Why Everyone Goes Home doesn’t always mean “Everyone Goes Home.”

Copied from backstepfirefighter.com:


I think I finally put it all together….I understand it now.  Call it an epiphany or a moment of clarity, but suddenly it all made sense.  During a recent class the instructor made several references to the standard EGH ethos, “We come first” and “Risk a lot to save a lot”.  As I listened though, I understood that while he spoke of these things, his perspective was different.  And then it became clear.

I saw this post on the Fire Service Warrior forum and thought I would share it:

There is a great book by Malcom Gladwell titled, Outliers about expert performers. The realization that has occurred, because of work by researches like K. Anders Ericsson, is that it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to become an expert performer. That's why we can't accept that three hours a quarter of live fire training is enough. That is why we have to live and breathe this profession. The best way to reduce the risk of firefighting is to be an expert. So, how many hours are you devoting to fighting fire? How much studying are you doing, how many videos are you studying, how many hours do you spend preparing for the fireground?
I have a couple of suggestions for getting those sets-and-reps in.
1. Every building you walk up to take a minute and do a size up. What is the construction? Where are the bedrooms/high life hazard areas at?
2. Every shift day go through the process of calling a MAYDAY. If you ever need to you want it to be as automatic as possible.
3. Watch YouTube videos of building fires and ignore the tactics - just watch the fire behavior. Learn to anticipate what is coming next.

Course Registration

On September 26, 2011 I distributed an SOG titled Course Registration Process. This SOG explains the proper way to apply for fire academy courses and the proper way to fill out registration forms. Four months later I continue to receive registration forms that are filled out incorrectly. Effective immediately, I will not correct any mistakes on registration forms and any form not filled out properly will be returned to your Battalion Chief, no exceptions.

Captain Earle

Region 5 Course Update

This is a brief update on some of our upcoming catalog courses:

·        2150-12-504, ISO, scheduled to start 2/18 at City of Charleston Fire Dept will go---there is one space remaining in this class

·        2147-12-506, NIMS ICS, scheduled to start 2/20 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

·        2728-12-504, Haz Mat Ops, scheduled to start 2/20 at Jasper Co Fire Dept will go

·        1225-12-502, Pumper Testing, scheduled to start 2/21 at Berkeley Co ESTC will go

·        1136-12-502, FLAG, scheduled to start 2/23 at Summerville Fire Dept has been cancelled

·        3310-12-505, Rope Rescue, scheduled to start 2/24 at MCAS Beaufort will go---this class is full

·        1250-12-505, Aerial Ops, scheduled to start 2/27 at Summerville Fire Dept will go

·        2130-12-503, Bldg Const: N/C, scheduled to start 3/6 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

·        3310-12-506, Rope Rescue, scheduled to start 3/12 at Berkeley Co ESTC will go

·        1221-12-503, Pump Ops II, scheduled to start 3/13 at St. John’s Fire Dept will go

·        2118-12-508, PICO, scheduled to start 3/13 at St. Andrew’s Fire Dept will go

·        2154-12-504, I-400, scheduled to start 3/13 at MCAS Beaufort Fire Dept will go

The following classes are in danger of cancelling (low enrollment):

·        8335-12-502, Intro  to Wildland/Urban, scheduled to start 2/27 at Colleton Co Fire/Rescue (need 10 more students)---this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        2118-12-507, PICO, scheduled to start 3/7 at Isle of Palms Fire Dept (need 1 more student)

·        1210-12-511, EVDT, scheduled to start 3/13 at Summerville Fire Dept (need 1 more student)

THE MAN IN THE MIRROR

• Posted by Paul Combs on January 9, 2012 at 3:26pm

It is a fresh new year - full of hopes, dreams, and challenges. Many of us will use the new year as a launching pad for personal improvement and an opportunity to accomplish important goals. Maybe yours is to advance within your department, to finally run that extra mile, or simply lose a few pounds - whatever it is, it's a great time reevaluate and implement a new you!
However, change - real change - starts from within! Change your own attitude and outlook on life before expecting others to do the same. Because when you come right down to it, you are the only person you can change - but your actions will influence many others to follow.

