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Wednesday, May 29, 2013 All Firefighters enjoy the "occasional night" of wings and beers, right?? Well, save the date, come on out and enjoy them both and help out our Fire Company at the same time! Thanks in advance............
Tuesday, June 18, 2013 SOFA SUPER STORE “CHARLESTON NINE” DETAILS At 1908hrs on June 18th 2007, the first call was received for a fire in the Sofa Super Store located at 1807 Savannah Highway. The 42,000 square foot building would start in the loading dock behind the store and eventually would take over the rest of the structure. At 1941hrs a flashover occured with at least 16 members still operating inside killing 9 of them. Rest Easy Brothers! MEMORIALS The current site sits as a grass lot; however plans to turn the site into a park and memorial are being planned. On March 25, 2008, it was announced that South Carolina state lawmakers had approved a bill to name a 3.6 mile stretch of U.S. Route 17 in honor of the fallen Charleston firefighters. The designated section, to be named the "Charleston Nine Memorial Highway The Summerville High School basketball team, of which Captain Louis Mulkey was an assistant coach, was presented with a custom memorial fire helmet by the Charleston Fire Department. The team placed the helmet on the bench for each of the team's games in the 2007-08 season. Summerville went on to win its first-ever state basketball championship. DECEASED Captain Louis Mulkey, Engine 15 Captain Mike Benke, Engine 16 Captain William Hutchinson, Engine 19 Engineer Bradford Baity, Engine 19 Engineer Mark Kelsey, Tower 5 Engineer Michael French, Tower 5 Firefighter Melven Champaign, Engine 16 Firefighter James Drayton, Engine 19 Firefighter Brandon Thompson, Tower 5GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN!
5 alarm PennDOT building fire.
Sunday, June 16, 2013 On June 16, 1994 at 0607 the Harrisburg Bureau of Fire B-Platoon was awakened to Box 1-1, 800 Commonwealth Ave at the PennDOT building for an automatic fire alarm. First in units discovered a large area of the 6th floor to be heavily involved with fire. The incident quickly escalated to 5 alarms plus numerous special calls and was brought under control in 2 hours and 14 minutes. The Harrisburg Bureau of Fire turned out 51 firefighters to the scene and the surrounding mutual aid companies turned out over 200 volunteer firefighters. Environmental Protection Services was special called to set up a mass decon after asbestos was discovered on the fire floor. This massive decon took several hours to decontaminate over 250 firefighters, their gear, equipment and SCBA. Multiple Firefighters were also treated for heat stroke, exhaustion and other medical conditions due to the high humidity and tempratures being in the mid 90’s. Local area EMS was also taxed due to this large scale incident. The PennDOT building was later imploded on August 1st 1998 due to extensive damage on three floors of the building. Click the link for additional information and a short clip of the collapse http://reamstown.org/gn/pendot.htm Chronology of the incident: 0607- Tower 1, Engine 6, Wagon 4, Squad 8 and Chief 8 dispatched for an AFA, LT 8 (Bair) on the interior eventually found heavy smoke and fire on the 6th floor and requested a 2nd alarm. *** 0622- 2nd alarm Tower 2, Wagon 3 and Chiefs 1, 2 and 3 *** Transfer, Engine 30-1 to City Station 2 (The Hill), Truck 12 to City Station 1 (Uptown) and Truck 32 standing by at Station 32. *** 0630- 3rd alarm Engines 30-1 and 37-2, Trucks 12 and 32 and Cumberland Air 11 *** Harrisburg Bureau of Fire Recalling five Firefighters and one Officer for manning of Engine 2 at City Station 2. 0631- Transfer, Cumberland Engine 115 and Truck 50 to City Station 1 and Engine 40, Truck 34 and Rescue 44 to City Station 2. *** 0640- 4th alarm Engines 40 and Cumberland 115, Rescue 44, Trucks 34 and 50 *** 0643- Transfer, Engines 32 and 41, Trucks 46 and 57 (Middletown) to City Station 1, Engines 43 and 34 and Truck 456 to City Station 2. Standby, Engine 31-1 at Station 31. Standby, Truck 35 at Station 35. 0659- Special call, Engine 2 with Harrisburg Bureau of Fire Recall personnel to the scene and Rescue 40 to scene to supplement Engine 40. 0702- Transfer, Engine 69 (Duncannon) and Truck 48 to Station 32 and Lebanon Truck 1 to Station 34. 0707- Transfer, Engine 47-1 to Station 30. 0715- Chief 1 ordered incoming A Platoon to fireground. 0723- Special call, Engines 41 and 34, Truck 57 (Middletown) to the scene. *** 0724- 5th alarm, Engines 32, 43, and 31-1, Trucks 46 and 456 *** 0729- Transfer, Rescue 56 to Station 44. 0732- Special call, Truck 35 to the scene. 