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Check out the 9/28 edition of Fire Engineering’s podcast, sponsored by the International Society of Fire Service Instructors. Hosted by DFC Steve Pegram (Xenia, OH), TT’s Nick Martin & Steve discuss fire service training resources on the internet, including our blog here at Traditions Training.
Thanks to Steve, Fire Engineering, and ISFSI for having us.
Ok. I didn’t believe it either. Height stricken nozzlenuts carry ladders too! Most of the time they are under used and much lighter and less cumbersome. Depending on the situation, the engine’s ladders can make a quick pick from a 2nd or 3rd floor. The way the ladders are carried on the rig can make a huge difference! (more…)
Left and Right Pockets
We use tools to get jobs done. We are always taught, from day one in probie school, always carry a tool in your hands. We are also taught to never give up your tool. We have a multitude of tools that we can get from the rig depending on the task at hand, but we can’t bring everything, every time….
Our pockets allow us to have a place to bring some important tools with us on EACH run. Selecting tools and equipment that you carry with you in your pockets, knowing where everything is, and verifying it each tour is extremely important. On the blog, we have shared with you some of what we carry and why…Here is what I have with me. My turnout gear has only 2 pockets on the outside of the coat, so I am sure like many of you, space is at a premium. Ok here we go…
So many things come into mind when this comment comes over the radio! Everything from building 
construction, access, fire location and the roof condition. Is the roof peaked, flat, wood or metal deck? These are just some of the considerations that will dictate, what tools will make the climb! All of which can be predetermined with district familiarization. Just a look around during the automatic alarm call or a glance at the neighborhood on the way back to your quarters. This can play a huge part in how efficient you and your company operate. (more…)
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Look at the picture to the right, it’s the pressure gauge on a SCBA bottle. Is this bottle full? I say its not… In the DC Fire Department the “books” say that when you check an air-pack, the minimum acceptable pressure is 4000psi. But these are 4500psi bottles, so that’s 500psi you’re giving up! By my math, thats a little over 10% of the SCBA bottle’s overall capacity – or about 6.5 minutes.
Unfortunately bottles like this get an “ok” during AM checks everyday – and I’m sure it happens all over the country. You can call me “anal” or tell me it’s no big deal, but it is a big deal. What is that 10%?
(Continuing in our “Pockets Series”, Brian Mcallister offered to share some of his thoughts. He is a close friend and one of the senior-men of DCFD TL-3 and a past Captain with the Silver Hill FD in Prince George’s County, MD)
I believe every firefighter should be self sufficient and ready for as much as possible (Combat Ready). With experience and information passed on by guys at scenes and the kitchen table you will over time figure out what works best for you and what you do as a member of your company. The things I carry with me are what I deem best for me and the ability to perform my job as efficiently and safely as possible.
I have spent 7 ½ years on Tower 3 in the Washington DC Fire Department and have accumulated what I feel makes me proficient on a fire ground for our demographics.
Hopefully, we have all seen the video from the 80’s that shows the companies operating a handline on a house fire and members outside in the driveway watching as the door slowly closes, cutting off the line and causing the mad scramble to get the members, who are out of air, and banging on the door. If you have not, it is attached below.
Most of us watch the video and, as we do with a lot of close calls and LODD, wonder how could that have had happened. Well, as old as the video is the situation occurred recently while I was operating at a rather “routine” house fire. The situation concerning this incident was not an indictment of the actions of the personnel but rather another example of how a routine incident became anything but….
I know we always try to work in pairs, but I also know that for many of us that its not always a reality. Here is a quick idea for forcing inward opening doors by yourself.
The stock “shoulder” of the Halligan (the top of the fork, where the shaft joins) is rounded (in the photo, fork on the left). If you try to use this rounded surface for striking, the slope tends to let the axe glance right off – losing a lot of force. A couple minutes with a grinder will square-off the top nicely, providing a firm striking surface. While one hand steadies the bar, you can use the other to strike the shoulder. As the bar gets “set”, you may be able to completely release the Halligan and step back and get full swings.
This technique is also useful when you do have a partner, but are in tight quarters. As an example, last shift we ran a mid-morning apartment fire in northwest DC. My partner & I were forcing doors as we searched the fire floor. In one apartment we encountered a door (what turned out to be a bedroom) locked with a knob-lock and tubular deadbolt. The door was in a hallway about 32″ wide – just wider than the length of the Halligan. As a result, I had no room to swing the axe onto the head of the Halligan. As an alternative, my partner positioned the bar and I struck the “shoulders” instead. This helped make quick work of the door.
