0 members (),
205
guests, and
28
robots. |
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
As you may have noticed, the ECN Firefighters thread has been deleted. The reason for this is that because of my lack of direction with the original post and following posts by myself, it has turned into a swirling off-topic thing. But, on the other side of the coin, I would like to make a go of this particular topic, as I feel that we have a population of FF's here at ECN that would like to submit thier views as to FF safety, but would not have had the chance, when some-one else has other ideas, meaning ME!. Tell me guys, what would you fellas like to see from a thread like this?. Please, if you have an idea, submit it, you can't do any wrong. And I also apologise to anyone that lost any postings in the ECN FF Thread. What I'm after is REAL issues of Health and Safety that pertain to you FF's!. Take care all, Trumpy.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
OK, Here's one: Breathing Apparatus. What controls are on you as a FF when you are in a building and wearing BA, what sized BA crews do you use?. What sort of BA gear do you use?. What happens if one of you guys gets lost in a fire?. What are your BA search methods?.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 123
Member
|
I have been curious about combination smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. If smoke goes up and CO goes down, shouldn't they be separate detectors?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,143
Member
|
What controls are on you as a FF when you are in a building and wearing BA, what sized BA crews do you use?. Here in the US, we firefighters recently (1999) had the Occupational Safety and Health Administration mandate that we must comply with the "2-in, 2-out" standard - if you have a team operating inside an IDLH atmosphere structure (one that requires SCBA and/or FR clothes), you must have a team ready to rescue them. Unfortunately, the cities haven't quite improved our staffing to be fully compliant with that standard yet. What sort of BA gear do you use?. We just changed from the MSA Ultralight 2200 to the MSA MMR 2200 - carbon fiber bottles, Mask Mounted Regulator, real lightweight. Haven't had a chance to use one in a worker yer, but they show promise. What happens if one of you guys gets lost in a fire?. Depends on whether your dept has SOP's/SOG's or not, and if they actually follow them. Supposedly the IC calls for a PAR (Personnel Accountability Report) from all sectors if someone thinks someone's missing,(ICS/IMS/FGC), and they try to identify the missing FF. If you wind up lost, you're supposed to call a "MAYDAY" on the radio, and identify where you are. A Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) will come through and try to find you. If RIT is there and set up. Here, our neighboring (bigger) dept. sets up RIT. (A group of 4-6 FF's whose primary job is FF safety. They can be the "2-out", and still horiz. vent, secure utilities, etc, but MUST be available to drop everything in case of a Mayday call) What are your BA search methods?. Right hand or left hand. In addition, we just got a Thermal Imaging Camera, and it's DA BOMB! Used it a few months back in a smoky but not hot fire about 125' down a concrete basement hall. Like playing a video game. BTW, in case you're not aware, we Americans generally don't have a national or state fire service (other than the wildland firefighter teams managed by Federal or State Land Management /Forestry /Conservation). The biggest ones we have are at the county level. Most of us are working for individual municipalities or Fire Protection Districts, which are independent taxing bodies that may or may not be directly associated with a particular municipal jurisdiction. Hope this is headed down the proper path [This message has been edited by DougW (edited 09-27-2003).]
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,392
Member
|
perhaps one of the most obvious health realed issues is the well being of the FF him/herself.
i'd like to see annual physicals, with those whom can't pass taken out of any interior assignment.
a 2-bottle rule would be good also
and lastly, all FF's should know cpr
hey, i had to code a FF once, go to the funeral, meet his family, as well as his mates (who did diddly squat on scene btw)
but whadda i know, i'm just an ambulance driver these days...
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
DougW, Thanks for that GREAT reply, mate!. Over here we have used the Draeger SCBA set until it's just not funny anymore. When I was a Probationer FF, they used to make us use the old LP(Low Pressure) Cylinders, to test out our Lung Capacity, these were made from steel, and had roughly 90 atmospheres of pressure in them. They were HEAVY and lasted about 10 minutes, under heavy rescue work, provided that you were fit!. Since then, I have moved up to HP Aluminium Cylinders and also Re-circ Oxygen. Sparky, what does "coding" a FF mean?. I think I know what you mean, but I am not quite sure. You don't have Annual physicals for you FF's over in the US?, I would have thought that this would be a given, we used to have 6 month ones here, but it has been lengthened(sp?) to 1 year, because of the sheer logistics of getting all the Paid and Volunteer FF's to go and have them done.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
Pinemarten, Smoke detectors and CO detectors, are two different things. Most smoke detectors work on the principle of Ionisation. Check this out. http://home.howstuffworks.com/smoke.htm [This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 09-28-2003).]
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
DougW, After all of the technical advances in FF gear, we still do not have comms between the Pump Operator and the Branch-man, over here. And all of this is really annoying coming from the P/O stand point, you just don't know what is going on "in there", even though you are the BA Controller at the Incident and YOU are responsible for those inside the building. Doug, are the SOP's that you speak of, a Standard Operational Procedure?.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,392
Member
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443 Likes: 3
OP
Member
|
Sparky, Thanks for clarifying that, mate!
|
|
|
Posts: 44
Joined: July 2013
|
|
|
|