0736- Transfer, Engine 50-1 and Truck 8 to City Station 1 and Engine 33-2 to City Station 2. 0746- Special call, Air 35 to the scene. 0756- Transfer, Engine 55 to Station 34. *** 0821- Fire under control by order of Chief 1*** 0827- Special call, Special Unit 34 to scene for the 40" PPV fan. 0836- Special call, EMS M 1-2 to scene. 0844- Standby, Cumberland Engine 16 @ Station 16. 0857- Engine 33-2 and HFD Chief 3 handle an AFA at 1301 N. 6th St, The Lick Bldg on the 6th floor and found unattended cooking. 0859- Special call, (by EMS) Tanker 37 to scene for folding tank so overheated personnel could cool off. Tanker 37 dropped their tank, filled it and returned to quarters. 0950- Transfer, Cumberland Engine 3-30 to Station 43. 0957- Engine 33-2, 50-1, Truck 8 and Chief 7 handle another AFA at 1301 N. 6th St. The Lick Bldg. 1000 to 1030- B Platoon relieved at scene. 1201- Special call, Cumberland Engine 210 and Squad 14 to the scene. 1208- Special call, Cumberland Rescue 18 to the scene and transfer Cumberland Engine 36 to Company 15 and Cumberland Engine 23 to Company 14. 1223- Special call, Cumberland Squad 16 to scene. 1240- Transfer, Engine 37-2 to City Station 1. 1245- Special call, Truck 8 to the scene and transfer Truck 57 (Middletown) from scene to City Station 1. 1305- Special call, Engine 50-1 and E33-2 to the scene. Transfer Engine 1-15 and Truck 34 from the scene to City Station 2. 1438- Special call, Rescue 59 and York Rescue 68 to the scene. 1607- All first alarm units released from the scene. 1634- Special call, Wagon 3 to the scene. 2041- Special call, Engines 6 and 2 with Captain 3 to scene for further ventilation. INCIDENT COMMAND: COMMAND POST - Chief 1(Konkle) and Dauphin County Chief 32-2 (Gevers) located on Commonwealth Ave (in the street) at the Main Entrance to the PennDot Building.(Side 1) STAGING-Chief 8(Reed) located on Forster St.(Side 4) SAFETY-Chief 2(Berry) on Fifth Floor INTERIOR-Captain 3(Hartman) on Fifth Floor LOGISTICS-Chief 3(Kuntz) at Command Post PIO-handled jointly by PennDot and Mayor Reed VENTILATION-Lieutenant 10(Pelton)
Tuesday, June 11, 2013 So your company gets dispatched MVA that involves a GMC Acadia and your officer assigns you to secure the 12 volt power-source. Your immediate reaction is to go straight to hood? With this vehicle it shouldn’t be, also don’t bother looking in the rear storage area too it’s not there. The battery is located in the floor pan behind the front passenger seat. There is one small screw to deal with on the battery cover underneath the 2nd row cross car floor mat, a T20 Trox screwdriver/bit. Since you are securing the power you should just be able to pry the plastic cover up. Keep in mind that the GMC Acadia, Chevrolet Traverse, Buick Enclave and Saturn Outlook share the GM Lambda platform. The Saturn Outlook is no longer produced anymore, but those vehicles can still be on the road. Train Hard, Train Often, Train As You Fight, And Never Be Too Proud To Learn! By Staff Correspondent Kelly Lemmons
Saturday, June 8, 2013 Old School Rescue: A History Lesson Until the latter years of the 1800s, firefighters were not focused on saving lives. The antebellum firefighter concentrated primarily on the protection of property. One way in which we know this is through the art work of the day. Few of the images of firefighters, which were commissioned by the individual companies, showed them involved in life saving activities or interior operations. It was not until later in the nineteenth century that the emphasis shifted from the protection of property to life with the expanded use of ladder and rescue companies. Back a couple of years, in 1877, following a tragic fatal fire at the Southern Hotel in which twenty two people died, and numerous rescues were made by sheets tied together into ropes—a story for another day—the St. Louis Fire Department established the first Pompier Corps. Christopher Hoell, a German immigrant, and Zero Marx lead the unit and taught climbing and rescue skills to other departments across the country. They used specially developed scaling ladders, a belt with a large hook, which will still be familiar to most, and ropes. These ladders were a 12 to 16 foot long skeleton type which were not simple to use, but provided access to buildings blocked by wires or trees, and to elevations above that which could be reached by aerial ladders. Multiple Pompier ladders could be used, which with rope, provided a way to get hose lines to upper floors, via the exterior The top of the ladder, with its iron catch, would be hooked over a window sill, and the firefighter would climb the narrow rungs to the window. He would stand on the sill and pull the ladder up and raise it to the next window and repeat the process. This required considerable dexterity, strength, balance, and a large dose of intestinal fortitude, to use polite terminology. The use of Pompier ladders quickly spread far from St. Louis. These ladders remained a presence on at least some ladder trucks for almost a century, have been used for “confidence” training by some academies, and hang in many fire houses today as a reminder of a storied past. Gary Ryman Author of Fire Men: Stories From Three Generations of a Firefighting Family www.fire-men-book.com
