|
Heya folks! Just checking in here. I've been accepted into my local Fire Department as a volunteer probationary member pending a physical (comprehensive) and an agility test (which pretty much everyone that has ever taken it passes). Frankly it looks like an awful lot of fun. Anything I should be aware of while (assuming I pass the physical / agility test) I get my Fire Fighter I Certification?
|
#
¿
Nov 30, 2010 07:27
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 15, 2024 21:19 |
|
|
Checking back in. Thanks for the advice everyone. Passed the physical (or at least the important parts. I need to work on bending at the waist) and got the Agility test scheduled for Sunday. Sounds like classes for FF1 starts up in January, and until I clear all of those, I'm an exterior Fire Fighter! Already enjoying Fringe Benefit #1: Firefighters are one of the few people that have an excuse to grow a mustache!
|
|
#
¿
Dec 17, 2010 08:54
|
|
|
Yeah, turns out hard hats and helmets have an expiration date.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 9, 2011 08:08
|
|
|
Had my first All Call the other day. Overhead sprinkler system pipe burst in a nursing home. I am now qualified to use a squeegee.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 25, 2011 07:35
|
|
|
Hurray, certs. I just finished up my Module I for my Fire Fighter Is. Also required to pass were certs from NIMS 100b and 700a (oh ye gods so boring). Right now I'm studying for our own internal certification where we need to know where every single piece of gear is on the Engines. I don't yet know what all the equipment does, but I'll be damned if I won't be able to find it instinctively by the end of the month!
|
|
#
¿
Feb 3, 2011 06:03
|
|
|
The joke is that there's no legitimate reason to go from 5" to 2.5" without a distributor of some sort (not an adapter), right?
|
|
#
¿
Feb 12, 2011 07:45
|
|
|
invision posted:Any recommendations for fire gloves that don't suck? I have some cheapo's that the liner pulls out of every time you pull your hand out, then it takes like 5 minutes to get your hand back in the drat thing. I'll take a look at the ones I've got when I go in on Wednesday. They're pretty good, and the liner has stayed good and attached so far. Good protection too. Downside is they're pricey like nothing else.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 15, 2011 04:35
|
|
|
Dim, Tired, and Elderly posted:gently caress bitches and get paid. That's why I do it. Because it's the only legitimate reason to have a mustache besides "80's Porn Star" or "Midwestern Child Molester". That and my regular job really isn't fulfilling, so I get to be proud of something that I do. Oh, yeah, and I get to play with all kinds of neat things.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 8, 2011 04:43
|
|
|
Kashew posted:CELEBRITY IN TURNOUT GEAR SPOTTED! That is the ugliest helmet/shield I've ever seen.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 11, 2011 06:36
|
|
|
Anyone else become super conscious of every single freakin' sprinkler, fire extinguisher, hydrant, pull alarm, ect. since taking a class on fire inspection? The first thing I thought when I went to see my sister's new house was "oh good, it's new construction and built with sprinklers".
|
|
#
¿
Apr 27, 2011 05:04
|
|
|
Fun with messed up run cards: A "smell of smoke outside" call got toned out for 2 engines, 1 truck, and 3 other departments sent for mutual aid.
|
|
#
¿
May 10, 2011 17:54
|
|
|
Got to put out my first fire in anger today. And learned Port-a-Johns BURN like you wouldn't believe. We literally arrived to find nothing but a pile of burning offal, and a puddle of melted plastic re-solidified halfway down a small incline. Making poo poo related puns for the rest of the week now.
|
|
#
¿
May 22, 2011 18:58
|
|
|
Awww yeah! Got my Basic Vehicle Rescue scores back - and got my first actually useful certification in something! Plus it came with a couple of patches that - being a probie - I don't have a class A uniform to sew them onto yet.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 25, 2011 05:13
|
|
|
Pennsylvania will give certs / patches for just about anything. Heck, we get a Cert every time we clear one section of the Fire Fighter I Certification. That's right, a certification for each section that adds up to another certification.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 29, 2011 04:43
|
|
|
Welcome to the thread. As you may be able to tell, it functions much like an actual fire department - sudden flurries of activity, followed by days and days of boredom.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 28, 2011 05:11
|
|
|
We use the Minitors ourselves, as well as a text message system, which is helpful if you hear the tones but can't repeat it because you left the darn thing on the ops channel from last time and are trying to guess the address based on the name of the command that just got established.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 1, 2011 19:55
|
|
|
invision posted:That doesn't work here when you have things like "Huge Fire IC" I love that name for an incident. I think we should use that for everything from here on out. "County, this is Two Car Fenderbender Command." We just love our NIMS too much to mess around with naming things based on location.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 2, 2011 00:46
|
|
|
This one's not me, I'm safely away in Pennsylvania. However Texas had themselves a bit of a Chemical Plant fire today. Now, who here has taken HAZMAT courses and learned that sometimes the best thing to do for a chemical fire is to do nothing? If you said "obviously not the Incident Commander of this fire..." http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/03/us/texas-chemical-fire/ At least it doesn't look like there's any immediate danger to the public. -Why you don't pour lots of water on a chemical fire- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02Mbw0eMWUA
|
|
#
¿
Oct 4, 2011 05:00
|
|
|
Kashew posted:"Smell of carbon monoxide in the area." "Caller on foot reports of an odor of smoke outside. He's at the corner of X and Y."
