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“Risk a Lot to Save a Lot” is B.S.

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* Image from Ukiah Blog.

Ok, now 'dat I have your attention you better sit down and have some of this Irish regulah wit' me because I've got a feeling this one is going to get me in some trouble. Here goes…

"Risk a lot to save a lot" is B.S. No offense to Chief Brunacini but what has become a fire service golden rule is, in my opinion, a myth. The over-simplified saying attempts to take our entire job and box it up in a nice little saying that rolls off the tongue and can easily be remembered standing outside a burning building at 2 A.M., unlike RECEO and COAL WAS WEALTH and all that other crap. Along with its sister-sayings of "risk a little to save a little" and "risk nothing to save nothing" , "risk a lot to save a lot" has been bastardized to justify some actions or to crucify others. And I think it's crap. Maybe my logic is flawed but here's why I think so.

The Brother from  FF Robert Wiedmann of FDNY Rescue 2 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn; FF Jon Davies from Worcester Rescue 1; the Worcester 6; FF Paul Brotherton, Lt. Jeremiah Lucey, Lt. Thomas Spencer, FF Timothy Jackson, FF James Lyons and FF Joseph McGuirk; FF Corey Ankum from Chicago Truck 34 and FF Edward Stringer from Chicago Engine 63. What do all these men have in common? They have been seriously inured or killed while fighting fire where people were reported to be or thought to have been trapped. What else do they have in common? They saved no one. Does that mean that their memories are somehow tarnished? Does it mean that there was no reason for them to have been in a situation where their lives could have been at risk? My humble opinion is a resounding, "NO". Each of these men, and thousands of others, have been injured and killed doing a job that is predicated upon one thing; risking our own lives to help someone else. Nowhere in any oath that any of us took does it say that there absolutely, positively must be someone trapped in a fire building or another emergency. No where does it say that we absolutely must have infallible knowledge that someone is in there, under there or on top of there. Wherever there happens to be. We risk a lot every day just by going to work and rarely do we ever make true saves.

One of the closest calls I've had in my career occurred on an interstate highway at the scene of an MVA. It was a minor accident. A couple people with neck pain who wanted to go to the hospital be checked out. I was holding the head of the backboard while we removed one of the drivers from the vehicle. My back was to the lane of traffic that was still open and our apparatus had been placed in a blocking position behind the accident. At the time I had one of those big Mag Lights hanging from my truckman's belt and it usually hung right off my right butt-cheek. Just as the patient was being moved onto the board a car whose driver was obviously far to important to be held up by all this traffic, used the inside break-down lane to pass all the slowed or stopped vehicles. Problem was there was a Mass Statie cruiser sitting in the break-down lane right even with the accident. So this moron jerks his wheel to the right, cuts across two lanes of traffic heading right for us, jerks it back to the left and continues on his way. But not before he hit that Mag Light hanging from my belt hard enough that it flipped up and struck me in the back hard enough to leave a bruise that lasted for weeks. I thank God every day I had that bruise too because a couple more millimeters and it would have been much worse. What did I save? A patient who wanted to go to the hospital to get checked out probably for no other reason than to strenghten their court case when they sue the other guy? Yet I risked everything. It's my job. It's what I was called to do.

Operating in the roadway at an accident; operating at a structure fire; natural gas leaks; electrical hazards; Haz Mat jobs; domestic violence or other EMS runs. They can all injure or kill you just as quickly as searching ahead of a hose line looking for someone who may or may not be there. In my eyes at least, the risk is the same but the end-benefit to most types of runs we take in is far less. For most of those types of runs the only thing that will be saved is property. And it seems as though in todays fire service property isn't worth any risk. But do we still go on those runs? Of course. Should we stop going on those kinds of runs? Of course not. Do we need to develop risk matrices and acronyms for every type of run we might encounter? If that's what happens I'm throwing my helmet at someone and walking out of the firehouse giving a double one-finger salute. We do our jobs. We train to minimize risk. When the bell goes off we go. We use our knowledge, training and experience when we arrive to make decisions and act upon them. That's what we do. We are firefighters and Jakes-of-all-trades.

There are those that will say of the Brother from Rescue 2 Brother Wiedmann, "He shouldn't have been there!", "There was nothing to save!", "It was too much risk!". But what if he had been burned when the natural gas leak he had been investigating in the same apartment building, with all the residents standing safely in the street, found an ignition source and exploded? Then it would be, "What a brave firefighter!", "Their job is so dangerous!", "You just never know.", and other such statements. Yet the end-result would have been the same. A burned firefighter who risked everything in doing his job to save what? "Risk a lot to save a lot", my ass. We risk a lot to do our jobs. Period.

 

Posted by on December 20, 2011 • Filed under: fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, General Rants, in-the-line-of-duty, line-of-duty, Tradition, Pride, Ownership • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Does It Really Matter? Really?

