Overall height as low as 10’7” allows the Metro 100 to fit in stations with low doors / ceilings and navigate areas with height restrictions.
100’ TOUGHTRUSS™
ALUMINUM LADDER
The Metro 100 welded extruded aluminum ladder has optional pre-piped waterway fixed at 80’ or movable between 3rd and 4th sections.
2.5 TO 1 STRUCTURAL SAFETY FACTOR
Exceeds NFPA requirements, contributing to E-ONE’s proven safety record for over 35 years.
GROUND LADDER STORAGE
Center tunnel that holds up to 182’ of ladders including two 35’ 2-section and a 20’ roof.
STRONGEST CAB IN THE INDUSTRY
Keep your crew safe with the cab that withstands over 5x the static roof load and over twice the frontal impact required by NFPA. INTEGRAL TORQUE BOX CHASSIS Manufactured from the ground up. A unique design that combines the chassis frame and aerial torque box that provides a solid foundation.
UNMATCHED STABILITY
Rock solid stability, even when tested to one and a half times the rated load over the front with tires off the ground.
COMPACT OUTRIGGERS
Crisscross under-slung outriggers that deploy to a tight 11’ spread, in under 45 seconds for set up in tight spaces.
When tight streets and alleyways stand between the fire station and the blaze, you’d better have a maneuverable and capable truck answering the call. The E-ONE Metro 100 has a compact 220” wheel base and a short rear overhang that lets you get around with minimal tail swing. A travel height as low as 10’7” lets you pass through areas with height restrictions and its 100’ welded extruded aluminum ladder helps you access even harder to reach places. When space is at a premium, the Metro 100 crisscross under-slung outriggers deploy to a tight 11’ spread giving you plenty of room to set up. If reaching every part of town is a priority, then make sure you add the E-ONE Metro 100 to your department.
COLUMNS
04
28 | Front seat
Warming up to the hot seat 20 | WellBeing
Sharp minds make good decisions 34 | From the floor
Build a highrise program from the gound up
HOFFMAN
By Laura King
It takes a village
Several years ago, I spent a day at Edmonton Fire Rescue, learning about fire-hall routines and responding to calls with the rescue and pumper crews. My blog from June 25, 2010, tells part of the story: “A call came in for the unglamorous task of unclogging a needle deposit box at a community centre – a task probably not unique to Edmonton Fire but not common to many Canadian departments . . . ”
Those were simpler days.
Fast forward to 2016 and firefighters in Edmonton, like in Winnipeg, Vancouver, Burnaby, Delta, Sooke, Surrey and municipalities across the country, are responding to much more challenging calls for opiate overdoses, something no young, enthusiastic firefighter envisioned during CPAT testing or pump ops.
Firefighers – and management – in Vancouver have, rightly, pushed for more resources to deal with the overwhelming call volume; council in December complied, approving a tax increase to help fund an additional truck and crew members, and a full-time mental-health worker to help responders cope with the crisis.
As CBC radio host Stephen Quinn wrote in an op-ed piece in the Globe and Mail, left-leaning councillor Geoff Meggs reasoned that the fentanyl crisis is a taxpayer responsibility – his perspective akin to
the village-raising-a-child adage.
“His argument goes like this,” Quinn wrote. “First responders such as firefighters and police are funded with property taxes; there is unprecedented pressure on those first responders because of the number of people overdosing on fentanyl; and so when more resources are needed to support those emergency services, property tax is the obvious source.”
The issue is complex; teenagers and recreational drug users inadvertently consume fentanyllaced products and end up needing first responders.
Some councillors disagree and want more provincial and federal support – the province has created six new safe-injection sites, and federal Health Minister Jane Philpott met with firefighters in November and promised to consider measures such as affordable housing.
The issue is complex; teenagers and recreational drug users inadvertently consume fentanyl-laced products and end up needing first responders. People who have never been drug users become addicted after taking medication prescribed by doctors.
As Quinn wrote, “People are dying at the rate of two a day.
If those deaths can be prevented with additional funding for emergency services, we have an obligation to do something about it.”
And as Winnipeg firefighters union president Alex Forrest told me in an interview in December, regardless of the municipality, firefighters need to be part of the solution to the problem that is working its way eastward across the country.
Perhaps. But at what cost?
“To be selfish about it,” Quinn wrote, “imagine that you or a loved one suffers a stroke or heart attack or is involved in a car crash and emergency services are too busy to get to you because they’re reviving overdose victims.”
Responders, by nature, want to help people, and union presidents, by nature, want to ensure that firefigher jobs are preserved.
But responding to opiate-overdose calls results in fatigue and stress and busts morale.
As Vancouver firefighters union vice-president Geoff Bourdeaudhuy said in an interview, the problem is far bigger than the fire department can handle.
Simpler days, indeed.
January 2017
Vol. 40, No. 1 www.firehall.com
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Thunder Bay switches to 24-hour shift
The 192 suppression firefighters in Thunder Bay, Ont., started working 24 hour shifts on Jan. 1. Firefighters work one day on, one day off, one day on, then five days off. The schedule was proposed by the Thunder Bay Professional Fire Fighters Association. An arbitrator awarded the shift late in 2016 to begin in 2017. Firefighters in Sault Ste. Marie and Timmins adopted the 24-hour shift in 2016; firefighters in Cambridge, Ont., started working 24 hours in 2015. Most municipal department in Ontario work 24-hour shifts. – LAURA KING
Manitoba firefighter awarded scholarship
Bradley Davidson, a company officer with Hudbay Minerals Fire Department and a volunteer firefighter in Flin Flon, Man., has been awarded a scholarship to attend the Fire Department Instructors Conference in Indianapolis, April 24 to 29. Davidson represents Manitoba on the board of the Canadian Volunteer Fire Services Association; former CVFSA president Martin Bell nominated Davidson for the scholarship, which is funded by Honeywell and DuPont Kevlar. Davidson has been with Hudbay Minerals for 28 years and has volunteered with the Flin Flon department for nine years; he has never attended FDIC.
– LK
Firefighters target EMS response times
The Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association wants the province to allow members who are also paramedics to perform additional duties at medical calls. While the government surveyed municipalities about the proposal in December, the OPFFA launched a video critical of paramedic response times. “EMS has problems. Fire Fighters [sic] solve problems,” the association says on its Facebook page. The video is available at https://www.facebook.com/OPFFA
– LK
hour shift is normative and pervasive in Ontario and is regularly awarded by arbitrators
Oakville Firefit team sets world records
Firefighters from Oakville, Ont., set two world records at the 2016 Scott Safety world Firefighter Combat Challenge in October in Montgomery, Ala.; four members won the team event in 4:04:85, and Ian van Reenen took the individual title, clocking 1:15:29.
The OPFFA wants the government to allow its 1,100 firefighters who are also trained as paramedics to use their skills and training when they arrive on a fire truck.
The eight-person crew from Oakville won the Canadian Firefit championship in September in Spruce Meadows, Alta.