Quote of the Week

"Far and away, the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."

Theodore Roosevelt

Randolph Firefighter CLOSE CALL caught on the Fire Helmet Camera

New Training SOG's

SOG 105.020 Company Training and SOG 105.025 Training reports are being delivered to all the stations today. Please ensure that all personnel review the new SOG's and complete a training report. If you have any questions call or email me. Thanks.

Captain Earle

Southeastern Fire School

The brochure is out for this year's Southeastern Fire School March 10, 11 at the South Carolina Fire Academy. There are several new classes being offered this year so please take a look. Also, get your registrations in ASAP as the classes usually fill up quickly.

http://www.scfa.state.sc.us/PDF/Southeastern%20Fire%20School%202012.pdf

Quit Telling Me to Change My Culture

From the The Fire Service Warrior website author:
 
I am sick and tired of hearing that the fire service needs to change our culture.  It’s what “Everyone Goes Home” is about, it’s in the 16 life safety inititives, and hords of folks come out an comment when ever there is a LODD that we need to “Change the Culture of the Fire Service.”
If the culture they are talking about is the one filled with out-of-shape men and women who have signed on because they want to carry a badge and a pager, and wear shirts that say something like, “I fight what you fear,” while driving 63mph on a county road to get to a call, I agree.  That is rarely what they are talking about.  What they say is that we need to avoid things like, “Duty to Die Syndrome” and use “Victim Survivability Profiling” to determine if people can be alive before WE commit to the inside.
&^%$ me, are we serious?  Firefighting is a combat position.  If you don’t want to go into combat you don’t join the military.  If you don’t want to risk YOUR life in a burning building don’t join the fire service.  For the love of the memory of every firefighter who has perished in the line of duty please STOP advocating risk adverse policies and ideas in the name of safety.
If you want to be safe acknowldge that this job places the same physical strain on us as Navy SEALS are expected to cope with (12 METS during both firefighter and combat swimming operations).  Train like a professional going into harms way!
If we want to truly reduce fireground injuries and fatalities let’s start training our people to where they are physically incapable of making mistakes in the basic skills.  “Amateurs train until they get it right; professionals train until they can’t get it wrong.”  You know what happens when throwing a 24′ two-stage ladder by yourself becomes instinctive? You can use your brain to worry about maintaining Situational Awareness and Sizing-Up the building.  You know what happens when you have drilled on SCBA emergency procedures a 1000 times? When you have a problem you don’t freak out and enter the cascading series of failure that comes with a run-away Sympathetic Nervous System reaction.
Let’s quit tip-toeing around the facts,  If YOU are unwilling to train until you can’t get it wrong, maintain a level of fitness that with help you excel on the fireground, AND risk yourself because those neighbors we serve need US to do it… THEN LEAVE. There are other ways to lend a helping hand.  Volunteer with the Red Cross, help out at a Hospital, participate in a clothing drive, but please, for &^$# sake get out of the fire service.
Own this job.  Own your responsibility to your neighbors.  Own your responsibility to your brothers and sisters.

Vent, Enter, Search (VES)

By Jim McCormack
Published Sunday, January 1, 2012 | From the January 2012 Issue of FireRescue

One of the fireground search techniques that seems to tweak a nerve (or start a heated discussion) is vent, enter, search (VES). You’ll hear people say things like, “We don’t do that; it’s too dangerous!” or “We don’t have enough people to do that!” So before we get into the actual skill, and how and when it is performed, let’s try to have a civil discussion about why it is indeed a viable search technique on any fireground.