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Hello boys and girls. This might be one of those ramblers so I'll apologize in advance. When I sit down to write I very rarely map something out, read it and re-read it, tweak, adjust or otherwise do much in the way of editing. I usually just go off the top of my head and the bottom of my heart. Hence why I have seen a little controversy in the publication of this site, but that's o.k. I think a certain amount of turbulence just makes for a more interesting ride. I've got a jumble of thoughts running around in the vast space between my ears so I'll see if I can make it take the form of some sort of intelligible drivel that you won't be angry at yourself for investing your time in. So please fasten your seat belts. Put your trays in the upright position. Maybe get one last cup o'regulah, have a seat and enjoy.

I've been thinking a lot about pride, professionalism, job performance etc. It also seems as if many of these topics have been receiving the attention of bloggers and print-writers lately as I have seen many articles being published on these types of subjects. There also seems to be a lot of noise being made about our appearance to the public and how we must appear as professional as possible in order to stave off attacks, criticisms and decreases. Many of those making that noise use professionalism as some sort of magic shield. Like, if we just look the part, dress in perfectly pressed and creased uniforms, have spit-and-polished rigs and avoid any and all controversy then the public will love us and not be banging on the gate with pitchforks and torches ablaze. While I agree that those things may aid in our overall appearance to the public, especially keeping your department out of the headlines for scandals, I don't think they are as important as many would like to think and in the economy of the day won't protect us from cuts, pension attacks or referendum failures.

According to the Cambridge on-line dictionary the definition of professionalism is; the qualities connected with trained and skilled people. Hmm, ok. Let's see. How about the definition of qualities then; a characteristic or feature of someone or something. Hmm, ok. How about professional, then; a person who has a job that needs skill, education, or training. Gee, not too many jobs like that are there? Anyway, my point with all that is that no where in any of those definitions is the word appearance or a similar synonym used. So in order to be a true professional and display true professionalism do we have to dress a certain way or ride in rigs that look a certain way? I think not. Does anyone think that the Detroit Fire Department is not a professional organization? They are arguably one of the busiest fire-duty departments in the world. For years the department has been mismanaged and neglected, leading to run-down equipment and PPE. Does that mean that the firefighters that risk themselves every day for the citizens and visitors of Detroit are unprofessional? To the contrary I would argue it makes them some of the most professional firefighters I can think of because they overcome these and many other obstacles to perform their jobs to the best of their abilities. Now, do I think that you should be allowed to show up on scenes wearing whatever you want, in any state of disrepair and driving crappy looking equipment? Here's where the title to the post comes in. No, I don't. I just don't think that those things are that big a deal. Traditionalists hang with me.

I honestly, to the depths of my soul believe that John or Jane Doe who calls for our assistance in their time of need really cares, or notices, what we or our rigs look like. Now there are, of course, a couple of exceptions. I once went on a call in a Gumby suit. We were out doing ice training and we caught an ambulance call. Instead of delaying the response, and being unable to get out of it en route, I walked in and began treatment in a Gumby suit. Pretty sure the patient and family remembered that one. Another time, a family member of a department member was transported. The ambulance they were treated and transported in was one of the department's oldest and in the roughest shape. It was very soon after that the condition of the fleet was brought up at an open meeting and things were set in motion to update the condition. So, in some cases, yes, people are going to notice those things. For all of you who might be going for your Executive Fire Officer out at the NFA, I've always thought a great thesis would involve the perception of professionalism by those we serve. The quantitative research portion would simply be a survey sent to each person your department responded to over a given period. Four pictures would be included. One of a firefighter dressed in normal station-wear with button-down shirt badge and name plate, one in a t-shirt, one in bunker gear and one in a full Class A uniform. Then have some questions about the basics of their call, what they remembered about what the crew who responded was wearing and how, if at all, their perceptions or impressions were influenced by that. Just a thought, give me credit at the end.

It seems lately that the image of our fire departments has been trumping the actual performance of our fire epartments. The ability of many departments to effectively and safely respond to emergencies has been slashed while at the same time these cash-strapped departments are running TV, radio and print-ads singing their own praises and trying to convince everyone how indispensable they are. They spend money on pub ed and balloons and buttons and coloring books to hand out everywhere to build a good image in their community but then can't afford to maintain apparatus or replace PPE. The whole time these departments are beating the professionalism drum and giving their troops the message that appearances are more important than substance. Does it matter that a department roles up to a structure fire in a beautiful rig with perfect uniforms underneath their risky turn-out gear? Does it matter that the pub ed division was at the community picnic yesterday handing out said balloons and buttons when tody the house burns down because the training budget was slashed and the younger members can't lead-out the line? How's that for looking professional? What's that going to do to the image the public has of a department? I have overheard a conversation between two gentlemen that have way more bugles than I and one said that he was diverting more money into his pub ed budget from his vehicle maintenance budget because, "…if we can just educate people better they won't have to call 911 as often and we'll save money in the long run…" Presumably from not submitting the rigs to the wear and tear of actually going on runs. Does this line of thinking make sense? Am I the one that is thinking about this all wrong? Pub ed helps, don't get me wrong. But Pub ed can't prevent all fires, accidents and other emergencies. It certainly isn't going to decrease medical runs much and those are by far what we are responding on the most. I wonder if the man in white who made that statement remembers Lt. Kevin Kelly and the circumstances that led to his death?

