Sunday, September 7, 2008
Drying Out
By Rick Markley
Getting turnout gear dry is a safety factor; here are a few approaches to getting wet gear back in service....
Fireman's Fund Donates $6.4 Million in 2007
Initial data collected in early January show that Fireman's Fund Heritage distributed an estimated 429 grants in 2007, for an estimated total of $6.4 million. ...
The Year Ahead
Janet Wilmoth janet@firechief.com
It’s not Big Brother watching you — it’s every citizen with a camera phone or recording device. Fire and emergency services personnel are under constant scrutiny....
LETTERS
Readers weigh in on safety as a system and breathing-air use....
IAFC Issues Vehicle Safety Reminder
The International Association of Fire Chiefs urges fire departments to review their vehicle operations policies and safety procedures in response to the increasing number of critical vehicle crashes involving fire and EMS response vehicles in the past several weeks....
Braced for Attack
By Phil Causer
United Kingdom emergency-response agencies drew up a CBRN plan, then put it to the test....
IAFC Introduces Fire/EMS Safety Support System
The Fire/EMS Safety, Health and Survival Week, formerly known as the Safety Stand Down, is now one of three components of the new comprehensive Fire/EMS Safety Support System, developed this year by the International Association of Fire Chiefs' Safety, Health and Survival Section. ...
DOJ to Fix PSOB Claims
The Department of Justice unveiled a new strategy to streamline the claim review process and address the backlog issue related to the Hometown Heroes Survivor Benefits Act....
Face Up to Reality
By Janet Wilmoth
This has been a difficult year for the fire and emergency services, particularly for its leaders. Two Baltimore Fire Department officers lost their jobs...
IMF Offers Cancer Tips
The International Myeloma Foundation issued the first guidelines for firefighters for the prevention and treatment of myeloma, a cancer of cells in the...
Situational Awareness Low in Attic Fires
By John Tippett
The National Firefighter Near-Miss Reporting System has received 65 near-miss reports relating to attic fires. Nearly half the submissions report a collapse...
Target Your Anger
Janet Wilmoth, Editorial Director
Last month a fire chief called me after the memorial service for the Charleston Nine. He was amazed at how unusually how unnervingly quiet the large sports was before the memorial service began....
Letters
Asst. Chief Brian Crawford's article To Die For on firefighter duty-to-die syndrome in the May issue generated a number of reader comments....
Leaders Urge PSOB Results
Leaders from the International Association of Fire Chiefs and the National Volunteer Fire Council called for the Department of Justice to begin awarding Public Safety Officer's Benefits....
Know Your Enemy, Then Open Negotiations
By Azarang "Ozzie" Mirkhah
Our real enemies are those who allow buildings to be built with little regard for the occupants' safety and even less regards for the firefighters' safety....
When One Goes Down
There are steps fire chiefs can take to prevent line-of-duty deaths and steps to ease the burden after one occurs....
Keep It Clean
By Rick Markley
Most agree that NFPA 1851 compliance protects crew and gear. There are just different ways to get there....
9 Firefighters Die in Charleston; IAFC Calls for Moment of Silence
Nine firefighters died last night in a Charleston, S.C., furniture warehouse-store fire. This is the largest number of fatalities in one incident since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks....
Three Die in Apparatus Accidents
A career captain and two volunteer firefighters died in separate accidents while responding to emergency calls in fire department apparatus....
NFFF Wraps Up Whistle-Stop Tour
The America's Fire Heroes Whistle-Stop Tour was deemed "an overwhelming success" by Chief Ron Siarnicki, executive director of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. The cross-country tour concluded earlier this month with an event in Framingham, Mass....
Safety Stand Down Resources Now Available
A wide variety of resources to support fire department participation in the 2007 International Fire and EMS Safety Stand Down are now available, according to the International Association of Fire Chiefs. The third annual stand down will be held the week of June 17–23....
IAFC Gears Up for Stand Down
The week-long “Ready to Respond” will focus on proper training and equipment levels. It also aims to prepare firefighters and emergency medical technicians to respond to, mitigate and return home safely from an emergency. ...
Escape Plan
By Marc Lusk
Mayday procedures should be as well-defined and as complete as possible, with guidelines for victims, rescue crews and incident commanders. ...
DHS Adopts NFPA Protective Equipment Standards
Three of the eight documents were adopted for the first time by DHS and the remaining five were re-adoptions of the latest editions of standards currently being recognized by DHS. ...
New Study Confirms Heart Attack Risk for Firefighters
As most first responders already know, the leading cause of death on duty among U.S. firefighters is coronary heart disease or CHD. In a new, large-scale study, researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health examined the link between heart attacks and firefighting, looking at specific job duties to see which might increase the risk of dying from a coronary event. ...
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