Oakville firefighter and competitor Shaun Henderson attributes the team’s success to sheer determination, help from local business – particularly sponsor Levitt-Safety – and a home training facility.
“The training facility helped us to get over the hump,” Henderson said in an interview.
“Having these proper training grounds has made all the difference.”
Oakville also placed first in the tandem competition at the worlds; Henderson and partner Van Reenen completed the
job-simulated obstacle course in 1:09:99.
“Ian is so successful – his fitness and strength level is off the charts,” Henderson said. Henderson was fifth in the individual competition at 1:19:84. Longtime competitor Graham MacKenzie from Kamloops, B.C., was third at 1:19:70.
Canadian champion Amber Bowman of Central York Fire in Ontario won the women’s individual category in Montgomery with a time of 2:09:76, and finished first in the tandem event with partner Courtney Surridge from Lambton College in Sarnia, Ont., in 1:49:97. Bowman completed a trifecta, taking the co-ed tandem with Claude Belanger from Longueil, Que., in 1:20:82.
Canadians Darren van Zandbergen – a veteran member of Oakville’s team – placed second in the over-40 group at 1:29:72, behind Mike Brown from Kamloops at 1:27:51.
– BETH MCKAY AND LAURA KING
Oakville’s Firefit team won the world championships in October. Team members Matt Longwell, Andy Waldron, Andrew Gowanlock, Shaun Henderson, Alex Harriman, Dave Walker, Darren van Zandbergen and Ian VanReenen are pictured after winning the Canadian title in September.
Tim-bits
By Tim Llewellyn
Tim Llewellyn is a firefighter for the Allegheny County Airport Authority in Pittsburgh, Pa., and an instructor for several fire academies and training faculties. llewellyn.fire@gmail.com
Leveraging the leader line
In the October edition of Tim-bits, I focused on a method of leader-line deployment that has served our department well; its versatility and ease of use has found favour with our firefighters when it’s necessary to extend attack lines.
Although we infrequently extend attack lines using leader lines, when we do, the leader-line deployment system pays huge dividends. Therefore, we not only constantly remind firefighters of the presence of the leader lines on the engines, but we also drill with firefighters when and how to correctly deploy the lines, particularly the leader-line reverse-lay function.
For review, our department’s leader lines in the hose bed consist of 10 or 12 lengths of 78-millimetre (2.5-inch) hose, flat-loaded, so that a male coupling is on top with a water thief attached. The entire first section is to be pulled off; the water thief is bundled together with straps. The purpose of the bundled section is to ensure there is a nominal amount of hose with the firefighter when it is pulled off and the apparatus drives away (in the reverse-lay function). This system guarantees that one section of hose is free to be extended from the street into a yard, alley or other spot closer to the fire attack area or entry point. The bundle also aids in forward leader-line advancement; bundling the hose makes it easier for one firefighter to pull off and
shoulder away from the fire engine, while other firefighters strip off and carry or drag additional hose. It should be noted that the top section of leader lines do not need to be bundled. The bundled hose was introduced in our department, and worked for us, so it was adopted.
This system guarantees that one section of hose is free to be extended from the street into a yard, alley or other spot closer to the fire attack area or entry point.
During structural incidents, when interior fire attack is indicated and a leader line is called for, the positioning of the water thief in rela-
tion to the entry point is vital: we make a point of including this detail in our training. The water thief must be placed no closer than three to 4.5 metres (10 to 15 feet) from the front door and, most importantly, to the side of the door. The purpose of the three to 4.5 metre distance is to help prevent kinks in the attack-line hose at the waterthief connection. The offset placement allows the attack hose to be flaked out perpendicular to, and directly in front of the entry door; this allows for the easiest stretch possible with minimal snag points. When the attack-line bundle is laid on the ground and connected, it should be just ahead of the water thief; this placement helps to keep the coupling connection as straight as possible to
minimize kinking. Our department’s leader-line attack bundles consist of two sections of 1.75-inch hose with a 7/8-inch smoothbore nozzle. The hose is flat laid in a single stack and held together with a few cheap nylon straps. Each fire engine carries two of these bundles; they lay on top of the leader line, next to its bundle in the hose bed. The bundle is laid on the ground just in front of the water thief, perpendicular to the entry point. To keep training methods and muscle memories consistent, we flake the leader line’s attack hoses at the front door the same as we do with our pre-connected shoulder loads. After the straps are unbuckled, the female coupling is attached to the water thief where the middle coupling in the attack hose is located. This coupling is then picked up and carried away from the entry point until all of the flakes of hose in the bundle are extended. The coupling is then carried back toward the entry point and laid next to it. This action creates two easily managed loops of hose, each approximately 7.5 metres long, in line with the entry point. The hose is now ready for charging and advancement. A leader line is an effective tool that has multiple roles in fire suppression. But stretching leader lines and advancing attack lines from them is quite different than bread and butter pre-connected cross lay hose lines. If success is desired, the methods must be practiced. There’s an idea for your next company drill –leader lines!
The hose is flat laid in a single stack and held together with nylon straps, then is laid on the ground in front of the water theif, perpendicular to the entry point.
PHOTO BY TIM LLEWELLYN
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Fighting the fentanyl crisis
Responders seek resources, national strategy for addicts
By Beth McKay and Laura King
No one signs up to be a firefighter to do what crews in Vancouver’s downtown east side do every day: administer lifesaving anti-overdose drugs to opioid users – sometimes several times a day and sometimes to the same user twice in one shift.
The conditions are sordid – filthy alleyways and flophouses – and the system flawed; users keep using, knowing firefighters or paramedics will revive them.
Vancouver’s Fire Hall 2 was already a busy station – 600 calls a month. But with the rise in fentanyl use, firefighters in November responded to a record 1,255 calls, of which 735 were overdoses, according to a city press release.
Although management in Vancouver says it recognizes the challenging working conditions, firefighters say the issue is bigger than the department can handle, and they want Ottawa to implement a national strategy to tackle the opioid problem.
That solution is long-term, at best; in the meantime, Vancouver’s firefighters – and management – want more resources to help prevent stress and burnout, and give firefighters back the time they need to train. In early December, Vancouver city council was considering a request from Fire Chief John McKeaerney for an additional rescue truck,16 full-time firefighters for Hall 2, and a full-time mental-health worker, at a cost of about $1.8 million a year.
McKearney said a proposal back in July for a two-crew rescue unit to deal with growing call volume and other suppression-staff responsibilities, such as inspections and enforcement of six-storey wood frame buildings, vacant homes, and hoarding, was “not wholly supported” by council.
“But when tsunami hit with fentanyl,” McKearney said, “I increased it to three-person unit because of the type of evolutions that type of responders have to do when dealing with an overdose case.
“The most recent ask or position by the corporation for council to consider is a direct result of the opiate overdoses.”
McKearney said the department and the city are developing initiatives to deal with fentanyl but there’s no short-term solution.