A Little Background
Simply put, VES is an approach to searching an area on the fireground where there’s a pretty good chance that there’s a victim in that area. In other words, either somebody on scene has told you that there’s a victim in there or you strongly suspect (based on a solid scene size-up) that there’s a victim inside. Remember our previous discussion on high-probability search areas and having a search plan? (If not, check out the December 2010 article “What’s Your Search Plan?” at http://tinyurl.com/truck-search-plan.)

Region 5 Course Update

This is a brief update on some of the upcoming catalog courses in Region 5:

·        2145-12-501, IC: Structural Collapse, scheduled to start 2/11 at Bluffton Fire Dept will go

·        3330-12-506, Auto Extrication, scheduled to start 2/11 at Jasper Co Fire Dept has been cancelled

·        1210-12-510, EVDT, scheduled to start 2/13 at Hampton Co Fire Dept will go

·        1160-12-505, Truck Co, scheduled to start 2/14 at St. John’s Fire Dept will go

·        2139-12-503, Fire Inspection, scheduled to start 2/16 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue will go

·        2150-12-504, ISO, scheduled to start 2/18 at City of Charleston Fire Dept will go

·        2147-12-506, NIMS ICS, scheduled to start 2/20 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

·        3310-12-505, Rope Rescue, scheduled to start 2/24 at MCAS Beaufort will go---this class is full

·        1250-12-505, Aerial Ops, scheduled to start 2/27 at Summerville Fire Dept will go

·        2130-12-503, Bldg Const: N/C, scheduled to start 3/6 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

·        3310-12-506, Rope Rescue, scheduled to start 3/12 at Berkeley Co ESTC will go

·        1221-12-503, Pump Ops II, scheduled to start 3/13 at St. John’s Fire Dept will go

·        2118-12-508, PICO, scheduled to start 3/13 at St. Andrew’s Fire Dept will go

·        2154-12-504, I-400, scheduled to start 3/13 at MCAS Beaufort will go

·        2119-12-505, STICO, scheduled to start 3/17 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue will go

·        2114-12-502, FSS: Team, scheduled to start 3/21 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

·        2119-12-506, STICO, scheduled to start 3/24 at City of Charleston Fire Dept will go---this class is free through grant funding

·        8335-12-503, Intro to Wildland/Urban FF, scheduled to start 3/24 at Hampton Co Fire Dept will go

·        1220-12-508, Pump Ops, scheduled to start 3/26 at Burton Fire Dept will go

The following classes are in danger of cancelling (low enrollment):

·        2728-12-504, Haz Mat Ops, scheduled to start 2/20 at Jasper Co Fire Dept (need 7 more students)—this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        1225-12-502, Pumper Testing, scheduled to start 2/21 at Berkeley Co ESTC (need 2 more students)—this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        1136-12-502, FLAG, scheduled to start 2/23 at Summerville Fire Dept (need 12 more students)—this class cuts off Monday morning!

·        8335-12-502, Intro to Wildland/Urban FF, scheduled to start 2/27 at Colleton Co Fire/Rescue (need 10 more students)

·        2118-12-507, PICO, scheduled to start 3/7 at Isle of Palms Fire Dept (need 2 more students)

·        1210-12-511, EVDT, scheduled to start 3/13 at Summerville Fire Dept (need 1 more student)

·        1220-12-507, Pump Ops, scheduled to start 3/20 at Goose Creek Rural Fire Dept (need 1 more student)

·        3330-12-507, Auto Extrication, scheduled to start 3/24 at Berkeley Co ESTC (need 12 more students)

Residential Sprinkler Training

Click the link below for more information on a training opportunity about residential sprinkler systems.

Residential Sprinkler Training

Three Keys to Effective Training

By Kevin Milan
Published Monday, January 9, 2012 on http://www.firefighternation.com/
Training is all about attitude, behavior and consistency: You need a positive attitude; you should behave as if every day were a training day; and, if you’re a training officer, your expectations must be consistent. Following these simple ABCs improves performance and increases efficiency.

