTA Employment Portal at: https://lnkd.in/dEi3UAM and click on Metro-North Railroad.
 
To search for posting check out the following link:
MTA.info/employment (Search Under Metro-North Railroad).
 

The MTA Metro-North Railroad has announced a new job posting for Fire-EMS Officer. This posting is for a FF-EMT position with the Grand Central Fire Brigade.
 
Grand Central Fire Brigade FF/EMT (Fire-EMS Officer) job posting. See details below. 
MTA Metro-North Railroad has the following employment opportunities:
• Fire EMS Officer 
• Associate Engineer, M of W Track and Structures 
• Associate Engineer – Maintenance of Equipment (Multiple Openings) 
• Associate Engineer – Positive Train Control (Multiple Openings) 
• Security Specialist 
To apply, please go to the MTA Employment Portal at: https://lnkd.in/dEi3UAM and click on Metro-North Railroad.
 
To search for posting check out the following link:
MTA.info/employment (Search Under Metro-North Railroad).
 

 
They already do administer the funds.  The way it works is that the 2% funding is initially collected by the NYS Insurance Department(Insurance Law, Section 2118) (I would also like to indicate that this same law gives the State Comptroller's Office full authority to audit all fire department, district, and company treasury departments).  From there, the NYSID distributes the funds to the department/district, who in turn distribute it to the company(ies).  For the sake of this explanation, as both paid and volunteer fire departments receive 2% funding, labor unions representing firefighters and fire officers are considered fire companies.
 
Now, the issue at hand about how to appropriately spend these funds is detailed in Sections 9104 and 9105 of the State Insurance Law.  Essentially, these sections state that the money must be spent FOR the firefighters and their families, such as to provide food and refreshments after drills and meetings, parades, and picnics; fire department tee shirts, jackets, and other apparel; furniture, air conditioning, and entertainment for firefighters at the fire house; annual awards banquets and holiday parties for fire company members; and radio receiving devices (pagers).  The list for what you CANNOT spend the money on is just as long, which includes paying for training courses, fire prevention, medical leave/benefits (although there is a caveat on that which I'll explain below), assisting disaster survivors, and paying for delegates to attend conferences/conventions.
 
The caveat with medical leave and benefits can be legal if, and only if, the company has been approved legislatively for the funds to go to a benevolent association, in which then the money can be used to reimburse firefighters for medical expenses that they paid for out of pocket.
 
This above information can be found at the below links:
FASNY: https://www.fasny.com/pdfs/redhandbook.pdf
NYS Department of Financial Services: http://www.dfs.ny.gov/insurance/faqs/faqs_ft_fft.htm
 
For more information about the legality of the collection and distribution of funds, you can also visit http://www.dfs.ny.gov/insurance/ogco2007/rg070522.htm (this is another page from the NYS Department of Financial Services that includes the names of court cases to direct you to certain laws and court decisions that have created the current foreign insurance program).
 
AND, if you fear that the State Comptroller is going to investigate your fire company next (don't worry, they'll get to you eventually  ), here's the link to the Office of the NYS Comptroller: http://osc.state.ny.us/localgov/firedist/faq.htm.  This site provides all of the information that you need to better manage your company's funds, prepare for an audit, and how to fix your financial problems.
 
Don't sit around and wait.  Be proactive and prevent your department/company from being the next news headline.

I think the chief likes it! lol

As Alan said studies like these are always going to show the results in the client's favor...those results are bought and paid for by the client so it can be no other way. With that said almost universally volunteers are going to cost less...and that is just a simple mathematical fact. Don't think so, then riddle me this:, Where does the vast majority of the money go in a career FD's budget? Salaries and benefits of the employees, aka career firefighters...that's where. No salaries= a significant reduction in cost. So let's not try to pretend that an all paid service is going to be cheaper...it won't case closed. On the flip side of that coin though is the quality of service provided for the money spent and in this the level of service provided by a paid department is almost universally going to be better than that provided by volunteers, for all of the reason so often cited here...case closed there too. So where does that leave us? After spending tens of thousands of dollars to get the study results you want and then touting those results as fact what has been accomplished? Not much really...wanna know why? Because for all the dollars thrown at the issue of which type of fire protection is better, in the end we don't decide the matter, the citizens do. And that my friends is just as it should be, after all it's their tax dollars and their lives is it not? And since it is, the type of fire protection they get is THEIR choice to make not ours. Point being don't waste your money on studies everybody knows are skewed anyway, they don't rally matter to Mr. and Mrs. John Q. Public. Fact is that money could be far better spent dealing with the real issue...
 
