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Making the Basics, Basic!

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Is this an acceptable drill for your new engine or truck company?

One of the highlights of my profession is the networking you are allowed to do.  A person I consider a Ture Brother, Mentor, and Friend has always maintained that where we missed the mark in the fire service is to break training down into smaller segments. We must began to recognize that training firefighters does not have to be a clubbing over the head, death by powerpoint, but yet it must meet the requirements of being Realistic, and Relevant. There are a few points when injury or death occurs that can be pointed out an Ineffective command system, and firefighters who were trying to operate outside Basics. I understand that accidents happen as well based off of decisions made by others, but that too can be linked back to a failed understanding of the Basics!

For new and aspiring fire officers remember training does not have to take all day, but has to be effective and have a measurable outcome at the end. Remember to take nothing for granted when training. A great place to start is by taking your policy manuals and ensuring the policies are truly understood and you become amazed it what drill s you can pull just out of them. If you do not have a policy manual then start with your expectations and your desired fire ground performance. The hardest part will be consistancy.

Posted in Drills, Training, training-fire-rescue-topics

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March 4, 2013 • 1 comment

What about the Brother’s Collyer?

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We hear the term “Collyer’s Mansion conditions” thrown around a lot.  As soon as you hear it visions of crap piled floor to ceiling pop into your mind.  With good reason, the Collyer brothers really set the bar in the hoarding game.  If you want to know more about them go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collyer_brothers

This type of hoarding really didn’t start getting properly identified until the turn of this century.  It was mostly thought of as a form of OCD, which most often it is not.  The diagnosis of hoarding is still being determined.  The current diagnostic criteria for hoarding is still just a proposal for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , or DSM-V which is due in May this year.  It is a VERY complicated mental issue, but, that is not our concern.  Our concern as firefighters is the well being of the neighborhood first and the hoarder’s well being second.

There are more ways to classify hoarders than anyone can imagine: Pure Hoarding, Hoarding plus OCD, organized hoarder, Common hoarder, animal hoarder, etc, etc… Just to show that this phenomenon is still not understood.  Either way 3-5% of the population can be diagnosed with some type of hoarding disorder (#1)

When we come across a property that looks like it’s occupied by a hoarder the first thing to remember is that  this is a private residence and it is not up to us to dictate how someone should maintain their home. It is first and foremost a legal minefield that we just stepped into.

DO NOT JUDGE.  The Mayo Clinic says many hoarders have limited social interactions (#2) and we most likely will put them on the defensive right away and reduce any chance of remedying the problem.  The 2 that I have had to deal with I walked through the property and acted like it was normal,  asked them about social interactions and family.  I also asked them if they had smoke detectors and what was their plan to exit in case of a fire.

Asking around the firehouse I’ve come up with 8-10 stories involving hoarders.  Most of them did not end well for the homeowner.  Most of them involved the home owner dying and the neighbor calling because of the smell.  A couple of the stories involved fires, one of them the occupant was not found until a week after the fire, buried under the stuff she had acquired.

If you have to write them up for something remember to not make it an issue about them or the stuff, but make it about the threat to the neighborhood.  Our most recent hoarder lives in a single family home.  We got called to the house because of a repair man he had at the house called 911 to complain.  I advised the homeowner to make sure all exits were easy to use in case he had a medical emergency or if there was a fire.  Honestly there is very little benefit in writing up an 81 year old man for hoarding. mainly because there is no law, and secondly because it will not accomplish anything.  I also reported him to the “Hoarding task force” that the city runs because they are better equipped to handle these things.

  I have joined my city’s Hoarding Task Force and I’ll have more info shortly.

 

#1 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jclp.20797/abstract

#2 http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hoarding/DS00966/DSECTION=symptoms

Posted in fire-rescue-topics, Thoughts, Uncategorized

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February 26, 2013 • 1 comment

Fire Ops

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We want you to Identify basic functions by putting yourself in the position of our brother and sisters in the videos. Remember these are videos and you could be the next week. We want to learn and grow not critcize.

