AFGP awards announced
The following Fiscal Year 2005 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFGP) awards were announced for U.S. fire departments and emergency medical services organizations.
• Third round: 223 grants, totaling $26,146,284.
• Fourth round: 328 grants, totaling $27,851,222.
• Fifth round: 237 grants, totaling $22,848,677.
• Sixth round: 283 grants, totaling $30,591,795.
The funds are to be used for training, first responder health and safety programs, equipment, and response vehicles.
The AFGP is administered by the Department of Homeland Security Office for State and Local Government Coordination & Preparedness (SLGCP) in cooperation with the United States Fire Administration. ■
USFA’s R. David Paulison tapped to head FEMA in Katrina’s aftermath
President George W. Bush named R. David Paulison, U.S. Fire Administrator, Acting Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response and head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He replaces FEMA Director Michael Brown, who resigned amid the controversy surrounding the Hurricane Katrina federal response.
Paulison has 30 years of fire rescue services experience and had served as chief of the Miami-Dade (FL) Fire Rescue Department.
Paulison’s reassignment has been favorably received by the fire service and members of Congress. Congressman Curt Weldon (PA), vice chairman of the Homeland Security Committee and founder of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus, said in a release: “My dear friend Chief Paulison is extremely well qualified to head FEMA …. While observing the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew with Paulison back in 2002, I witnessed firsthand the depth of his leadership and character and, most importantly, his ability to get things done in the face of adversity.”
IAFF General President Harold A. Schaitberger called Paulison “an excellent choice to fill the job that oversees the FEMA” and noted “our nation will be better protected with David Paulison as the head of preparedness and response for our government.”
National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) Chairman Philip C. Stittleburg noted: “We strongly endorse the Administration’s decision to select a firefighter, especially one of Chief Paulison’s stature and experience, to head the nation’s lead emergency response agency ….”
The National Fire Protection Association lauded the appointment. James M. Shannon, president, related: ”We are pleased that the Administration has chosen an experienced member of the fire service and an accomplished emergency manager to handle these two important functions ….” ■
IAFF remembers fallen firefighters
Eighty-six firefighters from the United States and Canada who lost their lives in the line of duty between June 2004 and June 2005 were honored at this year’s International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) annual Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial ceremony in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on September 17. The Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial is in the shadow of Pike’s Peak. Since the memorial was established in 1976, the names of the 1,775 fallen firefighters have been engraved into the Wall of Honor as part of the memorial. ■
Never Forgotten: Those Lost on 9/11
The marking of the anniversary of the 9/11/01 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon was prevalent throughout the country. Among the many events held were the following:
• The flags of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial were moved to half-staff the morning of September 11, 2005.
• The San Jose (CA) Fire Department held a memorial mass at St. Joseph’s Cathedral Basilica, followed by a solemn march up Market Street to Fire Station #1 for a memorial service. A “Ringing of the Last Alarm” commemorating comrades who fell in the line of duty was held at the fire station. Chaplain William Stout blessed firefighters working in New Orleans to help victims of Hurricane Katrina.
• In San Francisco, about 900 people participated in the “Run to Remember 9-11” five-kilometer and 10-kilometer races. Initiated by relatives of United Airlines Flight 93, which was scheduled to land in San Francisco but instead crashed in Pennsylvania on 9/11.
• U.S. and Canadian elected officials and others, including firefighters from Canada and the Fire Department of New York, met at the International Peace Garden at the border of Dunseith, North Dakota, and Boissevain, MB, Canada, on September 11 for the 3rd Annual Memorial Service. The ceremony featured a fly-by by the North Dakota Air National Guard.
The Garden’s 9/11 memorial features steel girders transported from the World Trade Center. www.mercurynews.com, article 12623264, Sept. 12, 2005 ■
USFA releases 2004 firefighter fatalities report
In 2004, 117 firefighters from 41 states died in the line of duty, according to the United States Fire Administration (USFA) Firefighter Fatalities in the United States in 2004 report. Pennsylvania had the greatest number of casualties:18. The report also cited the following relative to the fatalities:
• The victims included 36 career and 81 volunteer firefighters.