I think that maybe the issue really comes down to perception of the problem. I think that it is probably safe to say that a firefighter looks at the problem of underfunding differently than the Chief of Department. The firefighter looks at the empty seat next to him that used to have another firefighter sitting in it. He notices that more fires seem to be taking longer to control, are getting bigger and are resulting in more greater alarms than in days past. He notices more brothers and sisters getting hurt. The chief, on the other hand, looks at the figure under his operating expenses and the one under his total approved budget. He then somehow needs to balance the two. Other than a papercut, or maybe carpal tunnel from the computer, that is the most the chief risks. The numbers in his spreadsheet don't get hotter, darker and more aggressive. They don't come blowing down the hallway at him because the firefighter that used to be at the bottom of the stairs to feed line isn't there anymore. The firefighter has a very real, tangible perception of the problem. The chief has just as real a perception but not nearly as tangible wear it matters. I know, I know. Those of you with rank will immediately admonish me for not understanding. You'll say the problem the chief faces is just as tangible because he'll see and feel the cuts he has to make and the tough choices that he'll have to decide. While I respectfully acknowledge that view, I greatly disagree that the two are equateable. I really disagree with it when the chief is willing to make a shift in mindset that the resulting decreases in ability to perform, whether it be on the fire ground, extrication scene, EMS call or anywhere else, is acceptable and just "the new way of doing business." I cannot accept that. It is my personal belief that while rigs, ballons and uniforms are nice, we need to be able to effectively respond to any emergency when the tones drop. I'm simplistic that way.

Listen, I'm not a chief or Ben Bernanke. I understand budgets, cashflow and deficits. If I were suddenly put in charge of a fire department with money issues I can't tell you what decisions I would make. I can tell you that anything that led to a decreased ability to perform our primary missions (read not just structural firefighting) or that had a negative impact on my guys and gals health and safety would be the absolute last thing I would even consider. Recently Chicago Fire Commissioner Robert Hoff was called to task by the Mayor of Chicago, Aldermen and some news media for his statement that he was "deathly against" proposed cuts to his budget. These cuts mainly revolved around decreasing the number of firefighters per company from 5 to 4. Commissioner Hoff came up through the ranks. All the way up through the ranks. And while doing so he didn't forget that he was still a firefighter and the impact that his decisions made in his new position will affect the guys and girls he once served with in the field. He's not willing to risk their health and safety or the ability of the Chicago Fire Department to respond to emergencies. Since wages and benefits are always the biggest line-item of any department's budget I think it is too easy to look there first in order to make up shortfalls. A department I know of had an estimated shortfall of approximately $450,000 for FY 2012. The department decided to lay-off 3 firefighters and not fill 2 existing vacancies in order to make up the gap. Now, this department also publishes a paper copy of its budget to each firehouse. That's probably where they went wrong this year. Because once the rank-and-file saw th line items for "Chiefs Training"- $50,000, "Publication Subscriptions"- $2,000 (really?!?!), "Professional Organization Membership Dues"- $10,000 (again, really?!?!), "Advertisement and Media Fees"- $15,000, "Travel Expenses"- $25,000, "Matching Retirment Plan Contributions"- $100,000 (for the chief, mind you, not the members) and my personal favorite, "Miscellaneous Expenses Related to Hosting Meetings"- $12,000 (i.e. donuts and coffee), they understandably went ape poo-poo. In case you weren't running a tally in your head that's $214,000 in what I consider to be perks, fluff and B.S. Is it the whole deficit? No, but it's a start in what I consider to be very non-impact areas. All except the "Matching Retirement Plan Contributions" I guess, if you're the chief. And it certainly isn't a living, breathing human being capable of saving a life. Just sayin'.

Professionalism, just like the definintion says, has noting to do with appearance. It is all about function and performance. And it irks me to no end that it keeps being invoked like some great brass ring we all have to dedicate ourselves to reaching in order to present a great face to those we serve. Let me know what you think.

Now getjerbutts off 'da tailboard and go get ready for the next one. Cuz 'dats what being professional is all about.

~TK

 

Posted by on November 6, 2011 • Filed under: administration-leadership, Archive, firefighter-safety-health, funding-staffing, General Rants • Tagged: , , , , ,

Top-Notch Training Opportunities

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Good morning jakes! Got your mug full of regulah?

I promise that these two upcoming training events are ones you won't need to be all loaded up on the regulah for. I've mentioned the new Go>Forward Fire and Leadership Training venture before and I just wanted to remind you that there's still time to get registered for their innaugural event coming up in St. Charles, Missouri. For you Midwest-types that's a great opportunity for 'ya to get some great training from some of the industry's biggest names as well as some newcomers to the conference training scene. For those of us in our "Right"-coast minds, the King of Prussia, Pennsylvania event is coming up in November. Another awesome opportunity for training from the best in the biz.

