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mission at Canadian Firefighter and EMS Quarterly (CFF) is to inform and educate. We are proud to play a key role in the intellectual cross pollination that happens in the fire service, where the great ideas, lessons learned and best practices shared through these pages help to strengthen other departments.
Technological advances have changed the way readers consume information. We are responding to those changes to meet your expectations and grow our magazine and online businesses.
And with that glossy introduction, we’re thrilled to welcome the magazine and online audiences of Firehall Magazine and Firehall.com to our already vibrant and far-reaching publishing and online operations.
Our parent company, Annex Publishing & Printing Inc., over the summer bought the print and online versions of Firehall from its founder and longtime owner, Chris Leonard, to bolster our connection to rank-and-file members of the Canadian fire service. Both Firehall Magazine and Firehall.com had developed broad and loyal followings over the last 13 years and we’re honoured to have been invited to continue that tradition through our own national brands.
While we have absorbed Firehall Magazine into CFF, Firehall.com and its popular online forums will remain a hub for the Canadian fire service to engage in lively conversation about news and issues from vacation schedules to two-hatters to training and, of course, recruitment drives and job opportunities.
The integration of Firehall.com has been, and will continue to be, an exciting challenge for our editorial and technical teams. For us, Firehall.com provides a gateway to new readers and viewers. We hope to hear from the legions of Firehall loyalists about what they want to read in CFF and their vision for the future of Firehall.com.
Our vision is to make Firehall.com the go-to resource for the Canadian fire service – to find out about training opportunities, events and fitness challenges, speaker series such as CFF-sponsored Firefighters Speak Up (www.firefightersspeakup.com), plus education and health and lifestyle information, all packaged in a familiar and user-friendly format.
We’re still getting to know our new Firehall readers and viewers and we’d like to learn more about what they want to see in the magazine and online. That’s why we’re introducing a new editorial advisory board for CFF and Firehall.com comprising a diverse group of firefighters I’ve met on visits to departments across Canada, including firefighters Courtney Poulson and Lee Juhaszi from Edmonton, firefighter/paramedic Scott Lane from Lethbridge, Alta., firefighter Kory Pearn from St. Thomas, Ont., and firefighter/paramedic Jay Shaw from Winnipeg (meet them at www.firehall.com or www.firefightingincanada.com) under About Us). Editorial advisory board members will suggest stories, offer guidance on content and help us find our way editorially on this new venture.
In the same way that firefighting technology must evolve to meet challenges posed by new building materials or updated fire and building codes, those who serve the fire service must evolve to meet the needs of their customers, clients, readers and viewers. For us, the acquisition of Firehall.com is another step in that direction following the development of our Fire Fighting in Canada website, our editor’s blog and our Facebook page. We’re excited about the challenges this will bring over the next year as we further embrace the challenge to serve our readership in new ways.
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As technology and science have progressed, one of the biggest changes we’ve seen in the fitness industry is the knowledge of nutrition. It was in 1971 that Sylvester Stallone famously drank a glass of raw eggs as part of his healthy training diet in the original Rocky movie. With that example alone, I think it’s safe to say times have changed and modern nutrition philosophy has come a long way.
The largest segment of nutrition planning has always been what to eat. Thousands of studies have been built to reflect the changes in our body composition, based on the type of foods we consume daily. The science of what to eat has quickly progressed to what to eat, and when to eat it. From this point, much of the focus of today’s research has been put into a concept called nutrient timing. Nutrient timing generally refers to the optimal nutritional needs for your body at different stages of the day, due to training. Although these concepts were originally explored for competitive athletes, this information is greatly beneficial to firefighters.
Protein: I’m a big believer in high-protein diets. They promote muscle gain and fat loss at the same time while continuously repairing body tissues. The benefits of a high-protein diet are vast, and studies have shown that there is no negative impact on our bodies. Originally, some nutritionists thought highprotein diets could cause renal failure, although there has never been any evidence of this. Highprotein diets seems to negatively affect only people with pre-existing kidney problems.
Also, avoid sweetened drinks; most of them are loaded with sugar and offer no nutrients.
Vitamins: Everyone should take a multivitamin; even a standard multivitamin tablet makes a world of difference in your body.
Meals: You’ve heard it before – more meals, smaller portions. Shoot for six to eight small meals a day to keep your metabolism high. If you’re on the go, pack meals in advance and drink protein shakes. Consume a high-protein diet and include protein with each meal.
BRAD LAWRENCE
The average diet includes far too many carbohydrates and this contributes to our society’s obesity problems.
Carbs: Welcome to the make-or-break section of your nutrient plan. Your attitude toward carbs will showcase your successes or magnify your failures. The biggest issue about your carbohydrate intake is your awareness of what you’re eating. It’s very easy to over-eat carbs. Think of a plate of rice with dinner: the recommended serving on the package is one-third of a cup but it’s easy to eat a full cup or even two. The average diet includes far too many carbohydrates, and this contributes to our society’s obesity problems. Even Canada’s Food Guide is starting to figure it out. It has again lowered the recommended number of grain products, and although it’s still high, it’s a step in the right direction.
Be smart and obtain your carbs through whole grains, vegetables and high-fibre foods. Aside from meals following workouts, your body doesn’t need as many carbs as you think. And don’t sabotage all your hard work by indulging those senseless late-night cravings.
Fats: Choose healthy fats; monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and omega 3-6-9s. These fats are found in high-quality foods such as peanut butter, fish, nuts and seeds. Avoid high doses of saturated fats and steer clear of trans fats found in fatty oils.
Water: Drink it – your body requires it. A healthy, active body should get one-half ounce of water per pound of bodyweight, per day, meaning a 180-pound person should have at least 90 ounces, or roughly three litres of water a day. The best way to ensure enough water intake is to carry a bottle and make yourself accountable.
Breakfast: Studies prove that it’s the most important meal of the day. You need to eat breakfast to kick-start your metabolism. It’s the wrong time to cheat. Your insulin receptors are most sensitive first thing in the morning. Avoid sugars other than fruit to avoid extra fat storage. Make sure you have a full serving of protein. Breakfast is a great time for a protein shake.
Mid-day meal: Stick with a healthy, balanced meal but cut all unnecessary sugars if you haven’t already. Now is also a great time to switch to veggies from fruits for the day.
Snacks: Again, ensure quality foods and smaller portions. Snacks are a great opportunity to have protein shakes, nuts and seeds, or small meals you’ve prepared at home. Don’t ruin a good healthy day with junk food.
Supper: This should be one of your smallest meals. You should reduce your carbs along with your meal size. Give your body a quality protein and vegetable source; choose more veggies and cut the potatoes.
Final meal: Better to eat late than be hungry going to bed. Going to bed hungry means your body is literally starving, so feed it. If you’re eating clean, you really won’t overeat – trust me. Make this meal mostly protein and take in zero carbs. This is important, and will give your growth hormone a chance to kick in quicker and longer while you sleep.
Pre-workout: Stick to a small, balanced meal. You don’t need to carb load for your training; your body will have the fuel and you just need to push your limits to release it. Carb loading is for extended endurance, not the average exerciser. Allow yourself one to two hours to eat before training; let your body digest before you hit the gym.
Post-workout: Drink a recovery shake as soon as possible. Studies recommend you do so within 45 minutes of training. These drinks are measured with high quality, quick absorbing protein, and carbohydrates to promote muscle synthesis.
Your second meal after your shake is very important. This meal feeds your muscles as soon as the first meal is depleted. This is a bad time to cheat – ingest quality proteins only.
Try to use these simple nutrient timing techniques and give your body a chance to get to where you want it to be.
Brad Lawrence is a firefighter with the Calgary Fire Department and a certified personal trainer who specializes in training and nutrition for emergency responders. E-mail Brad at bradmlawrence@gmail.com
Kamloops FireFit team members (left) Don Clarke, Graham MacKenzie, Scott Leslie and Mike Brown celebrate their victory in the team event with the best-three time of 4:00.20.
