Becoming A Firefighter

Becoming a firefighter is back in action...

2009-07-12T13:55:00.001-07:00

I have been pretty busy lately (as you can tell by my last post date) but I am going to start posting again. Hopefully there is still someone out there that wants to hear from me, but I guess we will have to see.

Look forward to more posts to come.

Another great site... Dang...

2008-07-28T21:10:00.000-07:00

Yup. Found another one. This one doesnt have as much unless you subscribe but it does break things down for you as a new firefighter trying to break into the service. Here is an example of what I mean:

* Don't wear earrings, die your hair strange colors or wear pants hanging off . It's Not MTV
* Look like a professional. Take pride in your uniform
* Make friends
* Maintain professional competence
* Don't spout off in public. Let your performance speak for itself
* Go with your natural instinct
* Drive safely & conscientiously
* Don't judge other's actions until you know all the facts
* Go to the bathroom while you have the chance
* Be extremely careful when backing up a vehicle. Use a back up person when possible
* Learn to type & use a computer
* Be empathetic, it could be you
* Leave stress at work
* Longevity doesn't guarantee perfection, even veterans make mistakes.
* Learn new ways to communicate, languages, sign language, etc.
* Don't bring your problems to work
* Become educated
* Respect & learn from seniors
* Be your worst own critic
* Even though most calls are uneventful, don't get to relaxed because the next one might be worse.
* Avoid gossip

Its all simple stuff but they really break it down in layman's terms for people who don't get it. I love it! This is great stuff to know before you jump in. There is so much more here as well. Enjoy.

Fire Career Assistance

Free firefighter exams and more...

2008-07-28T20:29:00.000-07:00

Have you eve wanted to get ahead of the game. In the fire service, to get a job you have to be, and if your not you better get started! I have been in the fire service for 3 years now (WOW... not really) and am constantly learning. From peers, superiors, written tests, drills, mock interviews, actual interviews... the learning in endless. But I always keep searching for more ways to get ahead.

Just the other day, I was searching the vast rims of the web, when I found one of the best websites I have seen as of yet. Rescue Exams. Sounds pretty non interesting huh?! Well, to get ahead of the game this is one place to do it.

This website is a firefighters dream! Not to mention a training coordinator or EMT. This website has tons of practice tests, training videos, drill diagrams and training tools, and SO much more. I can't even begin to talk about all the stuff on this website... and best of all... ITS TOTALL, 100%, FREE! Yup is said the F word! You gotta check it out.

RescueExams.com

FlashoverTV...

2008-07-25T08:31:00.000-07:00

This is an awesome website I just found the other day. It has a ton of awesome fire department videos posted by firefighter all over the country... I think of it as a Firefighter's You Tube or something along those lines.

The have awesome training videos, action videos, rescue stuff, and so much more. Its free to sign up and I will tell you one thing, it cures that rainy day boredom for sure! Check it out!

FlashoverTV

My departments pictures go online...

2008-07-25T08:23:00.000-07:00

I just recently finished my departments website. Its nothing too special, but it serves its purpose well and we seem to be getting a lot of people stopping by.

Please check it out and give me some feedback, but you should definitely check out the video and picture sections, we have some cool new additions to cure some office/computer boredom!

Website link: www.bennettvalleyfire.org

Where have I been... again?

2008-07-25T08:18:00.000-07:00

Wow. It's been a long time. But where exactly have I been? Let me give you a few reasons for my absence"

Got married on June 7th
Move into our new apartment after that
Got a new corporate job last December
Been working full time at that job as well as part time at my current department

Needless to say it has been a crazy year for me, but I hope to start posting a lot more again.

Hopefully I still have some readers.

Helpful fire job listing websites...

2007-08-24T16:20:00.001-07:00

I have been looking around a lot for job listings. The best resource is the Internet.

There are so many place to look, so where do you start? Here are the websites I am currently using to find jobs both locally and nationally. I hope these help you out some... they have helped me a TON!

911 Hot Jobs - Very cool website that has many job listings... they also sell resources for interviews, tests and all sorts of other great resources. They also have, from time to time, free products when you sign up, like test question books, how to guides and much more.
Fire Recruit - This is an awesome website. There are so many job listings in here... they also have some awesome resources on oral interviews including common questions, and more.
CPAT Test - CA firefighters only
Fire Hire - Website dedicated to the Fire Hire test and the jobs associated with it.
Firehouse.com - Many many job listings, as well as forums, news, pictures... basically anything you could want is there.

Yes, you may have noticed that some of these sites require a monthly charge, its minimal but its so worth is... just do it!

Where have I been?!...

2007-08-24T16:11:00.000-07:00

That's a great question. Well I have been very busy indeed. Where do I start...?

Well I had an interview with a department about an hour and a half of where I live. I received a 96% on my oral interview (which was awesome by the way), but I only score an 79% on the written exam... which when added together didn't give me high enough standing to get one of the initial positions available but it did put me number 22 on the hiring list for the next 2 years.

What did I get out of this? Well I got the experience of yet another interview process, which showed me that I am getting better at them (98%!!). Plus I got on a hiring list. In my opinion it was a success.

But that was a few months ago, where have you been lately? Well, I also got on as an intern for a department near me as well. I haven't started yet but I will be working my first shift on the 9th or next month. I already have all my gear and am waiting for the patches to get sown on my dress shirt and I will be ready to get started. I am so excited.