Click on the banner or the link above and it'll take you right to the site and you can click on whichever venue will be closer to you. There you can view information on the venues, the conference schedule and class descriptions as well as instructor bios but most importantly you can get registered for either event. Don't be one of those slackers who doesn't go to training unless your department spoon-feeds it to you every day on shift. Invest in yourself and bring something back for the group.

 

Now getjerbutts of 'da tailboard and go get registered!

~TK

Posted by on September 13, 2011 • Filed under: administration-leadership, command-leadership, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, Tradition, Pride, Ownership, Training, training-development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: , , , , , ,

That Lonely Feeling, The Ticking Time-Bomb of Short-Staffing

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First, I need to apologize and make a confession. I'd like to apologize for such a long absence and the lack of content on the blog. There's a very good reason for it, I assure you. Which leads me to the confession. I believe that early on I copped to not being the most tech-savvy guy in cyber world and that is in direct relation to the lack of content. You see, I, uh, well that is, I mean, uh, well….<sigh> I forgot how to get into my own blog. Yeah, you read that right. I forgot how to get into the admin section of my own blog. I'm an idiot, I know. I can assure you that the proper web address is now safely tucked away in triplicate in different secure locations, if I can only remember where those are…

Ok. Everyone got their cup of regulah? Watch out, the diamond-plate may be a little wet yet from the wash. Dry it off and have a seat.

So, as the title implies I'd like to talk about a subject that is getting a lot of attention in our job right now; staffing reductions. I'm going to approach it from  little different angle however. It seems like everyone is talking about it and everyone is doing so in relation to firefighting and potential fire related deaths. While I agree with both of the arguments that a reduction in staffing effects our ability to accomplish essential fireground tasks in a timely manner and our ability to simultaneously conduct aggressive search operations I think we may be emphasizing this too much. Bare with me, I know that is bordering on sacrilege. In order to explain where I'm coming from I need to relay a story. I know, what's new right? What can I say, it's the Irish story teller in me.

We were dispatched with still companies to a reported pin-in on one of the expressways that is in our district. It was reported as a car versus semi-truck with heavy damage and serious injuries. The still Engine and Battalion Chief arrived first and reported the same. Next to arrive was the still Medic and Tower Ladder, bringing  8 firefighters and the chief to the scene. Upon our arrival we found a semi-truck had stopped in the break down lane on the outside of the highway with damage to the under-ride guard and trailer. The rear of the trailer was compressed probably three or four feet, enough to get it even with the rear dual. What was left of a car was in the inside lane with both front wheels gone, the hood and fenders flush with the windshield, the engine was in a million pieces spread everywhere and the drivers door and roof area were scraps of metal that looked like a metal sculptor decided to experiment with a chainsaw.  It was one of the most serious accidents in recent memory. So with our arrival the total on-scene compliment of firefighters was 12 plus a chief. Many departments would feel lucky to have that on the scene.

The Engine Lieutenant had finished his size-up and was reporting to the chief while his guys were dropping a hose line. The Tower Captain was getting his crew to work dragging out their compliment of extrication gear and securing the vehicle and we were told to dump all of our extrication gear and cribbing and get to work. I happened to be on the tool that day and went to the car to make my own size-up. I quickly determined we need to remove both front doors, remove the roof and roll the dash and probably would end up cutting both seat backs as well. I relayed this plan to both my Lieutenant and the Tower Captain. It was decided the Tower would take the passenger side of the car while we concentrated in the driver side. The passenger was alert but had multiple complaints (both she and her friend, the driver, were thankfully wearing seat belts), but the driver was unconscious and not able to be aroused. The B/C quickly requested an additional Medic, Engine and the District Chief to the scene. Soon thereafter we requested a medical helicopter to the scene, which required an additional Engine and Ladder company for the landing zone. So in total we were committing 23 firefighters and 2 chief-officers. And take it from me, every single guy there was busting his rear for approximately an hour until both patients were removed and on their way to separate hospitals. My department has gone from a staffing of 4 per Engine and Ladder to 3 over about the last 10 years. Luckily they have left us and our sister company alone and we still have 4. For how long, however, no one knows. If you look at this particular incident that would have given us an additional 5 firefighters on the scene to help. Now, it's been hot around here lately, and humid. During this incident four different firefighters had to be removed from work and sent to cool down and rehab due to exhaustion, three voluntarily and one involuntarily. So, as it turns out the girls were making a packie-run from a party they were at and jumped on the express to avoid traffic. MSP estimated they hit the truck doing about 85. It probably goes without saying alcohol was a factor.