• Eighty firefighters died in activities directly related to emergency incidents-responding to an emergency, at an emergency scene, or returning from the emergency incident.
• Incidents not related to an emergency incident (training, administrative activities, or performing other functions) accounted for 37 fatalities.
• Two Pittsburgh firefighters were killed in the collapse of a burning church, two Nebraska firefighters were killed in the collapse of a burning single-family residence, and two Philadelphia firefighters were killed when they became trapped in the basement of a burning home. The Philadelphia Fire Department also suffered the loss of a firefighter in a January structure fire.
• Six female firefighters died.
• Thirty firefighters died while working at fire scenes.
• Twenty-two firefighters died while responding to and returning from an incident scene. More than half were in vehicle crashes.
• Sixty-six firefighter deaths were attributed to stress and overexertion, the highest number in this category in more than a decade.
• Sixty-one firefighters died of heart attacks, four of strokes, and one of a heart-related cause.
The report can be downloaded at http://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/fa-299-508.pdf; it can be ordered in hard copy by calling the Publications Center at (800) 561-3356 between 7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. EST/EDT. ■
DHS/FEMA: Interoperability NIMS’ primary objective
The National Incident Management System (NIMS) Integration Center of the Department of Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency (DHS/FEMA) reminds all responders that “plain language” is needed in emergency response situations to ensure the safety of the public, responders, and victims.
The NIMS and the Incident Command System (ICS) are built on the principle of interoperability across jurisdictions and disciplines, the Center stresses. Therefore, it says, it is critical that all local responders, including those coming into the impacted areas from other jurisdictions and states, know and use commonly established operational structures, terminology, policies, and procedures. Using plain language, the Center adds, enables area commanders, state, and local emergency operations center personnel, federal operational coordinators, and responders to communicate clearly with each other and to effectively coordinate response activities regardless of the incident’s size, scope, or complexity.
At the end of fiscal Year 2006, the states are to certify to DHS/FEMA that “taken as a whole” they and their local jurisdictions are NIMS compliant. Local jurisdictions are to work with their states to achieve this compliance. Even though the deadline for total compliance may be extended for a period after 2006, continued resistance to complying with NIMS requirements and using plain language eventually will result in the loss of federal preparedness funding, cautions DHS/FEMA. ■
USFA and Fire Corps initiate traffic control volunteer study
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) and the Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen’s Association’s (CVVFA) Emergency Responder Safety Institute have joined in a study involving recruitment and retention methods and techniques for fire service traffic control volunteers, referred to in some areas of the United States as fire police.
The project, according to Charlie Dickinson, deputy United States fire administrator, “will result in the effective use of citizen volunteers in support of the fire service as well as contribute to firefighter safety.” The initiative is in support of the National Fallen Firefighters’ Foundation (NFFF) Firefighter Life Safety Initiative to mitigate on-duty firefighter fatalities caused by motor vehicles.
This study is supported by the Office of State and Local Government Preparedness and Coordination’s Fire Corps Program. Study results will be incorporated into a detailed guide on recruiting and retaining fire service traffic control professionals and will be disseminated through the Fire Corps (www.firecorps.org), the USFA (www.fema.gov), and the CVVFA (www.ResponderSafety.com) Web sites. Additional information on the Fire Corps is at www.firecorps.org. Additional information on the NFFF’s Firefighter Life Safety Initiative may be found at www.firehero.org. ■
ASTM committees to study NIST’s WTC collapse and fire exposure tests
The ASTM Committee E05 on Fire Standards has formed an advisory group to study the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) investigation reports on the World Trade Center fires and collapses on 9/11. Among the areas the ASTM will review are the following: developing or revising ASTM standards for analysis and assessment of structural fire protection and fire resistance of building assemblies; studying the response of buildings, structures, building materials and assemblies, interior finishes, furnishings, and contents to heat or flame under controlled conditions; evaluating E05 standards related to computer fire modeling; and developing or revising fire test methods for measuring fire responses and properties of materials, products, and assemblies when exposed to laboratory sources of heat, flame, or both.