FireFit feat
Kamloops dominates 2010 FireFit championships with three world records
by James Careless
Graham MacKenzie and his FireFit teammates from the Kamloops Fire Department in British Columbia wanted revenge. Over the summer, rival team Monctonmoves.com from New Brunswick beat the world record set by the crew from Kamloops and the B.C. team wanted the No. 1 spot back.
Not ones to settle for anything less than perfection, the Kamloops team set a new world record at the national FireFit championships on Labour Day weekend in Brampton, Ont. at 4:00.20. MacKenzie took the record in the men’s Individual event at 1:15.94 and Kamloops beat Halifax in the relay with another record of 1:03.30.
“Monctonmoves.com had taken our team world record at a regional event earlier this year, and we wanted it back,” MacKenzie says. “But we didn’t expect to set three world records in doing so, nor to have things go so well for us. It was really a storybook week for the Kamloops team.”
“It was a remarkable competition,” says FireFit president Dale McRoberts. “The top three finishers in the men’s individual were all faster than 1:17, which is mind-boggling.”
MacKenzie’s 1:15.94 victory in the men’s
individual competition wasn’t just a world record, it was a gigantic improvement over his second-place finish last year at 1:18.20. “This is nearly three seconds faster,” says McRoberts. “Clearly, Graham MacKenzie is a guy who has got himself so big and strong that he is just hard to beat; even when up against the incredible field we have.”
MacKenzie credits his team’s rigorous training and excellent chemistry for its success in Brampton. Still, “The race before mine threw up some pretty good times, so I knew that I’d have to run faster than I ever had,” he says. “The thing about race results is they really are affected not just by your training, but how you feel when you wake up on race day: Do you have a sore back and headache, or do you feel good? I fortunately felt good; a bit anxious, but I think everyone feels that way on race day.”
Close behind MacKenzie in second place was Marcel Dupuis of the Monctonmoves. com team at 1:16.12, beating the 1:17.60 time that won him first in the Atlantic Regional FireFit Championship earlier in the summer. Dupuis was followed by Ryan Hallam of the Fredericton Fire Department at 1:16.43 – up from his 2009 fourth place time of 1:20.03. Fourth place overall finisher and longtime competitor Darren Hillman of Windsor Fire & Rescue was also No. 1 in
the over-40 category, with a time of 1:20.32. Simon Robichaud of DND/MDN Canada CFFM No. 1 came in fifth at 1:20.98. Behind him was Louis Boiteau of the Hamilton Fire Department/Team Crossfit Ancaster at 1:21.00, Jack Bailey of Windsor Fire & Rescue at 1:21.43, and Joe Triff of Rivalus-Halifax Fire at 1:21.47. Triff also finished eight last year (1:20.03) but in 2007 and 2008, he came first. Locky Gelinas of Windsor Fire & Rescue was ninth at 1:21.62 and Claude Bélanger of École de Pompiers Québec CNDF was 10th at 1:21.76. Bélanger came in third last year with a time of 1:19.34.
Over-45 first place winner Mark Millward of the Delta Fire Department clocked a time of 1:26.88, putting him at 31st place overall. Over-50 winner Cyril Fraser of Halifax Regional Fire came in 91st overall at 1:39.83. And the over-55 top achiever, Brian Jones of the Belleville Fire Department, was ranked at 157th with a time of 01:57.56.
Last year’s world FireFit champion, Dwayne Drover of the Waterloo Fire Department, was ranked in 16th place at 1:23.35 after skipping a stair during the national event. Last year’s Canadian champion, Mike Gilbert of the St. Catharines Fire Department, did not compete this year. Gilbert won
Continued on page 28
Expectations and accountability
Imagine working with a crew that includes a not-so-new rookie … The day has been fairly slow, so your crew is training at the hall; you’re all working with the junior firefighter, running drills and evolutions. The junior member is practising tagging a hydrant and pulling a primary line from the rig. Tagging the hydrant went smoothly, but unfortunately the new-ish firefighter is having a hard time getting the attack line stretched without making a mess of spaghetti at his feet. You can see disappointment in the eyes of the others looking on and you can detect a frustrated tone in the voices of the members who are working to correct the problem. As you watch the junior firefighter’s hands start to shake you wonder whose fault this is. Is it the junior firefighter’s fault for not knowing how to perform the task and not identifying the need to learn it? Is it the fault of the senior firefighter or mentor for not taking the time to properly train the new guy? Are the officers at fault for not ensuring the candidate was up to snuff? Or is everyone responsible for failing to outline certain skills that are required of every firefighter?
while the next group of recruits becomes familiar with skill C but misses out on B and doesn’t even hear about skill A, it is beneficial to develop a structured and standardized training package for each new member. By employing this tool, junior members will be aware of the expectations and senior members/officers will have a document to reference, outlining which skills are complete and which still need attention. Having a responsible member mentor candidates, watch them perform a skill, and then document the successful completion, provides accountability for both parties: the mentor for signing off on the skill and the candidate for being able to perform it. This system also helps candidates gain confidence. They are showing the crew that they are able to accomplish what they are tasked with, and at the same time, the crew develops trust because the junior member is showing proficiency in carrying out assignments.
JESSE CHALLONER
It seems the bread-and-butter skills are falling through the cracks. As these new members gain time on the job, we assume firefighters with a few months to a year or more of service know how to do whatever is asked of them. Inevitably, the time will come when the junior firefighter is tasked to perform and does not come through with the expected results. The first step to identify the issue on a larger scale. The root of this dilemma lies in accountability. What standardized training is offered to give members hands-on time to develop experience when performing? Is there a documentation system to show that a member has completed the tasks in training to an acceptable level? Ultimately, who is responsible for ensuring that members of all experience levels are proficient at the basics?
Junior members certainly need to be aware of the holes in their skill sets.
Putting a system in place that organizes training decreases the incidence of incomplete skill sets. Decreasing, however, is not synonymous with eliminating. We will still run into situations in which some personnel don’t know or can’t do what they should be able to. The question of who is accountable when a firefighter is unable to perform in the expected capacity can’t be answered by singling out individuals. Junior members certainly need to be aware of the holes in their skill sets and seek more training. With that in mind, other crew members should be meticulous in practical and theoretical exercise sessions, thereby identifying areas of weakness and capitalizing on areas of strength.
Potential candidates are usually completing NFPA certifications prior to being offered a position in a department. Most services also offer training, either in house or at an academy, for candidates to gain some practice. These are great opportunities to lay the foundation for developing the necessary skills but not all fire departments operate under the same SOPs/SOGs. Therefore, specialized training must be obtained on the floor, under the direction of more senior members and officers. There is certainly value in classroom training. From there, we must take the next step and provide handson practice. This will develop the tactile and muscle memory skills so tasks can be performed in real time at the fire scene, the correct way, the first time. Furthermore, this practical training should be standardized, ensuring that each candidate receives the same information relative to department SOPs/SOGs. After the practical evolutions are complete, the next step is to track the training gained through documentation.
To prevent new members from gaining skill A but not skill B,
As we graduate to the more senior ranks it is our duty to pass on training and experience to new members. We must never chastise someone for not knowing; it’s better that we accept the shortcoming and correct the deficiency professionally, rather than creating an environment in which candidates don’t want to train. Junior members will have to perform without direct supervision at some point, and we have the opportunity to secure their success. We should never assume that someone else will step up and fill in the gaps; we have the obligation to bridge those gaps ourselves.
New members require hands-on practice in various areas, especially the basic tasks. By implementing a system of training with structure and standardization, we can be sure that when the time comes to tag a hydrant or stretch a line, everyone on the crew will be able to do so without thinking twice. When we are able to get back to the basics of training with new members, the path to proficiency is paved with solid groundwork.