|
|
#
¿
Oct 22, 2011 21:18
|
|
|
Heard on someone else's dispatch. "Car wreck on the intersection of X & Y. Police on scene. Confirmed entrapment. Negative for injuries." Really wanted to see what the hell happened for that one.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 27, 2011 18:51
|
|
|
Really sulfur-y water being used to fight the fire? Maybe the well they were pulling the water from was filtered to hell before being potable. Doubtful that's the case though.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 12, 2011 03:43
|
|
|
invision posted:e:I really appreciate how no one posts in here for a really long time, then all of a sudden there's 20 new posts. It's no surprise this thread mirrors the fire service: Nothing happens for forever and a day, and then the next thing you know there's 8 calls including a structure fire and a water main break over a 3 hour period during Monday Night Drill.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 13, 2011 08:18
|
|
|
So we had Retired Fire Chief Rich Gasaway, PhD come into the area to do a free* lecture on situational awareness the other day. Some useful stuff to take from that, namely how easy it is to get tunnel vision due to stress (really freakin' easy) how to avoid it (don't get stressed. Easier said than done) and how to make sure that you're training right (train exactly how you want to perform on the fireground). Here's his website, chock full of useful nuggets of information. http://www.samatters.com/
|
|
#
¿
Dec 31, 2011 19:07
|
|
|
So, who here is their Department's white cloud or black cloud? Because I'm thinking I'm the black cloud between the vehicle entrapment, the car into the house's gas main and the guy puking up blood on my last 3 duty shifts.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 14, 2012 06:14
|
|
|
Cage Kicker posted:In my own experience, as long as it's not a live-fire exercise, you'll probably get to play. Otherwise, attach yourself to someone knowledgeable and pick their brain. Do what Cage Kicker said. Also, going forward, find any classes you can take and train like mad!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 8, 2012 20:11
|
|
|
Val Helmethead posted:Do what Cage Kicker said. Speaking of classes: Burn Day is the Best Day.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2012 15:14
|
|
|
dexter6 posted:Just wanted to post here that (even though I've been a volunteer for about ten years), I just got my FFI/FFII Pro Board certificates last night. It's nice to be official, finally! Hell yeah! I'll be taking my FFI test in April, and have all the pre-reqs to sign up for the FFII class immediately afterwords. Collecting Certifications is way more fun than it has any right to be.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 14, 2012 13:33
|
|
|
For our departments paid staff, EMT-B is required, with only a few Paramedics (the people that already had Paramedic before joining). Us volunteers don't need anything at all, and it's not like we even have a medical unit. But then again, Pittsburgh is a strange place, where when the fire service was asked to run the ambulance / QRS services back in the day, their response was "Screw you, we're a FIRE Department." And the sentiment trickled down from the city into the rest of the region, and remains that way to this day. Now our ambulances are run by for-profit companies, as are the paramedics / EMTs that come with them. That being said, because our department is a combination department, we're running QRS calls if there are no teams available from the local medics. Our goal in those is just to stabilize the patient until the actual medics can get there, but I'm still planning on getting my First Responder so that I can be more useful on those calls (and the vehicle entrapment calls) than as just a dumb volunteer running around handing tools I don't know the names of to the EMTs.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 17, 2012 05:53
|
|
|
smooth.operator posted:1. Sell it to construction sites that need to cover jagged edges Heck, if you're doing vehicle rescue, chop it up to make your own post covers for patient and emergency worker safety during extractions.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 23, 2012 06:44
|
|
|
http://www.fireengineering.com/articles/2011/04/brush-training.html A nice reminder about what's really important at the end of the day.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 30, 2012 18:56
|
|
|
invision posted:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9186667/US-Navy-develop-creepy-firefighting-robot.html Wow. That's... a thing all right.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 7, 2012 04:25
|
|
|
Assuming you're just going to be paid: Really, it depends on the qualifications that any individual department wants before they hire you. You might have a department that will train you and doesn't care so long as you've got a high school diploma (or equivalent) and can pass a civil service test. Most paid departments around here (Western Pennsylvania) want you to have at least FF1 and First Responder certs to start, and expect you to get FF2 and EMT by the end of your first year. You might have to go volunteer for a bit just to get some of the necessary qualifications to apply. Speaking of qualifications... got my FF1 practical on Sunday. 'bout freakin' time! After that, I get to debate whether I take First Responder or just go straight for EMT. Got a lot of folks who are saying just skip First Responder, but I'm not sure when an EMT class is going to open up that I can easily make. Most are during the weekday.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 14, 2012 03:47
|
|
|
invision posted:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzYxz_uvtSI&feature=youtu.be Showed this to some other guys in my department. We couldn't stop laughing. "I didn't go through 22 weeks of EMT school to have you tell me NOT to do C-spine."