A report on the study will be presented at ASTM Committee Week in Dallas, Texas, December 4-7. Additional information is available from Thomas O’Toole, ASTM International, totoole@astm.org.
In another matter, the new ASTM E05 subcommittee, E05-14 on External Fire Exposure Tests, is now developing standards that would reduce the structural damage caused by wildfires. The subcommittee will develop and maintain standards evaluating the responses of materials, components, and assemblies of buildings and structures to external fire exposure, including wildland fires. It will also evaluate the performance of roofing assemblies typically evaluated by ASTM E 108, Test Methods for Fire Tests of Roof Coverings.
The subcommittee will be comprised of the following task groups: exterior walls, windows, roofs, eaves, decks, vents, and plants. Those wishing to participate in the subcommittee’s activities may serve in the following areas: fire research community, builders, code officials, architects, engineers, associations, and manufacturers.
Additional technical information is available from Frank Beall, University of California, Berkeley, Richmond, California, at (510) 665-3536; or e-mail frank.beall@natureberkeley.edu. ■
New York State awards $2 billion contract for emergency radio network
The Statewide Wireless Network (SWN) will provide connectivity and coordination of police, fire, emergency medical, and other necessary response services. The statewide radio network project represents the first comprehensive upgrade to many of the New York state’s emergency radio systems in more than 30 years.
M/A-COM Inc. will be the prime contractor of the statewide digital land mobile radio network and will be responsible for its ongoing operation and maintenance. The project is expected to be completed in five years. The New York State Office for Technology is the lead state agency for SWN and will be the overall project manager.
The cost of the project ($2.005 billion) will be financed over 20 years. Network design, materials, construction, towers, shelters, fixed assets, network equipment, finance charges, site lease costs, operation and maintenance of the network over the 20-year term, and future upgrades are included in the cost. The State Wireless Communications Service Surcharge will fund the project.
SWN is expected to provide the vital interoperable communications backbone first responders at the local, state, and federal levels need to effectively respond to and mitigate any type of hazard including acts of terrorism, according to New York State Office of Homeland Security Director James. W. McMahon. Fostering voluntary partnerships with local governments to address their communications needs has become a cornerstone of the SWN Project. Partnerships will facilitate network development by sharing frequencies and infrastructure as well as provide access to end user equipment procurement contracts. SWN will be phased in through a series of regional implementations. www.govtech.net, Sept. 23, 2005 ■
Fire sprinklers reliability higher,says NFPA report
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) updated report, “U.S. Experience with Sprinklers and Other Fire Extinguishing Equipment,” notes that the chances of dying in a fire are reduced by 50 percent to 75 percent when working sprinklers are present. In addition, the report says that it can be documented that nearly all sprinkler failures involve errors of human judgment. In 65 percent of the cases studied, the systems had been shut off before the fire occurred.
Sprinklers are present in less than 1 percent of the fires reported in one- and two-family dwellings and in less than 8 percent of reported fires in apartments, according to the study. Moreover, where sprinklers were present in homes, they had the same positive impact on life safety as in other properties where sprinklers have been long established.
At the NFPA membership meeting held this past June, it was determined that the 2006 editions of NFPA 101®, Life Safety Code®, NFPA 5000®, Building Construction and Safety Code®, and NFPA 1, Uniform Fire Code would require sprinklers in new one- and two-family dwellings and in all nursing homes, as well as other properties. ■
BFCA hosts unique seminar on residential sprinklers
The Building & Fire Code Academy (BFCA) hosted in August a seminar for building officials, managers, developers/directors, and mayors on residential fire sprinklers that featured a demonstration of the effectiveness of fire sprinklers and an overview of the sprinkler codes. Some 96 people attended.
The Hoffman Estates (IL) Fire Department participated in the demonstration, which involved two similarly furnished 8- × 8-foot rooms. Only one of the rooms was equipped with a residential fire sprinkler. Attendees witnessed the speed with which fire can destroy a home as well as the effectiveness of sprinklers.
