Firehouse Expo Heading to Nashville in 2016
Firehouse recently announced that its 2016 Firehouse Expo event will be held in Nashville, TN. In addition to the change in location, the event will be held in the fall, with October dates for 2016.
“It was not our original plan to be in Nashville in 2016,” said Ed Nichols, vice president of events, “however, circumstances required us to find a new location and Nashville made the most sense. It’s a hub to the southeastern United States, is easily reachable by air or car and offers entertainment opportunities to exhibitors and attendees at no additional cost in a way very few venues can offer.” Additionally, Nichols added, “The way the state has embraced the announcement and the support that has materialized so far has been impressive. This provides the platform for us to create something unique for the fire service, both regionally and nationally, consistent with what Firehouse and the Firehouse Expo brand has come to be known for.”
Planning for Firehouse Expo 2016 got under way on the heels of the 2015 event, and both the city of Nashville and the Tennessee fire service are excited about the opportunity.
Firehouse Expo will take place October 18–22, 2016, at the Music City Center in Nashville. For more information, contact Show Manager Brian Cassell at [email protected].
Line-of-Duty Deaths
5 U.S. firefighters recently died in the line of duty. Two deaths were health related and three were the results of firefighting operations. This edition of Firehouse is dedicated to these firefighters.
ENGINEER JOHN WHELAN, 46, of the Denver Fire Department, died July 15 from complications of a traumatic injury he suffered weeks earlier. On June 28, while checking for extension from a dumpster fire, Whelan was critically injured when a skylight collapsed and he fell through the roof of an abandoned building. He was treated at the scene and transported to the hospital for medical care. On July 15, several days after being released from the hospital to recover at home, Whelan experienced shortness of breath and was taken to St. Anthony North Health Campus where, less than an hour later, he passed away.
FIREFIGHTER TYRON WESTON, 51, with Columbia, SC, Fire Department, died July 26 after he was stricken on duty earlier in the month. The nature and cause of fatal injury are still to be determined.
CAPTAIN JAMES HICKS, 44, of the North Carolina Air National Guard Fire and Emergency Services, was found unresponsive in his fire department bunkroom several hours after responding to a mutual-aid structure fire on July 27. He was treated by fellow firefighters and other responders but was pronounced deceased at the fire house. The nature and cause of the fatal injury is still to be determined by authorities.
CAPTAIN DAVE RUHL, 38, with the U.S. Forest Service, died July 30 after becoming trapped by a wildfire in California. Serving as Acting Assistant District Fire Management Officer, Ruhl was reported missing during the initial fire attack on the Frog Fire Wildfire in the Modoc National Forest. His body was recovered early the next morning.
FIREFIGHTER MICHAEL HALLENBECK, 21, with the USFS, died Aug. 8 after being struck by a tree during the initial attack on the Sierra Fire, which broke out south of the Echo Summit mountain pass in California.
IPSLEI Honors Graham, Coleman
The International Public Safety Leadership & Ethics Institute (IPSLEI) 3rd Annual Lifetime Achievement Award will be held at the on Oct. 15 at the Marconi Automotive Museum in Tustin, CA. This year's honorees are Gordon Graham and Ronny Coleman.
Graham is a 33-year veteran (now retired) of California law enforcement. In this capacity he served as a street cop, supervisor, manager and executive. He has taken his background as a police officer, risk manager and attorney and founded Lexipol, a company designed to standardize public safety practices around America.
Graham is also co-owner (with Chief Billy Goldfeder) of the popular firefighter safety website FireFighterCloseCalls.com, and he assisted the IAFC with constructing its site, FireFighterNearMiss.com.
Over the last decade, Graham has spoken to more than 300,000 law enforcement, fire and EMS professionals from around the world.
In 1995, he was presented with the Governor’s Award for excellence in law enforcement training. In 2005, he received recognition from the IAFC for his lifelong work in improving firefighter safety and performance. In 2008, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from California POST. His penetrating wit, coupled with his vast knowledge in multiple disciplines, provides the enlightened listener with an information-packed seminar.
Ronny J. Coleman is the retired state fire marshal for the State of California. He has served in many elected positions in professional organizations, including president, IAFC; vice president, International Committee for Prevention and Control of Fire (CTIF); and president, California League of Cities, Fire Chiefs Department. In 2010, he was appointed chairman of the California State Firefighters Association Volunteer Committee. He served on the Public Safety Committee for the League of California Cities for almost 20 years and served as chairman of the Commission on Fire Accreditation International from 1984 to 2005.
Coleman has served as a panel member on the re-constituted “America Burning” panel and was a member of the U.S. Fire Administration’s Stakeholder Committee. He serves on the Fireman’s Fund National Committee and currently serves as the president of The National Fire Heritage Center,an organization dedicated to preserving the written history of the fire profession in the United States. He has authored more than 19 textbooks for the fire community.
The California Fire Chiefs Association named their annual Fire Chief of the Year Award after Chief Coleman in 2000, and the Center for Public Safety Excellence named a perpetual trophy devoted to Excellence in Leadership after Chief Coleman. He was recently awarded a special recognition by the president of the International Code Council (ICC) for his lifetime involvement in the development of fire codes, and was recently appointed to the ICC Membership Development Committee.
In 2011, he received the Mason Lankford Award. In 2012, he was elected to the CSFA Hall of Fame. In 2013, he was designated as “Companion Fellow” with the IFE.
For more information about the awards ceremony, visit ipslei.org.
LODD Conference
The Texas Fire Chiefs Association, along with Firehouse, is proud to present the 2015 LODD Conference: Different Fire Departments, Same Outcomes, October 13–15, at the Hurst Convention Center in Hurst, TX.
This first-of-its-kind conference will feature some of the fire service’s most sought-after speakers, as they confront the challenges of reducing the number of LODDs. Various case studies of LODD incidents will be highlighted to show that firefighters continue to die for the same reasons. Attendees will be challenged to become change agents in their respective fire departments to provide the leadership that is desperately needed.
Speakers include Chief Tim Sendelbach, Editor-in-Chief, Firehouse; Chief Billy Goldfeder, , Loveland-Symmes FD; Chief Ron Siarnicki, Executive Director, National Fallen Firefighter Foundation (NFFF); Chief Dennis Compton, Chairman, NFFF Foundation and Mesa, AZ Fire Chief (ret.); Chief Shane Ray, Executive Director, NFSA and former South Carolina State Fire Marshal and Texas State Fire Marshal Chris Connealy.
To register or get more information, visit loddconference.org.