Five basic points to consider.

•Size-Up

•Command

•Hose Lines ( Deployment, Number )

•Truck Functions

•Water Supply

Posted in Building Construction, command-leadership, Dispatch & Communications, firefighting-operations, training-development, videos

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September 10, 2012 • 1 comment

Fire Ops

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We want you to Identify basic functions by putting yourself in the position of our brother and sisters in the videos. Remember these are videos and you could be the next week. We want to learn and grow not critcize.

Five basic points to consider.

•Size-Up

•Command

•Hose Lines ( Deployment, Number )

•Truck Functions

•Water Supply

 

Posted in Building Construction, command-leadership, Dispatch & Communications, firefighting-operations, Uncategorized, videos

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August 24, 2012 • No comments

Fire Ops

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We want you to Identify basic functions by putting yourself in the position of our brother and sisters in the videos. Remember these are videos and you could be the next week. We want to learn and grow not critcize.

Five basic points to consider.

•Size-Up

•Command

•Hose Lines ( Deployment, Number )

•Truck Functions

•Water Supply

Posted in Building Construction, command-leadership, Dispatch & Communications, Education/Training

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July 16, 2012 • No comments

10,000 Hours?!

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How do some firefighters get really good at their job and some, well, not so much. I was just perusing Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers” and one of the focuses of the book is the 10,000 hour rule to become an expert or successful. I don’t plan on reading the book, but I’ve heard this 10,000 hour number before.

10,000 hours….

5 years full time employment (40hrs a week)

10 years part time

For the average firefighter that may take an hour a shift to check the piece; 64 years, if you do 3 shifts per week

OUCH! And that is just operating the piece and the equipment on it, not RIT training, not roof operations, not EMS skills, not fitness all of which a firefighter should be an expert at. Or is it 10,000 hours of “firefighter job related stuff”? Either way, I’m nowhere near it.

Now Gladwell is far from THE authority on the subject, having written about other people’s research and weaving in some interviews for flavor, but the idea is interesting.

I may have brought this up before, but have you ever watched someone at an incident farting around with a power tool like a monkey fornicating a football? Don’t you just think “Come on guy, the switch is still off”? How much time has he spent with that saw? How many hours? Minutes? He is acting like it’s his first time.

We ran a 2 1/2″ line in an attempt to fill our local pond on my last shift. The crew was all experienced and professional and I would consider a most of them to be experts. I asked for a solid stream (built into the nozzle) we had an issue finding it, when the hydrant was charged it gave the line too much pressure, We had a difficult time with apparatus placement to have an easy escape in order to stay available for responses.

The placement issue was all me. It was a silly new officer mistake. I try not to micro manage so I let the driver pick the placement based on my requirements, now I know better. The line problems were just rust. Not equipment rust, but firefighter rust. I know they are good at their jobs, it was a good refresher for all. The total delay or inconvenience was negligible and barely noticeable to anyone watching but everyone involved knew what happened and how to fix it.

When we were harassing each other about it later one of the younger firefighters ask what we were talking about and why it was an issue. So I see we need to do it again and get him a little closer to the 10,000.

Every time you put your hands on that piece of equipment you are learning something about it. All those little things that make checking the piece faster and easier for you also make you more familiar with it. The more familiar you are, the better you are but also the more complacent you become, not getting into that today.

Do I think the saw needs to be checked every day to be maintained? No. I do think it needs to be checked every day to maintain our readiness and competency with it. I can understand getting rusty with a 2 1/2″ line, 75% of our work is handled with an 1 3/4″, but there is no excuse for not knowing your saw, ladder, EMS equipment.

Are you going to get 10,000 hours of training and become an “expert”? I doubt it. Most of us have long passed the expert level at sleeping or channel surfing, maybe Grand Master level for some. But the general idea here is that you need to get your hands on that stuff. Get your face in the books.

