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  • May 2022

    • May 2022

    The May issue of Firehouse includes feature articles on hazmat lessons, higher education, standpipe operations, roof reports, hybrid and electric vehicle fires and much more. There is also a can't-miss special supplement on station design ahead of this month's Station Design Conference!
    Brown Reynolds Watford Architects Inc.
    2205 Fir A1 A32 Station Design Supplement Copy Page 01
    Special Content

    Firehouse Supplement: Station Design

    May 16, 2022
    This special Station Design supplement includes articles ranging from exhaust systems and contamination control to the mental health benefits of interior design.
    Peter Matthews
    Careers & Education

    As Firehouse Sees It: All Politics Start at the Local Level

    Peter Matthews
    May 16, 2022
    Peter Matthews reminds all firefighters and officers that they can't simply hope that the people who hold the federal purse strings will remember to provide funding to the fire...
    May 22 First Due Author Pic 6262d626ee420
    Operations & Training

    First Due: Competency-Based Training that Targets Error Prevention

    David Reines
    May 16, 2022
    David Reines tells of the institution of a training program that is all about cohesion among his department's members and those of neighboring agencies.
    Photos courtesy of Norristown, PA, Fire Department
    The depth of the training and preparation for the use of boats to conduct water rescues might surprise some. For example, paddle skills are vital and should be practiced, because shallow-water operations are more efficient when paddling is employed compared with running the boat motor.
    Water & Ice

    Technical Rescue: Urban Flooding—Boat Operations

    Andrew McIntyre
    May 16, 2022
    Andrew McIntyre plunges into a comprehensive discussion of the intricacies of using boats to get to survivors in towns that are under water after a hurricane or other catastrophic...
    An interior crew runs the risk of being disoriented in a basement should they fall through the floor after they enter a single-story house. Deploying a multipurpose ladder into a basement window might give those members a quick exit path or provide a quick entry path for a RIT.
    Ladders

    Truck Tactics: Ladder Deployments on Basement Fires

    Brian Gettemeier
    May 16, 2022
    Brian Gettemeier helps departments get a leg up on fires in cellars by explaining the numerous reasons for throwing ladders "down."

    More content from May 2022

    Jeff Rudolph 3 20 22 Punya Gorda, Fl Townhomes Pic 6
    Operations & Training

    Hot Shots 5/22

    Firehouse Staff
    May 16, 2022
    Hot Shots includes the extrication of a firefighter whose feet were trapped in an aerial device when it was extended before he exited the aerial after adjusting the aerial's nozzle...
    Photos by Michael O'Brian
    The unique facets of the construction of a building that has a 'podium' on bottom and a wood-frame structure on top include the fact that building systems traverse through a horizontal separation.
    Operations & Training

    Podium Construction: The Devil Is in the Details

    Michael O'Brian
    May 16, 2022
    Michael O'Brian exposes what is unseen from the exterior about buildings that are constructed on top of a "podium," so departments can prepare for a fire.
    Deputy Chief Terpak Crop 6297ba280a38c
    Operations & Training

    View from the Top: Flat-Roof Radio Reports

    Michael Terpak
    May 16, 2022
    Michael Terpak provides the 10 things that ladder company members who are sent to a flat roof of a fire building must be alert to for radioing to their incident commander.
    Robert “Butch” Cobb was selected as the ­Firehouse Hall of Fame 2022 inductee.
    Careers & Education

    For the Record 5/22

    Firehouse Staff
    May 16, 2022
    Robert “Butch” Cobb was selected as the ­Firehouse Hall of Fame 2022 inductee.
    Safety Stand Ssd 2022 Masthead2 621f78478df72
    Careers & Education

    Scuttlebutt 5/22

    Firehouse Staff
    May 16, 2022
    Safety Stand Down 2022
    Curt Varone
    Leadership

    Fire Law: Deleting Posts from Social Media Websites

    Curt Varone
    May 16, 2022
    Curt Varone's guidance to fire departments that have social media presence includes the need for a great deal of thought and research in regard to their online moderation policy...
    Brandon Fletcher 622b7ed59b21b
    Leadership

    Volunteer View: Retention Through Leadership

    Brandon Fletcher
    May 16, 2022
    Brandon Fletcher shines a light on the equal, if not greater, importance of retention versus recruitment.
    Rick Bossert 5c8aa7ac3c133
    EMS

    EMS: Accident Scene Safety

    Richard Bossert
    May 16, 2022
    Richard Bossert provides unsuspecting medics and EMTs important alerts for when they respond to motor vehicle accidents.
    Photos by Jessica Wiseman
    The Community-centered Fall Intervention Team, or Community-FIT model, is a multidisciplinary approach that’s been applied to serving the citizens of Upper Arlington, OH, in a way that transforms the outcomes of lift-assist callers and permits the town’s fire department to shift a substantial portion of its lift assists efforts to prevention. Here, members of the Upper Arlington Fire Department (UAFD) receive training for installing shower grab bars in citizens’ homes.
    EMS

    Shifting Your Focus on Lift Assists

    Mindy Gabriel
    May 16, 2022
    Mindy Gabriel explains how the collection and scrutiny of data, among other easy tasks, can allow a department to shrink the number of fall calls.
    May 22 The Company Officer Author Pic
    Leadership

    The Company Officer: What Good Is Salt If It Loses Its Saltiness?

