tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4163537585749680032008-11-19T16:43:03.922-05:00The <i>Fire Engineering</i> Advisory Board is comprised of recognized leaders in the U.S. fire service who help maintain the high editorial standards our magazine is known for. In this blog, our board members share their timely insights on issues, trends, and policies in the fire service. Readers are encouraged to submit comments and help move the discussion forward.<BR><BR><I>Note: All comments must be approved by blog administrators, so you may experience a delay in seeing posted comments.</I>Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.comBlogger149125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-40865655231877208702008-11-18T19:07:00.004-05:002008-11-19T16:43:03.935-05:00

Today we posted another article regarding cutbacks in a major metropolitan fire department. The Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers in trying to explain the proposed deactivation of seven fire companies added that, despite these proposed closings in Philadelphia, the fire department will continue to respond to "any and every emergency in an urgent and timely manner." I have no doubt that

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-55485563592112179292008-11-08T16:20:00.002-05:002008-11-10T15:14:45.675-05:00

Farmington Hills Fire Chief Richard Marinucci will retire on December 15, 2008, after 31 years of service to the department. He was hired as a firefighter in 1977 and was appointed fire chief in 1984. Richard Marinucci has served in the position of chief longer than any other fire chief in Southeastern Michigan. In this leadership role, he was responsible for the administration and management

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-39187819050184169522008-11-08T16:09:00.001-05:002008-11-08T16:11:56.682-05:00

After nearly a year of researching, assessing, and discussing the importance of caring for the needs of emergency service workers who have been critically injured in the line of duty, the IAFC SHS board of directors is releasing a survey (link to survey is below) to collect more detailed and specific information on those needs. The survey will assist us in gathering resources and in developing

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-26307717765159771502008-11-07T18:47:00.005-05:002008-11-10T15:04:14.352-05:00

Every now and then it's absolutely appropriate to use this space as a bully pulpit. And today I fully intend to do that. This Thursday, the American fire service suffered an incredible tragedy. It is such a significant tragedy because it is a values-based tragedy. St. Louis firefighter Leonard Riggins, 52 years old, was shot and killed while trying to do what he had spent his entire adult life

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-33593237011272442922008-10-28T16:44:00.006-04:002008-10-29T11:09:00.792-04:00

Today, the governor the state of Kentucky issued a letter to Dave Brock, a survivor of the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire. For those of you who may not remember, the Beverly Hills Supper Club was a nightclub located in Southgate, Kentucky. On May 28, 1977, it would become the scene of one of the largest losses of life in the history of the American fire service. In the letter issued today,

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-67646111170522830432008-10-11T15:41:00.010-04:002008-10-14T15:25:25.115-04:00

Full NIMS Nationally. NIMS Essentials Locally A few years ago I was taking photographs and overlying different fire effects that I pulled from other photographs to create simulations. Then a program came out called Photoshop, an excellent program, unfortunately expensive. To be more effective at producing simulations, I purchased the $600 program. When I opened the program I found it to be

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-24482246809623931962008-10-02T18:29:00.006-04:002008-10-03T09:29:30.146-04:00

My good friend Billy reminded me that this Sunday, October 5, the U.S. flag is to be flown to half-staff as per the orders of the President of the United States in Public Law 107-51 signed on October 16, 2001. The American flag is to be lowered to half-staff on all federal buildings and across the U.S. in conjunction with the National Fallen Firefighters annual Memorial service. If you have not

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-29290010341973266572008-09-29T15:17:00.003-04:002008-09-30T10:22:18.030-04:00

I received a note today from the IAFF informing us that Tom Carr, currently the fire chief in Montgomery County (MD) Fire and Rescue, has accepted the job as fire chief for the city of Charleston, South Carolina. I'd like to extend my heartiest congratulations to the city of Charleston, the Charleston firefighters, and to my good friend, Tom Carr. Tom has been and continues to be a firefighter's

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-57568560081142287112008-09-22T18:54:00.005-04:002008-09-23T09:50:04.448-04:00

The American fire service is celebrating a tremendous advancement with the recent success of code proposal RB 64 at the ICC hearings on the residential sparkler issue. Clearly there is much to celebrate, but for this tremendous vote to be meaningful it's going to require that we all stay focused and remain dedicated to this lifesaving initiative. There are many firefighters who spent hundreds of

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-66909301066617494592008-09-22T15:10:00.005-04:002008-09-22T15:26:58.902-04:00

Thanks to the efforts of the fire service, the Residential Sprinkler Code (RB64) Proposal for 1 & 2 family homes passed yesterday at ICC final code hearings in Minneapolis. The fire service members in attendance along with building officials and the sprinkler coalition were able to override a committee decision to Disapprove. By a 2/3 majority vote off the floor was so moved as to modify the

Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-18926875109035301632008-09-18T09:42:00.004-04:002008-09-18T09:58:18.646-04:00

Jack Murphy and Sean DeCrane for Taming the Fire Environment report on the ICC code hearings in Minneapolis: For the past two days, the fire code hearings have pasted the following key proposals for the 2009 IFC Code: Emergency Responder Radio Coverage (F87), which will require approved radio coverage for emergency responders within the building. This will apply for both new and existing

Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-29796613231881715622008-09-16T08:47:00.003-04:002008-09-16T08:50:17.109-04:00

The Times reports on the John Galt Corporation, the contractor hired to demolish the Deutsche Bank building, in which two firefighters died in 2007: Some of [Galt's] top executives, it turned out, had worked at another company, the Safeway Environmental Corporation, which officials in the city’s Department of Investigation said had a history of problems with integrity, competence and financial

Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-30178857859081815522008-09-15T00:03:00.003-04:002008-09-16T16:20:22.055-04:00