The fires were started in wastepaper baskets positioned in the back of the rooms-to simulate a fire started by dumping the contents of a smoldering ashtray into the trash (smoking materials have been associated with 18 percent of residential fires). To provide a realistic view of an accidental fire and to ensure safety, no accelerants were used.
The flames in the unsprinklered room quickly spread from the trashcan to curtains to the couch. In less than three minutes, the room had reached flashover, when all the items in the room reached their ignition temperature. The plastic partition that allowed spectators to view the fire buckled from the heat and fell to the ground. The firefighters extinguished the fire. It took several minutes for the heavy smoke to dissipate in the still, humid air. The smell of burning electronics lingered until well after the demonstration in the second room.
The fire in the second room, which was fitted with residential fire sprinklers, was extinguished in about 20 seconds from the point when the flames first became visible-by the time the flames had progressed halfway up the curtains.
The Building & Fire Code Academy, the Illinois Fire Inspectors Association, the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board, and the Hoffman Estates Fire Department sponsored the Residential Fire Sprinkler Seminar.
BFCA, a subsidiary of B&F Technical Code Services, Inc. in Hoffman Estates, provides comprehensive and practical education in the administration, application and enforcement of building and fire codes. ■
NENA proposes Interim/Migratory Solution for VoIP E9-1-1
The National Emergency Number Association’s (NENA) first major standard on the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Enhanced 9-1-1 (E9-1-1) system was up for public review in September. The Interim Solution standard (known in short as I2) enables VoIP telecommunications service providers to deliver full E9-1-1 service through the current E9-1-1 infrastructure. VoIP makes it possible to make telephone calls over a high-speed/broadband Internet connection instead of a regular (analog) phone line. It converts the voice signal into a digital signal that travels over the Internet.
“The Interim Solution standard is the first major step to support VoIP E9-1-1 and to redesign E9-1-1 for present and future needs,” according to Roger Hixson, NENA technical issues director. It is a more flexible and robust IP-based Next Generation E9-1-1 service that will flexibly support all types of 9-1-1 calling devices-an attempt to modernize E9-1-1. Public safety organizations must upgrade to IP interfaces as they become available. ■
Line-of-Duty-Deaths
August 22. Firefighter Philip S. Young, 59, Dover (DE) Fire Department: aneurysm; he had fallen 12 feet from the second floor of the fire station in April while preparing to descend the sliding pole. He had undergone multiple surgeries on his leg, which never healed. On August 20, he suffered the fatal CVA aneurysm-related symptoms.
August 25. Fire Police Officer Daniel R. Angert, 44, Petrolia (PA) Volunteer Fire Company: cerebrovascular accident.
August 28. Firefighter Michael Switala, 50, Lower Burrell (PA) Volunteer Fire Department: of injuries suffered in an unknown medical emergency while participating in his third night dive training exercise for PADI recertification.
September 3. Firefighter Robert Allen Bestgen, 51, Osborn (MO) Fire Protection District: struck by a truck while on stand-by detail at a racetrack. The incident was under investigation at press time.
September 4. Chief Henry James Combs, 46, Watts (KY) Volunteer Fire Department: of injuries sustained in an auto vehicle accident while en route to the fire station for a reported residential structure fire.
September 16. Assistant Chief James Edward Scott, 57, Hamilton (NC) Volunteer Fire & EMS Inc.: heart attack in the morning while en route to the fire station for work.
September 21. Chief Edward King, 55, Reno County Fire District No. 7, Turon, KS: Head-on collision with another fire truck while responding to a controlled field burn that had gotten out of control.
Source: USFA Firefighters Memorial Database
SUPPORT FOR HURRICANE VICTIMS
• USFA opens call center for support of firefighters
The United States Fire Administration, at the request of a number of fire service organizations and disaster relief efforts, opened on September 24 a national call center to assist fire organizations seeking to help fire departments, firefighters, and their families affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The call center will accept calls from departments with equipment to be donated to departments in the affected areas and will receive calls from fire departments in the disaster areas that need equipment or assistance. The call center number is (1-800) 250-9036; the e-mail address is fireaid@dhs.gov. At press time, it was to be staffed seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (EDT) until further notice.