Become a student of the fire service.

 

Posted in administration-leadership, command-leadership, Drills, Education/Training, Engine Tips, Motivation, Thoughts

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June 28, 2012 • No comments

Fire Ground Operations # 4

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We want you to Identify basic functions by putting yourself in the position of our brother and sisters in the videos. Remember these are videos and you could be the next week. We want to learn and grow not critcize. Five basic points to consider.
•Size-Up
•Command
•Hose Lines ( Deployment, Number )
•Truck Functions
•Water Supply

Posted in command-leadership, Education/Training, firefighting-operations, fires, Training, Uncategorized, videos

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June 19, 2012 • No comments

Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment

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I was trying to teach my children about doing quality work and making sure you can put your name on everything you do.  Of course one of them asked “But isn’t that a lot of work?” Yes, yes it is.  But the effort is the biggest part of any job well done.  Like Ghandi said.  Most of the time it’s the struggle that determines if the outcome is desirable or not.  In the fire service if you do good training and drilling you will do good work.

I thought of Rocky Valentine for some reason.  Rocky was the main character in an old 1960’s Twilight Zone episode called “A Nice Placeto Visit”.  Rocky was a career criminal that was gunned down after robbing a pawn shop.  He wakes up to Pip, his new person assistant for the afterlife.  Pip grants every wish Rocky has.  Rocky has amazing luck in this new afterlife, everything works out for him.  He doesn’t have to struggle with anything.  He wins at the casino every time, the ladies love him, his every wish is granted etc…  After a month of this Rocky gets bored and frustrated with everything working out all the time.   He tells Pip “I don’t belong here in Heaven, I want to go to the other place or I’ll go nuts!”  Pip asks him “What makes you think this is Heaven?”

In my new firehouse I go out with the guys and we do a little drill every day.  I’m not a ball buster and I am not trying to test anyone.  We go out as a crew and do something.

The last time we went out was to run the deck gun.  Nothing fancy, run water and play with tip sizes and talk scenarios and water flow.  One guy has been on for 3 years and that was his first time operating the deck gun.  I have to wonder when the previous officer expected this firefighter to learn this basic skill.  I can guarantee if they went to a surround and drown and that firefighter could not get the deck gun going the officer would lose his mind.

A firefighter I worked with months ago called me to complain that a firefighter that just transferred in ran the line around the stair case instead of up the center; they ran out of line short of the fire.  Tragic.  So now if we are out on a call and see some funky access or architectural oddities I ask the crew how they would handle it.

I’m not an engine guy so I am most definitely learning while we do it. But we are doing it.  When it comes time for us to work, we will work and hopefully it’ll work out right.  Other companies that I have worked at like to sit back and talk about the fires they had.

You are only as good as your last fire, right?  What about your next fire? What about the satisfaction of a job well done?

I think the deck gun qualifies as a basic firefighter skill.  I think shagging a line qualifies as a basic skill also.  Do you really want to be known as the company that messed up a BASIC skill?  Advanced stuff and the once in a lifetime things are fun to prepare for but if you mess up a basic skill on the fire ground you will wear that mistake forever.

 

 

Posted in command-leadership, Drills, Motivation, Thoughts

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June 7, 2012 • No comments

WHY?

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Hey everyone, I’m back like a really bad habit! How often in your next tour will you as a fireman or a company officer hear the word “Why” come out of a members mouth? This word can be good, bad, or just downright insubordinate. This is my getting back in the grove, so this will be short, but for anyone that knows me at all, much more is coming on this issue! Drillmaster’s challenge is simple. Count the “Why’s” your next tour, keep track positive or negative. Let me know and we are off to the races! I’m back, more opinionated as ever Brothers! Always remember those who came before us on this Memorial Day Weekend! we are our Brothers Keepers!