“We’re in discussions ongoing with Vancouver Coastal Health reps, and certainly we’ve had [Health] Minister [Jane] Philpott out here, and number of different federal representatives. Everyone is certainly aware of the crisis – it’s almost epidemic. But there is still disclarity about
how to stem the tide.
Vancouver’s initiatives – supervised injection sites, literature that speaks to young people about the dangers, and free naxolone kits – are being replicated in other cities where fentanyl is turning up.
“But as far as how to stem the tide,” McKearney said, “that’s a pretty tall order.”
McKearney says crews are rotated out of Fire Hall 2 sooner than other halls, but agrees that the conditions and frequency of responses to overdose calls are straining firefighters and department resources.
According to the union, back in the 1980s, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services had about 160 front-line firefighters on duty at any time. Today, there are 132. Like other cities, Vancouver has been a victim of finicky tax-
payers, tight budgets and resource reductions.
“In 2010, the city commissioned a study on the fire department,” said union vice-president Dustin Bourdeaudhuy. “That study recommended to increase fire resources in the city, and since then we have had a cut.”
To offset the workload, medics are sometimes brought in on Friday and Saturday nights to help with the call volume, but Bourdeaudhuy said the relief is inconsistent.
In Winnipeg, where fentanyl use has surged in the last year, union president Alex Forrest says the issue is more manageable.
“We’re all paramedics,” Forrest said of Winnipeg’s firefighters. “I do know that Vancouver’s firefighters are very under staffed as compared to other major cities across Canada, and that could be part of the issue.”
Safe consumptions sites could be part of the solution to the fentanyl crisis and Vancouver Coastal Health wants Ottawa to make it easier for communities to establish these locations. Philpott met with Vancouver firefighters Nov. 10 and said legislative changes for safe consumption sites are under consideration and will be announced in the near future but offered no specifics.
“It’s long past time we all come together to do our part to respond to this,” Philpott said.
“One single change to legislation is not going to fix the problem. We need to make sure we look at the big picture.”
International Association of Fire Fighters Local 18 representatives Chris Coleman and Lee Lax were invited to speak to an all-party House of Commons committee in October, and discussed the reality for Vancouver’s frontline workers – highlighting the strain that the fentanyl crisis puts on training, education, and the mental well-being of responders.
Coleman offered some numbers to put the situation into perspective; according to the B.C. Coroners Office, Coleman told the committee, the percentage of illicit drug deaths in which fentanyl is involved rose to 60 per cent in 2016 from 30 per cent in 2015 and five per cent in 2012.
What is fentanyl?
Fentanyl is a synthetic opiate narcotic, a prescription drug used primarily for cancer patients in severe pain. It is 50 to 100 times more toxic than morphine.
“This is moving in the wrong direction,” he said.
Coleman explained to MPs that firefighter training and public education have taken a back seat. McKearney also emphasized that with the increased workload, other types of work, including training, are difficult to fit into the daily regimen. Bourdeaudhuy agrees.
“At the downtown east side, it is impossible for them [firefighters] to get any training done,” Bourdeaudhuy said. “They are overwhelmed.”
Bourdeaudhuy works at Fire Hall 20 but served at Hall 2 four years ago; he said the station had a high call volume when he worked there but it was nowhere near today’s levels.
When dispatched to a fentanyl-overdose call,
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firefighters in Vancouver use Narcan, an intramuscular injectable form of the opioid-reversing drug naloxone. Coleman explained that this medication can revive patients in as little as 20 seconds, but it can sometimes take multiple attempts.
In early October, a nasal version of naloxone was approved for British Columbia’s first responders to carry; it works similarly to the injectable drug. First responders in Quebec already use the nasal spray and Réjean Leclerc, paramedic and president of the Syndicat du préhospitaller, told the House of Commons committee that this method works quickly, but the patient needs to be closely monitored following administration. Leclerc noted that training to administer the drug can take up to four hours.
McKearney said in an interview in October that firefighters had not yet used the nasal version of naloxone. “There hasn’t been a lot of time spent exploring this [in Vancouver],” he said, adding that firefighters need to get the appropriate training, “but with the increased workload in the hall, it’s challenging to keep up.”
While regular firefighter training is taking a hit because of the time crews spend responding to fentanyl calls, the health and well-being of firefighters is also in jeopardy. Coleman emotionally explained to the House of Commons committee that regularly seeing such helplessness and suffering is difficult for first responders.
“There is a physical and mental strain in the sheer volume of responses, which ultimately affects a firefighter’s ability to recuperate between shifts,” Coleman said. “In conversations with these firefighters, I hear a lot of ‘It’s driving me nuts,’ ‘I can’t take it.’ I’m told stories about being in an alley with 20 or 30 drug users, they’re [firefighters] unprepared, and untrained for that.”
Like Coleman, McKearney discussed the importance of mental health, explaining one of the most troubling issues for firefighters on the ground is seeing the same overdose patients repeatedly, sometimes during the same shift.
Hall 2 firefighters say post-shift recovery is difficult because of the stress that everyone brings home. Falling into a regular sleep cycle is challenging because firefighters’ minds are always on the job. More firefighters are booking off on stress leaves. In addition, firefighters are frustrated; addicts know they can use because they are aware Narcan is readily available and that someone will likely help them if they overdose. “Being immersed in an environment like this, it feels hopeless,” one firefighter said in an interview.
During the all-party committee meeting, Conservative MP Colin Carrie asked if naloxone is really the solution or just a small band-aid on a big cut? Coleman told the committee that naloxone doesn’t prevent overdose deaths, first responders do. So the question remains: What needs to be done?
“We need to realize that this is as much a mental-health emergency as it is a drug emergency,” said Lax, the other firefighter who also attended the committee meeting.
“They [fentanyl users] turn to opioids to relieve them from the stress of their mental illness.”
Firefighters want MPs to help tackle the issue, beginning with supplying basic needs, such as housing, for those living on the streets.
“This crisis,” Bourdeaudhuy said, “is way beyond the fire department’s control.”
Know the enemy
Protecting responders from opiate encounters
By Michael Hoffman
If you have been following the news you probably are familiar with fentanyl. This drug, also known by it’s generic name sublimaze, is a potent narcotic analgesic that has been used safely for years in clinical medicine, and can be found in hospitals and onboard advance life support (ALS) ambulances.
Unfortunately, this drug has made its way onto the streets of Canada and the United States and is killing people like human Raid. Those of you in the fire service who are about to stop reading, thinking that this subject outside your service realm, hang in, because fentanyl has some tricks in store for fire and rescue personnel.
This story began in about 2012 when overdose statistics started to climb. A handful of drug dealers started to obtain and distribute medical-grade fentanyl on the streets. At first there were sporadic incidents and really no trends emerged. Emergency medical services, for the most part, dealt with the old standbys by way of abused substances, marijuana, cocaine, crack and heroin. Heroin was a familiar narcotic to EMS providers and it is one of the main reasons that paramedics have carried Narcan on ALS ambulances for decades. So now you’re saying to yourself, big deal, yet another narcotic on the streets, we have seen this all before; Oxycontin, Percocet, Tylenol 3s, and Tylenol 4s all came
along and we have all witnessed our share of these narcotic-related overdoses. Nothing new, right? Wrong. Fentanyl is new and it is very dangerous.