Most of us have had the unfortunate experience of working/volunteering for a boss who is much more concerned about how something looks rather than how it works… Unfortunately you can see this illustrated on A LOT of fire apparatus out there.
A MAYDAY incident can be one of the most difficult incidents you’ll ever have to manage. There is so much information and so much emotion… Everyone will be yelling at you: in person, on the radio. Plus, you still have a fire to run.
I am certainly NOT of the “command boards and vests solve our problems” school of firefighting, however just like any other good, functional tool the proper command sheets can help you streamline the management of your incident and prevent you from forgetting important details.
Attached is the District of Columbia Fire Departments newly revised MAYDAY Management Worksheet. This is a city-wide sheet used by all command officers to manage the initial stages of a mayday. I think it has some very good parts:
In response to my last post regarding standpipe or high-rise racks, Tim Linke from Lincoln, NE had some valid questions about 2.5″ lines instead of 1.5″… Tim asks:
Now, for a question…and please don’t think that I’m trying to come off like a dick, for I haven’t had the pleasure (or displeasure) of fighting a high rise fire…but why the 1.5” instead of a 2 ½” line? In our area, we see potential for having restricted flows in standpipe systems, and coupled with the high friction loss of this line, I can see the benefit of having a larger caliber stream. Again, I’m just wondering and trying to learn. A lot of the literature out there (and I’ll be the first to say you can’t believe everything that you read) right now highly touts the 2 ½ line using a nozzle with an 1 1/8” smooth bore tip. What are your thoughts on this?
Tim, Doug Mitchell & I exchanged a few e-mails on the topic…. Here are our thoughts.
Be sure to keep an eye out in the October 2008 issue of Fire Engineering magazine, which will feature another article by Traditions Training instructor Nick Martin.
“Better Late than Never – Ladder Company Positioning When You’re Not First Due” will focus on the proper placement of aerial apparatus when you’re arriving after other companies have positioned and operations have begun. Attention is also given to “specialty” apparatus such as tower ladders.
“Practical Pockets” was something that I was taught very early in the fire service. If you take a look at the last few posts, that’s exactly what you’ll find. Depending on the characteristics of ones response area along with the rig that they’re riding on at the time, can determine exactly what fills they’re pockets! Working off of both Engine and Truck Company 8 in the City of Pittsburgh can through a lot of change into your game plan. First and foremost you have to be in the right frame of mind for the rig your on! Then pull from 
your district familiarization to know what type of building. All of this goes back to being “Combat Ready”! Being able to work smarter not harder promotes efficiency. I think you’ll find some interesting things in our pockets. Hopefully, you are carrying some of the same if it applies. Please share if you have something different! No secrets in survival! (more…)
It’s been seven long years since that unforgettable blue sky morning in September 2001. Many of our lives changed forever on that 11th day. It cut deep into all of us, whether an FDNY fireman or not….the emotions were there…
To all those who we lost: We will never forget you or your families left behind. We will carry on the great traditions of the job that you instilled in us, and promise to pass them along to the next brother thru the door. Rest easy brothers, we know you are here with us….
September 11th 2008
Especially those members of my company:
TL-13: Capt Walter Hynes, Fr. Tom Sabella, Fr. Gregory Stajk, Fr. Thomas Hetzel, Fr. Dennis McHugh
E-22: Fr. Martin McWilliams, Fr. Vincent Kane, Fr. Mike Elferis, Fr. Tom Casoria
In an ever changing dynamic world, we must continue to look out for one another, on the fireground and at the kitchen table. No one cares more for us…… than us. Be your brothers keeper, stay safe, God bless the brothers and God bless America.
Really, I hate the term “high-rise” rack or “apartment bag” – or whatever you call it. Those names imply single-situation use. What these things are really is “100′ of easily carried/deployable hose with a spare nozzle”. They are great for extending pre-connected lines long distances, or making up a gap when we come up short. For this reason, every engine company should have some type of “standpipe rack” even if you don’t have a standpipe, or a building over 1 story, anywhere in your first due.
We could talk alot about high-rise fires and standpipes, but I just want to talk for a minute about setting up our equipment. The goal of an engine company should be to get their hoseline in service as a team. This means dividing the equipment up equally amongst the team. If you have 3 or 4 firefighters on the rig, the load should be distributed evenly – this way we all get to the fire floor with a little energy left to work with. Here are my thoughts….
(Continuing in our “Pockets” series, Sean Sinon of DCFD T-6 shares what he carries…)
As a ladder truck driver in Washington DC, we are required to preform a variety of tasks on firegrounds along with every other situation that ’s thrown our way. These are the tools I carry to make life a little easier and help get the job done.
Click below to read more….
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