Check out Daily Fire Fix for today’s stories!

These Tunes Are ON FIRE!

A neighbor observed his 57-yr old neighbor listening to music in his BMW parked in the driveway of his home.  Shortly thereafter, the car was ablaze, and as was caught on police dash cam, responding officers noticed the man was still inside.  The Police officers are seen reaching into the vehicle and dragging him away from the intense heat and flames, clearly risking their lives .  The man, described as having been incapacitated, and he was transported to the hospital suffering only from minor smoke inhalation.  You gotta love the dash cam!

Injured CFD's Finest Rescue Carful of Criticals Who Pulled Out In Front Of Them

Alcohol is being investigated in the cause of an intersection accident in which Chicago Fire Department engine 62 struck an automobile on Monday night injuring ten including 4 firefighters.  3 children and two adults were critically injured.  According to initial reports, the automobile proceeded into the intersection after stopping, and the engine did not have enough time to avoid the crash.  Witnesses at the scene reported that firefighters injured in the collision immediately began to treat those in the automobile before other firefighters and paramedics arrived.  The 18-yr old driver has since been charged with DUI and other traffic offenses.  Check out the news report from MyFoxChicago.com :

9 Injured When Chicago Fire Truck Crashes Into Car: MyFoxCHICAGO.com

Patriots Send NH Fireighter to the Super Bowl

A New Hampshire firefighter will be unable to respond to calls this weekend because he is a volunteer.  Why?  The New England Patriots chose 10 “Super Persons” from around New England, police, firefighters, teachers, and military members, all a part of their Celebrate Volunteerism Campaign.  One of those winners is Somersworth NH firefighter Tim Wilder.  Tim is headed to the Super Bowl this weekend along with nine other public service workers.  Watch the video from WMUR TV :

Nom Nom Nom…..

Here's some secret recipes for firehouse snacks on this- the most glorious weekend to be on shift at the firehouse- the Super Bowl!  First up, an ultra simple idea that will make you look like you know how to make something- even though your partners will realize you can’t.  Get a brick of Philadelphia cream cheese, put it on a plate, pour some shrimp sauce over it.  Wallah- with a few triscuits, you’ve got a dipping delight! 

Now for a secret recipe from my firehouse that is sooo simple and soooo yummy, you’ll make it even during the off season.  Pop a blob of beef roast into a crock pot at the beginning o your shift and cover it with a big jar of giardinara peppers.  Cook it on low heat til game time, open the lid, shred the meat with a couple of forks and serve it on some fresh French bread with a little mozz or provolone- and you’ve got some of the best Italian beef sandwiches you’ll ever taste. 

If you want to show some true effort with a quick, easy, and healthy Super Bowl food idea check out the video below from TheFirehouseChef.  In this episode, Ryan celebrates one of the most hallowed days at the firehouse- Super Bowl Sunday- with his famous Chipotle Chicken Salad Crostini.  Although it’s great all year long, this finger food combination of chicken, garlic, and chipotle is sure to be a crowd pleaser.  And here’s a secret- The full video recipe enables guys like me to shine in the most valuable position in the firehouse- the shift’s cook. 

Bon Appetit!

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If you had to choose between these two locations, where would you say most of your fire service learning took place?

Isn't it interesting that most of how we learn is best accomplished by simply interacting with those nearby?

With that in mind, I’m looking for pictures of your firehouse kitchen table being “used” by firefighters, specifically the times when we sit around it solving all of the world’s problems in an informal setting.

Send them to me at john@firedaily.com  We’ll get as many of them posted as we can.

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I’ve been sharing with you a story of humor, yet it is also a story many of each of you have been apart of in your own experiences.  You get on a department, and you grow close to each other as you begin your journey developing your second family.

There are many other stories, as I’m sure you can imagine.  Some can be related, some are better left untold.  But each story are singular threads that we share to create the fabric of life- the truly special one which we all share as Brothers and Sisters in the greatest profession on earth.

I began my career with Buzz, and was fortunate enough to have him as a part of our company when I suffered my injury a few years back.  From beginning to end, Buzz has been and continues to be my Brother.