So why the story about a pin-in when we're discussing short-staffing? Well, in my department most guys are firefighter/medics. We run ALS Engine companies as well as two ALS Squad companies plus the Medic units. While we had what many departments would consider a ton of firefighters on this job almost everyone was used up almost immediately. The still Engine had the Luft assigned as "Operations", the driver/operator manned the line, the back step firefighter/medic assisted the medics from the ambo. The still ambo was obviously used up immediately. The still Tower's Cap'n was made "Extrication", the driver/operator and the back step firefighter went to work on the extrication on the passenger side. Our entire 4-man crew went to work on the driver side extrication and the B/C was obviously the incident commander. With the arrival of the 2nd Engine, the Luft and the D/O went to work with the Tower company on the passenger side extrication and the back step firefighter/medic helped the 2nd due ambo. The helicopter landing zone Engine Luft and Tower Cap'n worked together with thier crews to set-up and secure the LZ and the D/C took command of the LZ. Everyone was used up immediately. And once those guys that I mentioned earlier had to go cool down and were removed from the operation their was no one to replace them. Granted, we could have called for additional resources but nearly the entire battalion and one half the town was there already. With the reduction in manning over the years we were missing 5 additional firefighters that could have been rotating in and out or lightening the load in other ways.

Like I said in the intro, everyone is talking about rolling brown-outs, staffing reductions and company closures and how it relates to the possibility or probability that this continued practice will lead to civilian or firefighter deaths . In some cases it already has. And again, while I generally agree with this stance, I'm really sick of hearing it. Everyone is beating the same drum and saying it the exact same way. "Mr. Mayor, if you close these 2 Ladder companies someone will die." "Selectman so-and-so, you are severely hampering our ability to save lives with these proposed cuts to our manning. Someone will die." "Mr. town manager, the continued practice of rolling brown-outs puts the lives of those people that would normally be served by that fire house at risk. It is only a matter of time until someone dies." Maybe it's the fire services version of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf". While indeed there is a wolf lurking, who knows where or when it will strike. And since our fire load is in general down, although that is becoming arguable again, the odds are that the cities, villages and towns will probably continue to get away with it unscathed. But what if we put a different spin on it? What if we acknowledge the danger in a fire situation but use other types of calls to try and ram our point home. Much more common calls, like the one I illustrated in the story above. Or the Alameda, California story. Or something else that is common and equally as dangerous as a structure fire in your area. 

We got both our patients out and to hospital relatively quickly while delivering good EMS care at the same time. Our patients probably did not directly suffer from the history of our decreased staffing. But there was another price to pay in the brothers that went down due to the weather and the heavy toll the extrication was taking on them. Another thing that the city hall dwellers hate are increased insurance premiums and workers comp settlement costs. What if a couple of our guys would have had to take time off or be hospitalized due to their injuries? I just think there are other ways to tackle this than with our current illustration of the Grim Reaper hanging out in every browned-out firehouse. One that might actually make some headway with the suits. 

I've seen the following video a few places on the web now. Maybe you have too. It was made by the Redwood City, California IAFF Local in response to threatened budget and staff cuts by their city council. It almost completely ignores the structural firefighting aspect of the job but still delivers a very poignant and powerful message about other aspects of our job that are just as important. Give it a few minutes and watch.

 

 

Pretty good huh? Now getjerbutts off 'da tailboard and quit watchin' videos and go do something!

~TK

Posted by on July 3, 2011 • Filed under: Archive, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, funding-staffing, General Rants, special-operations • Tagged: , , , ,

Don’t Judge A Building By Its Curtains

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Everyone got theyah cup of cahfee? Everyone comfortable? Good.

Today we're going to talk a little building construction and tactics and strategy. This discussion is going to be based off a recent job we had in a Lace Curtain, or Triple-Decker. Due to departmental rules and regs and such I'm not able to show any actual pictures of the incident but in case you're unfamiliar with that type of construction the picture below from a similar type incident and building may help you visualize it better.

So this is a job that the brothers from Somerville, Mass. had a while ago and comes from the website wickedlocal.com. As you can see this type of architecture is narrow and tall. It is almost always a multiple occupancy with one unit per floor or sometimes two, one front and one back. About the only way to be sure is by counting gas or electric services, but as we all know that can sometimes even fail us if the landlord is a little unscrupulous and has tapped off existing lines etc. They started being built in the late 1800's and were popular into the 1930's. Because of this the construction is mainly balloon although more modern imitations are platform. Because of the ballon construction we were usually assured of two things; 1) it's gonna be a wicked job and 2) it was fairly sturdy and held up pretty well under fire conditions. Hence, you usually ended up with a job as shown above, with fire on multiple levels, usually the uppers. This has also led to many fire deaths and dramatic rescues due to the occupant load and the quick fire-spread.