Pure opioid drugs such as heroin are a derivative of the opium plant and come from pure organic sources. Familiar drugs such as codeine, oxycodone, and hydrocodone all come from the same naturally occurring source, and they all work the same way. The brain has opiate receptors and these drugs act like a key opening a lock; they unlock the opiate receptors in the brain and cause the body to experience euphoric effects as well as a decreased level of consciousness, and respiratory depression. OK, enough of the medical jargon – I’m not here to teach pharmacology 101; what I want to teach you is how to survive an encounter with the fentanyl.
You may be wondering what I’m talking about – you might deal with patients who take fentanyl but outside of potentially waking up an angry drug addict, where’s the danger? To understand the danger one must understand the drug. Fentanyl is different; yes, it is a narcotic but it’s not the same as others. Instead of coming from the opium plant, fentanyl is produced in a lab and it is therefore synthetic. Fentanyl is made in a chemistry lab by combining various compounds to produce a substance that mimics the effects of traditional narcotics, and this is where the problems begin. Medical-grade fentanyl has strong analgesic properties, and it’s about 100 times more potent than its close cousin morphine; it has a wide range of uses – mainly pain control, however it is so powerful it is also used as an induction agent for surgical procedures. (i.e. the
drug used to “put you to sleep.”)
Remember meth? That’s the short form of methamphetamine, and some of my fire friends out there, especially the ones who run hazmat calls, just perked up. Why? Because either they have responded to a mysterious explosion call, or they have been asked to co-respond with local law enforcement to take down a lab. Either way, I hope I have your undivided attention now, because fentanyl is the next clandestine drug lab that you are probably going to encounter, and with it you are going experience a new series of challenges. Here is the first challenge: unlike other drugs that have to be injected, ingested or inhaled, fentanyl needs only to be placed on your skin – it can be absorbed. The only other drug like fentanyl was LSD. LSD, if accidentally taken, would cause hallucinations in a worst-case scenario. Fentanyl’s properties will render its victim unconscious and will stop his or her breathing; and, if the situation goes undetected, fentanyl will cause death in four to six minutes. In a clandestine lab situation, responders will likely encounter fentanyl as a raw powder. In its purest form of 95 per cent, only a small amount of fentanyl is required to become airborne; then, if inhaled, the drug could be lethal. Also, if a responder were to get even a small amount of fentanyl on his or her hands, it would be rapidly absorbed through the skin and cause a potentially lethal situation. To put this into perspective, according to RCMP, 2.2 kilograms of 95 per cent pure fentanyl powder is capable of killing 250,000 people. To clarify even further, it takes just two milligrams of medical-grade fentanyl to be lethal to a 90 kilogram
(200 pound) person, and in a clandestine lab situation, responders will not be dealing with medical grade fentanyl – the drug will be much stronger.
Drug strength is the second challenge. Fentanyl is not only being produced in clandestine labs, it’s also being modified. I’m not going to go all chemistry on you, but I will say that the fentanyl of today is not going to be the fentanyl of tomorrow. Modifications to the original recipe are called analogs; these analogs are produced when a chemist puts a slight twist on the original formula and presto, a new, stronger fentanyl is born. According to RCMP, carfentanyl, 3 methylfentanyl, and W18 are all modified versions of the original drug. So, let’s do the math: for example, 3 methylfentanyl is now 400 to 6,000 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanyl is 10,000
times more potent than morphine – it’s the drug of choice for sedating elephants in Africa.
To put things into practical perspective, fentanyl has far-reaching implications for all first responders. Knowing more about fentanyl should make you think about;
• Fire/rescue/hazmat dealing with clandestine labs
• Law enforcement dealing with clandestine labs
• The potential for CBRN incidents with fentanyl as the disseminated agent
• Postal service employees who are handling packages
• CBSA agents intercepting packages at our borders.
If you are responding to incidents that involve clandestine labs or mysterious white-powder calls, protect your response personnel by following the NIOSH guidelines for personal protective equipment.
(Go to www.cdc.gov/niosh and search emergency response card).
The recommendations are class-A, fully encapsulating suits with SCBA when responding to incidents that may involve fentanyl.
Fire departments that are running hazmat or CBRN programs might consider including antidote provisions in their SOPs to address the use of Narcan to treat exposed responders. Fire departments that have medical first response mandates might consider a Narcan administration program for overdose patients.
If you would like information regarding the establishment of a fentanyl response program, or a Narcan administration program, please email mhoffman@cityofnb.ca.
Mike Hoffman is deputy chief with City of North Battleford Fire Department in Saskatchewan. mhoffman@cityofnb.ca
Other facts
Heroin, cocaine, oxycodone, and other drugs can be cut in with fentanyl, in powder, liquid or pill form.
RCMP and police have found illicitly manufactured fentanyl being sold in: Pill form as fake oxys and other club drugs; Powder form sold as heroin ; Power form mixed into other drugs such as cocaine and crystal meth
Source: www.knowyoursource.ca
Cold, clammy skin 6. Trouble walking or talking
Well being
By Elias Markou
Sharp minds make good decisions
When discussing optimum wellness for firefighters, we can’t help but include brain health. Mental wellness, Alzheimer’s and other cognitive brain conditions are becoming a major concern for larger segments of the population, including firefighters. As academia and our health-care systems struggle to find medical solutions for these often complicated and chronic brain diseases, research is steering firefighters to nutrients and natural health products to help improve brain function.
Protect, reverse, heal the mind
There are many brain conditions that should be considered, for example, the slowly aging brain that cannot heal as it degenerates due to Alzheimer’s and dementia, and the injured brain, resulting from physical trauma. Certain supplements can boost brain function for all firefighters and have the ability to protect, reverse and heal an aging mind.
As I looked over hundreds of pages of research, one theme about the brain appeared over and over again: the link between inflammation in the brain and brain-related diseases was apparent. Inflammation was found in cases of dementia, Alzheimer’s, concussions, depression and stroke damage. Therefore, it stands to reason that If the incidence of inflammation in the brain – whether it be chronic or acute – could be reduced, the incidence of brain degeneration would also decrease.
We know the brain is one of the most important organs in the body; it has a function in every bodily action, every thought and every emotion. The brain needs to be looked after very carefully. I recommend that firefighters consider using
these five supplements for the brain as part of their daily regimen.
Omega-3 fish oils
When it comes to healing the brain, Omega-3 fish oils are the gold standard for firefighter brain health. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acids (EPA) play a pivotal role in reducing the inflammation in the brain and giving the brain fuel to heal and build. Fish oil provides the best and only source of highly bioavailable EPA and DHA to heal the brain. These constituents are the most researched natural products in the world and every day researchers find new ways EPA and DHA help the mind in acute and chronic conditions.
