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  • March 2025

    • March 2025

    Issue Description: The March issue of Firehouse includes feature articles on firefighter training facilities, thermal imaging, Detroit's Opioid Quick Response Team, previews of FireFusion and the Station Design Conference and a special Apparatus Supplement.

    Cover Description: Members of the Albany, NY, Fire Department make their way up the stairs and force the front door of a vacant structure as heavy smoke pushes from the boarded up doorway and windows. Command had notified all units that there were people in the structure. Firefighters searched and located the victim, who had serious burns. Other members then knocked down fire that made its way up from the basement. Firefighters on the second floor conducted ventilation on the front windows. Photo by Jeffrey Belschwinder of Sidewinder Photography

    Dedication: Eleven U.S. firefighters recently died in the line of duty—Firefighter Jeffrey Albanese, Capt. Christopher Clevenger, Capt. Mark Eads, Firefighter Jeffrey Fiala, Firefighter John Gaudet, Master Firefighter Christopher Higgins, Firefighter/EMT-I Jacob Kincaid, Capt. Adam Kuspa, Medical Capt. Roger Lathrop, Firefighter William Nix and Engineer Kevin Skinner. This issue of Firehouse is dedicated to these firefighters.

    More content from March 2025

    fire stations design Station Design Conference
    Time and time again, attendees of Firehouse’s preeminent gathering of architects and project managers have said they walked away better prepared and smarter. Optimizing the Conference...
    March 17, 2025
    Firehouse
    Once the Double Hard Sleeve Gantry is slid to the rear of the apparatus and then tilted upward at an approximate 45-degree angle, the hook and loop straps are released to access the sections of hard sleeve for deployment.
    What often requires two or three members to access hard sleeve, stretch and maneuver it, and get it down from apparatus now requires only one with a new gantry system.
    March 17, 2025
    fire department policies rules legal challenges Curt Varone
    Curt Varone provides the means by which departments can avoid legal challenges by SOP and SOG violators by ensuring that the department drafts the rules correctly.
    March 14, 2025
    firefighting technology FireFusion Brian S. Gettemeier
    Brian S. Gettemeier acknowledges that technology falls outside of his comfort zone. Nevertheless, the high-tech focus of the FireFusion conference provided him with myriad learning...
    March 14, 2025
    Photos by Joseph DeVito
    The white heat in this driver's seat is a latent print that proves that the seat was occupied recently. Make sure that the seat-to-occupant ratio matches up.
    Joseph DeVito instructs on how a TIC is useful in emergencies that involve downed power lines, hazardous material releases and MVAs, among other non-fire circumstances.
    March 13, 2025
    Photos by Curt Isakson
    For house fires, one hoseline always should be staffed with a nozzle firefighter, a backup firefighter/officer, a door/control firefighter and a pump operator.
    Curt Isakson reminds fireground commanders’ grasp of the parameters of staffing at house fires and commercial building fires is of paramount importance.
    March 13, 2025
    Photos courtesy of Loudon County Combined Fire and Rescue System
    Because an employee of an energy supply company who was sent to repair a leaky underground propane tank decided to let the propane that was in the tank seep out of the ground, an explosion occurred during the response to an odor of gas by members of the Loudoun County Combined Fire and Rescue System (LC-CFRS). Sterling, VA, Volunteer Fire Company (SVFC) Firefighter Trevor Brown was killed. Analysis of the incident revealed concerns regarding risk assessment, event escalation, communication, resource allocation and command structure.
    Billy Goldfeder explains why the report from a propane gas explosion that resulted in an LODD should serve as a template for every agency.
    March 12, 2025
    Photos by Tom W. Shand
    Pump panels from earlier rigs, such as the one on this 1977 Mack CF rig, generally were more compact, with all discharges controlled via direct-acting linkages and pull rods. In later years, NFPA 1901: Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus was changed to require that a gauge be located adjacent to the respective discharge control. Note the vernier throttle on the lower panel and the discharge relief valve in the upper right panel.
    Tom Shand covers discharges, controllers, pump styles, intakes and hosebeds in his comprehensive explanation of all that must be considered to make a driver/engineer's job safer...
    March 11, 2025
    Photos of courtesy of Detroit QRT
    Detroit QRT members following up with an opioid overdose patient who declined transportation to a hospital after treatment by Detroit EMS.
    Corey McIsaac tells how the opioid quick response team that was launched by the Detroit Fire Department influenced 88 percent of people with whom they met who are experiencing...
    March 11, 2025
    Photos by Jeffrey Mondo
    Not all parts of a structure/building might be affected by a collapse. Here, the rear and side of the structure are unaffected and potentially might be cleared of victims by local responders.
    Chris Brown & Jeffrey Mondo remind departments that lack the training for these incidents that they still can perform important tasks while keeping their members safe and without...
    March 11, 2025
    Photo by Marc Aloan
    Recent research confirmed a trend of departments opting to purchase pickups to serve as chief’s vehicles. Although larger pickups might not maneuver on tight city streets as well as SUVs can, pickups can accommodate a variety of storage solutions, ranging from generic slide-out trays and tonneau covers to full bed remounts that include custom cabinets.
    Marc Aloan explains the pros and cons of the choice between SUV and pickup for a chief's vehicle and the design factors of both that might escape initial considerations.
    March 11, 2025
    Photos by Jeffrey Gaskin
    The new Meritor drive axle wheel end will allow for 17-inch disc brakes to be used at higher gross axle weight ratings.
    Jeffrey D. Gaskin delivers a guide to four vehicle systems that are key to gross axle weight ratings and gross vehicle weight ratings.
    March 11, 2025
    Photos by Rick Mosher
    As the engine company culture renaissance continues, departments are returning to a traditional high-side/low-side body configuration with curbside portable ladders.
    Rick Mosher details the reasoning for some departments to specify a high-side/low-side pumper that includes curbside access to ground ladders.
    March 11, 2025
    Photo courtesy of Fireblast Global
    The Carlsbad, CA, Safety Training Center includes this Class B kitchen fire prop. Departments in the region weren’t capable of conducting regular training because of the state’s implementation of standards that affected Class A live fire burns. Computer controls and sensors that detect water as well as manual control via wireless devices provide the means to change the way that flames perform and to optimize the safety of trainees.
    Three chiefs and six facility/prop specialists provide a convincing argument for departments to explore their training options and all of the innovation that’s available.
    March 10, 2025
    fire service funding building codes Peter Matthews
    Peter Matthews explains why it’s never been more important for members of the fire service to educate their U.S. House representatives and senators.
    March 10, 2025