Jesse Challoner is a firefighter/paramedic with Strathcona County Emergency Services in Alberta and an instructor at the Emergency Services Academy in Sherwood Park, Alta. Contact him at jchalloner@hotmail.com
Safety first
Homaltro Indy team struts its stuff at Toronto event
by Keith Hamilton
As a firefighter and racing fan, I have had the opportunity to meet with professional racing safety teams from IMSA and Mosport. This summer, I met the only other safety team dedicated to a series in North America: the Indy Racing League Holmatro Safety Team.
For more than 20 years, the hydraulic rescue tools I’ve used have had the familiar orange colours of Holmatro Rescue tools. Those colours adorn a tractor trailer that travels from Indianapolis across North America, Brazil and Japan. The Indy Racing League is the only open wheel racing series whose dedicated safety team travels to every racing venue providing fire, rescue and medical care for their drivers and team members. This relationship allows the safety team and IndyCar management to practise and train together and to plan for the future. The research and development department at Holmatro can test its rescue tools on the proposed chassis components of future
designs to ensure the team is prepared for an emergency.
I talked to Mike Yates, manager of track safety operations for the IndyCar series’ Holmatro Safety Team in July at the Honda Indy in Toronto. He is a veteran of the fire service and the racing safety team. The Holmatro Safety Team was created specifically to look after the IndyCar and Indy Lights racing series. The two cars are similar in terms of safety; the major difference is that the Indy Lights cars have starters, and if they spin but don’t crash, they can restart on their own. The rescue truck will still be there in case of other problems or if a restart isn’t possible. Indy-type cars do not have starters, and the Holmatro rescue trucks are equipped with the same starters the race teams use to restart a car – if it is safe to do so. Of course, if the four tires are still on a race car, most racers want the safety team to restart them, but if a suspension component has been compromised, the safety team will not restart the car and the race is over for that driver.
The Holmatro safety team consists of 25 members; 15 of them attend each race. The
safety team brings three trucks to every race and staffs them with four rescue members each. Two other members work as medics in the pit area, and one member works as a dispatcher and fire controller. Every member is a firefighter/paramedic; the majority are from Indiana, with two members from Florida and one from Phoenix. Most of the 17 IndyCar races are in North America but the team travels internationally with stops in Japan and Brazil during the racing year. The safety team equipment is taken to each venue on a tractor trailer designed to transport race cars. The three safety trucks are carried above, and all the safety equipment and personal items are carried below, in either the cabinets on the lower level or in storage compartments below floor level. The rescue trucks are kept on a moveable floor that is lowered when the trucks are on board and then raised after the trucks are removed at a venue. The space below is then used by the safety teams as a quiet place to relax or get ready for the day’s events. When travelling to Japan or Brazil, all the rescue equipment travels on two 747 jets, loaded on board with the race cars.
PHOTO BY KEITH HAMILTON
A Holmatro Safety Team member passes the engine starter so driver Ryan Briscoe can rejoin the race.
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Honda supplies Ridgeline trucks for the safety team. Two of the trucks are set up as rescue trucks, with Holmatro tools and two portable power units to operate them.
Holmatro spreaders and cutters are the standard tools with a special pedal cutter added in case of need. The trucks also carry 60 gallons of water mixed with Cold Fire (foam fire suppressant) routed through a front-bumper mounted, 30-foot forestrytype hose. Pressurized water cans are also carried premixed with Cold Fire foam.
The rescue trucks also provide emergency medical treatment and carry an assortment of airway and advanced life support equipment for the responding paramedics to use. In most cases, local EMS/paramedics handle advanced life support, but the team is cleared to perform certain procedures depending on the venue.
Driver stabilization equipment is carried and techniques and equipment are practised two or three times a year. If, during the year, any changes are made to the racing cars, the technical people contact the safety team and training is conducted to ensure the changes won’t affect the way rescuers approach a car when a driver has to be rescued. Up to eight hours of training is provided to the local fire, safety and EMS personnel when the team arrives at each race location.
The speed of the cars on the track can be hazardous to the safety crews. The cars do not pit during accidents but are on the track with the safety teams. Drivers are aware of the safety teams and pay attention to directions, but things can be a little violent on race day. Safety team members must stay on edge and never let their guard down or turn their backs to traffic.
Radio communication with the dispatcher is also important to ensure the safety team knows where the race pack is located on the track and whether there is a single car trying to catch the pack, so the rescuers can stand and watch out. It is important that safety team members do not make any movements before they look around to make sure they can move safely.
Left: Driver Takuma Sato’s race is over and the Holmatro safety team rushes to move him out of danger at the end of the Lakeshore Boulevard straight in Toronto.
Middle: Canadian driver Paul Tracy spins in corner three during the race and stalls his car.
The Holmatro Safety Team uses its starter to restart his engine so he can complete the race.
Right: Hideki Mutoh’s car is prepared for removal from the track after crashing in corner two during practice.
An actual rescue on the track – and the safety precautions that go with it – is not much different than rescues performed by firefighters every day. The only real difference is the safety team’s level of familiarity with the race cars, compared to the myriad makes and models that firefighters deal with daily. Trauma treatment of the drivers is basically the same as on the street – follow the ABCs of airway, breathing and circulation, and immobilize for broken bones or spinal cord injuries. The biggest difference is the environment in which these actions are performed.
The position of safety team members in the truck determines their tasks at the scene. The driver is the incident commander; responsible for size up and calling in resources. The front passenger is the paramedic; he is responsible for the medical needs of the driver. The seat behind the passenger is for firefighter No. 1, whose task is to take the pressurized water can with Cold Fire to the scene and look for fire. Firefighter No. 2 sits behind the driver and is to bring a fivegallon pail of oil dry to contain any spills to the area around the race car.
If the driver is uninjured, he can get out on his own and be transported by ambulance or by the IRL doctor car. If the driver is injured, firefighter No. 2 drops his oil dry responsibility, and gets up onto the engine cowl to take over spinal immobilization so the paramedic can work and get a cervical collar on the driver after the helmet is removed. Firefighter No. 2 can fill in for firefighter No. 2 at that point, or join with the team leader at the driver’s shoulders to help with driver removal. It’s a very methodical approach that is practised
during training sessions. It becomes second nature to know what to grab and what to do when arriving at an incident.
Indy cars use alcohol as a fuel so the rescue teams respond with water and Cold Fire to combat fires. Water mixes with the alcohol and the Cold Fire additive can be easily turned into foam by putting a thumb over the nozzle to create a fine spray. Dry chemical extinguishers aren’t used because of the proximity to the drivers and their confined space in the cockpit. Dry chemical can cause respiratory irritation and are harmful to the aluminium parts on the race car, including the engine.
Rescue teams are also responsible for the race track. Fluids or debris that get onto the track from an accident can create further danger to other racers. The rescue team helps to clean and remove debris and fluids from the racing surface to prevent putting the other racers in danger. The rescue trucks carry kits to allow the Indy race cars to be picked up by tow trucks. They also have “diapers” to keep fluids from dropping onto the track.
Holmatro has supplied rescue equipment for the Indy Racing League since it began in 1996. This year, Holmatro, after being an important resource for the IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights, took over as sponsor of the Racing League Safety Team.
Keith Hamilton is a captain on a rescue squad with Toronto Fire Services. He has 32 years of service with 22 years on the squad. Being a photographer and avid race fan gives him the opportunity to be close to the action and see how various racing series’ safety teams function. Contact him at rescues313@bell.net
PHOTOS BY KEITH HAMILTON
by Randy Schmitz
WTest your big-rig know-how
hen we started this year-long big-rig project in January, I promised an exam to test your knowledge. I hope you’ve learned from the last three Extrication Tips columns and that you will be able to apply those lessons if necessary.