Buzz has a beautiful wife and three fantastic young men for sons.  Throughout our Brotherhood, Buzz has always had the support of both his families.  Buzz also serves his country in the Global War on Terror, having been in the sands as a Navy medic saving the lives of his other Band of Brothers, our heroes in the Middle East.

When he is gone on his tours, the Brothers back home make sure his family is never in want for anything.  From simple chores to assistance with major issues we all made sure his wife, Maria, and her three sons could count on us to have their backs just like if Buzz was there for them.  We treated his family just like they should be treated, and how we would expect they would treat ours. 

Today, our Brother faces a new crisis, and we are all stepping up for him.  For those of you who are unaware, his eldest son Ken was unexpectedly diagnosed with brain cancer this last March. After 2 brain surgeries 5 weeks of radiation and countless medications, Ken is looking and feeling better and better. He still has a long road to recovery and many months of chemotherapy ahead, but things are looking positive.

This unfortunate medical issue came at a time when Ken was off of a health insurance plan between graduating college, and trying to get a small business up and going. His medical expenses are staggering and overwhelming.  Now, this is something that will dealt with over time, but we all can have an impact now.  Why?

Ken will be unable to work for at least a year.  But in this, the greatest country in the world, Ken can also receive a higher level of healthcare treatment IF he can pony up certain percentages out of pocket.  In other words, if he has more money, he can get better treatment.  God Bless America, right?

Anyway, us Brothers are not going to let a lack of finances hold Buzz’s son to a lesser standard of care without a fight.  We’ve put a party together and want everyone to join us the weekend after the Fourth of July at Arlington Park Racecourse. 

Join us as we bet on the ponies, break some bread, share some pop, enjoy pony rides, a petting zoo, face painting, 50/50 raffle, silent auction, other raffle prizes, and a demonstration by our very own Chicago Fire Professional Soccer Team.

A Day At The Races runs from noon until 6pm (post time at 1pm) on Sunday, July 10^th at Arlington Park Racecourse.  Tickets are $40 for adults, $20 for children 4 years old and older.

Your ticket includes food, non-alcoholic beverages, and entertainment, and all proceeds will be donated to Ken so that he can get the level of treatment he deserves.

Now I realize that many of you are geographically unable to make it to suburban Chicago for this mega-party, but you can still help out in several ways.  First, visit “Ken Krull Fundraiser” on facebook and “like”  the page.  It will help get the word out to the world.  Secondly, we’ve set up a PayPal account to which you can donate by using the email address “kenfundraiser@gmail.com”.  Local 3481 will also be graciously accepting checks mailed to Local 3481, PO Box 1683, Barrington, IL 60010. 

Finally, contact me below for any further information on how you might wish to get involved.

This is one of those situations in life that happens all around us, but you never really grasp the impact until it happens to a loved one.  

Buzz is my buddy.  Buzz is my brother.  He was there when I started, and he was there on my last day.

Join me now as we stand right beside him today, as we know we will for the rest of our lives.

Stay stoked!

-J

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When you last left us, the two hapless FNG’s had amazingly escaped a potential situation in which something got broken.  Remember, if something gets broken, we’d have to endure the Wrath of the Lieutenant- that unimaginably obscene and cataclysmic display of sound and spit-spray.

But just as things looked like they were going our way, the rising railroad crossing gate snapped off the lens of our rotating light sending it high up into the air.  Oh no!  What if it gets broken?  AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!  We watched in amazement as it arced about forty feet into the air then began its descent toward the line of traffic stopped at the light.

But the Gods were smiling down upon us on that memorable day as the lens came down hard- into a landscaping truck filled to the rim with grass clippings.  It bounced once, then twice, then finally settled on top of the pile in the back of the truck.

The light turned green.  Nooooo! 

I bolted (I know smart-asses, not so much bolting these days anymore) for the landscaping truck as it began to start forward with the traffic.  I yelled STOP! and with one leap (well, OK, I stopped, put my cigarette out and coughed, cinched up my pants, then heaved myself up attempting to get up into the back of the truck).  My third attempt was successful. 