Its been 6 months since the academy, that I have done any fire related training, so it will be good to get back into it again finally.

I will hopefully keep posting again, and will keep you all updated on the new happenings.

Interview Questions...

2007-04-20T14:08:00.000-07:00

Well the first interview is over and I think it went really well. They asked me simple questions and I gave them some pretty good answers... Here are a few of the questions they asked me (at least all the ones I can remember):

- Tell us a little about yourself
- What have you done to prepare yourself for this position?
- How do you deal with customer service with you current job and what does that have to do with the FD?
- Define loyalty, and pride, and relate the to the fire service.
- Do you have anything to add or any questions for us?

And that was about it... it wasn't too difficult nor was it that long. I stayed calm throughout the interview. I don't feel that I stuttered at all, so overall IMO its been the best interview I've done to date.

I hope this helps some of you... please let me know if it does or if you have any questions or want to hear my point of view on things.

Until next time...

New Department Interview...

2007-04-19T17:39:00.000-07:00

As some of you have read from my last post, I am going to be interviewing with two different departments in the coming weeks.

My old department, and a new department that I have never really worked with... well, tomorrow is the day for the new departments interview.

Wish me luck! I will let you know how things go, and I will write down some of the questions I was asked for those of you who want to start compiling a list.

Possibilities...

2007-03-20T18:28:00.000-07:00

Well I have some choices right now. I have the choice to wait until approx. August to get back on with the department I used to be affiliated with or start an internship with another one I have found. Lets take a look at the pros and cons shall we...

Pros of old department:
- Had a ton of fun, loved the people and the community.
- It's where it all started.
- Feel very comfortable and confident there.

Cons:
- Wait till august.
- No real progression, but more experience (only).

Pros of new department:
- Work on getting my firefighter II cert.
- New department, new people, new connections.
- Keep my skills up, and learn some new things along the way.

Cons of new department:
- 1 year commitment in an internship.
- Time commitment.
- VERY SLOW department.

This is the dilemma. Hmmmm I will ponder this a while... please leave comments if you feel compelled... any help helps! ha ha

Back to the future...

2007-03-05T09:52:00.000-08:00

Today I am going back to my old volunteer department where this blog began. I am going to apply for an out of district volunteer position. Basically what that means is that I am not in district so I wont be responding to every emergency. I will respond to major emergencies and when I am at the department working a shift I will respond as well.

This works out really well because with being done with the academy, and wanting to look or a real job I need a flexible schedule to accommodate that so this will work out great.

I will let you know when I hear back from them about the position.

Now that it's over...

2007-02-20T08:20:00.000-08:00

I haven't been posting as much lately. I know, I'm sorry. But the academy is over and now I have been thrown back into the real world with "real" college classes (bad news). I had a great time in the academy, met a ton of people who I will be working closely with in the up coming months and years to find a job. I have memories I will never forget... but I have to move forward to bigger things.

Here is a few of the best pics from my academy, and please keep checking back for updates about the job hunt!

Civilian vs. FD Friends

2007-02-20T08:16:00.000-08:00

A buddy of mine sent me this... I thought it was pretty funny. Enjoy.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Get upset if you're too busy to talk to them for a
week.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Are glad to see you after years, and will
happily carry on the same conversation you were having last time you
met.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Never ask for food.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Are the reason you have no food.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Call your parents Mr. And Mrs.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Call your parents mom and dad.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Bail you out of jail and tell you what you did was wrong.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Would be sitting next to you saying, "Damn...we screwed up...but man that was fun!"

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Have never seen you cry.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Cry with you

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Borrow your stuff for a few days then give it back.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Keep your stuff so long they forget it's yours.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Know a few things about you.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Could write a book with direct quotes from you.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will leave you behind if that's what the crowd is doing.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Will kick the whole crowds' ass that left you behind.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Would knock on your door.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Walk right in and say, "I'm home!"

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Are for a while.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Are for life.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Have shared a few experiences...
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Have shared a lifetime of experiences no Civilian could ever dream of...

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will take your drink away when they think you've had enough.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Will look at you stumbling all over the place and say, "You better drink the rest of that, you know we don't waste...that's alcohol abuse!!" Then carry you home safely and put you to bed.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will talk crap to the person who talks crap about you.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FRIENDS: Will knock them the hell out of them for using your name in vain.

2007-01-15T22:21:00.000-08:00

Here is the latest update on the recent happenings. Some good news other bad news. I was dropped late last year from my new department. Mainly because the time I have been spending at in the academy has taken to much time away from my training with them. This is both good and bad.

Bad, because I don't am now not with a department and not getting any experience at the moment, but good in a sense that I can concentrate on my finals of the academy (which are this week by the way!), and I will hopefully be going back to the department I was with before, which is VERY good.

I will be finishing up the academy this week after a few tests which I plan to do well on.

So keep your finger crossed that I everything goes smoothly this week, and look forward to another update soon... this time not as long in between!

WOW! 3 months since update...

2006-11-05T14:44:00.000-08:00

Yes... I am alive. Its hard to believe that 3 months have gone by and I have had not even a minute to give an update. There has been so much going on in my fire life. I don't even know where to start. This is going to be a multi-part update mainly because I don't have time to write about everything all at once. Now, where to start... hmmmm.

