Friday, July 3, 2009
Quick takes
Apartment fire in San Marcos, Texas: Click here for some details from this fire that occurred around 5:00 PM on Thursday. Part 2 of the video is here.
DC fire chief and his PIO give conflicting information on accuracy of STATter911.com story: Chief Dennis Rubin made it clear during a radio interview on Thursday that my story about a news blackout, ordered by Mayor Adrian Fenty's press office right after the Metro train wreck, is not true. Despite that, Chief Rubin's own PIO confirms, on the record, that the story is true. At the same time the police chief confirms another aspect of what we reported about press relations following the deadly collision on June 22. Warning - this is a long entry that some may find self-serving on my part. I get it. Just want to give you as much raw material and information possible to make your own judgments. It is all right here.
Four firehouses were closed in Prince George's County on Thursday: Today is the third day of the expanded money saving plan that has volunteers filling in for career firefighters. It is part of an effort to keep the down overtime spending. Today is also a holiday. The six stations targeted for today are Seat Pleasant (Station 808), Bowie - Pointer Ridge (Station 843), Bunker Hill (Station 855), Forestville (Station 823), Marlboro (Station 820) and Riverdale Heights (Station 813). Yesterday the department, because of staffing issues, had to add a seventh station. Our survey indicated only three of the seven stations had volunteer crews in place.
Also, I am a little late in reporting on the moving of the fireboat. Fireboat 858, which was paid for with funds donated by the developers of National Harbor is no longer at the complex with a dedicated crew. Find out where it is by clicking here for our PGFD update.
In Boston reporters are also scouting the brownouts in what firefighters are calling "Menino Casino": A no-confidence vote in the fire commissioner, firefighters continuing to volunteer at closed companies, and a new term for what some call "firehouse roulette". It isn't pretty in Boston these days and reporters are staking out fire stations. You can find the story here.
Wildland fire rig wrecked during training may be totaled: One firefighter was slightly hurt in the rollover on Wednesday. The crew from Central Fire in Hollister, California had taken the $235,000 engine to an off-road park. It rolled down a steep hillside. Read more.
Pawn shop wall collapses on firefighter: Firefighter Nation has the video of a block destroyed by fire in Greenwood, Mississippi. A wall fell on Firefighter Richard Brown who suffered a head injury. Details and videos are here.
Ain't no sunshine: That is why the Missouri attorney general is suing the Northeast Ambulance and Fire Protection District in St. Louis County. The claim is the district is violating the Sunshine Law by banning residents from public meetings and not providing documents to the state auditor. Read the details.
What does the Ray McCormack speech have to do with fire prevention?: Montgomery County Fire Rescue Service's Bill Delaney uses the FDNY lieutenant's FDIC speech as a jumping off point for a FireRescue1.com column titled How about a culture of prevention? Read it here.
53-year-old recruit: Firehouse.com found this great story from Frederick County, Maryland. Check it out.
Move to bring back Owego, NY volunteers: We have been following this story over the cutting of volunteer firefighters from the rolls because of a cap that is part of the Village of Owego's charter. Now there are efforts to bring back some of those who were cut. Click here.
Swiss firefighters make dramatic (not really), remote control, rescue of woman: From the AP -
It must rank among the easiest fires ever to put out. Zurich authorities say police and firefighters were called to the house of an elderly woman early Thursday after she reported her television set was burning. When they arrived, they discovered no signs of fire or smoke.
They found instead that the TV was tuned into a German station that in the early morning hours aired the constant image of a fireplace.
"The fire was extinguished with the press of a button," police said in a statement.
The critic: The young man taking this video (discovered by our friends at Firefighter Nation) gives a running narration as French firefighters stretch lines at a house fire. He is critical in a number of spots about how long it takes to get water. But make sure you listen to what happens at the end of the clip.
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