As I mentioned in January, this four-installment big-rig package came out of a two-day big-rig rescue symposium in Nisku, Alta., in September. The other two lead instructors were Billy Leach Jr. from North Carolina and George Klemm from Vancouver Island. The first morning was devoted to theory and discussions of large-vehicle anatomy and construction, challenges for rescuers, correct cribbing applications and load-bearing equipment. The remaining day and a half was spent working with simulated, large-truck accidents involving passenger vehicles. Students rotated through scenarios and spent three to four hours learning the proper ways to approach, stabilize, lift, then extricate patients from crushed wrecks. First, the students dealt with the situation as though the incident had happened on a rural highway outside of a city and they had responded with their own departmental resources; then, they played out the scenario with the assistance of a heavy wrecker tow truck that had arrived on scene after a certain length of time.
In January, April and July we looked at the program content and what students learned, including large-vehicle classifications, anatomy, construction, arrival hazard control, stabilization, disentanglement and patient removal from the crushed passenger vehicle and the cab of the truck. Now it’s time for the exam. You can find the answers at the bottom of page 18.
1. How many fatal accidents in North America involve large trucks per year?
A. 500
B. 5,000
C. 3,500
D. 10,000
2. Which of the following is not a main category of large trucks?
A. Straight trucks
B. Tractor-trailer combination trucks
C. Panel trucks
D. Specialty trucks
3. A standard tractor weighs about _____ pounds.
A. 140,000
B. 18,000 to 22,000
C. 2,500
D. None of the above
4. Tractor units running without a trailer are referred to as _____.
A. Cattail units
B. Large trucks
C. Specialty trucks
D. Bobtail units
5. The two types of cabs found on most trucks are _____ and _____.
A. Conventional, cab-over
B. Conventional, non-conventional
C. Bobtail, special
D. Forward, cab-over
6. Cab-over units are designed so that the cab will tilt forward for service on the engine.
A. True
B. False
7. Windshields on big trucks are made of ______ glass.
A. Tempered
B. Laminated tempered
C. Laminated safety
D. None of the above
8. The roof of a large truck can be made of steel, sheet metal, aluminum, fibreglass, or ______.
A. Fibreboard
B. Wood
C. Metton
D. Plastic
9. On large trucks, the electrical system is supplied by multiple batteries, what are common voltage requirements?
A. 12 and 24 volt
B. 72 volt
C. 120 volt
D. 60 volt
10. Saddle tanks on big trucks are always located on the driver’s side.
A. True
B. False
11. The trailer air-brake system is designed to automatically engage the emergency brake system when the trailer is disconnected from the air source.
A. True
B. False
12. When dispatched to an incident involving a large cargo vehicle, it is important to identify the _____ as soon as possible.
A. Type of cab
B. Driver
C. Registration
D. Type of load
13. Personnel should be protected with a charged hose line or fire extinguisher during circle surveys?
A. True
B. False
14. The only way to determine the type of load on a large cargo truck is by the lading or manifest.
A. True
B. False
15. Refrigerated trailers may have separate fuel tanks that will most commonly use _____.
A. Diesel
B. Natural gas, gasoline
C. Propane
D. None of the above
16. Large trucks can have one or two diesel fuel tanks with as much as _____ gallons of fuel.
A. 300
B. 50 to 150
C. 1,000
D. 200
17. The batteries of a large truck should never be disconnected with the engine running.
A. True
B. False
18. When a large truck is on its side, it is essential to _____ all voids where the load may settle.
A. Identify
B. Mark
C. Crib
D. Ignore
19. A two-by-two box crib configuration using six-inch timbers has a capacity of 60,000 pounds.
A. True
B. False
20. Which of the following is not a common hazard found in the cab of a large truck involved in a severe wreck?
A. Exposed wiring
B. Loaded guns
C. Battery fumes
D. Fuel tanks
21. The most common problem found when forcing large truck doors is _____.
A. The hinges
B. The latch
C. Making purchase points for the tools
D. Windows
22. With the truck in the upright position consider _____ of the roof rather than making a roof flap.
A. Stabilizing part
B. Cutting away a section
C. Pushing out part
D. None of the above
23. In cases where the front of the cab is pushed down onto the driver, additional space can be gained by _____.
A. Cutting into the sleeper
B. Performing a dash lift manoeuvre
C. Stabilizing the front end
D. Pulling the driver out of his seat
24. The preferred method to lower a pneumatic seat is to turn off the engine.
A. True
B. False
25. We should re-assess the pa tient once the patient is out of the vehicle.
A. True
B. False
by Peter Sells
TFireFit goes global
Successes top challenges of bringing competition to Dubai
his story is about perseverance, about having a dream and making it happen. In 1998, Mohammed Al Ahmadi of the United Arab Emirates was a student of mine at the Toronto Fire Academy. Along with 11 of his peers, Al Ahmadi was a junior officer with the Dubai Civil Defence fire service. The students spent more than 16 months in Canada developing their skills and knowledge as firefighters, instructors and officers. During that time, Al Ahmadi was exposed to the FireFit training being done at the academy by the Toronto Fire Department FireFit team. He and a few of his buddies tried the event and Al Ahmadi was struck by the idea of bringing the competition to his home country.
Al Ahmadi returned to Dubai Civil Defence, leaving its employ a few years later to become the fire chief of the Dubai Aluminum Company plant and, ultimately, the fire chief of the Dubai Electric and Water Authority. He and I remained in contact over the years, and eventually formed a business partnership to work on fire/rescue training projects in the United Arab Emirates and around the Gulf region. Unbeknownst to me, he also stayed in touch with Dale McRoberts, the president of FireFit of Canada Ltd. So I was quite surprised to run into Dale at the Dubai World Trade Centre at the Intersec Expo in January 2009.
The FireFit skills competition, in which a sequence of six firefighting and rescue tasks are performed head-to-head and against the clock, is well-known in Canada. FireFit of Canada has been taking the competition across the country since 1994, drawing huge crowds in big cities and small towns, and a nationwide TV audience for the annual broadcast of the Canadian Championships. Canadian FireFit competitors are among the fastest in the world.
Intersec is a prominent conference and trade show focusing on fire protection, law enforcement, security and industrial health and safety. McRoberts was there to talk in the exhibitors’ forum about FireFit, demonstrate some of the individual tasks included
in the competition and set the wheels in motion for a full FireFit competition to be held in conjunction with Intersec 2010. The idea was well-received, but having a good idea and implementing it are often two different animals, especially when a high degree of organizational commitment is required. Al Ahmadi was able to convince Dubai Civil Defence, and its counterparts in the rest of the United Arab Emirates, to allow their firefighters to train towards competing in FireFit. McRoberts and I returned a few months later and set up a training course at the Dubai Civil Defence training centre. McRoberts began training several dozen firefighters – primarily from the large urban centres of Dubai and Abu Dhabi – as well as a few from the small emirate of Ajman, in the techniques and physical demands of FireFit competition.
In late August 2009, Al Ahmadi came to Canada, along with six Emirati firefighters, to have a joint UAE team enter the FireFit Canadian Championships in Gaspé, Que. The team was well received by the Canadian competitors and by the community (especially by the staff at Tim Hortons). Gaspé presented a unique opportunity in that the Eastern Quebec regional competition and the Canadian championships took place there in successive weeks. The young Arabs were taken under the wing of the Canadian competitors, with a great deal of peer coaching in the days leading to the opening buzzer. For rookies, the
An Emirati competitor passes in front of the VIP viewing area at the inaugural FireFit competition in Dubai in July – 997 is the fire emergency telephone number in the UAE.
UAE team acquitted themselves admirably. As McRoberts expected from the training runs, Hassan Al Balooshi of Dubai achieved the first Middle East record time of 2:05:15 to take home the bragging rights.
Armed with some new-found confidence from Gaspé, the UAE team returned home to begin preparation for the next phase. Mohammed had been working feverishly to secure official support and corporate sponsorship for a UAE FireFit Championship to be held in January 2010. With the buy-in of Dubai Civil Defence and the UAE Ministry of the Interior, as well as the support of partners such as Intersec and NAFFCO (a UAE-based fire equipment and apparatus supplier), we were able to commit to bringing 15 Canadian competitors, among them FireFit veteran Randy Kalan. Kalan and I went over on New Year’s Day, which allowed us to witness the spectacular opening of Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, on January 4. I went back to the training centre with Kalan and we rehabbed the training course that McRoberts and I had
PHOTO BY PETER SELLS
prepared – it’s amazing what nine months of sand and blazing sun can do to spray painted markings on concrete.
