Raleigh/Wake Firefighting Blog  -

Speaking of cars driving themselves, which we really weren't speaking about, but, hey, let's pretend we were, here's a nifty New York Times editorial by a psychology professor who makes a convincing case that unintended acceleration is a human problem instead of mechanical defect. Yup, it's exactly as you might suspect. People pressing the accelerator when they think they're pressing the brake. The car starts moving fast, they press the "brake" harder, and, zoom, there you go. Read the perspective. It's good stuff.

Where's this place? Hint, it's above ground. Second hint, you can get there from here.
 

The Wake County Fire Commission holds its next meeting next week:

• Thursday, March 18, 2010
• 7:00 p.m.
• Wake County EMS Training Facility
• Commons Building, Lower Level, 4011 Carya Drive.

The condensed agenda. See full version in document form:

• Regular Agenda
  • Fire Budget Committee
    • Consider Approval FY 10 Contingency Funds Distribution
  • Apparatus Committee
    • Consider Approval of Small Vehicle Policy Revision
• Information Agenda
  • Revised Fire Protection Agreement
  • Fire Tax Financial Report
  • Chair Report
  • Fire/Rescue Services Director Report
• Other Business
• Public Comments

As this WRAL story reported on Saturday, a Johnston Ambulance Service overturned several times after striking a ditch on Highway 751 between Hillsborough and Kerley Roads. Both the driver and the EMT passenger were injured, and were treated and stabilized by off-duty Rockingham County EMS personnel passing by. They utilized equipment from the damaged unit. Both were transported to Duke Medical Center. Both were wearing seat belts. No charges will be filed, as the unit was responding to a call at the time of the accident.
 

Greg Hutchinson/WRAL photo

Yesterday's New York Times published the latest in their Driven to Distraction series on "high-speed multitasking," this time turning attention to police officers and paramedics. Some 75 percent of police cruisers have mobile terminals, they cite an analyst. And about 30 percent of ambulances are similarly equipped.

The article talks about pros and cons, laws and regulations, and new technologies. New Hampshire researchers, they note, have been developing hands-free technology for police cars. Drivers can operate radio, lights, siren, and even the on-board computer by voice commands! There are also systems that use digital video to automatically read license plates in view of the patrolling officer.

Read the article and discuss as desired. What are your perception of the dangers of "multitasking while responding?"

FireNews finds this article from the Havelock News about the town's new quint, an E-One aerial ladder that's temporarily stored at the main fire station until the new West Side Station opens in a couple more weeks. Read the original article, which includes video footage.
 

Drew C. Wilson/Havelock News Photo

Discussion topic for the day, inspired by the latest comments in the Apex Fire & EMS thread. We've heard from EMS readers that they appreciate a patient status as soon as possible from first-arriving fire units. Among other things, they can cut back to a cold response. Does the reverse apply from firefighters, for EMS units first-arriving at structure fires? Is even a minimal size-up helpful, for incoming companies and chief officers? Obviously, all agency operating procedures apply in this discussion. What say you?

That's the title of a white paper released by the Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen's Association, which is a century-old organization serving members in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. The contents of the 17-page paper identifies "social, cultural, and ethical issues impacting the fire service nationwide that demand increased awareness," to quote their news release. That is, bad behaviors by firefighters that damn not only them, but their departments, their communities, and the entire fire service.

Cheating, fire-setting, theft and misappropriation of funds, use and misuse of information technology, misuse of facilities, alcohol and substance abuse, and harassment and discrimination. And in the Internet age, when mass communication can happen in minutes, "actions of a small minority of bad actors can have grievous widespread consequences," they write. What are the action steps? The paper urges the development, dissementation, and enforcement of a Code of Ethics by all fire service leaders.

Read the white paper , copies of which are available at www.cvvfa.org. Also watch in coming weeks for the launch of firefighterbehavior.com, which will serve to raise further awareness of the issues.

See also Firehouse.com and Statter911.

Engine, engine, ladder in late afternoon. Central Station in downtown Raleigh. Click to enlarge:
 

Ten acres of brush burned in Cary today, after an unattended fire at a homeless camp spread to surrounding woods north and west from Cary Town Boulevard and Trinity Road Extension. Reported around 3:15 p.m., the wind-fed flames spread in the direction of houses on Maynard Road, and apartments on Village Greenway. Crews were deployed on three (four?) sides, and contained the blaze within about an hour. All personnel were subsequently sent to rehab, with mutual aid engines called to the scene for relief.