Posted in administration-leadership, command-leadership, firefighter-safety-health, Motivation, Thoughts

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May 27, 2012 • 2 comments

Legacy Tactics Part II by Training 38

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So what does it take, to effectively manage a scene and not be labeled as a “Legacy” department?

First, you must understand your response area, resource availability and the ability of your personnel.

Secondly, once you arrive on scene, paint the picture gives a “Windshield size-up”. Then you must exit the vehicle and conduct a 360 degree walk-around. If the Incident Commander does not complete the initial walk around, a seasoned firefighter or officer must complete the walk-around. They will know what they are looking for and be able to relay the critical information to the incident commander via radio or face to face. During the walk-around, scene observations are made, roof line, initial smoke and fire conditions. Reading smoke is critical.

Next, the incident commander must quickly develop a plan. One that weighs Risk vs. Benefits. Once the plan has been established, ACCOUNTABILITY has to be established and utilized. ACCOUNTABILITY has been a façade for many departments that acted as a security blanket for years.  Tactics have to be given, in order of priority based on the fire ground priorities/strategies. Once these tactics have been thought of and handed down to the company level will then employ functional assignments/tasks.

Communication from the crews to the Incident Commander or Operations sector and communications from the Incident Commander or Operations sector to the crews has to be a priority. This is the only way to achieve better accountability.  Benchmarks have to be utilized by using a checklist (Tactical Priorities). These bench marks will drive the overall tactics, which in turn will cause the incident commander to reevaluate their strategies.

This will not be foreign material to “Modern” departments, however “Legacy” departments will be at a loss with the information and the mind set of what has to be accomplished.

I commend those that are a “Modern” department and I pray for those that are still a “Legacy” department. There is more at stake than an ego and hiding behind the “It’s always been done that way” attitude. Families, communities and organizations are at stake. If you are an officer and want to gamble, go to Vegas or Atlantic City. Don’t gamble within your own department.  If you don’t want to stand up for your safety, your family’s safety and change within the department. Then do the fire service a favor and change professions and allow someone else who is willing to affect change to take your place. Start early with young firefighters, introduce them to the NFPA standards, professional journals, well grounded web sites. Learning never stops and more than ever, we as a fire service cannot sit idle by as hydrocarbon based materials become more and more volitile and building construction becomes more lightweight/deadly.

Posted in Building Construction, command-leadership, Education/Training, fire-prevention-education, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, Thoughts, Training, training-development, training-fire-rescue-topics

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May 17, 2012 • 3 comments

The Elite Company

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Often times fire companies will start to come together but start going in the wrong direction due to poor leadership or lack thereof. Members of the company will start to believe their own self made hype and will began to put distance between them and other members of the department. To become truly elite it takes Years of Service, Calls for Service, Training and Humility. Over time the members of the company must prove themselves worthy of the title of Elite given to them by their Brothers and Sisters as they test their Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities each day.  When companies take time to develop, stay low key, work hard and become a value to everyone through Service and Brotherhood they will be looked as Elite. A company’s success is not based upon one person(s) it is a company’s ability to grow, stay progressive and deliver quality service to all. To anyone reading this and find it offensive you, may fit the bill. You can correct this issue by coming back to earth and earning the respect back of your peers and doing your part.

Posted in command-leadership, Thoughts

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April 24, 2012 • No comments

Hold Your Assignment

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Often times aggressive fire companies want to get inside and do work, but it is with that same aggression firefighters get killed. If any firefighter out there could justify why 15 firefighters should be operating in a 1100 sq ft ranch house here is your opportunity. Firefighters have to be thinking firefighters, and use the basics. What do I mean? One company for fire attack, a company to back them up, a company to search and open up. I do realize that the number increases as the square footage goes up but it still needs to be managed. Interior supervisor’s need to recognize when too many companies are on the interior and correct the problem. It has already been proven that it takes 12-14 people for a RIT team to rescue one down firefighter, but yet we continue to put RIT teams in a position to rescue multiple firefighters with only a 3-4 person team. My point being if your position is not to be committed to interior operations your time will come so stand by. Remember the items that burn today are highly volatile and cause conditions to change as well as the inexperience on the fire ground making poor hose line selections, and improper fire ground coordination of ventilation.