The “training ABCs” apply to the individual, company officer, training officer and chief officer. There are no easy scripts to follow, and there’s no secret formula for achieving these ABCs, but like the ABCs you learned in school, with practice and endless repetition, the “training ABCs” can be imprinted and repeated with ease in any situation.

The Sickness

By Jason Hoevelmann

I occasionally get requests for advice on problems others are having in their respective departments. The topics range from how to get away from officer elections, officers who don't train, senior firefighters who are not buying in to new ideas and how to get their departments to train more. Every situation is different and it is tough to offer much without being directly involved. So, inevitably, I offer a diplomatic thought, which I hate to do. But, we know there is always two sides to every story.

Let me shift gears real quick to help drive home the point I want to make. A few months ago I ran an EMS call with the ambulance. A mother called us for her adult son who had overdosed on heroin. She was irate because she thought he had cleaned up and she was sure her son had gotten the drug from his father. Well, the son was brought around with some Narcan and he ended up leaving with his dad, who just happened to be nearby. The mother's speculation was accurate. The addiction to heroin of the father has been passed on to his son and is facilitating the drug abuse. They are both sick from addiction.

Coastal Water Rescue Class

There will be a Coastal Water Rescue and Emergencies class taught the week of April 16^th-20^th. The class is a 40 hour class; all personnel are invited to attend.  You will need to submit leave requests as regular leave, but in the class course section type in water rescue class. This is a first come first serve class; there is a maximum of 12 slots available.  Once those slots have been filled, no more personnel will be accepted for this particular week. There may be more classes depending on the number of people that sign up. All personnel interested in attending are asked to send an RSVP email to me by January 15, 2012. If you have any questions about the class please email me; I will be happy to send the study guide and course syllabus to you. This is a very physically strenuous class. All personnel interested are encouraged to meet with Water Rescue staff at Beaufort High School pool starting Monday December 19, 2011. There will be instructors there on Monday’s, Wednesday’s, and Friday’s. We will be there from 0700-0900. There will be a prequalification test the week before the class. ALL PERSONNEL WISHING TO ATTEND TO NEED TO  RSVP VIA EMAIL OR PHONE BY JANUARY 15, 2012.

Chris Williams

Another Good Description of How a BLEVE Occurs

South Carolina LODD

It is with deep regret we advise you that an Anderson County Volunteer Firefighter has died in the Line of Duty this morning. Ex Fire Chief & Active Firefighter David Crenshaw responded to a wreck on Porter Road and Highway 88 around 0630 hours and collapsed at the scene. He was treated  and taken to a medical facility in cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead.
Chief Crenshaw had been a member of the Pendleton Fire Department for 50+ years. He served as chief of department for 21 years. Crenshaw is a current member of the Pendleton City Council. Our sincere condolences. RIP

Toronto Mayday

Training Report Changes

In an effort to streamline the training reports I have changed the training categories on the firehouse reporting system. Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the new categories. Also, please do not add any categories; if a category needs to be added let me know. Note that physical fitness training is now located under the Suppression group. Apparatus checks will now be logged under Apparatus and Equipment also under the Suppression category. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the new setup call me.

Captain Earle

Region 5 Course Update

This is an update on some of the upcoming catalog courses in Region 5:

·        2171-12-503, Leadership I, scheduled to start 2/2 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue will go

·        2144-12-502, IC: High Rise, scheduled to start 2/4 at Bluffton Fire Dept will go

·        2100-12-503, Fire Officer, scheduled to start 2/6 at Hardeeville Fire Dept will go

·        4171-12-504, Fire Instructor, scheduled to start 2/6 at Burton Fire Dept will go

·        3224-12-505, Arson Detection, scheduled to start 2/7 at St. Andrew’s Fire Dept will go---this class is full

·        1160-12-505, Truck Co, scheduled to start 2/14 at St. John’s Fire Dept will go---this class is full

·        2150-12-504, ISO, scheduled to start 2/18 at City of Charleston Fire Dept will go

·        2147-12-506, NIMS ICS, scheduled to start 2/20 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

The following classes are in danger of cancelling (low enrollment):

·        2145-12-501, IC: Structural Collapse, scheduled to start 2/11 at Bluffton Fire Dept (need 1 more student)---this class cuts off Wednesday morning!

