Asbestos

I was recently contacted by Jesse Herman, who is the awareness coordinator at the Mesothelioma Cancer Center. He has been reaching out to fire fighter bloggers in an effort to get their message out with regards to asbestos, and in lieu of the work that is in progerss at the "Capital Plaza" complex with the asbestos removal, his timing couldn't have been any better. The following article is one he has forwarded to me. If you would like some more info on the subject you can visit their site at www.asbestos.com. They have a lot of good information to read through.

His text is as follows:

Asbestos Exposure a Concern for Firefighters

The life of a firefighter brings many potential threats that can be easy or hard to see. Kids at a very young age realize the profession itself takes a great deal of courage. But the reality of the profession, along with so many things in life, is not always so appetizing. One of the hidden threats that are not so glamorous is asbestos exposure.
Firefighters are exposed to many risks on a daily basis, but one that can go unnoticed is the danger of asbestos exposure. A naturally-occurring mineral, asbestos was used throughout the 20th century in a number of industrial, military and construction applications due to its innate resistance to fire and highly durable qualities.
The threat of asbestos for firefighters is subtle and there are seldom warning signs to allow a firefighter to know whether they are or have been exposed to asbestos. Firefighters who have been exposed to asbestos usually have been in situations where they had reasons to believe they are safe.
The mineral was mixed into paint, combined with cellulose to make fiberboard and wallboard, mixed with cement to make siding shingles and formed into felt for use as roof felting and backings on vinyl flooring. Asbestos was even used in joint compound, which was used in dozens of different kinds of applications.
Tips and Important Info

The mere presence of asbestos in a home or a building is not hazardous. Most professionals suggest leaving the asbestos alone. If a firefighter located any asbestos, the best thing to do is leave it un-disturbed, as this will not allow its fibers to become airborne.

Any home or building built before 1980 has a good chance of still containing asbestos. Even firehouses should be inspected for asbestos as many of them were constructed prior to any asbestos ban.

The inhalation of asbestos fibers can lead to the development of a rare, but severe form of asbestos lung cancer known as mesothelioma. Due to the fact that symptoms of mesothelioma are similar to less serious conditions, diagnosis is a difficult task for physicians. Mesothelioma has and continues to affect firefighters who were unknowingly exposed while on duty. Mesothelioma diagnosis has been a difficult task because many of its symptoms appear in other less serious conditions.

In the case of a fire, asbestos fibers get released and when breathed in, can scar the lungs. While asbestos has been banned for most of its uses since the early 1980s, there is still a probability that asbestos fibers can be released in the air. This can only happen when asbestos-laden materials are deteriorated or broken down.

If you are a firefighter and believe you have experienced asbestos exposure, it is important to receive regular screenings by physicians to identify a possible disease. It should be known asbestos exposure does not always lead to a disease, but because the latency periods associated with asbestos illnesses can last 20 to 50 years, a regular check up is advisable.

Portsmouth St. fire

Jan 30, 2009

At 2250 hrs. Engines 1, 4, 5, Tower 1, Ambulances 4, 5, and BC were dispatched to 5 Portsmouth St. for a reported couch fire. Engie 7 was assisting Ambulance 7 with a medical transport, making Engine 1 the first due piece into 7's ditrict. The BC was the first to arrive, reporting heavy smoke coming from a 2 story SFD with an attached single story "L". Engine 1 made an aggressive attack on the fire while Tower 1 performed vertical ventilation. After about 20 minutes, the fire was controled, and companies were searching for extension into the main structure. Central companies made fast work with their attack, and contained the fire to the "L" section of the house.
This was a good fire to play "What if" with, because typically Engine 1 is out of service during the night shifts due to budget restaints. Had that been the case on this night, Engine 4 would have been first due, making their arrival another 4 minutes later. Without a doudt, this particular fire would have flashed with companies very near, or worst, inside the structure, and extension would have been more probable as well. If this pracrice is continued for a lenghty period of time, the above scenario is bound to pop up at some point. Something has to happen to change this practice, and I pray that it isn't the loss of a fellow Brother or Sister..