My new department seems like a good place to start. As you know, or might remember I am at a new department and have gone on some fires. Now I am coming to the end of my probationary period and we are currently in testing to leave probationary status and enter the real of 'volunteer.' This will open many doors, as far as what I can and cant do on a fire. I will be able to go interior on an initial attack among other things. I will be able to sign up for the 'strike team list' which would give me the opportunity to leave the county for state fires. So as you can see this is a pretty good deal!

We had our first night of testing on Wednesday the 1st and I will be doing my second night of testing on Wednesday the 8th. Hopefully if all goes well I wont have to re mediate anything and be done on the 8th. I have been training a little for this mainly because the academy is taking so much of my time.

Lately I haven't been on any fires or even really gone on any calls for that matter. We have had a lot of calls, but most of them turn into nothing or we don't even get out of the house before we get cancelled. BUT, I am getting calls! ha ha

Other then that, the new department is working our great. I am having fun and learning a lot. I will keep you posted on anything else that happens. Keep an eye here for my next update on the academy!

PPE Night 1...

2006-08-22T22:44:00.001-07:00

Tonight we started in our series of PPE(personal protective equipment) classes. These classes are mainly informative classes about the different part of our PPE including, turnouts (pants and jacket), helmet, SCBA, goggles, gloves, boots, etc. The picture to the right is the proper way to suit up to go into a fire or many other dangerous situations. (Yes that picture is me... ha ha)

We went over many of the NFPA standards they are used for in terms of PPE.

We will be learning about SCBA's and actually using all of our PPE on Thursday. I will update you all then.

Until next time.

Day at the airshow...

2006-08-19T17:49:00.000-07:00

I was at the airshow that I was telling you about today. We were there for the sole purpose to rescue and put out the fire in the event that a plane went down. That's it! No medical, nothing else... except one other thing.

I was one of the few people that got to stand near the old war planes when they started, since there age makes them prone to fires on start up. So there I was in my full turnout gear with my extinguisher at the ready. But nothing happened. Nothing all day happened. I just got to sit back and watch the show, and of course I took some pictures for all my loyal readers!

One of the coolest things I got to see what the new airport fire engine, or Jaguar as its named. This thing can go up to 80 mph VERY QUICKLY! It uses a master stream nozzle on the end of a elephant like trunk that it controlled by the F18 control stick in the cockpit! It was awesome... there are pics of that in there as well!

But other then that, there were a few cool planes and a cool Reach helicopter, but that's about it.

Well... until next time!

World Trade Center Movie...

2006-08-18T23:15:00.000-07:00

I just got home from seeing World Trade Center the movie. I thought I would give my 'review' no matter how lame it may be, since this movie has a lot to do with the job I seek today (not necessarily the movie but the things that happened that day in reality).

From the start of the movie I had some major expectations on what I should feel and see. I wanted to feel sad, and angry. And I did... it brought back my feelings that I had on the day it actually happened. This is important in my opinion, mainly because over the years since 911, I have been so dulled to the feelings and memories, and I felt it was good to feel it again. Not only for the purpose of memory, but the fact that one day I might be called to something like this and will remember what happened, and have it more clearly in my mind.

I don't care what other reviews say. I don't care what your friends or family think or say about this movie, all I know is, if you are a firefighter, cop, paramedic, or have anything to do with emergency services you owe it to yourself to see this movie.

In my opinion this was a great movie and all of the actors in it were awesome. The cinematography and everything was awesome. GO SEE IT!

Design guy...

2006-08-18T06:30:00.000-07:00

I have been unofficially designated to create the logo for this years fire academy T-Shirts. I am in charge of making the graphic mainly because of my background in graphics design.

I'm not yet quite sure what I am going to do, but for sure I will be using the typical Maltese cross design, but other then that we will see where art leads me. Hopefully I can come up with something pretty cool. I think it would be pretty fun to be remembered for creating something that memorable.

I will let you know how its going... kinda makes me nervous! ha ha

Until next time.

Academy Day 2...

2006-08-17T22:49:00.000-07:00

Tonight at the academy was not too exciting. We really fined tuned our inspection line up and I think we have it down pretty well. We also had some new commands added in and learned a little more about what to expect in terms of being as perfect as possible.

We had our first quiz of the course, on the rules and regulations manual. Nothing to hard. We talked more about rules and regulations and watched a few video clips about becoming a team and the want and need to do the job.

Like I said nothing major but it was another night. This Saturday we don't have class (amazing!) but we do have class Sunday, which is a PT (physical training) day, basically work out and talk about health all day.

But since we don't have class on Saturday, I will be working a local air show on one of my departments rigs. It should be pretty cool working out there. We are primarily there for medical presence and fire suppression in the event that a plane go down or anything else.

I will let you know how things go on Saturday.

Extrication training 8/16...

2006-08-16T22:36:00.000-07:00

I just got home from the second part in the series of extrication classes my department just started. Tonight we did a lot of cutting and breaking of things! Always good! ha ha We were also introduced to a new item to our department.

As most of you have already seen, there is the normal Holmatro tools (cutters, spreaders, ram, and combi, etc...) Tonight we received our new gear to all of our stations. Its called the BCT 3120. This is one of the most interesting things I have seen yet. (Notice I said interesting... let me explain)

Its a great tool for first response to an extrication. Its small, very mobile, light, and semi powerful. After using it a bit I noticed that not only does the size of the blade/bite keep it from doing a great job, but it just doesn't have the power needed for most of today's cars. Don't get me wrong, its gets things done, but at a slower rate of speed.