Thursday, June 6, 2013 NORMANDY LANDINGS “D-DAY” DETAILS With the world already at war for two years, President Roosevelt appointed General Eisenhower as the Supreme Allied Commander in December 1943. He was given this title with simple orders: "Enter the Continent of Europe, and in conjunction with other United Nations, undertake operations aimed at the heart of Germany and the destruction of her armed forces" After months of planning and training, at 0630hrs on June 6th, 1944 the Allied forces executed Operation Overlord. Prior to the beach landing, 24,000 Allied paratroopers, including 13,000 Americans were dropped behind enemy lines in the attempt to take key positions such as bridges and roads. The mission was to slow and eliminate the German troop movement in their attempt to suppress the beach landings and counter attack the Americans. Despite nearly half of the paratroopers being misdropped, they were successful. A 50 mile section of the Normandy coast was divided into five sections: Beaches Juno, Gold, Omaha, Utah, and Sword; as well as Pointe du Hoc would become the site for 156,000 American, UK, Canadian, French, Polish, Norwegian, Australian and New Zealand forces attempting to break the 10,000 Germans and the Atlantic Wall. Pillboxes, machine guns, anti-tank guns, artillery and mines met the forces delivered by 6,939 naval ships. The operation was the largest amphibious invasion in world history and would have the Allies as the decided victor. With the Invasion on June 6th, Victory in Europe Day would come in eleven months, as well as the official end to World War II in fifteen months. AFTERMATH In total, 9,102 Americans were either killed, wounded, missing or prisoners of war during the landing and air drop operations. There is no official German total; however it is believed 4,000-9,000 were killed. The term “D-Day” in military terms is a phrase indicating the day upon an event will or has occurred and is not limited to just the Normandy Landing. At the time, several German Panzer divisions were in reserve. Earlier in the war these divisions could be activated by a general, however Hitler in his growing insecurity declared that only he can order said divisions into action. On the morning of the Invasion, these divisions sat idle due to the staff afraid to awake Hitler and inform him of the assault. Prior to the Invasion, SAC Eisenhower wrote a success and failure statement. In the failure statement that was never read, he said “If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt, it is mine alone.” At his funeral in 1968, President Nixon spoke these words of Eisenhower: “Some men are considered great because they lead great armies or they lead powerful nations. For eight years now, Dwight Eisenhower has neither commanded an army nor led a nation; and yet he remained through his final days the world's most admired and respected man, truly the first citizen of the world.” In Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, 9,387 Allied soldiers are buried in the 172 acre Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. Not to be opened until June 6th, 2044, another memorial site hosts a time capsule covered by a granite slab with a bronze plaque stating: “In memory of General Dwight D. Eisenhower and the forces under his command. This sealed capsule containing news reports of the June 6, 1944 Normandy landings is placed here by the newsmen who were here, June 6, 1969.” In 1988, two geologists visited Omaha Beach and collected sand samples. Upon examination, shrapnel was found. While the veterans of the war slowly leave us, there will always be a physical reminder of that day in one form or another. http://www.army.mil/d-day/ STORY BY MATT LEONARD