Coconut oil
Firefighters who eat coconut oil consume the wonderful mediumchain triglycerides or (MCT) oil that help the brain heal and fuel itself. The scientific evidence on coconut oil is small, but a growing group of academics find this oil too important to pass up the chance to study it. Coconut oil contains important properties that feed the brain cells, slow degeneration, and reduce the inflammation in the brain – all key factors in preserving the brain.
Curcumin and brain inflammation
Researchers continue to investigate curcumin and how it supports brain health. Curcumin is a concentrated antioxidant that reduces inflammation in the brain. Studies continue to explore curcumin dosages and frequencies that help improve Alzheimer’s, stroke and Parkinson’s patients. Curcumin is well studied – we know this bioactive ingredient has the capacity to cross the blood-brain
Certain supplements can boost brain function for all firefighters and have the ability to protect, reverse and heal an aging mind.
barrier; this explains why curcumin is a great neurological protective agent and how it addresses a wide range of brain disorders and diseases.
Vitamin B-12
A report published in the New England Journal of Medicine calls a B-12 deficiency “sneaky” and “damaging to the nervous system.” “A severe vitamin B-12 deficiency can lead to deep depression, paranoia, and delusions, memory loss, incontinence, loss of taste and smell and more,” the article says. Vitamin B-12 is a necessary brain nutrient for healing the brain; vitamin B-12 deficiency is associated with significant neurological dysfunction. In an experimental animal model, methycobalamin (B12) regenerated nerve cells. Taking this low-cost vitamin reaps tremendous nerve benefits.
The energy of Acetyl-L-carnitine
Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC) is also believed to cross the blood-brain barrier, and in studies of people who have suffered stroke damage, ALC appeared to enhance brain-cell survival. ALC was also found to help promote nervegrowth factor binding capacity, a function of nerve-cell regeneration. There are a number of brain conditions associated with neurological degeneration and inflammation. These conditions are becoming more common in Canada as well as among firefighters. These brain conditions are a result of a poor diet in conjunction with nutrient deficiencies. A 2009 study found consuming walnuts, blueberries, strawberries and grape juice concentrate as part of a regular nutritional diet would prevent brain aging and increase brain cognitive function. Make these changes that feed your brain and feel good about it.
Dr. Elias Markou is in private practice in Mississauga, Ont., and is the chief medical officer for the Halton Hills Fire Department. Markou was a firefighter for six years. drmarkou@mypurebalance.ca
Extrication tips
By Chad Roberts
Start from the beginning
Let’s start from the beginning.
I can hear the sighs. But from my roughly 10 years in the fire service, this is a phrase I know we’ve all heard a lot, and sometimes, although it seems mundane for seasoned and well-trained firefighters to start at the beginning, I think doing so can be extremely beneficial regardless of skill level or years of service.
Whether it’s fire attack, medical, hazmat, tech rescue or even auto extrication, starting from the beginning shouldn’t be looked at as a challenge to the knowledge and expertise of first responders: it should be considered a building block for success and understanding. With respect to auto extrication – one of the broadest and constantly changing calls we face as responders – starting from the beginning needs to be stressed in order to properly address a sometimes overlooked skill we are expected to provide.
So, let’s start from the beginning. I am a member of the Oakville Fire Department in southwestern Ontario. I have been on the job full time for a little over eight years; prior to that I was a volunteer in Essa Township for about two years. Oakville is a department made up of more than 200 full time firefighters that services a community west of Toronto, with a population nearing 180,000. From an extrication perspective, the OFD responds with two heavy rescues to three major highways. I’ve been working on a heavy rescue for almost five years, in addition to being a member of Oakville’s extrication team for five seasons. When I joined the extrication team I was looking for more experience and knowledge related to auto extrication, but what I got out of it was far more in depth – an introduction to a world of shared information about a discipline that is changing every day.
What makes auto extrication such a fascination? For me it’s the change in the way things are done. From the time I’ve
Chad Roberts is a firefighter in Oakville, Ont., and works on a heavy rescue. He is a member of the Oakville’s extrication team and competes and trains across North America. chadroberts12@gmail.com
been a member of the fire service, every facet of auto ex has and continues to change. Similar to the way houses are constructed today affects the way we operate at structure fires, the structure of vehicles impacts our approach and our response. The tools we use are constant-
ly changing to try to keep up with the vehicle advances. Most importantly, the way we size-up and attack each individual wreck is evolving, ensuring that we have better and more efficient options for accessing and treating patients. Through this column, I will share
Extrication is one of the broadest and constantly changing calls firefighters face – starting from the beginning needs to be stressed in order to properly address a the necessary skills.
Similar to the way houses are constructed today affects the way firefighters operate at structure fires, the structure of vehicles impacts rescuers’ approach and response.
Fightingthe fentanylcrisis
Extrication tips
experience, knowledge and expertise. My knowledge has come from many places over the years – from courses, co-workers, and auto-ex competitions; the resources have been endless and continue to grow through various new platforms. I will pick out some of the newer issues in the auto-ex world to write about, but I’ll also stress the importance of simple things such as size-up and how it creates a platform for success at every scene.
The next column, in April, will focus on scene size-up and touch on some of the obvious points, but I’ll also be explore some more intricate ideas that can save time and help shape how the extrication scene will play out. Being in a command position on the extrication team, as well
as a firefighter /driver of a heavy rescue, I have found that on-scene size up has always been a critical aspect of the response. The size-up helps us formulate a plan to efficiently and effectively use our available resources, determine how to allot manpower, and choose the course of action that will best serve our patients. From there, we will move on to primary stabilization and the best way to access patients, making sure it’s safe for them and the rescuers on scene. Next we’ll look at secondary stabilization and prepping the vehicle for extrication, from the inside and out (this is an area that I find is easily forgotten but can shave lots of time from extrication and possibly change our action plan). After all that, we can begin to talk about making plans for the extrication and how to attack each scenario, keeping in mind things like a backup plan for patient status changes.
Later, I will branch into ideas and issues such as new-vehicle technology, safety features and alternate fuels, along with new and old tool ideas (battery, gas powered and hand tools) that I hope will help change the way you can approach accident scenes. We’ll look at simple stabilization and more complex scenarios, glass management issues, and even different tool techniques and positioning.
Be smart, and never stop watching, reading and listening.
The way firefighters size-up and attack each individual wreck is evolving, ensuring that better and more efficient options are available for accessing and treating patients.
The tools firefighters use are constantly changing to try to keep up with vehicle advances; being up to date on new technology is crucial to patient and firefighter safety.
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Back to basics
By Mark van der Feyst
Mark van der Feyst has been in the fire service since 1999. Mark instructs in Canada, the United States and India. He is the lead author of the book Residential Fire Rescue. Mark@FireStarTraining.com
The tenets of firefighter survival
Abasic tenet of firefighter survival is the foundational knowledge and training that supports everything we do – in other words, the basics or the foundations of fire fighting. These basics help firefighters with self-rescue, should it ever be required. There are five key areas that every firefighter needs to know to be adequately prepared for self-rescue. We’ll look at the first three here.