This week of September 11 proved to be a very challenging one for the fire service. We all remembered 9/11 in our own ways--the heroes, our friends, the tragedy, the horror of losing so much human treasure in one day. We all relived the pain again when so many Americans fell in one murderous act, and for the seventh time found time to pray for our fallen. But the mission and work of the American

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-77428424689092624332008-09-05T18:05:00.004-04:002008-09-09T16:16:25.840-04:00

I spent a very interesting day on Wednesday at the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) fire research lab at the National Institute of Standards and Technology Center in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The mission of NIST is to conduct basic and applied research for the purpose of understanding fire behavior and hopefully reduce losses from fire. NIST was founded by the Federal Fire

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-35095968164352811012008-08-31T19:02:00.003-04:002008-08-31T19:09:52.035-04:00

I have been watching the news and I've spoken to a few close friends who've already deployed with the urban search and rescue teams to Texas and Louisiana in anticipation of hurricane Gustav. It will be interesting to see the difference in response levels from Katrina three years ago to Gustav today. If the amount of resources being pre-deployed is any indication and the amount of evacuation

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-22176454853223392072008-08-22T12:52:00.003-04:002008-08-22T13:37:06.313-04:00

Last night America was shown what the real firemen of FDNY look like. I want to ask you to follow the link below and watch ABC World News/Bob Woodruff: http://www.abcnews.go.com/WN/WoodruffReports/story?id=5618732&page=1, I want you to recognize what these men are doing. There is only one real gift which matters in life and that is time. The reason is our time is limited you use it and its gone

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-65169348429920735622008-08-20T13:24:00.006-04:002008-08-21T16:09:19.508-04:00

ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT with Charlie Gibson will air a Bob Woodruff segment on Sgt Eddie Ryan and the FDNY SE-RATS (SgtEddie-RyanAssistanceTeam) tonight August 21 st. at 6:30 EST. Eddie Ryan is an American hero, he is a part of the NEXT Greatest Generation of American who are manning our firehouses and our military. Eddie is the son of a marine who in June 2002, after graduating high school

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-50230580536227210572008-08-15T11:26:00.003-04:002008-08-15T11:49:12.863-04:00

Workers left hanging from the side of a 31-story building in Indianapolis, Indiana, were rescued by Indianapolis firefighters. Read more about the rescue and view photos by CLICKING HERE. And Fire Engineering Technical Editor Glenn Corbett talks to a Cincinnati news outlet about reopening the investigation into the 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire. Read the story HERE and visit Glenn's new

Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-47501667129603392872008-08-11T16:39:00.004-04:002008-08-11T16:52:00.950-04:00

I apologize for the late posting, but this letter came in after Chief Halton posted the Andy Fredericks article on the Father's Day Fire. The sentiments in it, though, can apply just as easily to our recent spate of fatal incidents: I just got done reading your reprint on the Fire Engineering Web site of Andy Fredericks column on the Fathers Day Fire. Thanks for posting that piece. It is a

Peter Prochilohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07044085259714594452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-42573408685436601322008-08-05T07:03:00.004-04:002008-08-05T07:20:58.625-04:00

The Indianapolis Fire Department notified its members yesterday that (IFD) Captain Gary Henry was killed in a road side bomb while serving with the national guard in Iraq. Captain Henry was a 12 year veteran of the IFD and most recently served as the Special Operations Rescue Coordinator before being deployed to Iraq. Captain Henry served the citizen of Indianapolis with pride and dignity he died

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-19580735857869653582008-08-02T14:02:00.007-04:002008-08-02T14:19:09.066-04:00

Hackensack FIRE / EMS Goes Back to the Past It takes a incredible amount of patience to try to understand New Jersey politics, and unless you live there you just can't imagine the circus the great citizens of this incredibly beautiful state have to deal with. This is just unbelievable to read, and hopefully somehow enough attention can be focused on this to get this tragic miss-step corrected.

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-35590594897823390082008-07-27T16:48:00.003-04:002008-07-27T16:57:33.194-04:00

It is with the deepest sorrow and regret that we report that Chief Dan Packer, Fire Chief with East Pierce Fire & Rescue and Washington State Chief’s Immediate Past President, died in a California Wildfire on Saturday, July 27, 2008. Chief Packer was deployed on Friday, July 26, 2008 and was serving as Division Supervisor in the Siskiyou mountains in Northern California. He was over run by the

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-12378944005510205062008-07-27T09:28:00.001-04:002008-07-27T09:30:12.514-04:00

In July, the Round Table question was: What steps does your department take to prepare future officers?Out of the 31 responses published, I found the following: 7 Departments used an "in-house" process that involved preparatory classes and a test. 7 Departments required specific college courses followed by a test 6 Departments did as mine did, you studied specific material on your own and

Skip Colemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00163667751824920763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-62576587804790190412008-07-24T18:29:00.005-04:002008-07-24T19:14:04.969-04:00

Fireman and paramedic Ryan Hummert was on the job in Maplewood for just shy of one year, he was by all accounts a great fireman and a wonderful person. He was murdered by a mental ill man with a high powered rifle while responding to a car fire set to ambush responders. Also shot was a 28 year old police officer who thankfully will survive. Any meaningful or comforting words escape me as to how

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416353758574968003.post-49240403217351473182008-07-15T21:26:00.003-04:002008-07-16T08:52:56.785-04:00

I am extremely excited to be headed to Chicago this week for the very first Fire Engineering Weekend on Saturday and Sunday, July 19-20. I believe this fresh, affordable, and personal way to train is a huge piece of the future. I was always frustrated after a great class because I had so many questions to ask but, with an exhausted instructor and thirty other guys already asking questions, I

Bobby Haltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17742204840089199428noreply@blogger.com0