All Blog Posts (3,147)

Everyday firefighters risk something. In the traditional sense, it’s our life, so that we may save the life of another. We risk our health, as we are exposed to hidden carcinogens around the apparatus bay, and on fire scenes. We put our bodies through hell with working shift work, and our emotional health is even worse due to the gruesome scenes we encounter. We do this, because we took an oath to protect people, we have a duty to act. It is why we take…

As I post this the snow is coming down outside my studio window in big feather-like flakes and the cold is radiating through my double-pane windows. So much so that the triple-shot espresso that I am currently enjoying is doing little to warm my bones as I wait for the familiar sounds of spring training baseball broadcast to remind me that warmer days are around the…

The Value of Networking

Joseph Kitchen, Bath Twp. Fire Department (Lima, Ohio)

            Spending time with our fellow firefighters is one of the best parts of this amazing career that we all are honored to be a part of. The relationships that we have within our own firehouse are paramount to our…

 A review WITH the troops.

After the Civil War, scattered on battlefields across the country, muzzle loaded rifles were found that had ended their service loaded and unfired. Many were found to be multiple loaded, with two, three and even more loads of wadding, powder and ball.…

PPE for your Mind

As firefighters, we face a multitude of stressful events each and every shift. Sometimes they’re physical stressors like lifting or climbing. Sometimes they’re mental stressors like sights, sounds and smells at a traumatic scene or feelings of failure when we can’t intervene in time to save someone. Fortunately, the human body is designed to handle stress, even…

Coming to terms with the significant changes to firefighting tactics wrought by fire behavior researchers and the innovative implementors of their findings is an ongoing process, and there are repeated instances when the new information that has filtered into our understanding again changes our perspective.  This enlightenment is also cumulative, and even exponential, as the same knowledge is applied to other aspects of our craft, and it becomes steadily clearer that much of what we…

I have got a few more years of stretching hose and throwing ladders in front of me, but I'm sure this cartoon will be me when that time comes. Can't imagine what it's like to know you won't be riding those big red rigs any longer - not sure I want to think about it. But for those of you who have served your years and shed sweat, blood, and tears, I…

Many rescuers have heard, seen, or used what is commonly known as a 3rd door conversion. The 3rd door conversion gains much needed access to rear occupants of a 2 door vehicle. This method can be completed quickly. The yellow lines show notches or cuts via the cutter or sawzall. If the cuts are done well, little to no…

The Sunday Preach:



Single... or am I?



"Legally or illegally, many of these homes have been converted to accommodate the addition of extended family or even an entire other family, effectively making them two-family homes." (Page XIV).



Many of the single…

We all know just how dangerous basement and cellar fires can be and the hazards are even more pronounced in a commercial building, an old tip that saved many lives fifty years ago needs to be reminded as a modern tip in today's fire environment. October 17, 1966 was one of the FDNY's darkest days prior of course to September 11th, 2001, for on that day twelve firefighters perished when a floor collapse occurred in an Ordinary Constructed building on 23rd Street in Manhattan.

When…

One minute you and your girlfriend are talking about getting married, you both feel that you’re sole mates and begin to joke and fantasize about how awesome it would be to be married and make a family. Next minute you’re missing vacations, missing parties, no more date nights and calling out sick at work to take care of a sick kid.

I know that my first true love…

In our world decisions are made in a split second.  In our world victims in a house fire have minutes not ‘tens of minutes’.  In our world first reports are often wrong.  In our world, words said over the radio have an effect on operations.  Those words can mean the difference between an aggressive interior search and a passive secondary only search.  We all know…

Question – my department wants to start random drug testing. Many of the members have refused and have been threatened with termination. Our Union indicates it is a good idea, but cannot articulate why. Can you help?

Response – drug testing in the fire services has created one of the greatest controversies in our industry. With the emergence of recreational use of marijuana in Washington State and Colorado, it compounds an almost impossible job for…

How tight do you hold before you lose control? Any horse rider or race car driver will tell you it's a delicate balance between holding on tight enough to maintain control, but not so tight as to lose flexibility.

Lyrics by 38-Special may say it best "Just hold on loosely, but don't let go. If you cling too tightly, you're gonna lose control."

STAY…

Its the dead of winter, football season is over and spring seems so far away.  This is also the excuse season, the time of the year where most people fall off the fitness wagon and start to make excuses.  Its especially easy to make excuses and miss workouts if your not seeing results.  So, today I wanted to give you a little guidance and motivation (check out the FRF Fit for Duty…

On the Hawaiian island of Oahu, thousands of people are gathering to watch what is considered to be the most prestigious surfing event in the world. The Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational matches some of the top surfers on the planet with swells towering higher than many of our houses. In fact, the event does not even take place if the waves do not exceed heights of twenty feet. It is for this reason that the event has only been held nine times in last 31 years. Organizers refuse to sacrifice…

Muscle Imbalances and Injury Potential

As firefighters there are so many things we need to be thinking about during an emergency scene.  Rig placement, radio communication, building construction, fire location, and smoke color, volume, and pressure are only a fraction of the things that run…

In a winter-time cold snap, it’s inevitable that departments will be called to respond to numerous broken water pipe incidents.  Almost every firefighter in the country can find at least a handful of sprinkler-protected buildings in their response area.  While we can certainly all agree as firefighters that sprinkler systems are a tremendous benefit to life…