STAY SAFE

I will attempt to track down some pictures later this week.

Chief Andrus in action?

All I can say is WOW! Since the arrival of our new fire chief, there have been a few building fires in the city, at which he has been able to operate, and showcase his skills. He was caught on video during one of those fires, and this is a clip of him in action. Or at least I think it's him. It could be my good friend Brother Souther. It's hard to tell with all the gear he's wearing, and the speed at which he is moving. Anyway, enjoy the clip.

Ice storm

Beginning late Thursday evening, and on into the early hours of Friday, an ice storm came through the northeast, covering everything with ice. Some areas had as much as a 1/2 inch. Everything from trees to power lines and poles were falling, creating a mess. An estimated 450,000 residents lost there power, and as of today, three days later, there are still a couple hundred thousand residents still powerless.

Between midnight and 7 a.m., battalion 2 responded to 24 bells, and when battalion 3 releived them we answered another 41 from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Oddly enough, there were very few mvc's. A majority of the calls were for wires down, transformers burning, and water in the basement. I think the two day total for responses from the storm are somewhere around 150. I didn't get any pictures, but WMUR 9 news has a slide show with some very impressive photos. Here is the link

http://www.wmur.com/weather/18255928/detail.html?widgetId=55963

If you have any pictures, please forward them to me, and Iwill post them on here.

Flashover demo video

This is probably one of the better flashover videos I have seen, and now tha I know how to embed videos (thanks to our resident Senator), I can now post it. Enjoy the show.

Top Secret info!!!!!!!!

SHHH!!! If you decide to read this article, you have to promise not to let anyone know what you know after you are "in the know"'. Especially the ones who know, cause' they don't know that we know. You know?

While working at the Manor station today, we were privy to a sneak peak at the future of the fire service. What we had seen will undoudtedly change the fire service forever (we think). We were kept in the dark for the most part, but were able to put our collective thinking caps on, and theorize about this "NEW and IMPROVED" way of fighting fires.

When fighting the beast the most important weapon in a firefighters arsenal is water. If that water is applied incorrectly, the thermal balance will be disrupted. But WHAT IF we were able to use cold AND hot water. The cold water being applied at the base of the fire, while simultaneously applying hot water to the ceiling. The possibilities of this new attack could be endless (or not), one of which could be a minimal agitation of the thermal layers. Now this is just our theory. After all, we were not permitted to hear the in-depth discusions between those involved with the experiment.

If this new technique somehow takes off unexpectedly, and you find yourself sitting in a classroom nodding off during a powerpoint presentation on the "Proper Techniques of Hot and Cold Water Firefighting", you can say that you saw it here first.

This is a look at the preconnects.



For those of you who can't recognize humor, or understand mine, that was my feeble attempt at it.

Second fire of the tour

At about 0200 hrs, Engine 5 was dispatched to a single engine fire. After we had left the barn, dispatch notified us of a change in address. We quickly made a u-turn, but the extended length of our response would turn out to be costly. Upon arrival we found a single family structure with heavy char markings. Lt. Robidas had me pull the 1/2" line with a smooth bore plastic tip, which turned out to be ample enough water for this particular fire. We managed to save the support members of the structure, and the home owners will be able to rebuild with little aggrevation to their daily lives. This was Lt. Robidas's first fire as an officer, and after seeing him in action, I have no doudt he will make a fine line officer. He kept his decision makings simple, and relied on his keen instincts and expertise to mitigate the incident. Keep up the good work Lieu.


They say fires typically come in three's. If true, we can expect another one during our last night on tonight. I just hope it's a little bigger than this one.

BB's anyone?

We had a fairly interesting shift today. As a whole, I think each company had at least 3 or more runs. Some of them more interesting than others obviously. I think there were a few EMS runs, four FAA (fire alarm activations), two MVA's, one being a head-on, and another on the inter-state involving a tractor trailer and a house, and last but not least, a drive by shooting.