Posted in Education/Training, fire-rescue-topics, firefighter-safety-health, firefighting-operations, training-development

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December 30, 2011 • No comments

Size up this fire.

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The point of view in this video shows almost everything that is happening so you have to imagine yourself showing up at street level and the limited view you would have had.  The first arriving companies thought it was a fire in the rear porches.  They were right, but, the fire was already inside the second building when they arrived.  

 I spoke with the officers on scene and from their point of view upon arrival they thought it was back porches and they thought they may have inadvertently pushed the fire into the second building.  The officer on the first line to the rear was wondering why the fire was going to 3 alarms, let alone 4.   It was obvious to command what was going on, but from the rear it was a different story.  You can see the rear was a floor lower than the front. 

I wish we could just get a couple second video from the front when the first arriving companies got on scene, but that’s not going to happen.  Too often when someone posts a video the commenter gets to watch the whole thing and then decide what they would have done.  It would be better to just get a few seconds and then watch the comments, to keep everyone honest.  But comment away. 

Was going to the rear with the first line a good choice?

Would going in from the front then making a basement attack have worked?

What size line are you going to bring?

Are there any other issues that should be brought up?

I may sometimes sound like a stickler for rules because a firefighter should at least know the procedures that way if they do something that isn’t in line with the procedures they have to provide reason instead of “I didn’t know”.  My only critique is that at least one of the trucks arriving on the subsequent alarms should have looked at the roof instead of just putting the stick up.  This would have minimized the chance of a guy alone on the roof, especially a relatively new guy.  That’s just my opinion and I have had that opinion since this video was taped almost 9 years ago.

Stay safe.

Posted in command-leadership, Drills, Education/Training, Engine Tips, firefighting-operations, training-development, training-fire-rescue-topics, Truck Tips

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September 22, 2011 • 1 comment

Sliding Across the Seat

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  We have a brand new Lieutenant on my company filling in while our assigned boss is out.   I can see the Jr. Lt struggling with his new role and trying to find his place in the chain of command.  He came from a slower district with very few EMT-B’s and a company without a specialty (Hazmat, Tech Rescue, CAFS, Tower etc…) to a Technical Rescue house where you can’t throw a rock without hitting a paramedic. 

  We do our daily training and we don’t expect him to get involved because he is just passing through.  He wants to get involved but he thinks he needs to be the boss during the evolutions.  When we are on medical calls he tries to coach the crew through treatment protocols but he is the only current member of the crew that has never worked for a private ambulance service.

  I suppose I’m not helping very much.  The boss across the floor omits our new Lt every once in awhile.  I don’t know a good way to approach him to offer help with the computer programs, he’s behind on reports, possibly because he’s not familiar with the system.  He can’t access information from the mobile computer while we are responding.  And he won’t get off the damn Federal while we are responding.

  He is a great example of the need for an officer training academy or something similar.  I know it sounds like I’m just busting on him, but I really want to help him out.  He, like every other new officer on my job, is handed a set of bugles on Monday and shows up at a company on Tuesday without any advice, training or mentoring. 

  I’m currently a part time officer.  I fill in for a few weeks here and there, but not permanent.  Don’t think I’m jealous either, I’m not, he got the spot before me fair and square.  I’m sure he’ll be fine after he adjusts.  But why isn’t there a “minimum standards” class or something to that effect?

  I’m going to try to talk to him next tour and see if we can get him up to speed on the computer at least, then we’ll work on his Federal addiction.

Any advise would be appreciated.

Stay Safe.

Posted in command-leadership

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April 11, 2011 • 3 comments