How Does Your WC Fire Department Measure Up?

[x635 4,066]

The following is from a Gannet Suburban Newspapers Fire Protection Survey sent to all Westchester FD's in September of 1998.

Some interesting questions. JUST something to think about.

1. Name Of Department

2. Year Department Established

3. Chiefs Name, year became chief, and whether he or she is paid or volunteer

4. Number of paid employees plus number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics

5. Number of volunteers plus number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics

6. Number of Volunteers rated Level 1, (qualified for interor work), Level 2 (Exterior Work Only), and Level 3 (Administrative work only)

7. Number Of Fire Stations

8. Numbers Of Fire Calls, And Number Of Structural Fires

9. No Longer Applicable

10. Number Of EMS Calls

11. No Longer Applicable

12. Number Of Pumpers with capability of 750 gallons per minute or greater, year purchased, and year refurbished if applicable (note any trucks on order and cost to be paid)

13. Number of pumpers with deluge gun? If any, are they preconnected

14. Number of aerial apparatus that have under 75 feet height on the aerial, year purchased, and year refurbished if applicable (note any trucks on order and cost to be paid)

15. Number of aerial apparatus that have 75 foot or greater heaight on the aerial, year purchased, and year refurbished (if applicable) (note any trucks on order and cost to be paid)

16. Number of aerials with pumping capabilty

17. Number of aerial apparatus with platform

18. Does your department have Class A or B foam capability?

19. Does your department have a squad or rescue truck? If so, how many?

20. Department budget for last fiscal or calendar year, including equipment

21. Department Payroll for last fiscal or calendar year

22. Number of times responded to mutual aid calls from other departments, with breakdown by departments requesting assistance.

23. No Longer Applicable

24. Number of time mutual aid requested from other departments, with breakdown by department offering assistance

25. No longer applicable

26. List all special mutual aid agreements with neighboring departments

27. List running card order in which other departments are called when mutual aid is needed.

28. Type of hose thread used.

29. Departments Fireground radio frequency (note communications problems at specific fires, and problems communicating with 60 Control)

30. Dispatching Procedure used (county fire control, own dispatcher, or other; and if not 60 Control, why not?)

31. Special Units within department, such as HAZMAT, technical rescue, etc (note record od calls to County Hazmat team and response)

32. How many people do you send out in a first alarm assisgnment (what vehicles, how staffed, and how many volunteers can be expected at scene as apparatus arrives)?

33. How many people have died in fire in your jurisdiction in the last five years, by year.

34. What is your supply hose?

35. How many feet of supply hose do you normally carry on your pumpers?

[AFS1970 504]

Very interesting set of questions, why so many "No Longer Applicable" questions? Did something change?

When I see things like this, I always wonder what the ultimate goal is. The questions seem to run in several different directions, and I know I shouldn't be, but I am more than a little suspicious about that.

Maybe there is not specific goal for a story, until the results come in. But I for one would respond better to a smaller targeted series of questions, if I knew what the story was going to focus on. Department demographics have very little to do with what size supply line you use.

[JohnnyOV 2]

4. Number of paid employees plus number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics

5. Number of volunteers plus number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics

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these questions always get me fired up...who cares if a firefighter is black or hispanic or a woman. The victim is not going to care about your skin color or your gender when you pull then from a burning building. What matters is that the job gets done.

[x635 4,066]

Very interesting set of questions, why so many "No Longer Applicable" questions? Did something change?

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Yes, the questions marked "No Longer Applicable" were date specific- i.e. "How many calls did you do in the first six months of 1998?"