For the Record 1/16

Empty Station Finally Gets a Crew

When Alexandria Fire Station 210 opened in April, residents were upset that the $15 million station did not have any firefighters protecting a growing area of the city.

That changed in early December when an engine company was placed in service at the station. Four firefighters will be working there, along with an EMS supervisor. The department's foam unit will be relocated to the station as well.

“We’ll have a mix of veteran and new staff,” Fire Chief Robert Dubé told the Washington Post. “We were able to hire people who are EMTs or medics and they’ve gone through firefighter training.”

Over 300 people signed an online petition to get the funding needed to staff the 45,000-square-foot station. The original plan was to move a crew from the Old Town neighborhood to the new station, but residents protested and the city council halted that move.

The department hired several cross-trained firefighter/EMS trained members to staff the station.          

Line of-Duty Deaths

5 U.S. firefighters recently died in the line of duty. All five deaths were health related. This edition of Firehouse is dedicated to these firefighters.

SERGEANT VINCE SMITH, 49, of the Detroit, MI, Fire Department, was found deceased at the fire station on Nov. 19. Smith was assigned to Ladder 13 but was working an extra shift at the station housing Engine 48 at the time of his passing.

CAPTAIN WALTER SZELAG, 65, of the Detroit, MI, Fire Department, died Nov. 20.  Szelag became ill from an apparent heart attack while on-duty aboard Fire Boat 1. According to initial reports, crew members radioed for an ambulance to be sent to the fire boat station where Szelag was working to prepare the fire boat for the winter season. He was transported to Detroit Receiving Hospital but succumbed to his injury.

ASSISTANT CHIEF TERRY “T.C.” CULVER, 65, of Calvert City, KY, Fire Department, suffered a medical emergency and fell off the apparatus. Culver was treated and transported to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries almost two weeks later. He died Nov. 24.

FIREFIGHTER/MEDIC MARK ZIELINSKI, 49, of Matteson, IL, Fire Department, went into cardiac arrest while performing CPR on a patient. He was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead on Dec. 4.

FIREFIGHTER ZACHARY C. CLEVENGER, 30, with the Estill County, KY, Fire Department, was found unresponsive at his home Dec. 5. He had responded to a structure fire the previous evening.

Pro Board Grants Accreditation to FSC

The Pro Board has announced accreditation of its first ever European fire training academy, the Fire Service College (FSC) of the United Kingdom (U.K.). Entities that achieve Pro Board accreditation are recognized as having met the rigors of their testing protocol by an independent organization. This third-party independent review is the best way to assure candidates and governance bodies that the entity’s program meets recognized standards. 

The FSC is the home of firefighter development in the U.K. and the first center in Europe to achieve Pro Board accreditation to certify to the U.S.-based NFPA standards.

The FSC is an award-winning leader in fire and emergency response training and one of the world's largest operational fire and rescue training facilities. It specializes in providing dedicated training for fire and rescue services, emergency responders and a wide spectrum of commercial and public sector clients globally. FSC instructors are currently serving as fire officers from individual fire rescue organizations across the U.K.

The Pro Board accredits organizations that use the NFPA's professional qualification standards. The specific NFPA standards that the Fire Service College can test against are:

• NFPA 1001, Standard for Firefighter Professional Qualifications
• NFPA 472 (Chapter 4), Standard for Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents – Awareness Level
• NFPA 472 (Chapter 6), Standard for Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents – Operations Core with Missions Specific PPE and Product Control Levels

Accreditation is the Pro Board stamp of approval of the certification processes and procedures used by the Fire College to test the knowledge, skills and abilities of learners wishing to be certified to NFPA standards.

This latest development supports FSC’s vision of becoming a true center of excellence for both U.K. and international fire and rescue services. FSC represents one of the world’s premier fire training venues, attracting customers from around the globe to train in a world-class facility with internationally recognized credentials.

Fire Prevention Symposium Approaching

The 4th National Model Performance in Fire Prevention Symposium, sponsored by Vision 20/20 will be held March 10-12, in Fairfax, VA.

The Symposium allows attendees to:

• Learn from successful fire prevention programs
• Attend train-the-trainer workshops about creating custom fire prevention materials and planning effective home safety visits
• Network with leaders from every state
• Interact with vendors that provide fire prevention and risk reduction products

Funding will support registration and travel for a representative from every state, and state organizations will be notified shortly about the nomination process for these representatives. Open registration will be available for everyone for only $200, which includes materials and meals during the event.

Visit strategicfire.org for more information.