I will have to work with it more to get a better idea of how it works, but this is something that will take me some time to like. I will keep you posted!

Until next time.

Academy Day 1...

2006-08-15T22:21:00.000-07:00

Well the first day of the academy has come and gone. To say the least I am intimidated. The Instructors are going to be no BS a-holes for sure, but it's a good thing in the end. At least we will learn to respect and listen well.

We started off the night going over rules and regulations, then we moved on to learn how to line up for roll call and inspections. We learned the basic commands of a military run operation. "Parade rest" " Right/Left face!" and all the rest of them. We were also broken into squads, which we will work with for the rest of the course.

I was lucky enough to get put in my friends squad, and it seems to me so far that most of the people in my squad have had previous fire experience. So, I think its gonna be a long 6 months but a rewarding 6 months non the less.

I will keep you updated.

Let the games begin...

2006-08-14T21:43:00.000-07:00

I am a little late on reporting this but I got my letter from Oakland fire and I didn't get the position. I guess I didn't do so well on the oral boards. But the good thing about it is, that I got some experience on the other side of the table. I got a suit for the next one, and I'm not losing any sleep over it.

On another note, the academy starts tomorrow. Yes, TOMORROW! So for the next 6 months its going to be a lot of work and a lot of learning and growing on my part. I am excited, but at the same time, I'm kinda worried and a bit nervous, but its all for the best.

Wish me luck and keep an eye here for updates on things as they progress.

Until next time.

Ready for the academy....

2006-08-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a 2 part update. First of all, I have officially paid for the academy, both for the clothes I needed and the boots, as well as the fees to the college.

The boots I got a pretty cool, they are the Thorogood HellFire structure boots. These things are pretty nice and they are not that expensive as far as firefighter boots go, but they are perfect for the academy where they will most likely get pretty banged up anyway!

The other update is that today I had my academy orientation. From what I can tell already, this academy is going to be a long hard class. It is military style with the whole "Yes Sir! No Sir!" deal.

There will be drilling with flags in the morning as well. We don't start the academy just yet there is still about 1 week of summer left, but then we jump straight into it for the next 6 months. *sigh* At least when its over its over! haha

I will let you know as things progress.

Happy Camp Fire...

2006-08-01T22:29:00.000-07:00

We sent a unit to meet with, and join a strike team headed for the Happy Camp Fire, in northern California. This fire is currently at 2,200 acres and still burning. Its original start was due to lightening which started 11 fires but most of them are contained but a few are still burning. Click here for more information about the Happy Camp Fire.

And good luck to the men and women working this fire. From what I understand this is some pretty steep and dangerous terrain. Good luck and happy hunting!

Lots of $$$...

2006-07-28T16:39:00.000-07:00

I just got home from a day of spending. I wish it were for my pleasure as well but I'm not that lucky. I signed my registration form for the academy and paid the almost $700 for the tuition and then went and spent another almost $200 for the clothes required!

Like I said it was pretty expensive, but I am lucky enough to have a college fund that will pay for all of this, otherwise I would be flat broke! haha

Another update today is that the academy starts on August 15th, and the orientation is on August 5th... I will let you know as things develop!

Academy Time...

2006-07-28T09:12:00.000-07:00

I got home from vacation yesterday to some great news. I have been selected to fill one of the last minute openings for my local Firefighter 1 Academy for the fall semester. This may not mean much to most of you, but for me this has been a long process and wait to get it. If I didn't get in until Fall I would only have gotten into Spring, which would have set me back quite a bit in my applications for the next year! NOT ANYMORE!

This is making my plans much faster then expected. I was hoping to get into the academy for Fall so then all I have to do is take the CPAT Test and start my 'application campaign' next year for a paid position. Now I am fully on schedule and ready for 2007!

I am still waiting on Oakland to get back to me so we will see what happens there, but I will let you know as soon as I hear something.

Until next time...

Oakland Oral Board Complete...

2006-07-18T18:07:00.000-07:00

Today was the day for my oral board. I was at 3:20pm. It was a little interesting for my first time. I had 16 mins or so to answer 5 questions. I signed a document saying I wouldn't give any information about the questions or my answers, so I am going to honor that... Sorry.

I cant really tell you how I did. I got through all the questions, but I don't have a good or bad feeling about it, I am just done that's all I can say. But I do have a few tips for people going down there:

1. Get there really early. I got there at 1:00pm and my interview wasn't scheduled until 3:20, but they got me in early at 2:45! Get there early! haha

2. If you don't already have one, GET A SUIT! Get a full business suit for sure... No kidding if you don't have one you will be the only on there without!

3. Study for this... I can tell you that all 5 questions are on the list of 30 questions I posted about a few days ago... CLICK HERE FOR QUESTIONS... STUDY STUDY STUDY!

4. Don't be too worried... It is fast and painless, 16 mins are your done.

Good luck!

Pre Academy complete...

2006-07-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

Just a heads up to all that come and read, today I completed the last class necessary to now get into the fire academy. I was pretty excited to be done with it but more importantly, I am dreading Tuesday. The oral boards are getting me pretty scared. I know I shouldn't be worried, and be calm, but this is the first big moment in my fire career and I really don't want to mess it up! But I guess we will see what happens.