I wasn't there for the accident on the inter-state, but I was told that the house looked like mine. Apparently a semi was taking an exit ramp a little too fast and tipped over, dumping his load in the process. The load on the semi was a modular HOME. Or at least part of one. It wasn't mine though. My house is already on a foundation, and the wheels and axels have been removed. I am hoping to get a skirt for it someday, but they are just too doggone expensive right now.
The other accident was a head-on collision with one passenger sustaining a broken arm. One of the vehicles ADMITTEDLY ran a stop sign. Imagine, someone who actually owed up to their mistake. You have to admire her for that.
The drive-by shooting in the north end involved some members of two local gangs. While members of one gang were walking along the road, members from a rival gang drove by and shot one individual in the upper lip. The weapon of choice was a BB-GUN. HA! Like I said. Some runs were more interesting than the others. I'm just not quite sure where this one fits in.

Motor vehicle fire

After taking a few weeks off because of the birth of our second child, I came back just in time to see FIRE. All the rumors I've heard about fire are true. It is still hot, smokey, and allergic to water.

A father was driving with his infant son in the back seat when he noticed the car overheating. By the time he made it to parking area the vehicle was on fire.

Pump testing complete

Congratulations to probationary F/F-Paramedic Richardson on finishing his pump qualifications on E-4. I spoke with Keith this afternoon and he informed me,(with a smile on his face), that pump qualifying was the easiest thing he has ever had to do . He also mentioned that Brother DiGeronimo's advice was the single most helpful of any he had received. That advice was, and I quote, "Just get them them the @#!*&%# water". Great advice coming from the senior firefighter/paramedic of the dept. Keith is now the MPO on E-4 until after the holidays, at which point he wil be assigned to a different station. Until than, Keith says he hopes to catch a building fire to put his new skills to work. I think we"re all hoping for that too.

More updates

There are a few more people who deserve a recognotion for reaching another anniversary date. On November 12, Capt. Whitney celebrated his 20th year with the dept., Brother Piroso made it to 19 years back on October 28th, Lt. Manning has 14 years as of October 1st, Brother Richardson hit his 8th year mark on October 21st, and Lt. Robidas had his 7th year anniv date back on August 8th. Congratulations to everyone. If I have missed anyone, please call and let me know.

On a personal note, I would like to announce the birth of daughter. Maggie Mae was born on Friday, Nov. 14th at 7:40 p.m., weighing 7 lbs, 3 ozs. Both Momma and baby are now home and doing great. Thanks to all who called to congratulate. I will be taking a few weeks off from work to spend as much time as possible with the Fam. If I miss something while I am out, I would like for someone to get in touch with me, and I will post it on the site

Anniversary dates

I am such a slacker. I failed to mention Brother Schottler in the "Batt 3 update" post. Jeff celebrated his 10th year on the job back in June. Pat Richardson just had an anniversary date on the 21st of October, giving him 8 years now. Congrats to both.

On a side note, I promised Batt 2's Lt Andrews that I would put him on this blog for a recent accomplishment of his, so here it is. While working an over-time shift on our batt, Lt. Andrews took part in one of our daily PE routines. (Actually, it's our only routine.) We take turns shooting free throws to see how many in a row we can make. Normally we can make it to 4 or 5. 8 to 9 on a good day. Yours truly (me) got lucky once and made 12 in a row (the first shot wasn't lucky, but the last 11 were). That ended up being the mark to beat for a couple of weeks. That is until MR. BASKETBALL himself showed up. He predicted that he would beat that mark by lunch-time. not only did he beat it, but he crushed it twice, and tied it once. He dropped in runs of 21 and 28 without any problems. To make this more impressive, he did this after working a building fire 5 hours earlier, and getting 4 hours of sleep prior to that. Nice job Lt. Andrews.

So long Lt. France

Due to some new promotions within the dept., Lt. france has been transferred to battalion 4. Good officers are tough to come by. We wish him the best, and hope to see him return to our battalion at some point in the future. Below are some pictures I have collected over the past few years of Lt. France at his best. If anyone has his "kitty-cat" picture, please forward it to me.