Know your equipment
Equipment can help a trapped or lost firefighter find his or her way to safety.
• Personal protective equipment (PPE) includes everything firefighters wear on their bodies: pants, coats, hoods, helmets, SCBA, boots, and gloves. PPE protect us, and protect us well; it is designed to work in a failing environment. It is important for firefighters to know and understand PPE – how it works, how to put it on properly and quickly, whether it works properly, and how to troubleshoot problems.
• It’s also crucial that firefighters know their trucks, and the gear carried on them. Knowing what equipment is on the trucks, how it works, how to properly use it, and where it is located on the truck makes firefighters more efficient and effective. Do you know which tools to grab when you arrive at a certain type of incident?
• Portable radios are perhaps the most essential piece of equipment to have in order to self-rescue and survive. The portable radio is the lifeline between firefighters and the incident commander or additional help.
Knowing what equipment is on the trucks and how to properly use it makes firefighters more efficient and effective.
Know your crew
There is an inter-personal aspect of self-rescue and survivability that involves skill level and attitudes.
Knowing how to use the radio is crucial: Which special buttons are on your portable radio to help you in a distress situation? Are you comfortable speaking on the radio? And do you know how to speak into the radio? Firefighters should refrain from yelling into the microphone or holding the mic directly in front of their mouths; rather speak with the mic off to the side in order to send a clear message.
• During self-rescue, it is important to be aware of the skill levels of other firefighters. Are the firefighters in your crew or on scene new to the service and have only basic firefighting knowledge? Have the firefighters been around for a while but have little extra training and, therefore, have only basic knowledge and skills? Or are the skill levels high? Firefighters who have poor or basic skills will be ineffective in an emergency situation. Firefighters who have strong skills will be in a better position to help themselves or crew members during emergency situations.
• Attitude goes hand in hand with skill levels. There are firefighters who have excellent attitudes toward their jobs or services, who want to learn as much as they can, and who want to do their jobs in the best manner possible. These firefighters generally have high skill levels and positive outlooks and attitudes. Firefighters who have poor attitudes are
Photo 1: It’s crucial that firefighters know every aspect of their personal protective equipment in order to troubleshoot and self-rescue.
Photo 2: Practicing donning and doffing face pieces and SCBA helps to build muscle memory and ensure that firefighters are comfortable with their gear in case of an emergency.
EXCLUSIVE GROUP RATES +
Back to basics
generally not interested in training or bettering themselves; their skill levels may parallel their attitudes – very low and very basic.
• Firefighters need to identify which colleagues have great attitudes and high skill levels, and which have poor attitudes and low skill levels. This is important because when firefighters encounter an emergency situation, they must know whether they can depend on their partners or colleagues for help or if they are, essentially, on their own.
Know your response area
This area looks pre-planning and the benefits of knowing the response area. Knowing the response areas gives firefighters the tools they need to better understand what they’re dealing with when a fire call comes in. How does pre-planning help with firefighter survivability? When firefighters know building layouts, building types and building construction methods, and are aware of buildings that are under construction or renovation, they can better manage the incident and their own safety.
Sometimes, for firefighters, our workplace is inside a building, and the building has no respect for the job that we must do. When a building is stressed with fire and heat conditions, it will succumb to the effects of these factors regardless of whether we are inside. Having a unique knowledge of a building’s history and structure will help firefighters to escape it when it decides to fail.
When can pre-planning take place? All the time! Any time firefighters get a call for any type of response – medical, carbon monoxide, smoke alarm going off, service, lift assists – the opportunity is available to pre-plan buildings, and not just commercial, public-access or industrial buildings, but residential structures too.
There are buildings in every response are that firefighters need to be aware of – buildings that present unique hazards based on configuration, occupancy, or fire load inside the building.
Regardless of the reason, knowing the building may be the key to firefighter survival. This can be accomplished only by getting out into the repose area and visiting buildings - doing walk throughs and tours of the buildings, and getting to know the buildings inside and out.
Knowing the equipment and knowing the crew helps firefighters be prepared when faced with a life-or-death situation and must self-rescue.
In April, we will look at the remaining two foundational skills that firefighters need to posses to perform self-rescue.
Front seat
By Jason Clark
Warming up to the hot seat
It was probably five years into my firefighting days when I showed up to the station for a call and was one of the senior firefighters present: there were no red helmets and no whites to be found just yet, just a bunch of yellow-helmet firefighters looking to go on a call and get the job done. Someone had to ride up front with the driver. The hot seat, as it is so often referred to, was the last one to get filled. So I thought to myself, I can work a radio and I can read a map, so how hard can it be to run a truck? So I jumped in.
The view up front without a steering wheel separating me from the dashboard was different. Of course, my heart rate jumped up a bit when I realized that my name would be attached to the run sheet as the incident commander before we even arrived on scene, but then it calmed down when I took a look at the crew riding with me: these firefighters knew what they were doing – I had trained alongside them and worked many other calls with them. Let them work the hands-on portion of the call, I thought; as a team, we can come to a resolution and help stabilize the situation.
So, our truck arrived on scene and I gave our dispatch a quick, verbal report on the situation; I remember saying the words, “Firefighter Clark will have command until further notice.” With those last three words, “until further notice,” I did something that you should never do to yourself as a firefighter, new captain, veteran captain, brand-new white helmet, or seasoned district fire chief: I undercut, undersold and made it clear that I was a temporary fixture and would be replaced when someone more qualified or more capable arrived. Sure that was a possibility, but why did I say it – not
I listened to the radio more to hear the way other people worked the command role, and I constantly took mental notes at calls.
to mention transmitting that statement over a county-wide radio channel with my last name attached to it for everyone to hear?
I think I said those words because I was the same rank as the guys in the back of the truck working that call. At that point, as a firefighter, I didn’t see myself as a leader in the service, and I definitely didn’t want the other crew members to get the impression that I was starting to consider taking an officer position. Those words, “until further notice,” gave me that out, so to speak, of exiting the command role and returning to the crew rather than remaining as a leader. I totally shorted myself mentally, and in the firefighting world, we need to bring our long game in mental endurance or we set ourselves up for failure. I simply wasn’t ready for the leadership job full time.
So, for a couple of years, I got out of my comfort zone and took courses outside my department (I highly recommend this). I listened to the radio more to hear the way other people worked the command role, and I constantly took mental notes at calls. I tried to take an extra second to look at the big picture at a scene
rather than just the task-level view. I listened to other firefighters after calls, and we spoke about other ways we would approach a task if we had the chance to run a call all over again. Common sense says getting yourself ready to be a leader in the fire service doesn’t happen overnight. It didn’t for me, and it didn’t just take courses and classroom training; it also took experienced firefighters and officers to push me to apply and recognize my own experience. Once I realized that I had a drive to do more in the department and had the desire to grow, I made the decision and applied. Do you think it’s time for you to jump up and run a truck or a crew, or even direct a scene? If you are given the opportunity, remember that you are responsible for more than just yourself: you have a crew to not only direct, but also to keep safe while working. Make sure you take that extra second to absorb the entire scene before rushing in. Trust your crew’s training – it is the same as yours on the task level. Most importantly, be willing to learn and listen to input – otherwise you may find yourself staying put until further notice.