I have been reading questions and answering them on the fly to get my stuttering down so I don't sound like an idiot in there, so I think it will go well...

Tuesday 3:20pm, think of me in front of the firing squad! haha I will let you know how it goes!

Oral board questions...

2006-07-13T15:00:00.000-07:00

Here is a pretty cool site that I just found that helps with some of the basic firefighter oral board questions... You can take a look at it here.

If you happen to know of any others please let me know, or feel free to post questions you have seen in your own interviews.

Thanks,

MAJOR UPDATE...

2006-07-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

I just got home from work, and I received my letter from Oakland. Yes, I have been asked to come back for the oral part of the process! I am so excited. My oral exam date is next Tuesday the 18th of July!

I cant believe I have made it this far. I am just curious as to how many people are moving on to this as well. Oh well, at least I can say I came this far. Now all I am nervous about are the questions they are going to ask me! YIKES! haha

I will keep you posted!

Hose Drills...

2006-07-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Last night I got so much needed practice on my hose deployments, and loads... Pretty fun stuff. We did some cool scenarios just to get everyone on the same page.

Overall lots of good stuff! haha that's all I have to say about that!

Firerescue1.com

2006-07-10T11:45:00.000-07:00

While searching the net for new and interesting fire stuff I came across, an awesome fire news website called firerescue1.com. It is very well made with a ton of features. It reminds me a lot of Firehouse.com, but there are some differences. They even make there own magazine just as Firehouse.com's Firehouse Magazine. Check it out here.

You'll just have to see it for yourself.

The Roof is on Fire!...

2006-07-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

This is an awesome video I just found... You have to see this.

Let me know what you think!

WARNING: In the song that is played during this video, there is profanity, therefore this video might not be appropriate for work, or near children. Thank you.

Second Day of Training...

2006-07-09T20:16:00.000-07:00

Today I had my second day of the pre academy class. We did our physical fitness testing, which went better then I actually thought it would... Imagine that! After lunch we had a report writing class, and then we finished the day with ropes and knots, where I might add, I was a very useful person to have around mainly due to the fact I have done all the knots we learned today, and was able to help out the other people who were struggling with them.

Until next weekend...

Sorry...

2006-07-08T23:14:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry for the lack of information coming out lately... There just hasn't been much going on lately. Until today. Today I started the pre requisite class for the Firefighter 1 academy. Basically this class is made to weed out those who are not physically or mentally ready to go to the academy, therefore making more room for the people who are ready for it.

We went over the basic job description for people who didn't know. The from 12pm until 5pm we went over SCBA's. Talked about all the parts and how to properly use them. But, when we got broke into groups, to practice donning them... Me being the most experienced in my group, came out on top when we all agreed we wanted to race.

Other then that nothing too interesting today. Tomorrow on the other hand is more running and physical testing more then anything else. I will let you know how things go in this class.

On another good note... I might have found a way to get into the fire academy a semester earlier then I was planning to... Just a kind of loop hole we found. I don't want to give to much info, but I will let you know if it works out! haha

Until next time...

Yolla Bolly WFU Complex Fire Mendocino County...

2006-07-03T21:33:00.000-07:00

This particular fire holds some meaning to me, mainly because this is the area I will be camping in at the end of July... Not looking to good. Here is the information from Inciweb.org

Perkins Wildland Fire...

2006-06-24T15:04:00.000-07:00

I have been keeping an eye on the Perkins Wildland Fire, in southern California on InciWeb. It looks like there finally getting a hold of it. Check out the facts here. I hope they get it taken care of soon.

HOT HOT HOT...

2006-06-22T15:30:00.000-07:00

Dang... it is currently 103 in Santa Rosa, and I'm sure its gonna get hotter before the night falls. This is the second day it has climbed into the 100's. I dont like it one bit! But there is a good chance of a grass fire! We'll see!

Check the weather in your area here.

Wildland #2...

2006-06-22T15:23:00.000-07:00

Well last night we had our second night of wildland training. It was pretty hot yesterday, about 100 degrees! haha Needless to say it was just more training on the stuff we went over the last time... hose lays, mobile attack etc, etc.

The training got short though due to a medical aid that happened in the same park we were training in. Everything kinda got focused on that and how to deal with it, so by the time the issue was taken care of, it was time to head home for the night.

Oh well... there's always next time!

New's article of my fire...

2006-06-18T10:29:00.000-07:00

"Fire destroys home on Fulton Road

By DEREK J. MOORE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

A Saturday evening blaze that destroyed a Fulton Road house brought out sweat-stained firefighters and well-dressed members of a wedding party who were attending a ceremony in a Pentecostal church across the street.

By the time Rose Diamond returned to her home at 2435 Fulton Road, the street was a chaotic scene of firetrucks, swollen water hoses and one woman wearing a white dress.

Diamond said she was at a hardware store when a neighbor called her on her cell phone to report that the Egg Basket Food Market on River Road was on fire.

Diamond said she rushed back, only to find her house, which is a few doors down from the market, ablaze. Firefighters got the call at 5:04 p.m. and were already at the house when Diamond got there.

She watched helplessly as flames shot through the roof of her home.

"There goes my past," said the retired fleet service clerk for American Airlines. "My whole life is in there. My photographs and my cats."

Three kittens she was cat-sitting and two of her own felines - Pinkie Boy and Stormy - survived the blaze.

Firefighters used oxygen masks on the kittens, which were placed in a 45-gallon storage container next to a fire engine.