I grabbed the lens and looked it over in wide-eyed amazement.  Just a scratch!  Well, we could get that out.  In the words of Spicoli, “my Dad’s got an awesome set of tools.”

Down I sprang (well, climbed laboriously- HEY enough from you guys already, huh?) and skipped my way back to the ambulance holding the lens with both hands above my head like the Stanley Cup (Go Bruins!) as Buzz waited dutifully with the patient.

“It’s not broken, it’s not broken!” I screamed, ecstatically incredulous.  I gently placed the lens on the front passenger seat like a majestic crown on a velvet pillow, buckled it in securely, then retook my position as driver/operator of the mobile intensive care unit.  As we made our way to the hospital, tears again, this time tears of joy and re-relief. 

Me and Buzz on our first call together.  We had successfully avoided the Wrath of the Lieutenant.  We would not be so successful in the future.  Things would get broken, Wraths be unleashed.  But today….sweet victory.

To be continued…

This story has been told and retold countless times

and may or may not be a wildly exaggerated account of utter fiction. 

As we used to say on black shift,

never let the facts get in the way of a good story. 

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When you last left, a Metra Commuter train was barreling down on our ambulance trapped in a railroad crossing as we were transporting a patient to our local hospital.  2 FNG’s, me and Buzz, and a patient were on the way to the hospital when the crossing gates came down on top of the box near a multi-hundred dollar revolving light, seemingly calling attention from anyone nearby to waste just a moment of their time to claim witness to what was about to happen.

This is a good point to address the obvious question you all may have here.  Why not just throw it into reverse and break what needs to be broken- just to be safe? 

B e c a u s e  i f  s o m e t h i n g  e v e r  g e t s  b r o k e n, we endure the Wrath of the Lieutenant. 

OK.  I know you readers are all rolling your eyes- but hear me out- this was not something to ever be a part of. 

The Wrath of the Lieutenant was cataclysmic.  Each of the five human senses were so violated by the event that the End of Times would be pleasurable by comparison.  One need only hear about one of these things to never want to be nearby when it erupts.

The message was clear: Don’t break anything.  It’s only that simple.  Don’t friggin’ break a thing.

Even though it looked like there might be just enough space for the train to clear the front bumper, I thought about the emergency lighting in the front bumper as well.  If those got broken, well, the Wrath of the Lieutenant would be known! 

Something was going to get broken, it was just a question of how spectacular that breakage would be.

So this FNG did the bravest, most heroic deed ever seen in my department’s history.  Forget about saving babies from a raging inferno, this took balls. 

I put her in reverse and slowly backed up. 

The first sound was that of the wooden railroad gate contacting the lens of the revolving light on top of the ambulance box.  Clink.  Tears streaming down my face in anticipation of what would happen if anything broke, I continued inching backward. 

Buzz peeked his head through the cab window and asked what was the matter.  My tear-stained head spun around and I screamed “BEWARE THE WRATH OF THE LIEUTENANT”!

Buzz froze.  He knew. 

His eyes welled up as he quickly did the Sign of the Cross on himself. 

“Don’t break anything!  Just let the train smash us!” Buzz screamed. 

The ambulance continued inching slowly backward.

Others nearby probably only heard the blaring of the approaching train’s horn, but the two terrified FNG’s could only wait for the sound of “something breaking”.  The wooden gate creaked and groaned as it bent farther and farther back, the revolving light holding it’s ground.

After what seemed like hours, the train finally roared by.  Turns out we had plenty of room after all.  Buzz and I shared a look of intense relief and began to dry our pitifully snot-slobbered faces.  Nothing got broken!  We had avoided the Wrath of the Lieutenant!

As we high-fived and danced a merry jig of exultation, the railroad gate, which had been bowed back about 30 degrees began to ascend upward to allow traffic through.  In doing so, it popped the clear dome light lens catapulting it up and forward high in the air, the revolving light still spinning away.

The lens flew like a rocket, arcing high up into the air.  Oh no!  What if it gets broken?  AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!  We watched in amazement as it arced about forty feet into the air then began its descent toward the line of traffic stopped at the light. 

