PBI fabrics are renowned for their unique combination of flame resistance, durability and comfort, which is why they are first choice in protection for the most extreme conditions, from NASA’s astronauts, to emergency responders, the military and formula one drivers.…
Issue 56 – December 2017
KIM Software Solutions – Training and competency management application to improve efficiency
Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service have collaborated with KIM Software on the highly integrated Profile application, which manages competencies, training courses, operational events and incidents for all personnel at every development phase. The system is mapped to allow…
What’s new with… Firefighting Pumps
With the greatly increased emphasis on firefighter safety, the leading manufacturers have boosted their research and development efforts to provide the end user with the safest, most efficient and reliable firefighting pumps. In this Buyer’s Guide we highlight the latest…
Fighting oil spills with fire
Traditional methods for cleaning up oil spills, like collecting the oil with mechanical skimmers and breaking it up with chemical dispersants, are often ineffective and can harm marine life. Oil spill experts have long believed that the fastest and most…
Cancer has become an epidemic within the Fire Service Industry
Firefighters and First Responders are exposed to dangerous toxins every day they are on the job. Toxins not only exist while fighting a fire or responding to a medical emergency, the very place they call home during their work shift…
Maritime terrorism on ferries and the land-based firefighter – Part 1
When we think about terrorism we usually associate it with gunfire and a military or police response. It is not considered a Firefighters role to get engaged in a gunfight or to de-fuse an explosive device. I have no problem…
A suit to suit
Roger Startin, Joint Managing Director of Bristol Uniforms, explores the complex variations in PPE requirements for firefighters across the globe, and the challenge of developing PPE to suit specific countries and climates. Across the world, fire and rescue services vary…
Stopping these 5 habits will lead to a more happy and productive life
The smoke and debris has settled. Hot spots are extinguished. The trucks are clean and back in service. The constant hum of the engines and the roar of the flames is just wearing off and your shoulders still ache from…
Bigger is not always better in the age of modern lighting technology
For the last 25 years, lighting manufacturers have been in a fierce competition to out-shine each other. The focus of modern manufacturers has been one-upping the next with more lumens from their latest fixture. Specifically, with regard to LED technologies,…
The rural water supply challenge
Countless rural communities around the globe face an endemic problem, a lack of a pressurized hydrant water infrastructure. Lacking this critical component in emergency response forces these communities to rely on alternative water supplies, including dry hydrants and accessible open…
A universal solution for emergency responders
With the world’s eyes watching devastation unfold this summer as a result of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma across North America and the Caribbean, and unrelenting rains pummelling South Asia this monsoon season – an urgency is raised to address practical…
Magnolia Fire Department becomes tech-savvy with 3D printer
Prompted by a communication breakdown during a massive wildfire, the department invested in a Gigabot 3D Printer to help them cope with increasing demands on the fire service. The Riley Road Fire of 2011 burned nearly 19,000 acres in the…
GORE® PARALLON™ System Put through its paces in training exercise aboard a German Navy frigate
Brunsbüttel (SH) Fire Brigade was one of the first services to select GORE® PARALLON™ System and put it through it paces in an intensive training exercise simulating a significant fire aboard a German Navy frigate. The ship lies at anchor…
Milk powder or anthrax? Why you need a chemist in your pocket
When fire crews attend incidents involving unknown, potentially hazardous materials, Hazmat officers are called on to perform complex chemical analysis, often in high-pressure situations. In this article, Dan Haggarty, Head of Emergency Response for the National Chemical Emergency Centre (NCEC),…
College’s training center offers real-world experiences
Katie Lorenz, a field medic with Austin-Travis County EMS, wades without hesitation into an onslaught of water. It comes up nearly to her waist and quickly overtakes her, the force pushing her down a concrete channel and to the edge…
Firefighter fitness: A functional approach
The fireground demands work capacity – plain and simple. There’s no app for forcing doors, advancing hose lines, or hooking ceiling. Achieving optimal work capacity is dependent on your functional training, which must be dynamic, comprehensive, and built for performance.
Firefighters pride themselves on their strategies, tactics, and skills. But when it really comes down to it, being “fit for duty” is the true foundation of every successful firefighter. You may be a tactical fireground expert, but if you are exhausted after climbing a few flights of stairs in full personal protective equipment, then it is time to take an honest look in the mirror and make some changes.
High rise fires
As cities become denser the requirement to build upward toward the sky will continue. Modern building and fire codes must strive to ensure adequate safety legislation grows as rapidly. Fire Services must also be prepared to meet the dynamic and…
Firefighter Mural – Oakland Park Fire Station, Florida
The City of Oakland Park launched a ‘Call to Artists’ regarding a mural project at the Oakland Park Fire Rescue Station #87. I was very excited when I was awarded the project! I was curious to learn about firefighters and…
Africa Fire Mission
When a wife drags her husband on a weeklong mission trip, an international effort to salvage African fire departments is not usually what follows.
To call the Mathare Valley a neighborhood is misleading. Sitting on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya, it’s densely populated, extremely impoverished, and completely ignored. The official-sounding term for this unofficial community is African Informal Settlement, but most would refer to it as a slum. Almost a century ago in America, it would have been called a shantytown, or Hooverville – a not-so-subtle dig at the president who presided over the Great Depression. No one would imagine any official fire service could reach the narrow and crumbling paths that crisscross Mathare Valley, but from Nairobi – Kenya’s capital – one would expect more.
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Ten time-tested truths for the future
Only 4 or 5 months ago (it seems), I was a firefighter on the busiest ladder company in the Jersey City, New Jersey Fire Department – a tough tenement-filled waterfront city directly across the river from New York City. What…