Cover pros and cons
As I look over the cover of the February 2007 issue of Fire Engineering, I see major concerns. Doesn’t anybody see the power line across the tower ladder? From all that I have read, aerials should be 10 feet from power lines for safety reasons.
Mark J Bush
Lieutenant
North Naples (FL) Fire Rescue
I would like to thank you for the excellent photo chosen for the February issue. I will now always look up as I pull on-scene. It is a great picture of what we do, but it is also a great picture of why firefighters die every year. The apparatus and operator are under a burning power line, and there is a burning pole that looks as though it could be on top of the apparatus or operator’s head at anytime.
This is an awesome training tool. I have used this photo to train my firefighters on what not to do.
Your magazine always provides excellent photos, good or bad; stories; and training ideas that we always use for training, guidance, and increasing our fire knowledge.
Andrew Mangeot
Lieutenant
Trotwood (OH) Fire & Rescue
Resources needed to combat wildfires
Kudos to Chief Robert Halton on his editorial on wildfire preparedness (Editor’s Opinion, March 2007). If you have a brush fire alongside an interstate highway or a railroad line, a 500-gallon tank on a custom, commercial, or wildland pumper does NOT go far without the assistance of a tanker on another pumper. But 750 gallons does ….
It is time all levels of government-federal, state, county, tribal, and municipal-pass legislation that provides funding and authorization for the fire agencies under their jurisdiction to acquire the special apparatus, supplies, and clothing so necessary to combat the year-round menace-wildfire.
Look at Texas. Within the past five years, parts of it have been proclaimed “disaster areas” every month because of wildfires.
In any interface situation, a city fire engine with a 750-gallon tank, instead of a 500-gallon tank, often makes the difference. It also makes a lot of sense. I have a relative who has lived in California for 20 years. He says the California State Legislature constantly votes down important increases in finances for the California Department of Forestry and fire protection.
In the wake of 9/11, the state of New Jersey bought something like 20 heavy rescue/command vehicles for search and rescue.
We need that and a whole lot more for the potential of wildfires all over the country. I want to see more editorials, articles, and photos on wildfire and the apparatus, clothing, and supplies needed to combat it.
David Titus
Marietta, Georgia
Ax over sledgehammer: “Don’t take a knife to a gunfight”
Relative to “Hydraulics vs. Halligans: Choosing the Appropriate Forcible Entry Method” (Nicholas A. Martin, March 2007), the photo showing how to force an inward, or “inny,” door is wrong in its depiction. The forked end of the halligan should be turned the other way to be mated with the door jamb and then forced inwardly. Remember, a sledgehammer is a one-dimensional tool, whereas a flathead ax can be used for many other operations such as a substantial door chock or door hook closer and to force open windows and check for hidden fire. Any fire department relying on a sledgehammer when a flathead ax is available is taking a knife to a gunfight.
Brad Graham
Santa Monica (CA) Fire Department
Nicholas A. Martin responds: I thank Brad Graham for his feedback regarding my article. I assume he is referring to photo 11, and I understand the suggestion that the outer curve of the bevel be placed against the door. That is entirely correct. Placing the bevel to the door will produce optimum leverage as well as prevent the forks from being driven into the door itself.
This photograph was intended primarily to demonstrate using the ax blade as a wedge to hold the progress of the forcible entry team should the halligan have to be repositioned. Although the rule of thumb is to always place the bevel to the door for additional leverage, there are times when a door will be so tight to the frame that this will not permit the team to make progress. In such a case, one option is to make a gap by using the bevel to the frame. The curve of the bevel follows the door more easily and may allow you to get enough gap to (as in the photo) use the ax as a wedge as you reposition the bevel against the door for additional leverage.
As for the ax vs. the sledgehammer debate, I am also on the same page here. If two equal-weight tools are available, I would choose the ax over the sledgehammer any day. My reasons for this are discussed near the end of the article under the section “Sledgehammer.”