Things were not looking good again for the two FNG’s.

To be continued……

This story has been told and retold countless times

and may or may not be a wildly exaggerated account of utter fiction. 

As we used to say on black shift,

never let the facts get in the way of a good story. 

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The Brotherhood of Two FNG’s

Part One- Buzz

Hello Friends,
 
I would like to take a few days to relate a story of the Brotherhood of two FNG’s.  For those of you who don’t know, N stands for “new” and G stands for “guy”.  After the story has been told, I would like to tell you why this all came to mind this month and tie it all together with a dose of true humanity.  Enjoy!

When I made the move to my most recent department, I was among a group which almost doubled the size of the career staff there.  The department was making the difficult transition from volunteer to combination and this was a significant growth spurt for the paid firefighters.

Among my group was a firefighter named Brian Krull.  Brian would be the first of the group to earn a nickname that has stood for more than 14 years now.  Let me explain.

Around the newly-expanded day room table sat 6-7 FNG’s.  The Lieutenant came bounding in (he bounds, what can I say?) and smugly asked (he smugly asks, what can I say?) which of the new guys had been responsible for sending the personnel manager a stunning bouquet of flowers following his acceptance into the department. 

Brian raised his hand.  

Oops.  Day one and he was singled out already.

It was 1997.  Back in the 1900’s, FTD had a commercial out about some guy dressed as a bumblebee who delivered flowers, remember? 

Buzz.

The nickname Buzz stuck like honey to a hive. 

So, after a couple weeks of FNG training, we were divvied up into the three shifts.  I had been warned that I should slit my wrists if I was assigned to black shift.

Naturally, I was assigned to black shift.

So was Buzz, and thus began what turned out to be an extraordinary band of brothers who were constantly on every chief officer’s radar screen.  We were a proud group, eager to put up our skills against the other shifts when challenged, and always coming out on top.  That made black shift a target, from blue shirts and multi-bugles alike.

Buzz and I ran our first call together.  2 medics on an EMS run, allowed to solo for the first time without adult supervision despite our Lieutenant’s better judgment.  On the way to the hospital, me driving-Buzz in back, we approached a railroad crossing.  Cars were stopped for a light so I had to enter the opposite lane to slowly sneak around the stopped line of traffic.  Just as I committed the ambo into the RR crossing the bells started ringing and gates started lowering. 

Maybe I shoulda just gunned it, but as I said we were FNG’s on our first call.  Fearing the worst, I stopped which allowed the gates to come down on the top of the box. 

Thunk!

I stuck my head out the window and saw the RR gate had come down behind the rotator light on the front corner of the ambulance.  If I backed up I would surely snap the multi-hundred dollar accessory and face the Wrath of the Lieutenant (he wraths, what can I say?)  If I didn’t back up- well the train probably would clear the front of the ambulance no problem.  Right?

I had a decision to make.  Back up and break the multi-hundred dollar light?  Take a chance on the train missing us?  Howabout just getting out and running away screaming like a girl?  You know- right to O’Hare for starters- then who knows where? 

To be continued…..

This story has been told and retold countless times

and may or may not a wildly exaggerated account of utter fiction. 

As we used to say on black shift,

never let the facts get in the way of a good story. 

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“It’s good to be strong and it’s good to be courageous. But it’s also good to ask for help. “If I had a good friend who said, ‘you need to get some help,’ I would listen. I would hope somebody would do that.” Fire Chief Bob Khan, Phoenix Fire Department, which lost four firefighters in seven months to suicide.

Whether we admit it or not, we are not immune to the effects of the unique stress we cope with each day as firefighters.

Many times, we keep these stressors bottled up inside us without seeking help.  Other times, when we do seek help, we have a difficult time trying to relate to counselors who have zero experience as a firefighter, and become frustrated, eventually abandoning outside help often critical to our well-being.

Tonight, Firefighter Netcast introduces Jeff Dill, a Battalion Chief from suburban Chicago, who holds a Masters Degree in Counseling.  Chief Dill has established CSSF, Counseling Services for Firefighters, which offers behavioral health support to firefighters; trains senior fire officers, and educates clinicians on the benefits of understanding the life and emotions- of firefighters.

