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Fire Marshal's Corner: December 2007

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This month on Fire Marshal’s Corner, host Ed Comeau goes international again! First, however, we’re starting on this side of the Atlantic with a segment from the National Association of State Fire Marshal’s featuring New Hampshire Fire Marshal Bill Degnan. Marshal Degnan will be covering alternative heating fire safety, which is a very timely topic as we move into the winter season here in the United States.

We then move over to the United Kingdom for a talk with Philip Hales, the Head of Community Fire Safety for the Cheshire Fire and Rescue Services in the United Kingdom. The fire service in the UK adopted a new approach to fire prevention and safety in 2002 that is much more risk-based, and Phil is going to provide us with a fascinating overview of how it is working and what possible lessons we might learn from it in the United States.

We are then joined by Dr. Jim Marsden from the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Services for a discussion on the environmental impacts of fire and how it is contributing to global warming. This is an effort and research program that is very much in the initial stages, and Dr. Marsden has been working on efforts to quantify how much structural fires are contributing to global warming and the role of fire safety in developing a sustainable community.

Please send any suggestions, questions or comments, to: podcast@firehouse.com.

Related Links:

• National Association of State Fire Marshals
• Chief Fire Officers Association (UK)
• Cheshire Fire and Rescue Services
• Dr. Marsden’s presentation at Fire Summit 2007 (PPT)
• Downloadable flash animations about the environment and fire safety
• Map: 2007 Catastrophic, multiple-fatality fires;

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The Apparatus Architects: Predictions for the 2008 Apparatus Industry

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This edition of The Apparatus Architects looks at the latest news of 2007. As the year winds down, several manufactures face big changes that may impact fire departments across the nation. Hosts Michael Wilbur and Tom Shand offer their predictions for the state of the industry in 2008.

If your department is considering the purchase of a retired school bus and ambulance, tune in to see what Tom and Mike have to say. The hosts will tell you why these units have been retired and why they should never be used for emergency response.

Just before a new pumper is delivered, it is pump tested. Do you know what that means? Tom details the pump test processes and Mike looks at the ladder testing. The Apparatus Architects share their thoughts on what to look for if you have your eye on used or rehabilitated apparatus. One listener admits the deal his department thought it was getting turned out to be costly instead.

Please send any suggestions, questions or comments, to: podcast@firehouse.com.

Related Links:
• Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association
• Emergency Vehicle Response

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Campus Firewatch Radio: December 2007

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This month on Campus Firewatch Radio, host Ed Comeau talks with Battalion Chief Steven Sapp from the Columbia, MO, Fire Department, home to the University of Missouri. In 1999 there was a devastating fire in a fraternity that claimed the life of Dominic Passantino. Steve and his colleagues have been working on trying to get a mandatory retrofit sprinkler ordinance in place following this fire, and recently they were able to get one passed by the city council. But than the Greek community launched a campaign to overturn this ordinance, and Steve is here to join us to talk about what they are doing to try and counter this effort.

We are then joined by Dr. Doug Sullivan-Gonzalez, dean of the Honors College, from the University of Mississippi which had a fire that killed three students in a fraternity in 2004. Alcohol is a factor in so many of the fires we see across the country, and many schools are taking efforts to try and combat this problem. The university assembled a task force to look at this problem, and Doug, who is also a firefighter, is going to discuss the findings of the task force.

Wrapping up the show is Dr. Carol Hagans, director of Counseling and Consultation Services at Butler University in Indiana is going to talk about what makes today’s students “tick.” The Millennial Generation, as they are known, are a complex group and reaching them with fire safety messages is something that requires creativity and a radically different approach than what we have done in the past.

Please send any suggestions, questions or comments, to: podcast@firehouse.com.

Related Links
• University of Mississippi Alcohol Task Force Report
• Millennial student information
• Campus Firewatch

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Through The Smoke: The Charleston Fire...What's Changed? - Part 1

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In June of this year, nine brave firefighters from the Charleston, SC, Fire Department (CFD) were tragically killed in a commercial building fire. These men, Captain William “Billy” Hutchinson, Captain Mike Benke, Captain Louis Mulkey, Engineer Mark Kelsey, Engineer Bradford “Brad” Baity, Asst. Engineer Michael French; Firefighter James “Earl” Drayton, Firefighter Brandon Thompson and Firefighter Melvin Champaign.

An independent panel hired to study the CFD following the Sofa Super Store tragedy recommended a major overhaul of the department’s practices, procedures and equipment. And following the fire, the report and other information - what has really changed so far? What are the steps of change? What changes will be happening and what the additional phases of the report may recommend following the fire that killed nine firefighters.

Join Chief Billy Goldfeder for a discussion with the panel about the fire and the report and what these noted experts found when they went to Charleston. Joining us on the show will be retired Fire Chief Gordon Routley, fire protection expert; Tim Sendelbach, former chief of training for Savannah, GA, Fire and Emergency Services; Mike Chiramonte, a fire inspector and former fire chief in Lynbrook, NY; and Montgomery County, MD, Fire PIO Pete Piringer.

The guests discuss what they’ve observed and recommended as well as what has changed so far at the CFD, what will change and the important issues related to implementing and affecting “change”. Perhaps, and even more importantly, we will here how Phase 1 of the report can be of value to every fire department.

Note: Panel members Assistant Fire Marshal Kevin Roche from Phoenix and Assistant to the Fire Chief Brian Crawford were at previously scheduled details during this recording.

Please send any suggestions, questions or comments, to: podcast@firehouse.com.

Related Links:
• Charleston Phase 1 Report (PDF)
• Frustrated Charleston Firefighters Come Forward
• Firehouse.com’s Coverage of the Charleston Tragedy
• Remembering the Worcester Six - Dec. 3, 1999
• Firehouse.com’s Worcester Coverage
• Chief Frank Montagna’s Memorial Page for Dec. 18, 1998 fire that claimed three FDNY firefighters
• NIOSH Report for Dec. 18, 1998 Fire
• NIOSH Report for Dec. 22, 1999 fire that claimed three Keokuk, IA, firefighters
• NIOSH Report for Dec. 16, 2003 Fire that claimed one New York City Firefighter
• Remembering Pearl Harbor - Dec. 7, 1941
• USS Arizona Memorial
• Need a “Freedom at All Costs” reminder? Click here
• The Leader’s Toolbox: “I’m Just a Volunteer and Lessons Learned in Charleston

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