One kitten and two of Diamond's cats perished, however. A third was still missing late Saturday.

Animal control officers took the surviving cats to an animal shelter.

The fire broke out as Christopher Wanliss, 28, and Ericka Thompson, 19, were being married in Fulton Community Church of God in Christ across the street.

Pastor James Marchbanks said the couple had just gotten to the altar when sirens sounded. The ceremony went on, however, and by the time the wedding party filed out of the church, seven fire engines and a ladder truck were occupying the road.

Marchbanks embraced Diamond and said she could stay at his home for the next few days. She is a member of his congregation.

"I'm just hurt for Rose," Marchbanks said. "Her heart goes out to everyone. She rushed back here to put out a fire she thought wasn't hers."

Wanliss, who wore a black suit and gold tie for the ceremony, found something positive in the sight of firefighters working hard to save the home.

"It's a sign of good luck to me and my wife," he said. "We got to witness all the teamwork. With teamwork, you can get it done."

Diamond said the three-bedroom, one-bath house she has called home for about five years is about 100 years old. She was at a loss to explain how the blaze started.

Arson investigators were called out as a precaution, said Joe Giordani, a battalion chief with the Windsor Fire Department.

"I just can't believe it," Diamond said, as members of the wedding party drove off for the reception."

- THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Wildland training Day 1...

2006-06-14T23:07:00.000-07:00

I just got home from tonight's drill. We just started our wildland training, to get everyone ready for the upcoming (already here) wildland season.

Where we live, everything is just starting to get pretty dry; prime status for fires. Tonight we had 4 stations set up one on mobile attack, one on hand tools, one on progressive hoselays, and the other on fire shelter deployment.

Overall, it was a good solid night of training, granted I have done most of this so none of it is really new, but it was most definitely necessary to go over everything again just as it always is.

Next Wednesday drill is more wildland, so if nothing interesting happens then, I wont write about it again...

But stay tuned for more updates!

Inciweb.org...

2006-06-12T22:15:00.000-07:00

Another really quick update/discovery.

While browsing some of my normal fire websites I have just found a REALLY cool website, on fire incident reposting be state. Its called Inciweb.org. I haven't really looked at it to much, but from what I have seen so far, you can get updates on your local wildfire's... And the progress being made.

This site offers detailed information on current progress... Here is an example for a fire in CA. It even has maps! You can get RSS feeds about the incidents, as well as links to other sites which may provide even more information.

Enjoy!

Long time no update...

2006-06-12T21:50:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since my last update on everything... So here we go.

First off, I have applied for the Oakland City Fire Department. I went at the end of June and picked up my application, and then turned it in the following week. Just this last Saturday I went back again and took the written exam.

The written exam wasn't what I expected. It was some math, some reading comprehension, and a lot of diagram and map comprehension. Overall after this test I feel pretty good... There is only one problem, I was taking the test in a gym. "So." You might say, well I was in a gym with almost 600 other guys applying for the same thing! haha Needless to say, I have some stiff competition.

So, basically if I happen to get through the written part, I move into the physical agility, then if I pass that its on to the oral boards, but for now, I am just waiting to see the results of the written. Stay tuned for updates on this.

Second, is the latest updates from the new department. Simply, since the new pager, I have been on a few calls, but for the most part there hasn't been much action. Either we get cancelled or we just don't get anything worth writing about, but keep your eyes here for stories when they come.

And last but not least, for those Rescue Me fans out there, has this season started with a bang or what?! We are now 2 episodes in and... Well... How do I say it other then, there is so much stuff going on already, that this season is shaping up to be probably the craziest yet!

And that's it!

Got my pager...

2006-05-24T16:30:00.000-07:00

Well today I went official... I finally got my pager! YES! It has been a long road to getting it but the day is finally here. Its a Motorola Minitor II SV pager. Sure its nothing special but it does what it is made to do, and gives me something to do on those late nights when there is lack of! *sigh*

I will keep you posted about any calls I get with this thing.

Until next time...

Training Burn Day...

2006-05-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

Well, we had our training burn today. It wasn't exactly what I expected... Mainly because we just burned a pile of straw and pallets in only one room of the training tower. We got to feel the heat mainly, we didn't even attack the fire, just kinda cooled the air a bit when it got too hot. This was basically to show us some basic fire behavior and for us to feel the heat of the blaze.

Here are the pictures of the day, keep in mind I didn't take the camera into the fire room with me mainly because it was so hot and didn't want anything to happen to it... But regardless, there are some good pictures here. Enjoy.

Final test...

2006-05-19T06:12:00.000-07:00

Well tomorrow is the final 'test' (not really a test) for my new department. We are heading to the local public safety training facility, where they have just finished there training burn tower... And we get to LIGHT IT UP! YES!

We are going to be learning to attack fire in a 3 story structure, and do rescues, RIT, and many other things! I cant wait! I will keep you posted.

Mother's Day Pancake Breakfast...

2006-05-14T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone... Just got home from our departments mothers day pancake breakfast. It has been a really long day.

I have been up since 5am, and I just got home! (3pm) I was working the eggs for the majority of the day... From cooks to servers and back... All day. *Sigh*

On a good not, we had approximately 990 people turn out for the breakfast. Almost as many as last year (1003). We had a dunk tank at $1 per ball, and a smoke trailer simulator for teaching the children about fire safety and awareness. Pretty fun, but a very long day. Not to mention it 90 degrees out right now.