A steering committee representing the numerous relief efforts currently underway throughout this nation will manage all donations and review requests for assistance so they can be appropriately matched.
• NVFC fund for volunteer firefighters
The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) has established the NVFC Volunteer Firefighter Support Fund for volunteer firefighters and their families who have been impacted by Hurricane Katrina. NVFC state member fire associations in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi will identify volunteer firefighters seeking assistance. Requests for assistance should be directed to the following:
-Alabama State Firefighters Association: Bill Bullman (251) 454-3816 or billbulman2002@yahoo.com.
-Louisiana State Firemen’s Association: Aubrey Boudreaux (337) 923-6890 or jamboud@teche.net.
-Mississippi Firefighters Association: Contact your local county fire coordinator and have them get in touch with Larry Barr at (888) 900-7414.
Tax-deductible contributions can be made online at www.nvfc.org or mailed to NVFC Volunteer Firefighter Support Fund; P.O. Box 222061; Chantilly, VA 20153-2061.
The NVFC is donating administrative costs associated with the Fund to ensure that all the contributions reach volunteer firefighters in need.
The NVFC had previously established the NVFC Emergency Relief Fund to aid volunteer and combination fire departments with equipment and facility repair and replacement. Additional information about this Fund can also be found at www.nvfc.org.
• First Responders Relief Fund
The First Responders Relief Fund (FRRF), founded by Atlanta (GA) Fire Department Chief Dennis Rubin, was launched at press time. The “Put Help in the Helmet” initiative will provide immediate financial relief to first responders (fire, rescue, law enforcement officers, nurses, and emergency medical service professionals) affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Emergency services departments nationwide kicked off the campaign September 28, soliciting at shopping malls, sporting events, and traffic lights on main streets across America.
The FRRF replaces the former Foundation for American Firefighters, whose chairman was Dennis Smith, a member of the Board of the New York Police & Fire Widows and Children Benefit Fund. The Foundation, a 501(c) not-for-profit corporation (IRS Tax ID# 13-3411053), is governed by an executive committee. Annual reports are kept by the state of New York’s office of the Attorney General. Additional information is at www.firstrespondersrelief.com/.
Foundation members include primarily fire and law enforcement representatives and elected officials who have shown commitment to public safety, including Senators John McCain (AZ) and Joseph Biden (DE); Congressmen Curt Weldon (PA) and Peter King (NY); and Georgia Lieutenant Governor Mark Taylor, who are honorary chairpersons.
News Glimpses
USFA: Cooking caused 185,600 U.S. structure fires in 2000. Cooking-related fires caused an estimated 185,600 structure fires, 80 civilian deaths, 3,875 injuries, and $481 million in property damage in 2000, according to Structure Cooking Fires, developed the U.S. Fire Administration’s National Fire Data Center. According to the report, the number of cooking fires, which account for a large number of preventable fires and injuries, can be reduced if citizens were more attentive when using cooking materials and equipment. The report’s data are from the 2002 National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). A copy of the full report is at http://www.usfa.fema.gov/statistics/reports/pubs/tfrs.shtm/.
Robert Jamison deputy administrator of The Transportation Security Administration (TSA). For the past three years, he served as deputy administrator of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
Firefighters move in to extinguish birthday cake candles. A celebration in a Calgary, Alberta, Canada restaurant ended with the local fire department’s extinguishing the 20,000 candles on the cake made by culinary students from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. The occasion was Alberta’s 100th birthday. The candle flames filled the room with smoke; patrons had to be evacuated. There were no injuries. www.brandossun.com, id=2423, Sept. 2, 2005; www.canada.com, Sept. 6, 2005
DHS announces 2004 AFGP supplemental awards to U.S. fire departments. Supplemental Fiscal Year 2004 funds in the amount of $3,728,168 went to 44 U.S. fire departments.