The numbers of firefighter suicides are jaw-dropping. As often as a few times a week, Jeff finds himself answering calls for help from fire chiefs around the country.

Join the Firefighter Netcast Show tonight at 9pm ET for a live interview with Chief Dill, and learn how to recognize emotional distress in your partner or your loved one, and the steps you can take to help- before it’s too late.  Participate in call-ins and chat room discussions.

This ain’t your daddy’s fire service radio podcast!

Jeff holds a Master’s Degree in Counseling. He is currently a Battalion Chief at Palatine Rural Fire Protection District in Inverness, Illinois. He is a member of the American Counseling Association, Illinois Counseling Association, Illinois Mental Health Counselors Association, Illinois Fire Chiefs Association, International Association of Fire Chiefs and Illinois Professional Firefighter’s Association. Jeff is also an alumni member of International Association of Fire Fighters.  He is dedicated to educating firefighters and emergency personnel on the importance of behavioral health and suicide awareness.

CSFF Web Page

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Want to know what might be talked about in firehouse recliners this weekend?

She’s Inez Sainz, (pronounced OMG) former model and current sports reporter from Mexico’s TV Azteca .  Reports surfaced earlier this week in which players New York Jets players acted with “unprofessional conduct” when Inez made her way into their locker room for an interview with quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Here’s a picture of Inez waiting for something.

demonstration of good posture

Where was I?

Oh yes.  The NFL has apparently opened up an investigation into the conduct of the players in the locker room (calling out to her) ass well ass an incident during practice, in which defensive backs coach Dennis Thurman began throwing footballs in her direction so players could end up closer to her.

Jets coach Rex Ryan eventually joined in, ass did veteran defensive lineman Jason Taylor, who asked (and I’m paraphrasing) “May I participate in this drill?”.

BTW, here’s another picture of her.

Who's the guy who clips on the wireless microphone transmitter?

She’s a sports reporter.  Yes.

Where was I?

Right.  Anyway, the NFL announced Friday that it would also roll out media training to all 32 teams on proper behavior in the workpla…

Wait, here she is again.

A rare shot from the front.

It’s a more rare shot.  From the front.  Take a good look.

My guess is this story will be brought up in firehouse recliners over football all weekend.

Stay stoked!

-J

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OK, these are pretty cool.  Check out these custom-made products from my friends at Wall Shields.

riding assignment boards, photo collection displays

specialty items including kitchen tables and weather-resistant dog houses

Replicate your department’s helmet shield or any other design you want in many different sizes.  Send in a photo, they’ll create a picture wall shield anywhere from 3 foot to 4 feet in size.  They offer similar productions on a kitchen table, media center, riding assignment board, or any other type of item you are looking for.

I saw a firehouse dog house at their booth in Baltimore this summer.  It’s big enough for me, and I’ll sure be needing it periodically.

Whether for the holidays, retirements, or just to spruce up the station, these guys offer a nice alternative to an ax plaque or a signed helmet.

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Ever have trouble pulling out for a run forgetting you left a coffee cup on the bumper?

Yeah, me too.  In fact, I had this happen several times due to the fact that I couldn’t impress upon a rookie on my crew to make a walk around the engine before it moves.  After losing a particularly valuable piece of equipment left on the tailboard after a call, I knew I had to figure out a better way to get my point across to this hapless lad.

Bear with me here.

I grew up in the 70’s.  You know, the generation that brought us both Led Zeppelin AND the Captain and Tennille.   “Convoy” by C.W. McCall AND Aerosmith.  Mac Davis (“Baby Baby Don’t Get Hooked on Me”) and Foreigner (btw, Foreigner 4 is the all-time best break-up album ever).  Terry Jacks, Elton John, Neil Sedaka,… I think I just puked a little bit in my mouth.

I was there when disco came, and I was there at Comiskey Park in July of ’79 when we brought death and destruction to disco- and the double header scheduled for that night.