Anyway... To all you mothers out there today, HAPPY MOTHERS DAY! We love yah!

Finally...

2006-05-10T22:37:00.000-07:00

Well, I just got home from my final night of testing with the new department. All is well. I completed everything I hadn't done yet and even finished all of the things I had to do again. So... Now we wait and see what happens next.

Apparently we sit down for a one on one with the captain, and he says ok or no. Basically. Then we get our 'real' helmets and our pagers and are ready to start responding to calls. YES! FINALLY!

I will keep you posted.

Testing day 2...

2006-05-06T15:21:00.000-07:00

Well today we had our second set of testing. We went over all of our hose pulls including, cross lays, grabbing hydrants, FDC connections, apartment extensions, just to name a few. I did well on them all, but I need to work on reloading the FDC hose. Other then that everything went well.

On another note, it was freaking hot today! Yikes! Probably the hardest part of the day was just trying to function under the sun. Staying hydrated was hard, since there was so much testing to get through. I felt some sickness after some of the harder tests mainly due to the heat and all the gear we wear. But I stuck it out and made it through.

We should have all of our testing completed on Wednesday, and be ready to start responding to calls! YES!

Good so far...

2006-05-03T22:57:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had our first testing session. We tested on ladders, power tools, basic medical, hose clamps, map book, ERG (hasn't book), equipment identification, and SCBA's. Overall I did just fine. I was a little worried about everything but after while everything just kinda fell into place.

I got a 48 seconds on my SCBA (60 max... Not easy to do either), passed ladders no problem, and everything else went fine. The only thing I need to remediate from tonight was in the medical section... I forgot what the flow rates were on the nasal cannula and the non rebreather mask! I cant believe that I forgot probably the easiest thing of the night. Oh well... I will know it by Saturday.

So there it is... Day 1. All I have left is Saturday, and there isn't much left on the check off sheet, so I am almost there. YES!!! Cant wait.

Until next time.

NEW! Becoming a Firefighter Polls...

2006-05-01T19:11:00.000-07:00

Today I just started a new feature on my blog... Polls. I will creating polls as much as I can to allow for some more interactivity with my blog. The polls are located as you can see on the right side of the blog on the top. Please participate as best you can.

Thanks,

Rescue rope and safety systems...

2006-04-24T22:39:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had our final night of the academy. We went over the basics of rope rescue and rescue systems. In this segment we learned the importance of rescue rope and knots, and how they pertain to the job we do.

In our district we have some areas that have major cliffs, as well as deep valley and steep slopes. These are especially dangerous when there is a road near by. We get many calls for vehicles over embankments, cliffs, etc. This stresses the need to know our ropes and knots as best we can.

This class was pretty fun, mainly because we got to set up different rope systems and test them on each other. Pretty fun stuff.

On another note, since this is the last 'class' I have, that means we start our testing on Wednesday of next week for our graduation from the academy. YES!!!! Also NOOOO! haha I am bad at taking tests, but I think I am ready. I will keep you posted.

Until next time...

Interesting fire fighter websites...

2006-04-23T13:30:00.002-07:00

While searching the internet for cool new fire fighter websites I found a few really good ones of note. Here that are.

www.firefighternearmiss.com - This is the National Fire Fighter Near-Miss Reporting System website. This site is gaining popularity across the nation for reporting close calls of firefighters in action. Check it out.

www.firefighterclosecalls.com - A really cool website with tons of pictures and stories of fire fighter close calls on the job.

www.fire.ca.gov/cdf/incidents/ - If you live in California like I do, you should definitely check this website out. This is the official CDF incident page, where they give updates on the major CDF events going on in the state. VERY COOL!

I will post more in the links section on the right side of the site.

Rescue and Ventilation training...

2006-04-22T23:48:00.000-07:00

Well as I said in my last entry, we did ventilation training as well as some practice ladder stuff as well. Everything was great... Cut the 4x4 hole in the roof and get off! Not too hard, plus I have done this before so it was good review.

What I didn't know was that there was a second station set up for ladder training, but not just any ladder training. This training was designed for second story ladder rescue, of either a victim (civilian) or a fellow firefighter who had lost consciousness. This was an awesome drill... One I am glad I learned for both rescuing the people we serve but also knowing that if my brothers get in trouble I have learned but another way to get them out of it.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. The ladder truck... Well, that didn't exactly work out. It turned out that they had some other stuff planned for today so we have to move it to another day. DANG! I was really looking forward to climbing the 'stick' too. Oh well, I will keep you posted on that.

Until next time...

Tomorrow...

2006-04-21T21:35:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we are returning to the training tower for some new training. We will be learning how to use the chainsaw in the roof, working from a ladder as well as working on the roof directly. We will be learning how to properly cut holes in the roof to release the hot gases in an involved structure.

This is a really good skill to learn and know well, because this is one major operation I will be doing the most on the fire ground as a new volunteer. Cant wait to get started.

But also tomorrow we are having a 'surprise' visit (not really because we all know about it) from a local departments ladder truck. A ladder truck is a major part of the fire service. It is a major player in rescue from high rise buildings, as well as ventilation and other specialized operations. A ladder truck has a huge extendable ladder in the top which can be moved remotely in any direction and can extend as far as it is designed to.

