Departments that don’t take succession planning seriously very often end up with officers who make poor decisions on the fireground, which can lead to disastrous consequences, said Anthony Kastros, battalion chief with the Sacramento (Calif.) Metropolitan Fire District.
FEMA and its partners recently released the 2012 National Preparedness Report (NPR). The report found that, while there are areas for improvement, the nation has increased its preparedness to address external threats, as well as to natural and technological hazards....More
CVS recently completed a public/private partnership with a Louisiana parish in which the company will donate a plot of land and then build a brand-new fire station in exchange for existing fire-district land....More
Departments that don’t take succession planning seriously very often end up with officers who make poor decisions on the fireground, which can lead to disastrous consequences, said Anthony Kastros, battalion chief with the Sacramento (Calif.) Metropolitan Fire District....More
I rarely ask you for anything, but this week I am. Please take the time to read the investigative series published this week in the Chicago Tribune that examines the relationship between the fire-retardant and tobacco industries. This is one of the most significant reports I have read in all my years writing about the fire service....More
Volunteers I’ve talked to believe that the $7 billion allocated to build the network could be used more immediately for essential resources many departments lack — even though many don't realize that if the money didn’t go to the network, it would disappear and not be reallocated....More
Senior Editor Mary Rose speaks with Dennis Compton about the need for fire-service leaders to keep their egos in check, tap into opinion leaders, encourage higher education, and let go of past mistakes....More
The Fire Department Safety Officers Association has issued a final call for nominations for its 2012 Safety Officer of the Year Award. The deadline is May 15....More
“Funeral Procedures for Firefighters” provides a step-by-step explanation on how to work with the family of the deceased to honor their service....More
Junior firefighters’ comfort level using social media to communicate with friends can lead to fire departments’ liability, said J. Curtis Varone, a Rhode Island–based attorney and retired deputy chief who works on fire-service legal issues....More
Senior Editor Mary Rose Roberts speaks with Curt Varone, an attorney and retired deputy chief, about generational differences regardingi social-media use, and what liablity fire departments can face if they don't have social-media policies in place....More
We did not directly choose to move to this new digital age of radio communications. All of this is a mandate from the FCC in post-9/11 directives for interoperability driven in the direction of narrowbanding, digital and P25 communications systems. If your jurisdiction has not felt the pinch yet, wait for it, it is coming....More
My dad is a planner, and it was essential he stuck to his plan: He would work until age 65 — maybe longer, if the department would let him — and retire with full benefits. Those benefits would be enough to take care of his wife, keep their home after retirement and still have some left over to leave a little to the kids. Nowhere in that plan was there room for a retirement forced by a career-killing diagnosis....More
An economic downturn means municipalities are handing down more forced retirements, according to Paul Antonellis, a retired fire chief and adjunct professor at Southern New Hampshire University....More
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Every retirement is different, but I knew after I retired I was going to need something to keep me busy and it had to be something I enjoyed.
By chiefcfd on May 1, 2012