Ambulance fire prompts big response in Nyack

[Guest Dept 10]

Hello fellow firefighters being a member and the chief of the Nyack Fire Dept. I find your critical points very intresting. The Nyack Fire Dept is a very aggressive fire dept, say what you will its a free country. While the rest of you are sounding your second and third alarms and waiting for arival,I have that at a clik of the mic, you just need to be on top of your game it's not a lagistic nightmare. Not all alarms are a general alarm but yes most are, to quote one of you I would rather have all my toy's to my avail you can always send them back if you don't need them all. Not at any time has the Nyack Fire Dept. left its coverage area unprotected. As far as eight fire aparatus responding to calls being a burden on the tax payers,the Nyack Joint Fire Dist. has cut the budget 20% in the last two years while still providing us with all the tools and equipment we need to do the job can your dist. or dept. say the same. Well I'am sure that all you fire expert's will have some more fun with this remember that there is pro's and con's to every thing you do and more than one way to acomplish the same task and not everything is black and white.

[gamewell45 258]

Hello fellow firefighters being a member and the chief of the Nyack Fire Dept. I find your critical points very intresting. The Nyack Fire Dept is a very aggressive fire dept, say what you will its a free country. While the rest of you are sounding your second and third alarms and waiting for arival,I have that at a clik of the mic, you just need to be on top of your game it's not a lagistic nightmare. Not all alarms are a general alarm but yes most are, to quote one of you I would rather have all my toy's to my avail you can always send them back if you don't need them all. Not at any time has the Nyack Fire Dept. left its coverage area unprotected. As far as eight fire aparatus responding to calls being a burden on the tax payers,the Nyack Joint Fire Dist. has cut the budget 20% in the last two years while still providing us with all the tools and equipment we need to do the job can your dist. or dept. say the same. Well I'am sure that all you fire expert's will have some more fun with this remember that there is pro's and con's to every thing you do and more than one way to acomplish the same task and not everything is black and white.

Amen to that chief! Be safe!

[irishfire2491 24]

If they have the man power to get all 8 fire trucks on the road that is GREAT, You can't find that anymore. And why people are complaining of what one dept does I can't Figure that out either. I understand that everyone has their own thoughts of how to run their dream fire department. But in this case The call was at a Hospital which is a good response because you never know what could happen. And if a call comes in across town Great the truck can turn around and go it is already on the road it has Red lights and Siren it does not sit at the RED light till it Turns Green, as the driver would in his POV going to the First call and turning around to the second because they left the other Fire truck in the Station. This is not a Paid Department. When one call comes in everyone wants to go not matter what it is. It is not like they have a Full Crew at the Station 24/7. My props to the Chief on a preplan for a hospital response or any response in their district. Get the trucks on the road you never know when one may get flagged down for an MVA, or come across a another Fire. If the Chief gets on the scene he/she can always return what he does not need. Who know the first due truck may only have a Driver, the Second, Third, and/or Fourth Truck may not get a crew/driver now it is Tone out 3 time hit the other station for a crew. Plus with $ 4.00 a gallon on Gas I would not want to drive back and forth from one side to another for a call with the firehouse is around the conor. IT IS ALL ABOUT PRE-PLAN

Edited August 15, 2008 by irishfire2491

[LTNRFD 266]

If they have the man power to get all 8 fire trucks on the road that is GREAT, You can't find that anymore. And why people are complaining of what one dept does I can't Figure that out either. I understand that everyone has their own thoughts of how to run their dream fire department. But in this case The call was at a Hospital which is a good response because you never know what could happen. And if a call comes in across town Great the truck can turn around and go it is already on the road it has Red lights and Siren it does not sit at the RED light till it Turns Green, as the driver would in his POV going to the First call and turning around to the second because they left the other Fire truck in the Station. This is not a Paid Department. When one call comes in everyone wants to go not matter what it is. It is not like they have a Full Crew at the Station 24/7. My props to the Chief on a preplan for a hospital response or any response in their district. Get the trucks on the road you never know when one may get flagged down for an MVA, or come across a another Fire. If the Chief gets on the scene he/she can always return what he does not need. Who know the first due truck may only have a Driver, the Second, Third, and/or Fourth Truck may not get a crew/driver now it is Tone out 3 time hit the other station for a crew. Plus with $ 4.00 a gallon on Gas I would not want to drive back and forth from one side to another for a call with the firehouse is around the conor. IT IS ALL ABOUT PRE-PLAN