As Al Ahmadi and I carried on with the business side of things, Kalan spent the next two weeks putting as many as 45 young firefighters through their paces. Hassan was among them, and was afforded quite a bit of respect from his peers based on his success in Canada. Then a van full of firefighters from Germany and Austria, who were working in the northern emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, showed up and asked if it was too late to sign up. They, along with another German group working in Abu Dhabi, made it a truly international competition. Regardless, at the age of 49, Kalan was literally the last man standing on every training day. Aside from Kalan, the fastest times on our training course were consistently put in by Hassan, until week two. Again, out of nowhere, a new competitor showed up, this time from the eastern emirate of Fujairah. With no experience, Ahmed Alwan started putting up some very competitive times, earning the nickname The Fujairah Flash.
All the while that Kalan was conducting the training camp, logistical preparations were underway for the competition at Intersec.
McRoberts and his wife, Hilary, had weeks earlier packed the FireFit course equipment into a marine container, which was on its way to the enormous Jebel Ali port southwest of Dubai. Mohammed had arranged for a local scaffolding company to erect a double set of stairs and balcony, to specifications supplied by the McRoberts. With a few days to go before the competition, the McRoberts arrived, followed closely by the 15 Canadian competitors. All we needed now was the marine container.
As this was the first experience for all of us with international shipping, we assumed that the additional time Hilary had allowed for in getting the equipment on its way was more than adequate. You can track a ship on the sea online in much the same way that you can track a package sent by courier, so we were aware that the ship carrying the FireFit container had been delayed in Singapore for almost a week. It was still expected to arrive at Jebel Ali before Intersec, but it was going to be very tight. We had hoped to have the course set up by Thursday, Jan. 14, to allow for two days of practice before the competition on the Sunday and Monday of Intersec, but the ship did not arrive until Friday, Jan. 15. Al Ahmadi and representatives from NAFFCO
The spectacular FireFit venue at Intersec 2010, with the Emirates Towers framing the Burj Khalifa (world’s tallest structure) in the background.
Just the touch of a button...
PHOTO BY PETER SELLS
Canadian firefighters received rockstar treatment at Intersec 2010.
PHOTO BY PETER SELLS
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negotiated frantically with the port to get the ship moved up in the queue, and the container arrived at the Dubai World Trade Centre on Saturday, Jan. 16. With many hands available, the course was set up quickly.
After an impressive opening ceremony in which the senior officers of Dubai Civil Defence and other government dignitaries were marched in, individual competition got underway. As is the usual practice, competitors were paired up according to their expected times. The Canadians’ past times were well-known. Kalan had been keeping track of performances during training, and McRoberts had had a chance to observe the locals and Europeans for a couple of days. Still, when dealing with new competitors, there can be surprises. Some of the Europeans had been steadily improving and generally seemed better able to budget their energy over the entire course. Overall, it was expected that the times for the top competitors would be slower than in Canadian competition, due to the configuration of the scaffold. I asked world champion Dwayne Drover of Waterloo Fire about the time difference, and he indicated that the top competitors were coming off the stairs at around 41 or 42 seconds, compared to their usual 31 seconds when using the FireFit tower in Canada. So, as a rule of thumb, we were looking for winning times of about 1:30 and still hoping that the fastest time for a local competitor would be about 2:00 (based on Hassan’s 2:05 from Gaspé).
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The Canadians did not disappoint, posting the top 15 individual times. The top three were Joe Triff of Halifax Regional Fire at 1:28.26, Bob Murray of Edmonton Fire & Rescue at 1:32.30 (the fastest over-40 time) and Darren Hillman of Windsor Fire & Rescue at 1:33.22 (also over 40), nipping Drover by 0.03 seconds. The fastest over-45 time was put in by Delta Fire’s Mark Millward at 1:55.80, with Halifax’s Cyril Fraser at 1:52.55, claiming the over-50 top result.
Hassan retained his crown as the fastest Emirati at 2:09.04, which was a six-second improvement from Gaspé, when the scaffold is factored in. However, Alexander Ruppert (one of the German imports from Quick Intervention Abu Dhabi) at 2:06.96 was the fastest UAE firefighter. Ahmed, the Fujairah Flash, followed them closely with a very good rookie run at 2:10.87.
It had been decided in advance that the Canadian competitors’ times would not be included in team results, since there were not a minimum of three from any one fire service. Also, it was important that the
UAE firefighters were able to achieve some concrete success and establish some benchmark times for future competitions.
I want to close with my three star selections for the Dubai FireFit Championships. La troisième étoile, the third star: Dwayne Drover, a.k.a. “Mankhool”. Our host hotel was in the Al Mankhool section of Bur Dubai, one of the older parts of the city. Drover claimed the nickname upon seeing the road sign. His star selection, however, is on the recommendation of all of the skinny stray cats of Al Mankhool who appreciated the bag of catfood that he bought and spread through the alley next to our hotel. La deuxième étoile, the second star: the indefatigable Randy Kalan, for all of his work and inspiration. Et la première étoile, the first star: Firefighter Saeed Al Mahiri of the tiny emirate of Ajman. Saeed had competed in Gaspé in the relay and had obviously worked very hard in the intervening months to prepare for individual competition. Despite this effort, he was unable to complete his race after dropping the Rescue Randy several times and having nothing left with which to continue. Al Mahiri earns the star for insisting on a chance to try again the next day before the team competition, alone against the clock in an unofficial race. He completed the course and won my respect for embodying the spirit of FireFit. His accomplishment will not show in the scoring tables, but it is the best example of what we were hoping to achieve.
Retired District Chief Peter Sells writes, speaks and consults on fire service management and professional development across North America and internationally. He holds a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto and an MBA from the University of Windsor.
Photo:
PHOTO BY PETER SELLS
An Emirati competitor hammers the force machine, watched by referee/coach Randy Kalan and local sports media.
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Tactical considerations for RIT, part 2
by Mark van der Feyst
In the July issue of Back to Basics, we discussed the acronym AWARE – air, water, a radio and extrication – and looked at the importance of air in the rescue of a downed firefighter. Now, we’ll look at water and a radio and their importance to the rapid intervention team (RIT). We’ll discuss extrication next time.
In order for RIT members to rescue a mayday firefighter, there must be a defendable space around the downed firefighter. This can be accomplished by bringing in a charged hose line to protect the mayday firefighter and the RIT members from fire and heat. This is especially important in situations in which the mayday firefighter has fallen through the floor into the basement or become lost or trapped.
Even though there may be established hose lines going into the structure for various reasons, the RIT needs to have a dedicated hose line ready for deployment. A charged hose line should be present at the staging area where the RIT equipment is set up. This charged hose line is a just-in-case piece of equipment that will be vital to the success of the rescue. The hose line should be charged and ready to go, rather than staged and dry on the apparatus hose bed. Time is crucial in the rescue of a mayday firefighter; deploying a hose line from the apparatus, flaking it out, charging it, then bleeding off the air and advancing it into the structure eats up precious minutes.
Advancing a hose line into a structure is not a job one firefighter can do alone; it requires two to three firefighters. If your RIT is staffed by only two firefighters, additional resources will be needed in the form of mutual aid or additional alarms, which will bring in more fire companies. Depleting the on-site resources that are focusing on the structure fire is not wise; they are needed to prevent the incident from getting worse.
Using a hose line to produce a defendable space is a job the mayday firefighter can do if he is conscious and able to help; having him control the hose line allows him to focus on the task at hand and not on himself. This makes him feel like he is part of the rescue and it frees up manpower. If the mayday firefighter in not able to assist, a dedicated firefighter is needed to create that defendable space.
