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  • March 2020

    • March 2020

    In the March issue of Firehouse, Michael Daley explains how tech rescue teams sometimes need to defy gravity, Mihku Sabattus describes several techniques to contain & control wildfires, Brian S. Gettemeier details why water supply operations go way beyond hoses and hydrants and the Apparatus Architects compare commercial and custom chassis.
    John Salkav3
    Operations & Training

    The Fire Scene: Just OK Is Not OK

    John J. Salka Jr.
    March 31, 2020
    John J. Salka, Jr., urges crews and officers alike to bristle at the thought of acceptable, tolerable, unremarkable--in a word, OK.
    Jeffrey Pindelski 0313 10888681
    Operations & Training

    First Due: The Anatomy of Fear and Stress

    Jeffrey Pindelski
    March 1, 2020
    Jeffrey Pindelski, who co-authored "R.I.C.O--Rapid Intervention Company Operations," details the importance of training to counter the effects of stress on the fireground.
    Dana Harrison V2
    Health & Fitness

    Health & Wellness: Combating Stress with Nutrition

    Dana Harrison
    March 1, 2020
    Dana Harrison, the creator of a nutrition-education program designed specifically for firefighters, discusses how to relieve stress through diet.
    Ftreso 5e1c75d189e65
    Photos by Katie Herin
    The front intake is the tried-and-true method for supplying pumpers. However, the side intake is a more efficient way to introduce water to the pump, and it minimize losses in gpm and pressure.
    Hoselines & Water Appliances

    Beyond Hoses & Hydrants

    Brian Gettemeier
    March 1, 2020
    Brian S. Gettemeier says firefighters need to look at water supply as more than merely laying a hoseline from the hydrant to the fire.

    More content from March 2020

    Bruce Evans
    EMS

    EMS: High-Fidelity Simulated EMS

    Bruce Evans
    March 1, 2020
    Fine-tuned details are Bruce Evans' keys to keeping participants' attention during simulations.
    Curt Varone
    Careers & Education

    Fire Law: Incident-Related Liability

    Curt Varone
    March 1, 2020
    Insight from Curt Varone provides information on how to defend against negligence and civil rights violations.
    Photo by Robert Smalls International Academy
    Attending a community event to present or lecture with scripted safety messages and regurgitate statistics isn’t enough. To change attitudes and behaviors, those who are in CRR must develop rapport with community members through personal conversations and relationships.
    Community Risk Reduction

    Fire Prevention: Would You Take Advice from You?

    Daniel Byrne
    March 1, 2020
    Daniel Byrne explains why connection, empathy, camaraderie--in a word, rapport--is vital to getting CRR buy-in from those in the community.
    Photo courtesy of Mike Sanders
    Historically, the fire service has utilized commercial chassis for tankers. Loudoun County, VA, Fire and Rescue operates several tankers that are built on Mack Granite tandem-axle chassis. The tankers are equipped with a 1,500-gpm pump and a 3,000-gallon water tank. The 232-inch wheelbase provides good maneuverability for incidents that occur in tight, rural areas.
    Apparatus

    The Apparatus Architect: The Decision—Commercial vs. Custom

    March 1, 2020
    Tom Shand and Mike Wilbur break down the pluses and minuses of considering a commercial chassis for a new apparatus.
    Photos by Mike Daley
    The ability of a rescue company to move an object involves physics, control, mechanical advantage and problem-solving. For example, utilizing rollers under heavy objects limits the friction between surfaces, assists in moving the object and helps in the control of the direction of movement. Use of an incline plane, or ramp, for the object to travel down allows for more controlled movement of the object.
    Technical Rescue

    Defying Gravity: Lifting and Moving Objects in the Rescue Environment

    Michael Daley
    March 1, 2020
    Rescue-training expert Michael Daley provides hands-on-useful instruction for structural-collapse rescuers.
    Photos by Ron Moore
    As a responder viewing this passenger front seat, it would be difficult to determine whether a seat-cushion airbag is present. Your safety, and that of the patient, depends on your assessment of the airbag status while you make patient contact.
    Vehicle Extrication

    University of Extrication: Vehicle Airbags in the Seat Cushion

    Ron Moore
    March 1, 2020
    Vehicle extrication expert Ron Moore uncovers the danger that's posed by an uncommonly installed airbag.
    Mary McGrath
    Stations

    Station Design: When Prototype Fire Station Design Does and Doesn’t Work

    Mary McGrath
    March 1, 2020
    Mary McGrath, the principal-in-charge of several community-serving projects, spells out the pluses and minuses of designing fire stations based on a prototype approach.
    Photos by Mihku Sabattus
    Back-burning helps to slow down a wildland fire, but it’s very technical and only should be done by those who have training in the tactic. Photos by Mihku Sabattus
    Wildland

    Wildland Fires: Contain & Control

    Mihku Sabattus
    March 1, 2020
    Passamaquoddy, ME, Assistant Fire Chief Mihku Sabattus explains the tactic of containment for wildfires and how direct and indirect fire attack are used to achieve it.
    Gordon Nord Jr.
    CHICAGO, JAN. 14, 2020
    Operations & Training

    Hot Shots 3/20

    March 1, 2020
    March Hot Shots includes the Chicago Fire Department at a fire that broke out in a vacant, one-story warehouse building adjacent to a bus company.
    Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
    Upon arrival, it’s critical that officers ensure that enough hoseline is deployed, so the fire can be confined and extinguished quickly.
    Hoselines & Water Appliances

    Engine Essentials: The Lost Art of Estimating the Stretch

    Jonathan Hall
    March 1, 2020
    Jonathan Hall stresses that stretching and advancing the initial attack line is critical to the success of any engine company.
    Ftr Hoover
    Leadership

    For the Record 3/20

    Firehouse Staff
    March 1, 2020
    Hoover Named Deputy U.S. Fire Administrator
    This fire, which resulted in the serious injury of Capt. Dave Smiley of the Minquas, DE, Fire Company, presented itself as a second-floor bedroom fire. However, the fire originated in the first-floor laundry room below the bedroom. This burned unnoticed for quite some time, even while crews entered around it and operated above it. Smiley recalls initial confusion in regard to which side of the building was to be considered the Charlie side and that the first-due special service’s outside vent firefighter gave a Charlie-side report from the Bravo side of the building.
    Operations & Training

    Close Calls: ‘In My Mind, It Was Do or Die’

    Billy Goldfeder
    March 1, 2020
    Chief Billy Goldfeder finds reason for emphasis on heeding command orders and buckling straps in the Close Call of Minquas, DE, Fire Company Captain Dave Smiley.