Wednesday, June 5, 2013 Good morning Central Pa, here is a few motivating words while you drink your coffee this morning....The Next Guy By Sam BaretichThis story is a satire of four fire service employees: Everybody, Somebody, Nobody, You, and The NextGuy.You're probably saying "Wait, that's five employees. This guy can't even count, let alone do a hydraulicsformula in his head!" You will understand my math shortly.At every fire department across the country, there are thousands of things to do around the station everyday in between emergency calls. Everybody seems to think that their training could be better, their facilitiescould be nicer, and their equipment could be in better operating condition. We all know how it is--firefighters like to complain. The problem, it seems, is that Everybody thinks it's the job of Somebody to make these improvements, when the reality is that Nobody is taking the initiative to make things happen.So in turn Everybody begins to suffer.All that needs to happen is for Somebody to start doing the little things that really add up after a while andthat Everybody benefits from. Nobody seems to notice the small changes at first. But the reality is thatSomebody will start to notice You doing some of the little things and, in turn, Somebody will start helpingYou.The snowball effect starts happening and pretty soon Everybody is busy making it a better place to work.After a while, Nobody is sitting around talking about how things could be better.If you noticed, this little story took a turn in the fourth paragraph with the introduction of the word YOU.After YOU became involved in the situation, things started to change. When YOU started to do a little,Somebody noticed and started doing a little too. The moral is that: Nobody has an excuse for expectingSomebody to do the little things that Everybody benefits from. It's up to YOU to do the little things thatmake this place better for Everybody.Don't leave things for The Next Guy to take care of. You see, The Next Guy got tired of picking up the slack for Everybody and just quit doing all that little stuff. Nobody realized how much The Next Guy was doing until that stuff just wasn't getting done, leaving Everybody wishing that Somebody would start doingthat stuff again.It's real simple. Make a point to leave it better than you found it.This is defined by things like:• Sweeping out the floorboards and wiping the dust off the apparatus dash every morning during rig checks. This is called pride. The apparatus are not yours, they are provided to You, by the taxpayers, for You to take care of and to provide a service to them. In turn, this is also how you are making a living. After all, you could be hanging wallboard! Show them You appreciate theopportunity to use this equipment.• Do good rig checks; I mean really good rig checks. This is also a component of pride.• Make sure every tool is in the condition You would want it in if your house was the one on fire.• Make sure the back of the medic unit is as clean as You would want it to be if, heaven forbid, one of your family members were the next ones to be transported in it. Make sure it is in this condition after every call. Yep, pride again. Pride should be what that sticker in the window of your vehiclemeans to you. The sticker looks cool. Pride around the department looks cool, too.• When You walk by something at the station that wasn't put back in its place, return it to its place regardless of whether or not You were the one who used it. There is a chance that Nobody will notice it but there is a better chance that Somebody will. Either way, Everybody will benefit fromwhat You did.• It can be as simple as turning the lights and TV off when You leave the room or switching thewater temperature to cold on the washing machine. Lights and hot water cost money. Having You riding around in half-million dollar fire engines 10 days a month costs money, too. The money for both comes from the same place. You make the choice--through your actions--about which is more important to You: A well-lit, empty room, or the security that the taxpayers will be able toafford to keep You riding around in that truck. Pretty simple.• Take a look around. If something is dirty, clean it. If something is broke, fix it, or at least makesure initiate the process to fix it.• If something isn't in the condition that You would be proud for a member of another department to see, then change it so You would be proud.• If You see Somebody doing something, put the smartphone down and go see if they need a hand.You may actually learn something from what Somebody else is doing. Eventually Everybodywould have the knowledge of Somebody and Nobody would be doing all the work.• Take care of yourself; your body is the most important tool of the trade. Everybody is counting on you to do this.• Cherish traditions but embrace progressive change. Traditions are what Somebody else did in the past. Progressive change is what You should be a part of today. What You are doing now will be the traditions of Somebody tomorrow that Everybody will cherish. In a few years, Nobody willunderstand why You were so resistant to the idea of making a few changes for the better.• Get involved your organization's union and department functions. After all, You are the union, andYou are the department. What You do will make things better for Everybody. Even if You thinkNobody notices or cares, Somebody will benefit whether they realize it or not.• The Next Guy will appreciate the efforts Everybody has made. If You haven't figured it out yet, every morning when You show up to relieve the guy going home, You fill the role of The Next Guy. Five labels, four people. It's up to You to pick up up the slack of the fifth guy.Once again, leave it better than you found it. Sam Baretich joined the fire service in 1994 and is a captain with the Aberdeen (WA) Fire Department