Cary Battalion 2 was command on Trinity Road Extension. Medical monitoring and rehab were at the same location, and two firefighters were transported with minor injuries. Staging was Cary Towne Boulevard. The Forest Service responded, and deployed a plow, along with back-burning. Units on scene included: Cary E1, E2, E4, L1 (riding reserve service truck?), T7, Brush 9, B1, B2; Western Wake P191; Swift Creek Brush_, Tanker 6, Morrisville P1, Fairview E1, two Forestry units and plow; EMS 51, EMS 55, EMS 4, EMS 8; District 5, Truck 1. Pictures by Legeros later. Click to enlarge:
 

A reader observes both an updated patch on the Apex Fire Department web site (compare with the older patch), and an open position on the town web site for a full-time Shift Supervisor Paramedic for the "Fire and EMS Department." Guess that means the merger is official. Congrats to the newly combined departments. Next question, red over white ambulances coming?
 

Photograph of photographer taking photograph of photographer. From yesterday's live burn with Falls and other fire departments. Click to see the original by Lee. Or view the whole set.
 

Lee Wilson photo

Statter911 surfaces this provoking video from Firefighter Close Calls. Read Dave Statter's commentary on same. Is it really possible that the driver didn't hear the horn and siren, nor see the large red object appearing closer in his rear view mirror? Or are simply seeing an [anal opening] in action?
 
 

Here's your Oscar warm-up, the jaw-dropping opening to the 1989 Academy Awards ceremony. Like the proverbial train wreck, you don't dare turn away. As many may know, Mr. Blogger was once Mr. Movie Reviewer. He "retired" from that vocation in 2001, after about 1,100 reviews posted on USENET and the web. Phew, there were some bad movies in that bunch.
 

Here are some of the public safety teams that participated in head shaving for St. Baldrick's at Napper Tandy's yesterday. Have a group photo to add? Send and we'll add! Left to right, top to bottom: Firefighters for Kids, Garner FD, Durham Highway FD, Stony Hill FD. Click to enlarge:
 

More fun with clippers at Napper Tandy's yesterday. Fathers and sons, fire and police, and great support from everyone. First and foremost the spouses! No cameras were harmed during the making of this montage. Read about the St. Baldrick's Foundation. See a list of the public safety teams. Click once or twice for super-size, super-scary version:
  

What are those morse code-sounding beeps we've been hearing on Headquarters for the last week or two? Seems like they started after the CAD upgrade, though I am sure I have heard them before? Those in the know, please dash off an answer!

A number of fire departments and firefighters trimmed their tops today for children's cancer at Napper Tandy's. Here's an optical illusion from eastern Wake County. Watch for more charitable fun at folk's expense. Large time had by all. Click to enlarge:
 

Where to begin, where to begin? Well, first and foremost, the hazing discussion and subsequent survey prompted a personal reaction. For several days, memories of my first few (and only few) years in the fire department flooded back. The looking glass brought retroactive understanding, both intellectual and emotional, about that formative period.

Career firefighter in Raleigh in 1989. Was I razzed? Some. Was I hazed? No. Was the station family challenging to understand and integrate into? You betcha. Yours Truly had zero awareness of the fire service back-end, and the subtle (and overt) nuances of the station family was a brave new world.

That's also a perspective seen in survey and blog comments. More people are entering the profession from outside occupations, noted one survey respondent. Does that make them less-suited for station life? Or maybe just a learning curve that's a little steeper?

Now let's apply that to the survey. What do the questions and answers look like to an outsider? For someone who wants to be a firefighter, they might be taken in stride. What about the rest of the world? What's a city manager, county official, newspaper editor, civic leader, or regular citizen to think, should they read those questions and comments? 

Yet, in the confined space of a fire station, hard play happens. People pick. Bonds form. Families become.

Another issue is the law, which we haven't discussed. Which of those behaviors in our survey are illegal? As one comment notes, restrained and unwanted physical contact is assault. (And which about 90% of respondents labeled as hazing.) For those chiefs and/or human resources officers reading, what's your (or your department's) tolerance for illegal behavior? Is the aforementioned behavior grounds for demotion or dismissal?

Here are the results on our suvey on hazing.

Here's the original discussion.

Analysis and commentary at a later time.

Total of 104 responses, with 24 comments.

Thanks for participating.

Group hug.

Meanwhile yesterday afternoon, a city bus suffered a sagging butt on Millbrook Road, due to a sinkhole created by a water main break. As this WRAL story reports, seven passengers and the driver were aboard when they started feeling that sinking feeling. Police detoured traffic around the site, between Auburn Road and Ivy Lane. Repairs were completed some time later. Unknown if the displaced passengers called disbelieving friends to tell of their hole problem, and were told "you're all wet." Thank you, and good night.
 

WRAL photo