Friday, May 16, 2008
Language Barrier
Karen Eubanks
The holiday season was in full swing on the beautiful afternoon of Dec. 17, 2001. Unfortunately, it was also the day when a three-alarm fire at the Bonita...
Fireman's Fund Awards Grants, Thermal Imaging to Metro Atlanta
Blind Loyalty
By Vina Drennan
Soldiers are trained to obey orders: Snap to attention, salute smartly and state, Yes, Sir. Nowhere in the job description does questioning authority...
Art of Persuasion is More of a Science
[ Mike Chiaramonte ]
Once again, it's time to present the annual fire department budget to the city council. The chief put together a budget package and was ready to present...
Leading Causes of Nightclub, Bar Fires
The February 2003 Station Nightclub Fire in West Warwick, R.I., which killed 100 people, galvanized fire marshals and inspectors to revisit nightclubs...
Ready, Set, Read
By Meri-K Appy
As you know better than I do, fire departments wage daily battles not just against fires, EMS calls and the risk of personnel injury. You face increasing...
FEMA Announces $2 Million for Fire Prevention Grants
Department of Homeland Security
Post-Salvage Spores
By David C. Comstock
A fire starts in the kitchen and spreads to the upper floor of a modern, 2-story home. A neighbor notices smoke and calls the local fire department. A...
NFA Rolls Out Small-Town Fire Prevention
The National Fire Academy will offer a new course for boosting community fire prevention efforts in small towns and communities. Leading Community Fire...
Home Fire Deaths Linked to Alcohol
Alcohol plays a significant role in residential fire deaths and other fatal injuries, impairing up to 40% of people killed in home fires and more than...
Firewise Announces Recognized Sites
The National Firewise Communities Program recognized 41 communities in 2003 as official Firewise Communities/USA sites for their efforts to make homes...
A Call to Arms For Children's Sake
Pat West, Senior Editor
Against a winter fire season that seems to be taking a higher than normal toll on America's children, U.S. Fire Administration officials urge fire chiefs to fight back by turning up the volume on fire safety and prevention....
After A Serious Fire: Maximize Media Attention to Promote Safety
R. David Paulison, U.S. Fire Administrator
Against a winter fire season that seems to be taking a heavier than average toll, U.S. Fire Administrator Dave Paulison asks fire chiefs to rededicate themselves to getting their fire safety and prevention messages out to their communities. Based on tips and advice from experts at the USFA, he offers specific strategies to turning up the volume through the media....
NVFC Calls for Fire Prevention Award Nominations
The National Volunteer Fire Council is calling for nominations for its annual Fire Prevention Award, which will be presented at the NVFC Spring Meeting in May in Washington, D.C....
Home Safety Council Expert Network Launched
By joining the Home Safety Council Expert Network, fire and life safey experts gain access to free video and a whole suite of safety education resources to promote home injury prevention in their local communities....
Nominations for Heart Safe Community/PAD Award Due Friday
FIRE CHIEF Staff
Friday, Jan. 16, is the deadline for nominations for the Heart Safe Community/PAD Award sponsored by the International Association of Fire Chief's EMS Section and Medtronic Physio Control Corp....
Shelter Shock
By Asst. Commissioner Keith Harrap Acting Executive Director Operations Support New South Wales Rura
Few, if any, natural disasters evoke the gamut of emotions within a community more than the sight of a catastrophic wildland fire bearing down. The visual...
Speak Without Sound
By J. Freeman King
Smoke curls like a snake around the firefighter's face as fire hisses from the bedroom door. The young mother on the other side couldn't hear the firefighter...
What's in Your Go Kit?
Janet Wilmoth, Editor
Seeing the refugees of California's wildfires reminded me that preparedness is not just about training firefighters. It's about training the people who live in the communities your department protects, the "first layer of defense," according to Under Secretary Michael Brown....
ICC Offers Free Urban-Wildland Interface Code
International Code Council
In an effort to build safer, smarter and stronger homes in areas prone to wildfires, the International Code Council will provide its Urban-Wildland Interface Code free to communities.
"Since we can't stop people from building in areas that are at risk from wildfires, the least we can do is make sure they have every opportunity to minimize the danger," said James Lee Witt ICC CEO and former Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency....
Forest Service pilots pub-ed initiative in weather forecasts
The USDA Forest Service is participating in a pilot program in the West to deliver wildland fire and safety information to the public via TV weather forecasts....
FEMA Unveils Online Board Game for Kids
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency has unveiled a new, interactive Web-based board game for children as part of...
Maryland County Law Mandates Sprinkler Systems in Single-Family Homes
FIRE CHIEF Staff
The county executive of Montgomery County, Md., signed legislation today making it the largest jurisdiction in the nation to require sprinkler systems in new single-family homes. People who live in other residential buildings will get significant tax credits for installing sprinkler systems....
Get a Fire Protection Week Campaign Toolkit
FIRE CHIEF Staff
The National Fire Protection Association has posted a free campaign toolkit for use by the fire service during Fire Prevention Week, Oct. 5-11. It includes easy-to-use information and new materials never before available online, the NFPA says....
Under Watchful Eyes
By Rory J. Thompson, PIO, Rockville Centre (N.Y.) Fire Department
Take charge of the message that your community sees with an effective fire department information program....
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