|
|
#
¿
Apr 19, 2012 06:56
|
|
|
Fun stuff heard 'round the fire house: **Tones for "Station A" for a rocking structure fire**  : Well, we're not going to this one. : What do you mean? : Well, they don't really like us out there - I don't think we're on their run card until the 4th alarm or so. We don't have them on ours either. : But they're closer than "Station B" and we don't like them. They're the ones that sent probies and juniors for RIT that one call, right? Wouldn't we rather have "Station A"? : **Turns on radio to ops channel for that call, puts on table** Just listen, you'll see.During this time we hear: - Several minutes wait for the first unit to go into service. - County dispatch pointedly ask the chief if they want to upgrade to a 2nd alarm. This is after the police that arrived on scene confirm a working structure fire in multiple units of a multi-occupancy apartment building. - The chief in question DECLINE the second alarm. - The chief then approving it 2 minutes later when he pulls up on scene. - Random shouting over the ops channel at every possible moment.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 29, 2012 06:02
|
|
|
Our version of sniper month posting better be some truck company guy with a hook and a can.
|
|
#
¿
May 2, 2012 19:01
|
|
|
My Spirit Otter posted:That's p. dumb bro I had to look it up. Dear gods why is that an actual thing? Exactly the sort of attitude I want the guy backing me up on the hoseline at
|
|
#
¿
May 5, 2012 21:57
|
|
|
Forget what I'm wearing for boots, but they're awesome. I'll check my gear and report back. Fit like a glove. Only a pain pulling them back off. We're using Scott packs and Morningpride gear - no complaints there.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 1, 2012 06:02
|
|
|
What the actual poo poo? I could understand if it was a non-emergency response, but for actual code-3 emergencies? Well, at least it looks like the "Thruway"'s official policy is "We're not charging them anyways, so whatever." quote:In a statement issues Tuesday afternoon, Thruway Authority spokesman R.W.Groneman said: "The Thruway Authority does not charge emergency vehicles. In a rare instance where a toll is inadvertently charged, this law establishes a reimbursement procedure."
|
|
#
¿
Jun 20, 2012 04:12
|
|
|
If you can find an EMT class that will complete before you leave, I'd try to get that out of the way. You should be able to take the national boards, and have an easy time achieving certification (or already technically have it) in whatever state you wind up in. It should be about 5 months or so of classes, more or less depending on how many hours per week your course runs. Firefighter training will likely take you far longer, be more spread out, and isn't likely to transfer if you don't clear it all in the same state and get your national certification. As for training - if you want to get paid, you'll likely need to find a major city, join their department, and go through their certification program. Take any national boards offered by that training. You'll need that state's equivalent of Firefighter I and you'll definitely want Firefighter II as soon as you can get it. You'll probably need to get some kind of Basic Vehicle Rescue class in before you can test on FFII. If you aren't living in a major city that offers that, you'll want to find a way to get the prerequisite classes to test on FFI and FFII. Check with your local community college - they most likely will have a program being offered. In this situation, it might be a better idea to become a volunteer while you get your certifications - it will give you access to the equipment you need to take your classes. Up here in PA, to get a job with any location that isn't a major city you pretty much need First Responder and FFI to even get consideration for the job. Our newest hire has Fire Officer II, Fire Instructor III (or somewhere thereabouts) and had to promise to get EMT certified by the end of the year (he had First Responder instead). Not to overload you with too much information, but as soon as you get FFI, you'll want to take a FF Survival class ASAP. Right now I'm a volunteer, with my FFI and BVR (and Special Vehicle Rescue, because cutting apart buses is FUN!). Hopefully I'll be able to take EMT in the Fall, and test out on FFII in October. I just need to finish the FFII application, which in PA is the most difficult part of the test.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 22, 2012 00:39
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 15, 2024 21:19 |
|
|
Echoing the "great if you can afford it" folks. You'll need to learn the exercises from a professional at least to start, unless you're already a pretty big fitness nut. Also, depending on your current fitness, you may need to slowly ramp yourself up to doing a full crossfit workout. We have some folks that are leading optional crossfit exercises for our department Saturday mornings, and we do crossfit Tuesdays and Thursdays for the paid staff and folks that don't have work in the morning on a weekday. It's a good workout, and most of the equipment is relatively inexpensive compared to gym equipment. If you can find a way to get a grant or room in your department budget for fitness equipment, you could do worse than going the crossfit route.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 4, 2012 04:29
|
|