Depending upon the area in which the mayday firefighter is trapped, rescuers may be able to use specialty nozzles to create the defendable space. Most apparatuses carry special nozzles that are rarely used at
structure fires, such as cellar nozzles, piercing nozzles, water curtain and water distributors. These special nozzles can be used to provide water protection around the mayday firefighter and RIT members.
Another way to create a defendable space is to use positive pressure ventilation. Under mayday procedures, initiating Tactical Mayday Ventilation (TMV) is an option that can be exercised. The introduction of TMV will result in the quick removal of smoke and heat. TMV must be done in accordance with the fire conditions; TMV can be deadly if it is not done properly. There needs to be one opening and one exit point of sufficient size. Situations that would prohibit using TMV are backdraft conditions, high wind conditions from the leeward side, a volatile environment or if the mayday firefighter is close to or blocking the potential exhaust point.
Hopefully, the mayday firefighter has a radio and can communicate with command and pass on valuable information. If he does not have a radio, or if the radio has failed, the RIT needs to get a radio to him. The radio is a vital link between the downed firefighter and command; it allows command to ask questions about the environment that the mayday firefighter is in, his condition and air supply, the whereabouts of his partner or crew members and tactical questions about how to rescue him. Using the mayday firefighter to gather information and communicate with command keeps the mayday firefighter focused on the task at hand, and not on his predicament. It also keeps him involved in the incident so he doesn’t feel left out.
The radio can also be used to distract the mayday firefighter if he is too focused on his situation. Having a dedicated person to speak to the mayday firefighter allows the RIT to work without any interference from the mayday firefighter; this is similar to the procedure used at motor vehicle collisions in which one rescuer focuses on the victim for the duration of the operation.
Mark van der Feyst is an 11-year veteran of the fire service and works for the City of Woodstock Fire Department in Ontario. He teaches in Canada, the U.S. and India. Mark is a local level suppression instructor for the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy, an instructor for the Justice Institute of B.C. and a professor of fire science for Lambton College. He can be reached at Mark@ FireStarTraining.com
PHOTO BY MARK VAN DER FEYST
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FireFit feat
Continued from page 8
both the individual title and the over-40 title in 2009 with a time of 1:17.87, seven onehundredths of a second better than his 2008 Canadian and world over-40 record.
Danielle Comolli of Toronto Fire Services was the fastest woman with a time of 2:13.63; putting her at 170th place in the overall standings. She beat 171st place and the No. 2 female, Jacqueline Rasenberg of York Region Fire, by just under two seconds; Rasenberg came in at 2:15.47.
“It felt really good to win this year, and it’s nice that the tables finally turned in my favour,” Comolli says. This is putting it mildly: Rasenberg took first place last year at 2:18.15; almost four seconds faster than Comolli’s second place time of 2:22.14. “Still, it wasn’t my best race of the year,” Comolli says. “I’ve been beating Jacqueline in races all summer. But when the gun went off at nationals, it seemed like I had left my brain at the starting line. I found myself running behind her, and only really caught up once we got to the hose drag. Once we got through the dummy pickup, I was ahead.
I’ve always been very fast at this element.” Comolli expects to go head-to-head with Rasenberg at the worlds in Myrtle Beach in November, and isn’t taking anything for granted in preparing for that rematch.
In the team events, the Kamloops Fire Department fivesome of Graham MacKenzie, Don Clarke, Mike Brown, Scott Leslie and Mark Brise took the main event with the best-three-times total score of 4:00.20. Kamloops clearly outpaced Windsor Fire & Rescue, which came in second at 4:03.37, followed by Monctonmoves. com at 4:30.93. At 4:08.59 in fourth place, Halifax Fire was not in the running. Thirtyfour teams competed in this event – 33 male and one female (Toronto Fire Services). Oakville Team Levitt-Safety No. 1 (Darren Van Zandbergen, Shaun Henderson and Dave Walker) came in an impressive seventh with a total time of 4:21.04 in their inaugural year of competition.
Kamloops didn’t win everything. Monctonmoves.com’s Dupuis and Jamie Richford grabbed first in the NGX Open at 1:23.8, beating Rivalus-Halifax Fire’s Mike Sear and Joe Triff (1:25.0) and Oakville No. 1’s Henderson and Van Zandbergen (1:29.9). “We had a bit of luck on our side,” says Dupuis. “But it didn’t hurt that our bottle exchange went quickly and easily. That helped us on time.”
The NGX Over-40 was taken by the Hamilton Fire Department Team Cash and Dash (1:39.1, Mike Cascioli and Dean Morrow), followed by Service Incendie Baie Comeau over 40 (1:43.5, Marco Beaulieu and Sylvain Ouellet) and the Quebec Nordique team (1:48.5, Carl Belanger and Luc Hamel).
The NXG Ladies’ first prize went to CFB Petawawa (2:40.1, Sara Lafreniere and Denise Townshend), followed by Ottawa Fire Ladies (2:49.2, Katie Hall and Genna McMillan) and Pinkalicious (3:04.7, Guylaine Boulay and Mary Shepard).
“This was another great year for the Scott FireFit Championships,” McRoberts says. “It was exciting, well attended and a time of change at the top. It will be fascinating to see how our best stack up this November at the worlds in Myrtle Beach!”
“Our goal is to go there, compete and win,” laughs MacKenzie. “We always try to win. But we don’t focus on that: We just try and achieve personal bests, and hope that everything else works out.”
James Careless is an Ottawa-based freelance writer and frequent contributor to Canadian Firefighter and EMS Quarterly.
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by Mitchell Sherrin
A family affair
Salt Spring volunteer training weekend a model for other departments
With volunteer recruitment and retention a challenge for many Canadian fire departments, Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue (SSIFR) in British Columbia has created a training model that works so well families of volunteer firefighters plan their summer vacations around it.
The annual July training weekend caters to families and provides opportunities for social networking among volunteer firefighters, says SSIFR Deputy Chief Arjuna George.
“In the world of the fire service, networking and fire training are the foundation to volunteer firefighter retention,” George says. “The training weekend allows the volunteer firefighters to remain on Salt Spring Island with their families while at the same time receiving quality training. The opportunity to network with 125 firefighters in one spot is a rare thing, and if we can provide this opportunity, volunteer retention will be strengthened.”
Salt Spring, a rural community of 10,000 residents nestled in the Gulf Islands between Vancouver and Victoria, B.C., enjoys a reputation as a popular getaway. The summertime population on the island triples with visitors who swarm to the idyllic, pastoral landscape with a vigorous artsy culture and numerous recreational opportunities.
Building on the island reputation as a tourism destination, the SSIFR Regional Training Conference has been dubbed training in paradise and has become the largest training conference in B.C. over the last eight years. In 2009 and 2010, 125 firefighters from 29 departments participated in one of 10 courses at the four-day event.
The social emphasis of the Salt Spring training weekend evolved after SSIFR members attended other conferences and found them lacking a few key elements, George said.
“We received great training but never once had the opportunity to network or brainstorm with other firefighters.”
SSIFR held its own training weekend the following year, along with special evening events, including a massive barbeque featuring live entertainment, to allow the firefighters to
interact and learn from each other, he said.
“Every department does things a little different. It’s always a great opportunity to be able to learn what other departments do and how we can improve ourselves on Salt Spring.”
And the family oriented atmosphere allows student firefighters to combine training and a summer camping vacation with their families, he said.
“For a firefighter to be able to come to Salt Spring, take a course while still not having to leave their family at home is a real bonus that is a big factor in the success of the event.”
While firefighters are learning the ropes, their spouses and children have a chance to wander through the island village of Ganges and take in the attractions Salt Spring offers, he said. A partners’ program provides additional entertainment for families with activities such as farm visits, wine tasting, boating opportunities and pool-side gatherings.
Even the instructors are fans of the SSIFR approach to training. Surrey Fire Service Capt. Reo Jerome has taught courses for the Justice Institute of B.C. on Salt Spring since the conference started in 2004.