As a follow up, I would also like to say welcome to Lt. Alan Robidas to our battalion . Alan has just been promoted to Lieutenent, and will be the officer on Engine 5 . Alan has some big shoes to fill, and I mean literally. I think Lt. France wears a size 18 ski.

See ya Collins (AGAIN)

As of the 29th of this month Brother Collins will no longer be a member of battalion 3. With Lt. Holm being placed on light duty for a short period of time, FF/P DeWitt will be moved from batt1 and placed into an acting position on E-1, which gets Brother Collins a one-way ticket to batt 1. Maybe someday he'll be able to find his way back.

Congrats to Cullen

Congratulations to Brother Cullen for completing his probationary status. Sept. 22nd was his first year anniversary date. The next hurdle ahead is seeing to it that the "sophomore slump" doesn't set it.

Sorry Dumas

In the last post, I stated that Brother Dumas had just celebrated his 10th year on the job, and apparently, I need to use my reading glasses more often. Davie joined the dept on September 9, 1995, which by most folks, would add up to 13 years, not 10. Thank you to Lt. France for bringing it to my attention.

Batt 3 update

O.K. I will be the first to admit it. I am a HUGE slacker. I haven't updated this site in over 2 months. There hasn't been a whole lot going on really, with the exception of a few anniversaries that I would like to take this opportunity to recognize.



Lt. French celebrated his 25th year on September 3rd, FF/P DiGeronimo made 19 on August 26, FF Dumas has 10 years as of September 9th, and FF Freitas celebrated his 3 rd on September 9th. Congrats to all.



On a side note, Lt. Holm has injured his back, and will be out for an undetermined amount of time. I have been unable to get in touch of Ian, and so I am not sure of what he has going on and if he needs a hand with anything. I hope he recovers quickly from his injury, and doesn't hesitate to call if he needs help. I'll take his rail car out periodically if needed. I hear they tend to get flat spots in the wheels if they sit for too long.

Hidden fort under the bed

Now before you watch this video, I just want to go on record to say that I am not a professional photographer OR videographer (if that's what they are called).

I have never had to shop for children's bedroom furniture until now, so it was interesting to see what kind of cool things they are doing with the furniture. I say "cool" if you are a kid, not so "cool" if you are conducting a search of a building, and are unaware of this kind of bed. What would you think if you found a bed like this. Just one more thing to make the job that much more difficult.

A face from the past

Thank you to a couple of Hopkington Fire & rescue members (whose names will be kept secret, to protect my sources) for finding, and giving this picture of Mumfy to me. I know it took me a while to get it up here. I had to make sure this really is Mumford, because the guy in this picture has hair, and he isn't wearing a hat The date of this picture is 2001, when Mumfy became an EMT-First Responder. I noticed in the picture that he is wearing a black mourning band on his badge, and I can not verify this or not, but I believe it is in reponse to the first patient he treated. The outcome wasn't good.

We sure do miss you.

New EMS protocol

The members of Batt 3's Engine 1, 5, and Amb 4 crews should be put up for a reward for a job well done last night. They were dispatched for a 20 Y/O female pt, CPR in progress. Being the highly trained bunch of EMT's and Paramedics that they are, they knew that the typical cardiac arrest protocols were not going to be effective in this case. With the quick thinking of say, a sloth, they bipassed the oxygen, epinepherine, lidocaine, and any other medicine imaginable, and went straight for the ammonia inhalant. Voilat! (spell check wouldn't work). A SAVE!!!!!
I have no doudt that after reading the narrative from this run report, the powers to be are going to be rolling out a new cardiac arrest protocol list. I just hope they get the indications correct, which are as follows: pt must have a pulse (this one never lost hers), must be breathing on her own, and her mother must be the one to perform CPR. The only side effect will be a sore chest (probably from the compressions).

Keep up the good work guys.