So, in our case the job comes in around 0330 (of frickin' course) and is originally an "odor of smoke in the area", which gets a single Engine Company dispatched. As the first-due was driving on the other side of the block from where the address was one of the windows on the side of the building on the second floor failed and the jake in the back saw it light-up. They whipped around the block and called for a working-fire response, probable entrapment. We were just about the farthest company from the scene so we were a little while in getting there. Since we are a specialty-type unit we can be assigned anything from Engine work to Truck work to almost any kind of Rescue work, depending on type of building and what order we arrive in. On this particular one the duty-Chief ordered us to split our crew and have one team head to the third floor for search and rescue and the other to the cellar for a quick recon. My Loo took the newest member of our company and went up and had me and another seasoned guy go down. We hit the gas meters as we went by and quickly ascertained there were three units. Since 99% of all these Lace Curtains are built the same we now had a real good idea of the floor plans on each level. We then went down-cellar to complete our assignment. We had just a little bit of smoke hanging at the ceiling and not doing anything and no heat, so at least we knew everything was above us. As my partner and I finished up looking round his flashlight beam caught something that kind of glinted. I took my lantern and shown it on the same area. That's when I saw it. "Dougie!", I yelled to my partner. He turned and looked at me and then where my lantern was shining. "Oh shit!", was his response. As we were hustling out of the cellar my radio transmission went something like this (edited to fall within my department's rules and regs and such); "Command from 14-cellar!". I got the acknowledgement. "Command be advised this is not legacy construction. It's been rehabbed using light-weight floor joists and hangers. No tellin' what else is going on in here Chief." Command acknowledged my transmission and then repeated it to "all companies on the fireground". The first two lines had made a really good dent on the fire and by the time we rejoined my Loo and the kid, now on the second floor, it was pretty much knocked. Talking to the Chief later he told me he had every intention of pulling everyone out once the searches were complete if the Engine guys hadn't been making good head-way. With the delay in the alarm and the head-start the fire had on us I would agree about one-million percent. 

This fire turned out fine, everyone got out, no one was hurt and the building stayed up. But our little find in the basement wasn't the only thing that was a surprise. During overhaul and throughout the investigation companies found that the typical 2×6 or even 2×8 floor joists throughout the third floor had been replaced by engineered open-web trusses as well. What we had found in the cellar were the wooden I-beam trusses and joist hangers secured to a block wall. We also learned the block wall had been built in-place around the original foundation, both to reinforce it and to have a place to hang the trusses. Nice, huh? The flat roof common to these buildings had also been rehabbed but only partially, probably because of cost and effort. Three open-web trusses were found there by the Truckies that had been opening up. Now, in retrospect my partner and I kinda messed up on this one. We fell prey to being a little complacent. It wasn't til after everything was said and done that we noticed the new high-efficiency vinyl windows, the obviously new front door, and the drywall ceilings instead of the plaster-on-lath that should have been there. Tell you one thing, never again.

Many of these buildings are located in "historic" neighborhoods so they are subject to many strict rehab rules on what an owner can and can't change. Almost all of those rules have to do with the appearance of the building from the curb, not so much what's on the inside. So this leads to a couple different things. First, that chowderhead landlord we were talking about before? He just might not want to conform to all the little codes and regulations and so forth so he does his little rehab job on the sly. Which means no inspections from the town, which means it may or may not be up to code. Second, everything may very well be up to code but they're using todays materials to replace yesterdays and we're still looking at the same "old" building from the street. So I guess what I'm saying is that no matter if you're looking at a;

New York Brownstone

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Philly Georgian

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chicago Walk-up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

or San Fran Victorian,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

be alert brothers and sisters and be looking beyond the curtains to what's in the guts of that building because it may not be what you think.

Now, getjerbutts off 'da tailboard and go do somethin'. Like get out into your still-district and look around at buildings.

~TK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by on May 12, 2011 • Filed under: Archive, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, fires, training-fire-rescue-topics

Gettin’ Ready

2 comments

 

Everyone got their cup? Everyone comfortable? Good.

Sitting on the tailboard talking with my crew about the historical events of late Sunday and yesterday I was urging them to be ready. Our response area isn't New York, Chicago or L.A. but it is pretty much right next-door to a large metropolitan area of historical significance to the U.S. of A. It certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility that whoever steps-up to fill the vacancy suddenly created by a well aimed shot of American lead might see our area as a target to punch at the historical pride of our country. So, if Ayman al-Zawahiri, or whoever else decides they would like to be target practice for a special-forces operator in the near future, is planning the retaliation for OBL's demise we need to be ready, see graphic.

So what does that mean? It is up to our department leaders to make the wide-ranging plans and preparations. It is up to us individually and as companies or houses to prepare for our specific roles in those plans. Maybe it's time to really fix that finicky trigger on the saw that everyone knows about and just kind of works around with that "trick" we've learned to get it running. Maybe it's time to fix the wiring on the rig floodlight that we've just sort of ignored because it's a big project and all the other ones work. Maybe it means going over the tools we don't use a lot to ensure we know how and refresh our memories a bit; air bags, struts, Triage systems, winches, torches etc. Maybe we get out to a local construction site and ask the foreman if we can practice on some scrap concrete, steel or building systems like roof or floor trusses. Those air bottles that are usually good enough a few hundred pounds low, maybe not so much anymore. Is it going to happen tomorrow or next week? On the grand scale, I doubt it. These guys are going to plan something out to hit us hard and dramatically. However, you never can tell when the individual psycho-nutball will go into a local shopping center and start shooting. Or make some home-made explosives and try to martyr himself. That's what I worry about in the near future. Start thinking about what are possible targets in your area and go look at them. What are alternate routes to them if roads or bridges are damaged, blocked or missing altogether? What are routes in and out for evacuation and apparatus? Part of this will fall under your departments overall action plan but we all know that the first-in companies set the tone for an operation. We can start preparing now for a successful operation in the future.