·        3330-12-506, Auto Extrication, scheduled to start 2/11 at Jasper Co Fire Dept (need 7 students) ---this class cuts off Wednesday morning!

·        1210-12-510, EVDT, scheduled to start 2/13 at Hampton Fire Dept (need 10 students)----this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        2139-12-503, Fire Inspection, scheduled to start 2/16 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue (need 3 more students)

·        2728-12-504, Haz Mat Ops, scheduled to start 2/20 at Jasper Co Fire Dept (need 11 more students)

·        1225-12-502, Pumper Testing, scheduled to start 2/21 at Berkeley Co ESTC (need 2 more students)

·        1136-12-502, FLAG, scheduled to start 2/23 at Summerville Fire Dept (need 12 more students)

Propane Tank Hazards

Region 5 Course Update

This is a brief update on some of the upcoming catalog courses in Region 5:

·        1210-12-508, EVDT, scheduled to start 1/23 at Burton Fire Dept will go

·        2113-12-503, FSS: Personal, scheduled to start 1/23 at Beaufort Fire Dept has been cancelled

·        2727-12-502, Haz Mat Awareness, scheduled to start 1/23 at Colleton CO Fire/Rescue has been cancelled

·        2118-12-506, PICO, scheduled to start 1/27 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue will go

·        8118-12-504, PPV, scheduled to start 1/28 at Hampton Co Fire Dept will go

·        1205-12-504, POV, scheduled to start 1/30 at Jasper Co Fire Dept will go

·        1210-12-509, EVDT, scheduled to start 1/30 at Isle of Palms Fire Dept has been cancelled

·        2153-12-505, I-300, scheduled to start 1/30 at MCAS Beaufort will go

·        2171-12-503, Leadership I, scheduled to start 2/2 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue will go

·        2144-12-502, IC: High Rise, scheduled to start 2/4 at Bluffton Fire Dept will go (pending instructor issues)

·        3224-12-505, Arson Detection, scheduled to start 2/7 at St. Andrew’s Fire Dept will go---this class is full

·        1160-12-505, Truck Co, scheduled to start 2/14 at St. John’s Fire Dept will go---there are 4 spaces remaining in this class

·        2150-12-504, ISO, scheduled to start 2/18 at City of Charleston Fire Dept will go

·        2147-12-506, NIMS ICS, scheduled to start 2/20 at Beaufort Fire Dept will go

The following classes are in danger of cancelling (low enrollment):

·        2100-12-503, Fire Officer, scheduled to start 2/6 at Hardeeville Fire Dept (need 7 more students)—this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        4171-12-504, Fire Instructor, scheduled to start 2/6 at Burton Fire Dept (need 1 more student)—this class cuts off Friday morning!

·        2145-12-501, IC: Structural Collapse, scheduled to start 2/11 at Bluffton Fire Dept (need 5 more students)

·        3330-12-506, Auto Extrication, scheduled to start 2/11 at Jasper Co Fire Dept (need 7 more students)

·        1210-12-510, EVDT, scheduled to start 2/13 at Hampton Co Fire Dept (need 10 students)

·        2139-12-503, Fire Inspection, scheduled to start 2/16 at Hilton Head Fire/Rescue (need 4 more students)

·        2728-12-504, Haz Mat Ops, scheduled to start 2/20 at Jasper Co Fire Dept (need 11 more students)

·        1225-12-502, Pumper Testing, scheduled to start 2/21 at Berkeley Co ESTC (need 4 more students)