“From the whacky golf tournament on the Thursday evening to the meet and greet on the Friday, to the awesome family barbeque dinner with prizes, entertainment and poker tourney, to the surprise event for the younger kids and families on the Sunday – this weekend is one great social family vacation.”
BY
DEPUTY CHIEF ARJUNA GEORGE
A firefighter performs a self rescue through a RIT disentanglement prop during the annual “weekend in paradise” training weekend hosted by Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue.
But the island training weekend doesn’t just involve fun and games. Each year SSIFR offers a selection of eight to 10 certified courses through JIBC that meet rigorous NFPA training standards.
“The training we receive from the JIBC during the SSIFR training weekend is important and essential to keeping our firefighters abreast of new techniques, technology, and hands-on practice with expert instructors,” George said.
Many of the courses are accredited internationally and they are delivered by the “gurus of the fire service,” he said.
And SSIFR has gained recognition as a leader among fire departments in the region for its commitment to high-quality training. Representatives from the Office of the Fire Commissioner have attended the event since 2006. Indeed, when B.C. Fire Commissioner Rebecca Denlinger attended in 2008 she rolled up her sleeves and served local crab to guests at the barbeque.
Metchosin Fire Chief Stephanie Dunlop noted that the combination of certified training and social activities makes the
PHOTO
SSIFR training conference a big draw for her membership.
“We have been attending the Salt Spring training weekend since its inception,” said Dunlop. “We try to send eight to 12 firefighters to the various courses every year. It’s a great opportunity for training on so many levels: It’s low cost due to minimal travel expenses; it’s fun; and it’s well organized – which encourages the families to be involved. The courses are varied and certified so it’s time well spent.
“The camping and localized entertainment encourages bonding among firefighters within our own department, not to mention getting to meet and interact with so many other firefighters and their families,” she said. “It’s definitely considered a perk within our department to attend this training.”
Hope Fire Chief Tom DeSorcy agrees that the SSIFR training weekend serves his firefighters by taking care of their families and that’s why they’ve attended every year since the first conference in 2004.
“A volunteer department asks a lot of its members so to take them away for a weekend of training where their families can come along and enjoy the hospitality of the fire department and the island only makes it that much more attractive a training option for us,” DeSorcy says.
Even though Hope is more than five hours away from Salt Spring by car and ferry, the event has become so popular within DeSorcy’s department that he can’t send everyone who’d like to attend each year.
“There is a waiting list each year, believe me,” he said.
Family members of firefighters also give rave reviews of the event.
“Our summer begins with the annual pilgrimage to Salt Spring Island,” said Rachel Zubek, who has attended the training conference with her husband, Gary, from Mill Bay for the past five years.
Local and visiting firefighters during a training evolution for a B.C. firefighter evaluation certification course at the annual – and very popular – Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue training weekend.
“For my husband that means top-notch training opportunities with the family in tow. SSIFR puts on a fabulous training weekend for the whole family. While the spouses are honing their fire-rescue skills, family members are treated to barbecues, beaches and outings such as wine tours, sampling cheese at local specialty farms and hikes with amazing picnic lunches as reward,” Zubek said.
As an RCMP community policing coordinator, Zubek is already part of the emergency services family but she appreciates the extra details SSIFR adds to include families at the training event.
The 2010 conference included fire strategies and tactics, hazmat emergency response, confined space rescue, rapid intervention teams, water tender operations, fire operations in the wildland urban interface, basic forestry fire suppression and two International Fire Service Accreditation Congress certified courses that comprise part of the JIBC fire officer program.
Over the years, the SSIFR conference has offered courses in areas such as technical high angle rope rescue, vehicle extrication, fire investigation and fire service instruction.
Departments wanting more details about the family friendly training weekend model can visit www.saltspringfire.com or Salt Spring Island Fire Training Weekend Info Centre on Facebook.
Mitchell Sherrin has seven years’ experience in the fire service and is a career firefighter with SSIFR.
PHOTO BY DEPUTY CHIEF ARJUNA GEORGE
Fit as a firefighter?
If you’ve read my previous columns, then you know I’m passionate about the fire service and firefighter safety, and survival in particular.
Typically, I write about strategy, tactics, tools, equipment, policies, or anything that firefighters can use to improve their chances of surviving in a business with so many inherent risks.
Although I truly hope not, I suspect that your department, like mine, has buried far too many friends and colleagues who have prematurely succumbed to job-related cancers, heart attacks and strokes in recent years.
Not only have I attended too many funerals in the last 10 years, but several of my friends have discovered health problems that we didn’t even know existed just a generation ago – for example, hydrogen cyanide and heavy metal exposure.
On a personal note, one of my closest colleagues, who has only ever been a firefighter, was recently tested for heavy metals and told that his levels were off the charts. Normally, this news would be alarming; however, treatment (chelation therapy) is typically successful in lowering these levels in most patients to close to normal ranges. In my friend’s case, however, subsequent tests also showed that his liver is too badly damaged to accept traditional treatments. We’re anxiously waiting to see what alternative treatments exist to alleviate his symptoms.
Not every health issue affecting firefighters is attributable to workplace exposure. But with presumptive cancers leading the way and the risks of hydrogen cyanide clearly established, how many other illnesses directly linked to firefighting will emerge in the future?
Miller provides visitors to his site with a letter of introduction to present to their doctor, which outlines all the risks associated with firefighting – risks that many doctors are not aware of – and follows that up with a comprehensive medical checklist that will evolve with the emergence of new information.
While I thought I was relatively well informed about the risks facing firefighters today, I was shocked by how little I knew.
PETER HUNT
While I thought I was relatively well informed about the risks facing firefighters today, I was shocked by how little I knew.
So, at the age of 51, and with 31 years of service in the suppression division, I find myself – possibly like some of you – questioning my health and wellness, and wondering if I’m still fit enough to be a firefighter in an ever-worsening toxic work place.
Since job-related health and wellness is not one of my areas of expertise, I turned to my friend and colleague Dr. Scott Miller, DC, of the Ottawa Fire Service, for advice.
Miller, a 21-year firefighting veteran, who is also a United States- and Canadian-board-certified doctor of chiropractic, is passionate about firefighter wellness, fitness, safety and survival and has created a website that I believe every member of the fire service needs to see.
As a result of his focus on wellness programs in recent years, Miller has seen firsthand how such programs can reduce sick leave and injuries through early detection and prevention.
Fitasafirefighter.ca is a comprehensive, easily understandable synopsis of several fire service wellness initiatives (IAFF/IAFC, NFPA, Phoenix) that educates firefighters and their physicians and also provides all the tools necessary to develop a wellness program in your own jurisdiction.
Thankfully, after navigating Miller’s site, I have a much better understanding of those risks, the importance of medical and fitness evaluations, and the critical need to commit to safe practices in the workplace along with a healthy lifestyle.
While it’s vital to ensure that veteran firefighters are educated in the need for early detection and treatment of job-related health issues, it’s equally important to ensure that the next generation of firefighters is raised in a culture of safety that boldly presumes to eliminate many existing and emerging risks through strict compliance to safe work practices (PPE, SCBA and decon, for example).
But detection and treatment are not enough. Miller’s research leaves no doubt that fire departments that have established fitness and wellness initiatives have realized huge financial savings and incalculable benefits through the improved quality of life of their members. What price can you put on preventing a heart attack or stroke, the early detection of the variety of cancers attacking firefighters or the debilitating affects of heavy metals accumulating in vital organs?
Miller reminded me that 50 per cent of North American line-of-duty deaths are a result of heart attacks and strokes, and stressed the importance of understanding how the heart works. He has created an innovative and informative way of explaining heart function that every firefighter can relate to and understand.