I don't think that the comments here on this thread have been negative about the response, to Nyack Hospital, of Dept. 10's 8 companies. I would think most people here think a full department response by an all volunteer department would insure an adequate response to a high hazard building. What is being questioned is, as stated by others in this thread, is the full department response to minor alarms, ie: brush fires. Maybe someone can explain the risk vs benefit of having up to 8 fire companies respond from different directions to a brush fire. It was mentioned here earlier that some departments send ladder companies along with the engine companies. That is done by the career departments and that is solely to augment the engine companies manpower.

[helicopper 1,050]

Hello fellow firefighters being a member and the chief of the Nyack Fire Dept. I find your critical points very intresting. The Nyack Fire Dept is a very aggressive fire dept, say what you will its a free country. While the rest of you are sounding your second and third alarms and waiting for arival,I have that at a clik of the mic, you just need to be on top of your game it's not a lagistic nightmare. Not all alarms are a general alarm but yes most are, to quote one of you I would rather have all my toy's to my avail you can always send them back if you don't need them all. Not at any time has the Nyack Fire Dept. left its coverage area unprotected. As far as eight fire aparatus responding to calls being a burden on the tax payers,the Nyack Joint Fire Dist. has cut the budget 20% in the last two years while still providing us with all the tools and equipment we need to do the job can your dist. or dept. say the same. Well I'am sure that all you fire expert's will have some more fun with this remember that there is pro's and con's to every thing you do and more than one way to acomplish the same task and not everything is black and white.

Chief, thanks for your response. While the incident at Nyack Hospital and apparatus response plan used by Nyack's FD started this conversation it is not strictly about your Department; it is a discussion about resource management and deployment strategies in general. Hopefully everyone will continue to focus on the issue in general and not the department specifically so this remains a positive exchange.

I, for one, appreciate your taking the time to respond and provide your viewpoint about it so others can learn about how Nyack really does it. And you're absolutely right, there are many ways to accomplish the same task and there is very likely more than one right way. Your response really highlights that this forum can be used for intelligent discussion even when people disagree or have different ideas. Thanks again!

[capt2102 64]

Dept10; Chief, Has anyone ever considered a Code 2 responce (normal driving, no lights/ siren) for the units that are farther away?

There is no argument that it puts your members and the public at greater risk running code 1 with a tiller truck to an outside rubbish fire that can be handeled with 20 gallons of water. I look at that other post about one tiller trying to "beat out" the other Eng. to get first water on some leaves. It just sounds like stories from 100 years ago. The basic question of risk vs. benefit can't be ignored.

[MoFire390 118]

Raz, I understand what you are saying. I was not just talking about ny I was trying to open it up to little to departments like the ludlow VFD in ludlow pa. They run 3 tankers, a QRS/brush truck, and a pumper. Even though its only 6 prices of appuratus its still a lot for a small town like them. 1 tanker does have the ability to pump and acts like a source pumper for the engine. They have 2 ladders comming in mutual aid when ever a structure fire comes in. 1 from Kane FD and the other from Bradford township.(I believe) I was only trying to say that places like that consider their tankers key in fire suppression.

[Guest Dept 10]

trash cans outside in the open first two pumpers on the air & rescue, Brush fires five pumpers & rescue if all five are not needed either staging or return to qtrs ladders only by request if manpower is light, thruway two pumpers & rescue if more is needed by request, elevator or other special rescue two ladders & rescue pumpers by request, boat calls rescue only, these are just a few ofcourse chief has say as to what he wants or needs can stop any apparatus or allow to roll as he sees fit due to dispatch,updates or on scene sizeup. years ago when active members roles were well over 300 we used to respond by box location as members have depleted we have changed our responce procedures to maintain proper manning through the years. during the day you just dont know what you are going to get! we do alot bettter than most but we too have seen our numbers drop.

[spin_the_wheel 460]

Many times departments that run as individual companies do not have individual company tones to alert their radios, and the alarm is toned out as a "general". As the Chief said just because every company gets alerted, that does not mean all 8 companies will get to the scene. Plus if a second alarm comes in your ahead of the game, you have units on the road already saving time from a home response. Also we are not talking about a district that is 50sq. miles.