What about preparing ourselves? I carry an accessory bag on the rig in the winter. It has an extra t-shirt or two, an extra set of firefighting gloves, an extra pair of socks etc. I think I'm going to start carrying it all the time now. If something does happen odds are it is going to be an multi-hour at best operation and perhaps on to multiple days. Throw some extra work gloves, a stick of deodorant, baby wipes and some easily packaged food like granola bars, energy bars or even MRE's from the local Army-Navy store. Spare batteries for your flashlights are a great idea too. Start talking to your families. Talk to your spouse and explain that if something happens and I'm on duty I'm going, I don't have a choice. Talk about what that might mean. Discuss the fact you may not be able to make contact right away or even for a few hours. Maybe come up with some kind of code you could text or something just to say, "I'm here and I'm o.k. I'll call you when I can." Talk to them about if it hits when you're off-duty and that you may have to go in and be gone for a while. Talk to your kids at an age-appropriate level. Explain as best you can that sometimes Mommy or Daddy's job means that they can't come home for a while because other people need their help but that they'll always be on your mind and in your heart. You certainly don't want to panic anyone unintentionally and you certainly know your spouses and loved-ones much better than I so use your best judgement as to how and what to talk to them about. I just think it's better now than them flipping on the TV and freaking out later.

These aren't the type of people who are going to stick their heads in the sand and hide or decide they poked too big a bear (remember when we put that cruise-missle through the bedroom window of Muammar Gaddafi's house? Didn't hear from him for almost 30 years. Might be time for a refresher). That just won't happen. There are two things I am sure of. 1) Something will happen and 2) when it does this nations fires responders are going to be just that. Start gettin' ready lads and lasses, cuz it's a'comin.

Now getjerbutts of 'da tailboard and go make sure everythings ready!

~TK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by on May 3, 2011 • Filed under: Archive, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, major-incidents, mass-casualty-incident, special-operations • Tagged: , , , ,

Of Pride, Passion And Professionalism.

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Pride,Passion,Professionalism

Everybody got their cup of cahfee? Everyone comfortable? Good.

So for todays little chat I thought I'd talk about the three P's; Pride, Passion and Professionalism. These three words may arguably be at the very heart and soul of the fire service and should drive much of what we do. These words and their synonyms are  often discussed in firehouses across the land and can even, at times, lead to heated debates. They are at the core of what we try to instill in our new Boots, Probies, Candidates etc. and which we as senior members boast we are full of. But are we? And what exactly do these words mean?

Let's start with the definition of Pride. Funk and Wagnall's on-line dictionary defines it this way:

1: the quality or state of being proud: a: inordinate self-esteem : CONCEIT  b: a reasonable or justifiable self-respect c: delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship

3 a: ostentatious display

4: a source of pride : the best in a group or class

6: a showy or impressive group

The definition of Passion as defined by F&W's is:

3: the state or capacity of being acted on by external agents or forces

(2): plural: the emotions as distinguished from reason  b: intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction c: a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept.

And finally, the definition of Professionalism:

1: the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a PROFESSION, or a PROFESSIONAL person.

Profession: 4 a: a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation b: a principal calling, vocation, or employment

Professional: (1): characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a PROFESSION
(2): exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace
2 a: participating for gain or livelihood in an activity or field of endeavor often engaged in by amateurs

Now, take a look at these two videos and see if you can match the definitions listed above with either and the different portions of each. The first video has a soundtrack so you may want to turn your volume down a little. Use the "Back" button in your browser to navigate back to The Tailboard.

Fully Involved

People Hangin'

Ok, so we've seen a couple examples of fire operations that both resulted in the same ending, that bein' the fire went out. Did you have the definitions of the three P's in your noggin while you were watching them? Then let's talk.

The first video out of PGFD is a wicked pissah. Lots of fire, looks impressive, bad-ass fire men get in, get on it, get out, right? So, that particular company is obviously passionate about the job. They should be proud of what they accomplished and from what we can see they generally operated with the professionalism we expect in the fire service. But does it stand up to our definitions?

Passionate: intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction, a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept. Check. I think all those things are obvious from watching the video. I certainly can't fault them there. But what about the part of the definition that reads, the state or capacity of being acted on by external agents or forces? Like maybe, a big fire with people standing and pointing? Could we safely say that maybe the members were acted upon by these outside forces and felt the need to be as aggressive as they were? I don't know if this house was occupied or if it was a vacant. Now, keeping in mind that we only have the front of the building to look at, do we think that anyone is alive in that house? Did the situation that is presented warrant firefighters advancing past and underneath fire into a structure that was being greatly weakened by the minute? Since the person who narrates the beginning of the video doesn't mention a rescue being made (pride and professionalism) I can only assume there was no life safety threat. Except to the firefighters operating!