And what is that real issue? That's a gimme boys, ...the real issue is the adversarial relationship that has grown ever more ingrained and vicious between paid and volunteer firefighters in recent times. Well guess what fellas, paid or volunteer, we all do the same job...protect lives and property. Do some do it "better"? sure they do. Do some do it "cheaper"? you bet, but the fact is, we all do it...period  Now you can thump your chest and stomp your feet...why you can even take that study you paid for in hand and go yell your point from the rooftops. Sure get out there and let everyone know how much better trained you are, or how much cheaper you are or any one of a hundred other BS arguments, but in the end, for all of our bombast, that's all it is, bullsh!t...no matter how many studies you pay for to "prove" otherwise. Here's the deal, our self imposed divisions serve no one and have done nothing to better OUR fire service and each and every one of us should be ashamed that we've let it degenerate this far. Worst of all though is that the biggest losers from all of our bullsh!t are those we are all supposed to be here to protect and serve, our citizens ...anybody remember them in all this?
 
The best thing we as a service could do is to start trying to find ways to work together for the greater good of everyone...firefighters and our citizens alike. Now sure there are many things which divide us, some valid some not, some real some imagined, but there is one thing which unites us all as firefighters and that is our common mission...protecting those in need. High time that came first. High time THEY came first.
 
I will leave you with this: Many moons ago when I joined my first VFD, standing on the firehouse apron one evening, I was told by a old weathered veteran member, "Remember kid you're not here for you....you're here for them" as he pointed out to the neighborhood around us. In my 36+ years I've never forgotten that piece of advice. So tomorrow morning, as you look in that mirror, let those words ring in your ears as you start your day serving your community. With that as the basis for our actions we will find the common ground we all know is there to make OUR fire service better today than it was yesterday...And that my friends is a win/win no matter what side of the coin you're on.

NWP will take it LOL
 

If only we utilized our Field Comm here in Westchester... it - and the people working in it - have so much to offer...

Metro North Fire-EMS
New Car 2643
2016 Ford Expedition SSV

Special thanks to Chief Sweeting for the photo opportunity.
 

 
 
 

First and foremost, the incident, and the outcome, sucks.  I do not believe anything anyone did or tried to do last night would have made a difference.
 
Going back a few years, maybe 2009-2010, a Response Plan was developed by the "Westchester Marine Emergency Response Association" along with Westchester County Department of Emergency Services.  That plan basically called for a three-tiered response to all Hudson River incidents, meaning the area of jurisdiction - as well as the next closest agency to the north and south - would be dispatched.
 
From a MOS standpoint with my FD, this is an "OK at best" approach.  During my time as Chief we modified this to include Rockland units, since many incidents happen to fall on or beyond that imaginary line that divides Westchester & Rockland.  At the time, according to this "plan" we attempted to utilize Marine 22 (I think) as a radio channel for all FD, PD, etc. vessels to communicate during river operations.  When we had a river incident that fell under our Command, we always tried to steer everyone on to this channel, since we should all have this capability.  I could be wrong but this sticks out in my memory, and it was designated to keep Marine 16 open for emergency traffic.
 
Last night's incident is just another reminder that when someone dials 911 from a cell phone, it's truly a crapshoot as to where they really are vs. where they think they are.  And this doesn't just apply to waterways - a lot of cellular 911 calls for land based incidents require some searching to find them.  Because of this, it highlights the benefit of starting out resources from different angles.
 
Since Rockland switched to their new radio system, communications on the river have suffered.  But there's no reason why the four counties (Westchester, Rockland, Putnam & Orange) can't develop a plan to always work off the VHF Marine radios.  Afterall, as boats, we should all have them and the signal is decent.  Command vehicles should also install this capability.
 
The frequency of incidents, and the complexity of them on the Hudson River is only going to increase the demand for our services.  There needs to be a standard of training for boat operators, crew members and people responding and playing command.  If EMS is getting on a boat, they need proper training too.  It's 2016 and the fact that the same stupid stuff continues to happen irritates me, because we should be well-trained, well-prepared and have pre-plans developed where we can all work together and provide a professional-level of service.  
 
The days of letting the first people to the dock get on the boat needs to end, and the Chiefs of all of these FDs with river response responsibilities need to work all of this out.
 
