Posts Categorized: Officership
Safety a Priority? Never…
When an officer asks for help who has tools to help defend them self asks for help we don't question it for a second. When an EMT or Paramedic who is in a jam with nothing but maybe a heavy object that we'll get cremated for using in defense asks for help we question them. Why are you asking for police? Why do you need help? Are you still moving? Did you stop? Is this really an emergency? Do we need to make this a priority? Lets waste three more minutes making a phone call.. and when they have no answers we may as well do something about it.
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Fire Service Writing and Blogging: We were on a roll…
We were on a roll...
Remember when the new buzz going around the Internet was all about better ways to do the job? Better tactics, little nuggets, the tips and tricks. That wasn't all that long ago. I remember one of the websites that I really t…
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Professional Always
No matter what happens and what the units in the field are doing or saying over the radio it is the dispatcher's job to be a professional always. Being a professional always is our job we set the tone over the radio just like managing a hysterical caller we need to do our best to bring those in the field back to the ground so that we can do our job and they can do theirs.
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Forcible Entry – The Bam Bam Tool – By: Paul Hoekema
There are numerous ways to manipulate an American Series 2000 type lock to force entry (hockey puck locks with the key way on the rim of the lock not the face).
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Fact or nothing like it…
You can never be sure about the validity of a caller’s information when they dial 911. There are many factors that contribute to what they’re saying that you may not be aware of. Whether they’re hysterical and think the end of their world has arrived, or they’re way to drunk to make any logical sense of a situation what is being said may not be true.
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Dispatcher Stress & Comfort
Dispatcher stress especially in an E-911 setting is something that is not accounted for in the manner that it should be. Personally I feel that proper stress management, incident debriefing, and insuring for the well being of our personnel is very short changed across the board in Emergency Services whether it's Police, Fire, EMS, or Communications.
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Just Because
A mentor of mine once said: “We are called into people's lives when they are at their worst. Times when someone would want to hide from their family, their best friend, their loved ones… and call on a perfect stranger to help. This is an honor and should be treated as such.”
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Beyond the Academy Video Training Series – Engine Operations: Hydraulic Ventilation
Check out the newest Beyond the Academy Video Training Series. This one is entitled "Engine Company Operations: Hydraulic Ventilation with a Smooth-bore/Solid Stream Nozzle.
Many fire service members believe that a fog nozzle is the only nozzle tha…
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Coordinated Ventilation – Part II by Nate DeMarse
I stumbled upon a couple videos that drive home points made in the earlier Coordinated Ventilation post. These videos clearly show answers to previously asked questions, and bring up some new discussion tips as well. This is precisely how we should …
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Coordinated Ventilation
Take a look at these two videos for a great example of coordinated ventilation. The outside vent (OV) firefighter on the fire escape waits until the line is putting water on the fire to take the windows. Doing so helps the engine make the adv…
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Pressure Reducing Valves – By: Chris Collier
Lack of water on the fire is a fire ground problem that seldom stands alone. When water is not being applied to the fire at the proper rate we can all agree that things get worse on the fire ground. When we look at fires where maydays or fire…
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More About Nozzles – By: Mike Kirby
This is a debate that plagues the fire service. Most of the personal "experience" or "knowledge" from this debate stems from lack of knowledge or understanding of the simple principle that GPM (properly applied) puts out fires. Some b…
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The In-Line Pressure Gauge – By: Chris Collier
The in-line pressure gauge is an essential and often overlooked piece of equipment when operating off of a standpipe. From the earliest days of our pump operator training we are taught to start at the nozzle and work back to the pump to calculate t…
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Some Facts About Standpipes – By: Chris Collier
Did you know standpipe systems are designed to deliver a prescribed amount of water at a prescribed pressure to the top most outlet? Unless you are a fire inspector or you are really into engine company operations you may not have put much thought …
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Brotherhood Instructors class in Wildwood NJ
Brotherhood Instructors, LLC. will be presenting our 8-hour hands-on "Beyond the Academy: Engine & Ladder Company Operations" class on Thursday September 15, 2011. This course is hosted by the Cape May County Fire Chiefs Assn. - Click…
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Tactical Discussion: Apartment Fire w/ Critical Decisions by: Nate DeMarse
An excellent video surfaced this week that addresses some very critical decisions that must be made in seconds at this early arriving apartment fire in downtown Mamaroneck, New York.
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Why Search That Building – By: Scott Brown
We respond to building fires daily in the fire service and the assignment of primary search has taken a back seat. Primary search is a critical benchmark and essential task to be completed. This task should be simultaneously completed with li…
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The Truth About Nozzles – By: Rob Feltwell & Chris Collier
The following article was written based on research conducted by the authors in the summer of 2010. Our hope is to educate the fire service with real facts about nozzles. Feel free to add your questions, comments, and suggestions. Click…
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Psyched Out
As with most who work in my profession, I have had my fair share of psychiatric patients. Some how, as prehospital clinicians we take on the role as not only medical professionals, but mental health professionals as well. Do these patient's…
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Building Construction Features – Cornices, By: Andrew Brassard
It amazes me that we teach safety officers to spot a gloveless hand at 100 yards but we spend very little time talking about the hazards of balloon frame buildings, knee walls, fire spread issues, ordinary construction, etc.
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We Try Harder
"Zero defects" is a pretty lofty goal, but in our business, zero defects may be the difference between life and death.
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A Tale of Two, Two Tiers
Disclaimer: I appologize for the format of the text as this is one of my first blog entires with this interface, and for some reason it and Word didn't want to play nicely. I tried to fix it up best I can. Future posts will no…
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Power of Positive
I have heard it said that the only reason a bee can fly is because it doesn't know it shouldn't.
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Tillered Aerials and Safety Collaboration
We find too often that people are unwilling to accept the observations and experiences of others and instead "reinvent the wheel" regularly, wasting time and money in the process.
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The Way of The Chief
What constitutes the next leader of the fire service? Which qualities break someone out from the pack?
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