FE Volume 132 Issue 8

The National Fire Academy has undoubtedly established a record for having had a chief executive for the shortest time of any educational institution in the country. Hardly had the announcement been made that Raymond L. Perry of the International Association of Fire Fighters had been appointed academy superintendent before the National Fire Administration public relations people were on the phone saying that Perry had resigned.

A correspondence course, believed to be the first of its kind, which can lead to instructor certification has been developed at the University of Illinois. Students will prepare written assignments and take a final examination. In many cases, the examination can be taken under supervision in the student’s home community.

The number of false alarms turned in in New York City has decreased by nearly 40 percent in the first six months of this year as compared to the first half of last year. Mayor Edward I. Koch and Fire Commissioner Augustus A. Beekman have attributed the decrease “largely to the success of the modified response plan, which has been gradually expanded since it began last December 4.”

A chemical fire retardant, which afterward acts as a fertilizer, was used to help extinguish fires that raged across Los Angeles County for three days during late October. The retardant, trade-named Phos-Chek, was dropped from helicopters and airplanes by firefighters.