Jason Clark has been a volunteer firefighter in southwestern Ontario since 2007. Having recently made the transition to captain from firefighter, Clark has a new perspective on roles and riding in the front seat. @jacejclark jaceclark71@gmail.com
Recipe rescue
By Patrick Mathieu
A new year, a new kitchen
One of my favourite parts of ushering in a new year is reflecting on goals set 12 months ago, reliving the accomplishments, and perhaps, reviewing the misses. Just like the first day of the NHL season, the new year is a fresh start, and everyone has a chance to win the Stanley Cup! Along with the typical New Year’s resolutions to eat healthier, be more organized and get more sleep, I always like to add a few goals to ensure change in the ordinary and keep life fluid, fun and interesting. It’s easy to get bored in the kitchen and fall into a mundane routine, with the same old recipes on the same nights of the week. A new year is a golden opportunity to set some goals to spice up the dinner menu and nudge yourself out of your comfort zone. Here are a few suggestions that will make you a champ in your firehouse and family kitchen in 2017.
• Try something new. Whether it is a new recipe (I know of a really great new cookbook to try!) or a new piece of cookware or tool you got for Christmas, make a conscious effort to try something new at least once a week. Not only will you be keeping things new and fresh in the kitchen but I can guarantee, if you are continually experimenting with new recipes and tools, you will become a much better cook.
• Go exotic. This goes hand in hand with the point above. Step out of your kitchen and taste comfort zones and try new flavours and techniques. If you’ve never made your own Thai, or Indian food for example, find a recipe and give it a try. It can be fun and
Trying new and different ingredients can spice up meals during the winter months when Canadians tend to turn to comfort food.
Vegetarian doesn’t mean tofu and celery sticks.
Patrick Mathieu is an acting captain at Waterloo Fire Rescue in Ontario. Mathieu is the author of Firehouse Chef: Favourite Recipes from Canada’s Firefighters, published in 2016. stationhousecateringco@yahoo.ca @StationHouseCCo
rewarding to search out and use ingredients that are new and uncommon to you. Not only will you build your recipe repertoire but you will also learn about other cultural cuisines. I’ve included one of my favourite Thai recipes to set you up for success.
• Cook with the family. It is undeniable that a family that cooks together creates a special bond and is much more likely to be close and cohesive. If you are the type of cook who likes to rule over your kitchen alone, I urge you to open it up; let your firehouse crew in to help, cook side by side with your spouse and/or kids, and make the kitchen a communal happy place! You might have to be prepared to let go of all the control, embrace all skill and knowledge levels, and, remember, there’s a job for everyone. For the kiddos, clear a space and accept the mess, and, most importantly, enjoy the process of creating a meal together, not just the final dish.
• Reduce food waste and use up your pantry. We can all do our small parts to reduce our environmental footprint: it can be as simple as eating seasonal when buying fresh ingredients, and sometimes, when we think there is nothing in our refrigerators with which to make a meal, we just need to think outside of the box. Use every part of a vegetable; repurpose leftovers into something new and great; properly store or freeze foods to extend their life for another day; and, simply, buy just enough. I think keeping
INGREDIENTS
1 lemongrass stalk
6 cups good-quality chicken stock
1-2 chicken breasts, sliced, or 1-2 cups roasted chicken
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, sliced
4 kaffir limes leaves (fresh or frozen) or 1 lime zested and juiced
1-3 fresh red chilies, minced
1 thumb-size piece galangal or ginger, grated
DIRECTIONS
2 cloves of garlic, sliced
1 14-oz can good-quality coconut milk
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp brown sugar
*Optional: other vegetables, such as sliced bell pepper or cherry tomatoes work great
Handful fresh cilantro leaves
Handful fresh basil leaves
3 spring (green) onions, sliced
1. Slice and mince the lower portion of the lemongrass stalk. Retain the upper stalk for the soup pot.
2. Place chicken stock in large soup pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to a simmer and add fresh chicken (or leftover chicken or turkey) and mushrooms. Also add the prepared lemongrass (including upper stalk pieces), plus kaffir lime leaves and fresh chili. Simmer gently for five to eight minutes, or until chicken is cooked.
4. Add the galangal or ginger, garlic, coconut milk, the fish sauce, sugar and extra vegetables (if using). Stir well and simmer gently two minutes.
5. Reduce heat to minimum and add lime juice and stir.
6. Do a taste test, looking for a balance of spicy, sour, salty, and sweet flavors. Start with salty, adding more fish sauce if not salty enough. If too sour, add sugar. If too spicy, add coconut milk. If not spicy enough, add chili.
7. Ladle soup into serving bowls. Sprinkle with cilantro, basil, and spring onion over each bowl.
Tom kha soup
Recipe rescue
a well-stocked pantry is key to achieving all of the above; having staples on hand that have a long shelf life will always give you a starting block from which you can add fresh ingredients to build a great meal.
• Try vegetarian. OK, I know the firehouse is very much a carnivore club, but sneaking in a vegetarian meal once in a while will benefit everyone. Healthier and more budget friendly, eating vegetarian is like trying a new cuisine, so don’t be scared off before giving it a try. We have incorporated vegetarian recipes into our ever-revolving menus at my firehouse, and my wife and I eat a pescatarian diet at home (fish but no meat). The benefits this dietary choice has had on my overall health and the family budget has been immense; I’ve lost 50 pounds since I started eating this way six years ago! So, this idea is like two resolutions in one. Vegetarian doesn’t mean tofu and celery sticks; I’ve included a bold-flavoured winter favourite recipe to help get you started.
• Put down that take-out menu. We all love to take a little break from cooking once in a while, but really, nothing beats homemade. Try building your own pizzas (I’ve included a recipe for you), try a copycat recipe of your favourite restaurant’s dish, and we have already agreed that we are going to try making our own Thai or other exotic cuisines, so our bases our covered. Save money and eat healthier – who doesn’t love that for a New Year’s resolution?
With all New Year’s resolutions there is always excitement that something new and challenging is going to be conquered. Inevitably there will be triumphs and there will be some failures. Some resolutions will last the year, some will last a week, but hopefully the beneficial ones will stick and become part of daily life. Start small and slowly with your kitchen goals for 2017; enjoy the process as much as the final dish.
