Tuesday, December 2, 2008
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. ...
Seeing Red
Driving through Downers Grove, a suburb of Chicago, I pulled over for a fire truck coming down the street. As I waited for the truck to pass by, I checked to see if the crew was wearing seatbelts. Sure enough, I saw red! The bright red seatbelts strapped across the turnout gear of the officer and on the driver made me smile. ...
Thoughts from the Safety Summit
By Janet Wilmoth, Editorial Director
Last weekend, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation's second National Line-of-Duty Death Safety Summit brought together 225 leaders of emergency services organizations and associations to review the 16 Life-Safety Initiatives and recommend specific actions to stop firefighter deaths. ...
Safety Stand Down Expands to Full Week
The third International Firefighter and EMS Safety Stand Down will be expanded from one day to one week this year to allow fire departments maximum flexibility for participating in the exercise. Sponsored by the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the International Association of Fire Fighters, and the IAFC's Volunteer and Combination Officers Section, the stand down will be held June 17-23 and feature the theme "Ready to Respond." ...
LODD Summit Develops Action Plan for Safety
More than 200 fire service leaders met at the second National Line-of-Duty Death Prevention Summit in Novato, Calif., to review the 16 Firefighter Life-Safety Initiatives, determine whether the fire service had improved on them and establish an action plan for the future. ...
NFPA Updates PASS Standard
The National Fire Protection Association has updated NFPA 1982, Personal Alert Safety Systems, to address safety issues first discovered in December 2005. The 2007 edition of NFPA 1982 contains revisions providing for strengthened performance requirements and testing regarding the alarm signal degradation issue. The new edition also addresses other issues, including problems caused by vibration, probably during transportation, and water ingress into the electronic and power supply compartments....
IAFC Offers PASS Device Safety Tips
As MSNBC.com and NBC Nightly News continue to report on the issue of PASS devices failing in high temperatures, the International Association of Fire Chiefs is offering several recommendations for PASS device safety in fire departments. ...
Find & Replace
By Janet Wilmoth
Last month, a cadet was killed during a live-fire training drill in Baltimore. In the many newspaper articles about the incident, replace with your department's...
Bunker Gear Survey Needs Your Measurements
The National Fallen Fire Fighters Foundation and the Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association are trying to obtain better information about the size, shape, weight and reach of firefighters wearing bunker gear. This information will help manufacturers design products that are better configured to fit today’s firefighters....
Whistle-Stop Tour to Promote Firefighter Safety
The Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives program is undertaking a 17-city Whistle-Stop Tour to bring firefighter and public awareness to the Everyone Goes Home program. This major event will cross the United States to bring knowledge to the thousands of people affected by line-of-duty deaths. ...
NIOSH Reports Go Electronic
The agency will cease distributing paper copies of fatality reports....
Stress Reliever
When can a firefighter's stress cross into a debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder? Paul Antonellis Jr., a retired fire chief from Salisbury, Mass.,...
Buckle Down
By Dr. Burton A. Clark
Enforcing a strict seatbelt policy will take strength and determination by the fire chief...
Little Cost, Big Improvement
By Chris Cavette
You may want to consider some upgrades for improved safety and performance...
Bottle Service
Self-contained breathing apparatus are right beside radios in the quest for interoperability and interchangeability...
Connectivity
By Janet Wilmoth, Editorial Director
I just returned from one of my favorite conferences, the Fire Department Safety Officers Association's 19th Annual Apparatus Specification & Maintenance Symposium in Orlando. There were more than 60 presenters for 28 programs, with chief officers and industry specialists teaming up to share experience and knowledge. ...
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