Many fire departments lack the financial resources or the will to establish a wellness program despite the obvious benefits to workers and employers. If you serve in one of these jurisdictions, there are two things you and your colleagues must commit to: First, immediately educate yourself and your doctor about the risks associated with fire fighting and take responsibility for your own fitness and wellness. Second, lobby your association, chief, council or community so they understand the health and financial benefits of implementing a wellness program and insist that they do so.
I strongly encourage you to visit www.fitasafirefighter.ca and tell a friend you care about to check it out too. I have no doubt that this firefighting doctor’s work will save lives.
Peter Hunt, a 30-year veteran of the fire service is a captain in the Ottawa Fire Department’s suppression division. He can be reached at peter.hunt@rogers.com
New in the 2011 edition:
•Added and clarified definitions
NFPA 1000: Standard for Fire Service Professional Qualifications, Accreditation and Certification Systems, 2011 Edition
Item#: 100011 I Price: $34.65
NFPA 1000: Standard for Fire Service Professional Qualifications Accreditation and Certification Systems establishes the minimum criteria for accrediting bodies, and for the assessment and validation of the process used to certify fire and related emergency response personnel to professional qualifications standards.
NFPA 1000 is essential for:
• Organizations providing accreditation to entities certifying fire and related emergency response personnel and institutions of higher education granting degrees for non-engineering, fire-related academic programs
• Entities certifying fire and related emergency response personnel as having met or complied with a recognized national standard
•Non-engineering, fire-related, academic, degree-granting programs offered by institutions of higher education
•Added language designed to strengthen the ethical expectations of accrediting bodies
•Editorial changes to help ensure delineation between training, education, and certification
Understanding and Implementing the 16 Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives
Item#: 36870 I Price: $77.00
This textbook was developed as a joint project between the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) and Fire Protection Publications.
It provides a detailed overview and implementation strategies for the 16 Fire Fighter Life Safety Initiatives that were developed by the NFFF at their landmark summit in 2004. Each of the chapters was written by a different highly-respected fire service subject matter expert on that topic. This text provides the information necessary to meet the FESHE courses Principles of Fire and Emergency Services Safety and Survival (associate degree level) and Advanced Principles in Fire and Emergency Services Safety and Survival (bachelor degree level).
Chapter List includes:
• National Fallen Firefighters Foundation
– Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives – Everyone Goes Home Program
• Fire Service Culture and Safety
• Research and Data Collection in the Fire Service
• Firefighter Fatality, Injury, and Near-Miss Data and Investigations
• Personal and Organizational Accountability for Health and Safety
• Risk Management on the Emergency
• Fire Service Training and Safety
• Medical and Fitness Standards and Programs
• Health and Safety Technology
• Fire Apparatus Design and Response Safety Issues and Policies
• Effects of Fire and Life Safety Prevention and Education Programs on Firefighter Safety
• Implementing the Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives in Your Department
LIVE FIRE FIGHTING EXPERIENCE: Short and long term courses available, Municipal and Industrial fire fighting. Incident Command System, Emergency Response/HazMat, three year Fire Science Technology Diploma program. Lambton College, Sarnia, Ontario, call 1-800-791-7887 or www.lambton.on. ca/p_c/technology/fire_emerg_resp.htm. Enrol today!
Doing a lot with a little
DO YOU LIKE OUR COUNTRY’S FOOD?”
I kept my eyes fixed on the narrow ribbon of mountain road and shifted in the driver’s seat to dodge the blast of alcohol breath from the rear of the van. “Um, yes.”
“OK!” boomed the reply from the back seat, followed by roars of laughter. It was midnight, and I was the new designated driver for a tiny Japanese village where I sojourned for a few years. My passengers were well soused, the language barrier had crumbled and cultural inhibitions had vanished.
“DO YOU LIKE OUR CARS?” I negotiated a hairpin curve faster than necessary, hoping to quiet them down, but no one seemed to care that a wrong move would launch us off the precipice like a hang glider without wings.
“DO YOU LIKE OUR GIRLS?”
My sheepish, “Not sure,” triggered more howls of laughter. Just then, spatters of rain hit the windshield, and I fumbled for the wiper control on the unfamiliar dashboard. My hand hit the headlights by mistake and the road went dark. I ignored the sudden hush and careened around another hairpin before switching them on again.
“GOOD DRIVER, GOOD DRIVER,” my much meeker passengers croaked in unison. The clumsy bluffing stunt quieted them briefly, and 20 minutes later I deposited the group at their destination.
I learned two things that night. First, passengers care little about the driver as long as they feel safe. Second, a glimpse of possible disaster briefly gains their attention.
nity spirit can’t be bullied. The Alberta government knew better than to try that tactic but its response was predictable and equally lame: “Fire protection is a municipal responsibility.”
“We don’t have the budget to help you.” “We’ve nearly finished a study on volunteer recruitment and retention.”
Here we have the richest province in Canada, with the oil sands generating billions of revenue dollars just north of Wandering River. We have seven firefighters responding to scores of calls on the only highway between Edmonton and the oil sands. And the solution is a study?
TIM BEEBE
We know we must volunteer if we want a hockey team or a curling club . . . or a fire department.
Such is the state of the fire service. We are firmly in the driver’s seat of the fire protection bus, and our passengers – the public – party in the back while we avoid the precipices. Aside from heckling us once in a while, why should they care about our affairs? After all, it’s our duty to remain at the wheel.
Maybe . . . but maybe not.
If Montreal, or Toronto or Vancouver abolished their fire departments, governments would step in. In smaller communities though, things are different. Premiers and ministers and fire marshals could issue a joint edict compelling the village of Upsala (population 183) to buck up and provide service, but if we refuse to volunteer, the edict is merely a fire starter for the next barbecue fundraiser.
Wandering River Fire Department in northern Alberta showed us what can happen when passengers ignore the driver for too long. In June, its members suspended service, stating that their roster of seven was insufficient to safely handle calls on Highway 63. These dedicated volunteers didn’t just switch off the lights. They parked the bus and pulled the keys. Their now attentive passengers were mostly supportive, but the bashers’ comments flashed like red warning lights: “How shameful!” “Stop whining and do the job!” “What about the poor drivers on Highway 63?”
The naysayers hadn’t yet discovered that goodwill and commu-
These attitudes are not new. Small communities are accustomed to providing their own services. We know we must volunteer if we want a hockey team or a curling club . . . or a fire department. No one else really cares until they crash on our stretch of highway.
To be fair, the Ontario government assists with fire protection in small, northern communities but the program provides only a fraction of what is needed. Without lots of local cash, and hordes of volunteers, the fire department would stall. Police and ambulance are funded like essential services but fire protection is funded like a peewee hockey club.
The budget makers say that there is only so much money in the finance pie. If we cut a larger slice for the fire service, health care, education or social services will go hungry. That is only one side of the funding puzzle. Hundreds of millions of dollars were available for a three day G8/G20 summit. Billions of dollars materialized when the public was spooked by H1N1, 9/11 and Y2K. It’s not a lack of funds, it’s a lack of will.
We could resort to the doomsday approach to leverage more funding. Imagine 125,000 volunteer firefighters marching toward Ottawa, clad in sandwich boards bearing this message: “The end is near! Extinction is at hand! Repent in sackcloth and ashes! (Or at least drop a few coins in a firefighter’s hat, for St. Florian’s sake).”
But that isn’t our style. We hate politicking. We care too much to abandon the driver’s seat, unless, like Wandering River, our safety is at stake. In normal labour negotiations, the workers hope that their employer cares more about the company mission than they do. But this is far from normal.
A few years ago I suggested to a regional police staff sergeant that we might eventually decline response on a certain remote bush road. His answer summed up the situation of the volunteer firefighter: “As long as you keep responding, we’ll keep calling.”
Here lies the enigma: Our passengers care too little. Our volunteers care too much. We are our own worst enemy, and everyone knows it.
Tim Beebe is the fire chief in Upsala, Ont. Contact him at upsalafd@ tbaytel.net and check out his blow at www.beebewitzblog.blogspot.com