Tuesday, June 4, 2013 "Pride and Ownership" is loud and clear at the Eden Fire Company in Lancaster County. The premise behind their murals is as; "you don your ppe and enter into the apparatus bay you are reminded that failure is not an option. Upon returning from the call you doff your gear and pass through the double doors into the station. The quote above those doors is to simply remind all that it was not their individual actions on the fire ground but the actions of the team that make us truely successful". Hard work and dedication by Ryan Spangler and Evan Hogan is evident in this awesome mural, good job men it is AWESOME! Check their website out at http://www.edenfire.com/newsroom/
Saturday, June 1, 2013 What does it mean to be a Firefighter in America? Being a Firefighter in America (career or volunteer) is one of the most rewarding, but yet the most physically and mentally demanding professions you can hold as a civilian. We face more frequent and dangerous incidents than any other country. People love Firefighters and what they do for the community We are the only service that still makes house calls in 5 minutes or less on average. It does not matter if it is a cat in a tree, a strange odor in your house, or a leaky pipe. We always show up willing to help. It also does not matter if that call for help is at 0300 and we work at 0700, Christmas dinner or our sons first birthday. You dial 911 and WE show up, period. With that being said, take a minute to click both links below. The first one is an example of the physical and mental tragedy we can face doing this profession. We become family with these men and woman we work, live, sleep and eat with. So this loss of life in Houston, Texas will be devastating both mentally and physically to the co-workers and family involved. http://statter911.com/2013/05/31/update-dead-and-injured-houston-firefighters-identified/ The second link shows the moments that make us PROUD, saving lives. These Brothers and Sisters came together in a moment’s notice and operated flawlessly saving these workers from certain death. These rescues in Jackson, Michigan that happened the day after a tragic loss of 4 Firefighters in Houston, Texas clearly show the HIGHS and LOWS of being an “American Firefighter”. http://statter911.com/2013/06/01/video-firefighters-rescue-6-workers-from-fire-in-large-building-being-demolished-in-jackson-mi/ We experience life and death on a daily basis, sometimes our own fall, but we pick up the pieces and keep going. We are American Firefighters, selfless public servants on the front line every day. By Matt Miles
Saturday, June 1, 2013 As firefighters we have to be ever so vigilant of our surroundings. This is in no way a new concept for green roofs, but with costs going down on new technology it’s becoming more and more prevalent in our local areas. We have to be aware of anything from hidden solar panels to vegetation on roofs. In August 2007, a vegetated roof was installed at Gannett Fleming’s corporate headquarters in Harrisburg, Pa. This roof was designed by the firm’s Architectural Group and installed on a converted plaza deck off of the Gannett Fleming East Building lobby. This 1,400-square-foot, four-inch-thick vegetated roof poses a huge problem for ventilation crews and could seriously hinder operations. If an older building is retrofitted with this style of roof was it properly done? Can it hold the weight under fire conditions? These are just some of the questions we have to ask ourselves. In September of 2012 Harrisburg City, PA was looking to convert City Hall’s roof to a green roof. Due to budget cuts it was not approved. It was to have an employee sitting area, imagine the weight! It’s apparent that these roofs are showing up more and more so get out there and take a look you’d be surprised what you might find! Train Hard, Train Often, Train As You Fight, And Never Be Too Proud To Learn! Story by Staff Correspondent Kelly Lemmons .
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