For the Record 10/23

Firehouse Partners With CSFA

Firehouse Magazine and the California State Firefighters’ Association (CSFA) announced a dynamic new collaboration on the CSFA Training & Education Expo (CTEX). The educational and networking event for all member and nonmember individuals who are associated with fire safety, suppression, prevention, EMS and public safety will take place Feb. 25–March 3, 2024, at the Riverside Convention Center in Riverside, CA.

“We are very excited about this key collaboration of Firehouse with the CSFA’s strong mission of supporting its members across all levels of the fire

service,” Bill MacRae, who is group publisher and vice president of Endeavor’s City Services Group, says. “Firehouse has built its reputation on a long-standing commitment to excellence in content creation and editorial integrity. Together with the CSFA, we look forward to building a world-class training

and networking event serving all members of the West Coast and national fire services.”

CTEX 2024 will feature a variety of educational conference sessions that cover fireground operations, dispatch, prevention, wildland fire, behavioral health and more. The event also will offer hands-on training classes, an expo floor that will showcase a multitude of products and services, and California state certification opportunities. The CSFA represents more than 13,000 members and is the oldest and largest statewide nonprofit fire service trade association.

For more about the conference sessions and hands-on training and to register your interest in attending or exhibiting at CTEX 2024, go to ctex.csfa.net.

NVFC Receives $1.4 Million Federal Grant

A $1.4 million Fire Prevention and Safety grant from FEMA will enable the National Volunteer Fire Council to implement critical programs and initiatives to support firefighter health and safety and to mitigate risks that can lead to line-of-duty injuries and deaths. The focus will be on changing attitudes and behaviors to create a fire service culture that embraces health, well-being and safety. Deliverables will include an awareness campaign, free in-person and online training, including the Virtual Classroom, and continuation of the NVFC First Responder Helpline.

To learn more about NVFC’s health and safety initiatives, visit nvfc.org/ServeStrong.

Firehouse Magazine Introduces FireFusion

The fire service employed more research, data and technology over the past decade than ever before. Progressive fire service leaders demand data-based decision-making. To meet this demand plus focus on the changing needs and expectations of what attendees seek in an event experience, Firehouse Magazine announced a reimagined approach to training, education and networking. FireFusion will take place November 5–7, 2024, at the Charleston Gaillard Center in Charleston, SC, and advance the development and application of technology in the fire service. Attendees will collaborate, connect and partner with presenters, products and service providers, to facilitate more efficient firegrounds and to keep firefighters safe and healthy. Locating the event in Charleston, where the department lost nine firefighters in the 2007 Sofa Super Store fire, allows Firehouse to honor the Charleston 9 and showcase efforts to advance firefighter safety and health.

To learn more, visit firefusionconference.com.

First Fluorine-Free Firefighting Foam

Solberg 3% Mil-Spec Synthetic Flourine-Free Foam is the first fluorine-free firefighting foam concentrate to be added to the Department of Defense’s Qualified Products List. Airport authorities and other government agencies now must transition away from aqueous film forming foam to flourine-free. Craig McDonnell, who is vice president/general manager of the Americas Suppressants and Prevention & Protection group within Perimeter Solutions, which is the manufacturer of the new foam, confirms the foam’s performance in salt water. That’s an advantage for users, because many water sources contain high levels of minerals or salts that affect foam performance.

Get more information at perimeter-solutions.com.

First Responder Stress Particularly Challenging

Levels of cortisol, aka the stress hormone, in first responders who completed qualified blood biomarker testing after an initial test reflected this group’s increased susceptibility to stress compared with the general population. Although these same first responders demonstrated a greater propensity for improvement in numerous other key markers compared with the general population, their degree of improvement in cortisol levels was less than the general population. The author of the study, InsideTracker, noted how high-stress occupational demands and inconsistent sleep schedules can increase stress and cortisol levels. The group went on to note that lifestyle adjustments, such as prioritizing napping and implementing mindfulness meditation, might be suitable for the first responder population.

To view the white paper, go to tinyurl.com/cortisolstudy.

Line-of-Duty Deaths

8 U.S. firefighters died in the line of duty. Two died from a health-related incident, two died in a single-vehicle accident while en route to the scene of a fire, one died from injuries that were sustained in a motor vehicle accident while en route to the firehouse for a call, one died in a helicopter crash, one died from injuries that were sustained during fireground operations and one died after suffering a medical emergency on the fireground. This issue of Firehouse is dedicated to these firefighters.

LT. TERRENCE “TERRY” JUDGE, 64, of the Pembroke, NH, Fire Department, died on March 24. On March 22, Judge responded to a flooding incident in a multifamily residence and operated a sump pump in the basement. He returned to his residence after the incident. The following morning, he collapsed at his home. He was transported to a hospital, where he died of an apparent stroke.

FIREFIGHTER/EMT ANTHONY DESIMONE, 50, of the North Haven, CT, Fire Department, died on Aug. 24. After working a 38-hour shift during which he responded to numerous incidents, DeSimone returned to his residence, where he collapsed. He immediately was rushed to Yale New Haven Hospital, where we was pronounced dead from an apparent heart attack.

FIREFIGHTER LEONARD LLEWELLYN, 82, of the Mattituck, NY, Fire Department, died on Aug. 25. On Aug. 22, while en route to the firehouse on his three-wheeled adult tricycle to respond to a call, Llewellyn was struck by a motorist. He suffered massive injuries and was transported to Peconic Bay Medical Center. He died at the hospital three days later.

CAPT. TERRYSON JACKSON, 50, of the Broward Sheriff’s Office Department of Fire Rescue and Emergency Services in Fort Lauderdale, FL, died on Aug. 28. Jackson and others members of the EC 135 Eurocopter flight crew were dispatched to a medical call regarding a traffic crash with injuries. The aircraft sustained an in-flight emergency and crashed into a small apartment building. Jackson died in the crash. The pilot and a firefighter/paramedic escaped the wreckage.

LT. KEVIN P. WARD, 58, of the Chicago Fire Department, died on Aug. 28. On Aug. 11, Ward responded to a fire at a single-family residence. While he fought the fire in the basement, he was injured critically, and a mayday was transmitted. Ward was rescued and transported to Resurrection Hospital and then to Loyola University Medical Center. Seventeen days later, he succumbed to the injuries that he sustained in the fire.

FIREFIGHTER MIA ETHRIDGE, 20, of Louisa County, VA, Department of Fire and EMS, died on Sept. 1. On July 9, Ethridge and another firefighter responded to a residential structure fire when their fire apparatus ran off of the road in rain and struck a tree. Ethridge was ejected from the vehicle. She was receiving treatment at the University of Virginia Medical Center when she succumbed to the injuries that she sustained in the accident. Ethridge also was a firefighter with the Stafford Volunteer Fire Department.

FIREFIGHTER JOE PARISH, 67, of the Diboll, TX, Volunteer Fire Department, died on Sept. 1. Parish was responding to a request for mutual aid from the Fuller Springs Volunteer Fire Department when his privately owned vehicle left the roadway and crashed. He was airlifted to a hospital for emergency surgery. He died the next day from the injuries that he sustained in the accident.

CHIEF JOSH KOGEL, 48, of the Cavour, SD, Volunteer Fire Department, died on Sept. 4. Kogel responded to a commercial building fire. He experienced a medical emergency during operations. Kogel was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.