Pumpkin and red lentil curry with panner
INGREDIENTS
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, chopped
1 lemongrass stalk, chopped
1 chilli, Thai bird or small jalapeno
½ cup ghee, melted (clarified butter, available in most grocery stores)
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tblsp turmeric
1 tbsp curry leaves,
DIRECTIONS
fresh or dried
1 tsp kosher salt
2 cups pureed pumpkin
1 cup red lentils
1 28-oz can chopped tomatoes
3 cups vegetable stock
250g fresh paneer cheese, cubed
2 cups baby spinach
Kosher salt and pepper
Small bunch of fresh cilantro
Roti or cooked basmati rice, for serving
1. Place garlic, ginger, lemongrass, the chilli and a pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle and pound to form a paste. Or or finely chop ingredients with a knife.
2. Heat 1/4 cup of the ghee in a large braising-type pan to medium heat, add onions and the paste; cook for 10 minutes or until onions are golden brown.
3. Add the dried spices, curry leaves and salt to the onion mixture; stir until fragrant.
4. Stir in pumpkin and lentils until well coated with the spice mixture. Add canned tomatoes and stock and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes until the lentils are tender. Check the curry regularly to make sure it’s not drying out; add extra stock or water if needed.
5. While the curry is cooking cut the paneer into bite-sized cubes. Heat remaining ghee in large fry pan to medium heat and fry the paneer in batches until golden on each side. Place on paper towel to drain.
6. Once the lentils are tender, stir in spinach leaves, cooked paneer, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve with Roti or basmati rice.
INGREDIENTS
4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, left unpeeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
4 tbsp olive oil, divided
Smoked sea salt
6 oz. thickly sliced pancetta, diced 1/4 cup uncooked cornmeal
Freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
1 ball (8 oz.) prepared pizza dough, at room temperature 1/2 cup roasted garlic paste
1-1/2 cups grated Gruyère cheese
1/4 cup Niçoise olives, drained and pitted
Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Brush the sliced potatoes with two tablespoons of the oil and season with smoked sea salt. Place on a parchment lined baking tray in the oven. Cook for 20 minutes turning them once. Reserve for topping.
3. Meanwhile, heat a heavy sauté pan over medium-high. Fry the pancetta, stirring, until crisp. Reserve for topping.
4. Sprinkle your work surface with the cornmeal. Place the dough in the middle of the surface. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, stretch it out with your hands, or press it out from the center against the work surface to form a 12-inch piece of dough, preferably rectangular and about 1/4 -inch thick. Brush both sides generously with the remaining olive oil. Bake for about 10 minutes, just until the dough starts to turn golden brown. Remove from oven.
5. Spread the entire surface with the garlic paste and sprinkle with half the cheese. Cover with the potato slices, placing them edge to edge. Sprinkle with the pancetta and the remaining cheese. Artfully arrange the olives and rosemary over the top. Finish baking the flatbread for another 10 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and season with salt and pepper. Slice and serve immediately. Enjoy with an ice-cold beer!
Pancetta and rosemary Yukon Gold flatbread
From the floor
By Jay Shaw
Building a highrise program from the ground up
How many firefighters does it take to redesign your highrise and standpipe-equipped building-operations procedures? It’s a rhetorical question, based on that old lightbulb analogy, because every fire service does things a bit differently.
When our administrators supported a committee for our highrise project, they knew there would be growing pains, but the outcome, if done properly, would have buy-in and be supported by the crews on the floor.
After realizing that our department could do better, our process started with a few firefighters forming a committee under the leadership of our fire-training academy. By searching the interwebs, these firefighters found that departments do things completely different, and determined we should investigate upgrading our equipment and procedures. Now, just because something is on the web doesn’t mean it’s going to work for your department. We learned right away that we were going to need a team approach. We started with the end in mind and basically created a shopping list of gear we wanted, but we had no proof of concept or evidence to support our claims – yet!
The committee of about eight quickly realized that several United States departments had gone to 65-millimetre, lightweight hose with a smooth-bore nozzle for all highrise firefighting operations. How could our group convince the training branch, our administration and 900-plus firefighters that we needed to change? The answer was lots of research, testing and proving
How could our group convince the training branch, our administration and 900-plus firefighters that we needed to change?
our methods by applying what worked elsewhere to our department.
Step 1: We watched tons of fire training videos and broke down the complex nature of a perfect highrise fire into its systems and how everything applies to the new NFPA 1710 document. We read articles and talked to departments. The common denominator in our research was the Denver Fire Department highrise pack, and we could not ignore it. Phone calls were made, emails and documents were shared, and we travelled to learn from Denver’s assistant chief, Dave McGrail, who has written a textbook on modern highrise fire fighting.
Step 2: Armed with research and evidence-based best practice, a report was written and submitted to administration looking for support and a budget for sample equipment and test procedures. We wanted to make sure another department’s system could work for our service. NFPA 1710 speaks to more than 15 specific benchmarks for highrise firefighting procedures, and we wanted to be able to significantly capture most, or if not all of them, in our new SOP.
Step 3: After acquiring a small budget to buy sample equipment, we tested five types of hoses and several nozzles: weight when wet and dry; feel and drag resistance; flow calculations; friction loss; coupling performance; kink and restricted flow; and nozzle-pattern break point at several pressures. By the time the testing was complete, we had started to learn the importance of testing to get buy-in from crews; we needed more firefighters to try the larger hose at reduced pressure to see and feel what we
wanted to do.
Step 4: Two main tactical procedures were tested with variations in manpower – the apartment hose lay and the stairwell lay. We determined that both procedures would cause major change in our deployment of operational crews. We wanted to meet the 1701 benchmarks that reduced reflex time and increased crew safety. The cascading effect would start to frame the development of a new operating procedure that would require a training plan for 900 firefighters to complete before implementation. We were behind schedule and had not ordered hose, nozzles, angled elbows and pressure gauges. We are now more than one year into this process.
Step 5: Gaining consensus about exactly what we wanted to buy that was cost effective and met our needs was challenging. We needed strong leadership from committee members to move forward. Final approvals were secured, the budget was finalized and we are ordering equipment and creating a training schedule to run all 900 firefighters through a half-day course at our academy. Before firefighters show up, they will watch videos and drill on the new hose and nozzles and become familiar with a completely new way of attending a highrise or standpipe-equipped building. We’ve filmed our first of several videos, drafted the SOP, and have started to look at the logistics of scheduling the go-live date for implementation after the training is complete in late spring. Our next step is to figure out how to quickly shoot better-quality training videos with an iPhone, and edit on the interwebs! This may or may not include some background music that the committee has not yet approved – AC/DC anyone?
Part 2, in April, will detail our completed program. Contact me at jasonshaw@winnipeg.ca if you’d like more information.
Jay Shaw is the acting emergency manager and public information officer for the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service. jasonshaw@ winnipeg.ca @firecollege
Never again, when using your favorite smoothbore tip during an initial attack, will you restrict your flow by gating the valve as you try to get some sort of a dispersed pattern. Whether it is for a little protection, coverage of fuels, or a bit of air movement as you are advancing the line or trying to clear some smoke, VORTEX offers a unique enhancement to this time tested nozzle tradition. With just a simple twist, the VORTEX moves from its amazing hard hitting straight stream to a uniformly dispersed pattern, without gating your valve and reducing your fire flow.
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