The 70’s have been described as one of the most musically diverse decades ever.  I’ve also heard it described as one of the most “musically-dead” eras in recent memory.  But through all the Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, and Electric Light Orchestra songs, I always had a secret dream to become a rock star.

Who hasn’t?  Oh the life of a rock star.  Sex, drugs, rock and roll, sex, travel, sex, partying… rock stardom had all the perks.

Speaking of perks, who can forget the most famous concert riders brought to us courtesy of Van Halen?  TSG has obtained a copy of the rider requesting that, among a myriad of other items, M&M candies be supplied in the crew room at the concert venue.  The rider specifically stated: “WARNING: ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES”

Well, I guess this is one of the perks of being a rock star!  You can basically demand anything you want backstage, all the while being freakishly weird about said demands.  I can vouch for the fact that brown M&M’s do not taste any differently from yellow ones or blue ones (although there does seem to be a subtle difference to those sought-after green M&M’s…).

Now, you may ask what this has to do with firefighting.

To which I will return the volley with a question of my own:  Did you ever hear the real reason behind the specific request of ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES?

Read on as David Lee Roth describes in Snopes.com:

“Van Halen was the first band to take productions into tertiary, third-level markets.  We’d pull up with eighteen-wheeler trucks, full of gear, where the standard was three trucks, max.  And there were many, many technical errors- whether it was the girders couldn’t support the weight, or the flooring would sink in, or, the doors weren’t big enough to move the gear through.

The contract rider read like a version of the Chinese Yellow Pages because there was so much equipment, and so many human beings to make it function.  So just as a little test, in the technical aspect of the rider, it would say “Article 148: There will be fifteen amperage voltage sockets at twenty-foot spaces, evenly, providing nineteen amperes…”  This kind of thing.  And article number 126, in the middle of nowhere, was: “There will be no brown M&M’s in the backstage area, upon pain of forfeiture of the show, with full compensation.”

So, when I would walk backstage, if I saw a brown M&M in that bowl… well, line-check the entire production.  Guaranteed you’re going to arrive at a technical error.  They didn’t read the contract.  Guaranteed you’d run into a problem.  Somewhere it would threaten to just destroy the whole show.  Something like, literally, life-threatening.

The folks in Pueblo, Colorado, at the university, took the written contract rather kinda casual.  They had one of those new rubberized bouncy basketball floorings in their arena.  They hadn’t read the contract, and weren’t sure, really, about the weight of this production; this thing weighed like the business end of a 747.

I came backstage.  I found some brown M&M’s, I went into full Shakespearean “What is this before me?” … you know, with the skull in one hand..and promptly trashed the dressing room.  Dumped the buffet, kicked a hole in the door, twelve thousand dollars’ worth of fun.

The staging sank through their floor.  They didn’t bother to look at the weight requirement or anything, and this sank through their new flooring and did eighty thousand dollars’ worth of damage to the arena floor.  The whole thing had to be replaced.  It came out in the press that I discovered brown M&M’s and did eighty-five thousand dollars’ worth of damage to the backstage area.

Well, who am I to get in the way of a good rumor.”

David Lee Roth put into place an automatic check, an indicator of sorts, as to the attention to detail he needed.  I took his lead and put my own indicator into play, in order to get the crew into the habit of doing a quick 360 around our expensive apparatus full of expensive, life-saving equipment.

Upon a small Styrofoam coffee cup, I wrote the message: “When you find me, deliver me to your Lieutenant.”  Then, I left it somewhere on the apparatus that it would readily be found by the engineer (“drivers” in some areas, “Lieutenants” in Roanoke) as he performed the quick 360 before moving the apparatus.

If we moved before I got the cup, I’d just smile and wait if he would spot it at some point later.  To his credit, he picked up on it pretty quickly.  We even got to the point we saved a ten thousand dollar TIC from certain damage if not total loss.

So the fire service could do well from the example given us by a rock star.  Pay attention to the details and we’ll all do just fine.

Now back to XM channel 7 and Al Stewart’s “Time Passages”….  More puke in my throat.

“ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES”

Stay stoked!

-J

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