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IN AN EFFORTTO HELPREDUCE OCCUPATIONAL CANCER RISKS FACED BYFIREFIGHTERS, MINERVA BUNKER GEAR CLEANERS, FIRE SOAPS BYDEFENSIVE SOLUTIONS, AND FIREWIPES HAVE JOINED FORCES

Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners provides cleaning and care of PPE for thousands of fire departments nationwide from small volunteer departments to large metropolitan departments such as the FDNY. Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners is committed to providing the firefighting community with the finest maintenance care program available with six locations (NY, OH, CO, NC, GAand FL) to serve the fire service.

Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaner’s sister company, Defensive Solutions Corporation, is the creator of Fire Soaps, a line of cleaning agents to effectively and safely clean bunker gear. All Fire Soaps products are easy to use, eco-friendly, third party tested and surpass all NFPA1851 requirements regarding cleaning agents. Fire Soaps is specifically designed for use with all PPE ensembles, i.e., turnout gear, wildland, industrial and aviation fire fighting apparel, fire protective garments (FPGs) for shipboard personnel and proximity suits.

Created by a firefighter for firefighters and first responders, FireWipes are designed to provide a quick on-scene decontamination solution for firefighters after exposure to hazardous environments. Firewipes are biodegradable industrial strength disposable wipes infused with cleansing compounds for use on all external dermal areas. The wipe is saturated with a unique formula specifically designed to minimize additional carcinogenic exposure through dermal absorption for the user.

Occupational cancer is one of the leading causes of death for firefighters and they have statistically higher rates of multiple cancers than the general population. Research has shown that most of it is caused by carcinogens they are exposed to through soot particulates, and dermal absorption is a likely route of exposure. Particular areas of concern are the face, jawline, neck, and wrists where skin is most permeable.

Firewipes use only premium ingredients that are hypoallergenic, latexfree, paraben-free, MI (Methylisothi zolinone) -free, SLS free and contains no alcohol. Each wipe is individually packaged to prolong shelf life, eliminate cross contamination, maintain consistency, limit waste, reduce costs, and provide a quick onscene decontamination solution for firefighters after exposure to hazardous environments.

FireWipes will be available for purchase though all six Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners facilities and the Fire Soaps website, with this partnership Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners and Fire Soaps can be your one stop shop for helping firefighters reduce occupational cancer risks.

About FireWipes

Firewipes is committed to providing the highest level of quality products that are specifically formulated and designed to aid in the removal of potential carcinogenic contaminants from exposure to hazardous environments.

Contact: Creston Ludlow, President

Phone: 844-947-3483 Email: cludlow@firewipes.com Website: www.firewipes.com

About Minerva BunkerGearCleaners

Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners is committed to providing the firefighting community with the finest maintenance care program available. We have six facilities (NY, OH, CO, NC, GA, & FL) dedicated exclusively to the cleaning, repair and inspection of PPE as well as wildland, industrial and aviation fire fighting ensembles, fire protective garments (FPGs) for shipboard personnel and proximity suits. We are fully NFPA1851 compliant and verified by Intertek and UL, both leading third-party verification services, to the current 2020 edition. Minerva Bunker Gear Cleaners is recognized by all PPE manufacturers and is authorized to do extensive repairs and alterations.

Contact: Joe Xiras, President

Phone: 718-728-7400

Email: Joe@bunkergearcleaners.com

Website: www.bunkergearcleaners.com

About Fire Soaps by Defensive Solutions

Defensive Solutions Corp. supplies cleaning agents and EPA Registered anti-bacterial and sanitizing products that are ideal for use in EMS and fire facilities, emergency vehicles, ambulances, police cars, police stations, municipal government buildings, schools, bathrooms, showers, locker rooms, exercise equipment and training facilities. All of our products are alcohol-free, kill 99.9 percent of germs and bacteria and, when used properly, are proven to significantly reduce the chance of cross contamination from: MRSA, pseudomonas aeruginosa, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Influenza AVirus, E. Coli, HIV-1, Hepatitis B and Salmonella. The active ingredients in our sanitizing products have been proven to kill bacteria and protect against cross contamination from both Gram Negative bacteria and Gram Positive bacteria. Our two products, SureClean™ Plus and Fabric Sanitizer are EPARegistered. SureClean™ Plus is on the EPAN list of registered disinfectants for protection against SARS-COV-2.

Defensive Solutions Corp. has also created Fire Soaps™, a line of cleaning agents to effectively and safely clean bunker gear. All of our products are easy to use, eco-friendly, third party Tested and surpass all NFPA1851 requirements regarding cleaning agents. Fire Soaps™ is specifically designed for use with all PPE ensembles, i.e., turnout gear, wildland, industrial and aviation fire fighting apparel, fire fighting ensembles (FFEs), fire protective garments (FPGs) for shipboard personnel and proximity suits.

Contact: Joe Xiras, President

Phone: 718-502-9577

Email: info@firesoaps.com

Website: www.firesoaps.com

FireNews.com

Fire News, October2021, Page 27 Mahopac Falls Escorts Santa in July

On July 24, 2021, the members of Mahopac Falls VolunteerFire Department awoke bright and early to meet up with a very special guest — Santa Claus — fora very special occasion. Aftermaking the extremely hard decision to cancel the annual Candy Cane Run last December, the membership decided they wanted to lift the spirits and bring something special to the members of theircommunity. Aftermonths of planning, Santa agreed to take a break from his summervacation and spent his day riding on the firetrucks visiting all the boys and girls in the Mahopac Falls Fire District. It was a great day and we couldn’t have asked forbetterweather. - Fire News photo by Ellen Nistico, PIO

INTERSCHUTZ USA2021 KEEPS ON GOING!

The organizers of INTERSCHUTZ USA, the US launch of the famous Interschutz brand of Hannover, Germany, are excited for their October launch of this inaugural event. Scheduled to take place October 14 to 16, 2021, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in historic Philadelphia, INTERSCHUTZ USAis shaping up to be a success.

What is the same ……

Originally scheduled to launch in October 2020, prior to the outbreak of Covid-19, INTERSCHUTZ USAcontinues to promise all participants access to education, instructors, perspectives, and products not traditionally seen at other US fire service events. Developed initially to provide the US fire service with access to international perspectives they don’t usually see, INTERSCHUTZ USA2021 will keep that promise both domestically and internationally.

The most exciting, and only new, event to come to the US fire service in many years, INTERSCHUTZ USAwill provide a much-needed platform to bring together the fire service’s brothers and sisters to network, share and learn. What has changed…..

With the effect of Covid-19 on travel and large gatherings, much of the international attendance and exhibitor participation has been put on hold for the year. In turn, after too long away from one another, INTERSCHUTZ USApromises to bring back the Northeast and MidAtlantic’s fire service professionals with representatives from all the major suppliers. We are happy to announce the addition of Dave Odden as Show Manager of INTERSCHUTZ USA. We regret the departure of Rachel Lesczynski but understand and wish her all the best. Rachel was involved with the hiring of Dave to replace her, and the team is excited to have Dave at the helm.

Registration and Hotels….

Registration is currently open for INTERSCHUTZ USAwith Early-Bird rates still in effect. The hotels available to INTERSCHUTZ USAattendees and exhibitors are available as well. Both can be found by going to the event web site: www.interschutzusa.com.