March 2015 Blog Posts (58)

There is absolutely no substitute for continued training, study, and self-improvement - especially in these days of fewer and fewer fires. Experience alone is not enough - open a book, read a trade journal, or better yet, get to the drill grounds and train.

Just because you think you know, doesn't mean you know... you know?

Click link below to…

There is absolutely no substitute for continued training, study, and self-improvement - especially in these days of fewer and fewer fires. Experience alone is not enough - open a book, read a trade journal, or better yet, get to the drill grounds and train.

Just because you think you know, doesn't mean you know... you…

A fire in ventilation ductwork last week resulted in the evacuation of an automotive manufacturing plant in Michigan. Crews spent nearly two hours isolating the fire within some very large ducts used in the manufacturing process.

Ventilation ducts are used in many facilities, whether for dust extraction, material handling, or air quality management. In every case, fires within ductwork present several concerns for firefighters. Here are just a few…

• Ductwork circulates…

The fire service is filled with many great traditions, some good and some not.  One of the fun things that happens in a lot of firehouses is the "pop-flip" for a round of sodas.   Unfortunately, sodas are a huge reason we are staying unhealthy- they have a ton of chemicals and sugars that pack on extra bodyfat.  Don't believe me?  Keep reading.

Drink Diet Soda?…

A photograph is a technological wonder, a moment in time captured, frozen and recorded so that it can be viewed again and again. A viewable memory.

To me this is one of society’s most amazing accomplishments. The advent of this capability has lead to countless advances in everything known to man.

For example, movies and video. The rapid capture of many photographs then played back in series to imply movement and action.

It’s incredible to think…

Fictitious San Francisco Police Inspector Harry Callahan coined a profound statement in the 1973 movie Magnum Force. His famous quote, growled from the throat, “A man’s GOT to know his limitations” has stuck with me since the first time I heard it.

In today’s fire service we should heed the Inspectors words while engaged in our daily effort to survive and defeat the Red Devil. All members of a company…

I talk a great deal about the role of the company officers and how they influence the members of your department.  When teaching officer development we hit hard on setting and establishing expectations and ensuring that there is follow-through with those expectations.  I was recently asked about expectations for my company officers.  They aren't too different from what I expected from my crew members when I was a company officer.

This is one of those Hump Day SOS's that I still get an occasional email about. I've even seen it show up in a few folks presentations. This will make the 3rd time sending it out but sometimes things just need to be repeated for new members following the blog that might of missed it and for those who didn't quite understand it the…

Simple St. Paddy's Day message... BUCKLE UP!

Click link below to see more of Paul's work or to buy prints:

http://www.artstudioseven.com/page-LE_Prints.htm…

Attention to detail is possibly one of the most under utilized tools in the fire service. This holds especially true when the masses begin to talk about Dragging hose, Forcing doors or Throwing ladders. The root words are pure work, not finesse. The unfortunate part is that in most cases technique, not power is the difference. In our rush to “Get’er dun” we run right past simple opportunities to make things more efficient, safer, and…

As much as it pains me to say this: I was around when the first commercial cellphone was introduced to the world in 1973-invented by Martin Cooper.

Now, the only “portability” of telephones that existed prior to that date was “car” phones. Car phones were hard-wired into your vehicle. Typically, the transceiver box was mounted in the trunk with power being connected to the ignition. The antenna was mounted at the rear of the car near the roof…

"LOOK!"

Stealing from the old CPR technique of Look, Listen, and Feel, we apply the same sequence to our search tactics starting with the why and what we are looking for:

"The dwelling’s building style lends visual clues that may assist us in our operations. Visual building landmarks (doors, stairs, window

sizes, and layouts) can assist us in identifying floor plans, living vs. storage spaces, location of stairs, and presence or absence of basements. Before we even enter…

     I have to admit that this comes as a result of not a small amount of built up frustration over many years. I’m sure many, if not all of us have sat around the fire station table and asked, or tried to answer, the question “Why does this (insert activity) even matter?”. I continue to ask myself if we have forgotten WHY we do what we do, and as a result if what we are busy doing everyday has become more important than why we set out to do it…

A little bit of buzz lately on “aggressive” interior attack. Dave Dodson, retired Battalion Chief from Colorado said “we need to be intellectually aggressive, not arbitrarily aggressive.” He recorded it on Volume 4 of the Everyone Goes Home video series. My Connecticut Compadres PJ Norwood and Frank Ricci were live last week on the “Hump Day Hangout” with Bobby Halton.…

Ah, yes, the MacGyver syndrome. Keep it light. Keep it relevant. Keep it practical. Keep It Simple... and just get the job done quickly and efficiently!

Click link below to see more of Paul's work or to buy prints:…

Instructor Driven Fires

So the status tell us that the number of fires are down 53% since the 1970’s. I don’t have any numbers on the decrease in “acquired structure” fire control classes but I can speculate that it is probably down even lower than 53%. As a…

For someone like me, it’s hard to fathom that anyone in the fire service could produce an argument against improving the health and fitness of firefighters. The statistics alone tell anyone that will listen it is the most significant barrier to reducing LODDs. Nevertheless, I understand that the issue, sadly, is more complicated than that. As I've said before – it’s…

TODAY’S COMPANY OFFICER

In today’s short-staffed and under funded fire service the demands and responsibilities of our members are many. As responsibilities go the Company Officer is the backbone of most incident operations.

The end result of any operation relies heavily on the performance of the crews operating on that incident.  Assuring proficient execution of the plays from the company playbook, or policies and procedures, is one of the Company Officers most…