Pride: a reasonable or justifiable self-respect, delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship. Check. This company can definitely be proud of their performance and of bangin' out the red devil. But again, what about the part about conceit and of an ostentatious display? Did they have to do what they did or did they simply do it because there was a structure, it was on fire and it's what they're supposed to do? Or, and even worse, did they do it because they really wanted to show the second-in companies what they are made of? Or to "protect" their "good" name as an aggressive interior attack company?

Professionalism: the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession, or a professional, a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation, person exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace. Again, check. Sort of. From what we can tell these brothers and/or sisters did perform in a courteous, conscientious and generally businesslike manner and they obviously had the training that was required to accomplish the job. But, you see what's coming right? What about characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession? What about using the specialized knowledge and academic learnings to take in all the information being presented and make an informed decision as to which mode to use to attack this fire? It seems as if they forgot all about that and were drawn like the proverbial moth to the flame. Pun intended. This is just my observation from the comfort of my easy-chair next to my roaring fireplace, but I don't consider this video an example of conforming to the technical standards of our profession and should someone have gotten hurt or killed the ethics could be called into question also.

I know, I know. There are about a thousand of you out there jumping up and down screaming that I'm soft for even suggesting this. That I'm all safety conscious and am what's wrong with the fire service today. Take a blow for a second. Even though we just met and haven't developed what I'd call a deep and meaningful relationship yet, I'm asking you to trust me in something. If I thought there were a live person in that building I might just be right there with our brothers in the video. If I thought there were a downed/lost/disoriented firefighter in that building you wouldn't see me in the video because I would be inside trying to get at 'em. But barring those two situations I don't see what there was to save in this video and how the risk to the members operating was justified. It's just not good enough anymore to say, "well it's just what we do." Gratefully this example turned out with no one seriously injured or killed. It very easily could have been the opposite and all the officers of this company would have been able to say would have been, "we gave the bulldozer operator  a job for the day."

On to the second video. This is obviously out of FDNY and happened to be in Squad 252's first-due area in Brooklyn. Again, another wicked pissah of a video with people from the block jumping in to help out the victims trapped on the uppers, ladder rescues being made and smoke pushin'. Good stuff. One of the main reasons I picked this video was because of a comment that was made on the website where I found it. Our supposed brother or sister had this to say about the video, "this video is disappointing.  it shows a lack of motovation and speed in the action of the fdny members at this fire.  People are trapped.  The first due company should be RUNNING to put a line in place not dicking around like a bunch of volunteers in hoe-dunk nowhere.  Lives are at stake here and yet the first due engine has poor positioning and slow line placement.  Why?" Punctuation, spelling and capitalization, or lack thereof, original to author. So, does what we see stand up to our definitions? Is the comment author on track? Let's see.

Pride: the quality or state of being proud, a reasonable or justifiable self-respect, delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship, a source of pride : the best in a group or class, a showy or impressive group. Hmmm. Check, check, check, check and double-check. Inordinate self-esteem : CONCEIT, ostentatious display? Not that I see. The brothers in this video should be justifiably proud of the job they performed on this scene. Were there problems, issues? Of course. There are on every scene. But the job was still accomplished while putting our ultimate mission first; life safety.

Passion: the state or capacity of being acted on by external agents or forces, intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction, a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept. Check and check. The difference I see in this video versus the first in regards to being acted upon by external forces is towards the positive. The members in this video saw the life-safety issue, identified it and addressed it immediately in a calm and professional manner. They were influenced by these outside forces but used their passion for the job (as well as some training and experience) to drive them to a positive outcome. If you only sort of like your job or are ambivalent towards it you will not be able to perform at this level.

Professionalism: I think this is where the comment author misses his mark. The conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession, or a professional person, a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation, characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession, exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace, participating for gain or livelihood in an activity or field of endeavor often engaged in by amateurs. Do I even need to waste my time? Check.

Lest some of you think that this is an FDNY love-fest and that I have something against PGFD, it's not and I don't. Both organizations have immensely talented and dedicated personnel. Both organizations have rich tradition and history and reputations. There are problems and issues everywhere. I simply chose two videos that I felt could be used to discuss the three P's. As I stated in the opening these three words can and should be right at the heart of what we do. They can, however, be easily misinterpreted or their meanings twisted to justify certain mindsets or behaviors. Hopefully my ramblings sparked some thinking on your behalf.

Now. Don't we have some work to do? Getjerbutts off 'da tailboard and go do somethin'.

~TK

 

Posted by on April 20, 2011 • Filed under: Archive, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, Tactics, Tradition, Pride, Ownership • Tagged: , , , , ,