    Dr. Brett Ellis
    May 16, 2022
    Brett Ellis sings the praises of the veteran firefighters who never promoted and whose aggressive style is mistaken for hostility.
    Photo by Edgar R. Thomas II
    Moorestown, NJ, Fire Department (MFD) Training Officer Bart Santaspirt provides training on rescue tools to two members who came to the department through MFD’s partnership with Rowan College of Burlington County (RCBC).
    Colleges & Universities

    Robust & Thorough: Partnering to Cover the Response Gap

    Chris Chesner
    May 16, 2022
    Christopher Chesner and Bart Santaspirt explain how a volunteer New Jersey fire department partnered with a community college to address member shortage during daytime hours.
    Photo courtesy of Denton Fire Department
    Denton, TX, Fire Department’s Blocker 3 was used 10 out of the 36 hours of the winter ice storm that hit the department’s area in February 2022.
    Alternative Response Vehicles

    Apparatus Innovations: Protecting the Protectors

    Barry Furey
    May 16, 2022
    Barry Furey provides valuable information about purpose-built, repurposed and retrofit blocker apparatus.
    Photos by Keith Neimann
    It’s obvious that the wellhole on the left can accommodate 2½-inch hose, but when the wellhole is smaller, such as what’s shown at right, a gloved hand is a good guide.
    Operations & Training

    A Systematic Approach to Standpipe Operations

    Keith Niemann
    May 16, 2022
    Keith Nieman puts you in prime position to establish or double-check your department's response to high-rise fires, including the various scenarios that you could encounter with...
    Photo courtesy of Air© Dtfoxfoto/Dreamstime.com
    May 22 Hazardous Materials Pic 3
    Hazardous Materials

    Hazmat Lessons that Can Be Overlooked

    Patrick Jessee
    May 16, 2022
    Patrick Jessee tells which hazmat training basics have a tendency to be bypassed by instructors.
    John Salkav3
    Operations & Training

    The Fire Scene: The Fire Instructor

    John J. Salka Jr.
    May 16, 2022
    John J. Salka Jr. why fire instructors can't stop at expert familiarity of a topic in assessing their suitability to train.
    Photos courtesy of BKV Group
    This department’s standards called for resilient flooring, a stainless steel kitchen and lounge furniture in the dayroom. By adding decorative task lighting above the island, defining space with soffits, procuring a custom dining table, installing stone-look resilient flooring, specifying residential-style ceiling fans and using red accents in upholstery, the spaces feel more inviting but very much still a fire station.
    Stations

    Newest Concepts to Promote Camaraderie & Mental Health

    Margaret Lafferty
    May 16, 2022
    Margaret Lafferty has designs on enlightening fire chiefs and municipal administrators on how enlivening the various interior spaces of the fire station can boost morale.
    Apr 21 Healht And Wellness Author Pic 603908c98693a
    Health & Fitness

    Health & Wellness: Barefoot Training: A Big Impact on Small Footprints

    Jessica Scott
    May 16, 2022
    Jessica Scott walks you through the benefits of going shoeless and of exercises for the feet.
    Photo by Dalan Zartman
    Lithium-ion (li-ion) battery packs produce pressurized gas streams of flammable and toxic gas. This results in high-velocity flames that are significantly hotter than firefighters typically encounter.
    Vehicle Extrication

    Hybrids & Electric Vehicles: Is the Fire Service Ready?

    Dalan Zartman
    May 16, 2022
    Dalan Zartman explains when firefighters should apply a hands-on and a hands-off approach when they encounter a hybrid automobile or electric vehicle that's been in an accident...
    Photo by Ryan Gamma
    Close work with civil engineers is necessary to eliminate any problems of apparatus bottoming out on entry or exit of a bay that’s elevated.
    Stations

    Proving Ground: Extreme Fire Station Design in Florida

    Todd Sweet
    May 13, 2022
    Todd Sweet's close familiarity with the enhanced design of fire stations in Florida is useful to departments that are located in other areas that encounter extreme weather and...
    Photo courtesy of H2M architects + engineers/David Miller Photography
    NFPA 1500: Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety, Health, and Wellness Program indicates that fire departments are obligated to protect firefighters from exposure to vehicle exhaust emissions via the use of systems that capture the exhaust. Opening bay doors before starting apparatus isn’t a substitute for such a system.
    Exhaust Removal

    The Ins and Outs of Vehicle Exhaust Extraction Systems

    Patrick O. Stone
    May 13, 2022
    Patrick Stone provides the perfect guide for departments lock in on how they want to remove vehicle exhaust from their apparatus bay.
    Photos courtesy of MSA Design
    Members who operate out of existing firehouses don’t need to feel that their die is cast when it comes to their exposure to contaminants because a renovation of their station isn’t in the cards. Numerous simple, inexpensive actions can have a significant positive effect. For example, contaminated gear shouldn’t be stored in the apparatus bay, even for short periods of time and particularly not out in the open. It should be separated from personnel, equipment and other materials.
    Stations

    Managing Contamination Through Affordable Best Practices

    Nestor Melnyk
    May 13, 2022
    Nestor Melnyk, Steve Kelly and Ethan Klussman provide easy-to-manage, inexpensive ways that an existing fire station can be made to better protect members against carcinogens ...