Additionally, I think it's time for the FDs that are going to be in the marine operations game to seriously look into grants to get the training we all need and the proper vessels to do what is needed.  We all can't stand around, holding our d**ks waiting on County PD or someone else to get there when someone's life is in the balance.
 
 
 

From the EMTBravo.com archives. Photos originally posted to Protection From The Past-Cutty630 Archives 3-27-05.
 
Mount Kisco-Business District
Major Emergency Structure Fire
South Moger Ave 11-25-1996
Photos By, From, And Thanks To The Archives Of Cutty630
 
http://emtbravo.webspaceforme.net/News/CuttyMK/CuttyMK.html
 
If you want to see more EMTBravo.com Blasts From The Past from our archives, please hit "Like" on this post.

73 years ago this weekend was a deadly time for the Yonkers Fire Department and the Mount Vernon Fire Department.
Saturday Jan. 30, 1943 Mount Vernon Fireman John O'Rourke died after being overcome by smoke at a fire at 10 Brookdale Place.
Sunday Jan. 31, 1943 Yonkers Fireman James Kane and Probationary Fireman Thomas Corbalis were were killed when they and four other firefighters plunged into a basement at a fire at 373 Warburton Ave.
Think of their sacrifices and stay safe brothers and sisters!
http://www.fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fultonhistory.com%2FNewspapers%252023%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201943%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201943%2520a%2520-%25200244.pdf&xml=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3D5a2adeaa%26DocId%3D6997913%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cIndex%2520O%252dG%252dT%252dS%26HitCount%3D22%26hits%3D5e%2B64%2B65%2B77%2B78%2B7b%2B7c%2B83%2B85%2B8e%2Bba%2Bbc%2Bf9%2B10e%2B163%2B16a%2B48e%2B7f5%2Ba98%2Baa2%2Bab3%2Bacf%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fNew%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false

Some of the renditions of FDNY Rescue 2's new quarters:

More photos: http://www.architectmagazine.com/project-gallery/fire-rescue-2_o

FDNY currently accepting bids for a new firehouse for Rescue 2, replacing the company's current 1920's era building.
News Article:
http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20151216/crown-heights/crown-heights-rescue-company-get-new-firehouse-brownsville-fdny-says

Great work by DPW showed great bravery and intuition, however this event shows the continued danger of questionable apartments , a seemingly endless problem in the metro area. Further underlined by the anniversary of FDNY Black Sunday this week, which had illegal occupancies as the root cause of the tragedy and illustrated that illegal dwelling units are not only a danger to occupants but firefighters also.

Kudos to the DPW workers who likely stopped this fire from becoming a further tragedy.
As a DPW worker myself, I can say that we are all too often the eyes and ears of the communities in which we work. I have personally observed incidents that required fire, police or medical attention. My fellow workers and I have helped on countless occasions during residents times of need.
It is quite common (in my experience) that DPW employees happen to be volunteer firefighters, EMTs or both. That being said, we are on many occasions, the true first responders. Even my fellow workers who have no emergency services backgrounds have been there to lend a helping hand to a person in need. I believe most DPW workers have a strong sense of community pride and it shows.
Again, hats off to the Mount Kisco DPW crew who happened upon this fire and put their lives on the line for the Village!

It's still too early to tell. At the airport we don't take weather seriously until within 48 hours of the event. Within 24 hours we start preparing snow removal teams and informing the airlines of the latest trends and models from the NWS.
This one is probably going to be a doozy. Buy some food, some booze, and sit back and relax!

IT'S WINTER IN THE NORTHEAST!!!
IT'S GOING TO SNOW!!!
Everybody needs to get over it and stop buying all the toilet paper!!!

Some photos from Mount Vernon's multi alarm fire on W. Sanford Blvd.

Is it just me or do Long Island fire departments not know how to us SCBA?

They have had the posting up a couple times over the past year as they have expanded the paid staff, but not too sure how often it will be posted in the future. There is actually a similar position up right now under the title Control Center Coordinator that works directly with the fire brigade in Grand Central.
Check out the MTA employment site http://web.mta.info/mta/employment/employment_out.html and look under Metro-North Railroad for more details on the position.

No, only Metro-North employees can be apart of the Fire Brigade.

They have had the posting up a couple times over the past year as they have expanded the paid staff, but not too sure how often it will be posted in the future. There is actually a similar position up right now under the title Control Center Coordinator that works directly with the fire brigade in Grand Central.
Check out the MTA employment site http://web.mta.info/mta/employment/employment_out.html and look under Metro-North Railroad for more details on the position.