The ladder I will be climbing tomorrow is approximately 100ft! haha WOW. Yikes. I am a bit nervous, but at the same time this will be an experience I will not soon forget.

- Justin

Rescue Me Season 3 Returns...

2006-04-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

** Rescue Me Season 3 returns May 30th @ 10pm!

Yes! We are comin back for a 3rd season. Like I said in my last post on this subject, you really need to see this show. It is one of my favorites, and since we are going into season 3, that says something about the ratings as well.

Check it out May 30th @ 10pm only on FX!

Link to Resuce Me Website

- Justin

Nutrition facts...

2006-04-18T16:27:00.000-07:00

I just started going to the gym today... Again. This time I'm serious. I need to get in shape. Not only for me, but for my job, and the people I serve and serve with. I have been reading a great website about nutrition its called Intense Workout. This place is awesome. This website really gives it to you just as it is, and I like that.

I was thinking today about my diet as well. I don't know exactly what to eat. So I read about it on this website and learned what I wanted to know. Now what do I want to eat? Hard question!

I know I'm supposed to eat fruits and vegetables and stuff, but have you ever thought of what even your fruits and vegetables have in them nutritionally? Well here ya go... NutritionData. Here you can search for any type of food, be specific on brand or very, very broad on the type of food, and it searches it database and gives you so much information you wont even believe it. Check it out... Your lives and the lives of the people around you depend on it.

- Justin

Ladder climbing drills...

2006-04-17T22:17:00.000-07:00

I just got home from training for the night. We had fun tonight, on the ladders. We went to the local training tower and threw the 14', 24' and the 35' ladders. We practiced all the types of carries and lifts for each of them, over and over and over again! Got kinda tiring, but in the end we had tons of fun.

The 35' foot was the most challenging mainly because of its weight and bad balance when it is extended. This was also sort of a challenge for me personally because I used to be extremely scared of heights, but recently got over that fear... But there was still lingering feeling (mostly me pshycing my self out).

Good fun.

- Justin

Hose drills done... Rain still comin...

2006-04-09T12:21:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday we finished up with the last of the hose drills. We are moving on to ladders and salvage covers now. This next couple of classes are going to be much easier then the last, mainly because there isn't as much work involved as there was in pulling and reloading hose. <-- Gets pretty old really quick! haha

The rains are still coming here in Santa Rosa, but for the most part we will be inside for the next few classes for lectures and stuff... lucky us.

Tommorow April 10th is my birthday. It sucks but I have class tommorow night.

Until next time...

- Justin

Rain and hose drills...

2006-04-01T22:04:00.000-08:00

Well... Today it rained. AGAIN! It has rained almost the entire month of March and it kinda looks like it will rain this month too. *sigh*

But anyway... Today we were out continuing our hose drills while it dumped all over us. It wasn't so bad since our turnouts soak most of it up and have a water barrier, but it was cold and damp all day. Today we went over our cross lays and forward supply lays. It was all pretty easy since I have done most of this before, but like I said before it is nice to do again.

Other then the rain not to bad of a day. But after pulling and reloading all that hose all day I was beat... When I finally got home I slept for about 4 hours! haha

Well that's all I got tonight.

- Justin

Rescue Me Season 3...

2006-03-30T20:52:00.000-08:00

Rescue Me is probably one of my favorite shows on T.V. these days. Yes, I will admit that I only watched season 1 because it was a firefighter show... That was my original excuse. BUT! There is a but. I didn't know it would also be an awesome show as well!

I instantly fell in love with the show! There is so much drama, that comes with life... So much action that comes with the job (but they get a few more fires then most places... hmmmm). ;)

There are a lot of individual stories going on at the same time. This keeps every week VERY interesting, and keeps you coming back for more. All of the characters have something unfolding, that include at least one other person from the same firehouse. Pretty crazy you say? OH YEAH!

But anyway... I suggest you watch this show if you haven't found it yet!

- Justin

The Fire Store...

2006-03-29T06:20:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share this website with all my fellow firefighter readers. If you don't already know... Thefirestore.com is probably (IMO) the best online web site for firefighter gear. They are constantly getting new items in and so far have had nothing but great experiences buying from them.

I have bought just about everything from my suspenders, to my trusty Pelican flashlight. The next thing you are probably wondering is, do the prices look good? And I will tell you, I search for the best deals all the time... And for superior deals, with the customer service and selection these guys have, you can beat em!

Check them out!

EMS Hydro...

2006-03-28T15:20:00.000-08:00

EMS Hydro... We got a sample delivered to our distributing company about a month ago and the bosses are trying to decide if they want to carry it. They let just about everyone at my work try it, and for the most part everyone loved it! I think it tastes great and since there are so many benefits, not only to me but to the fire service from this product it seems like a winner.

Just thought I would throw this out there for you all to see... Check it out.

EMS HYDRO|ENERGY
How Firefighters Do Hydration!

GOES BEYOND HYDRATION
TO ENERGIZE AND REVITALIZE

The Next Level of Energy and Performance

Absorbs faster than sports drinks
D-Ribose, taurine, caffeine, and other enhancements to provide ready energy
Balanced and complete vitamin package

Four Techno Flavors
FRUITPUNCH, LEMONLIME, WILDBERRY and ORANGE.

Taken directly from the website

Firefighter Brand Products is committed to making better tasting, better-for-you products that are "Haz-Mat Free." They do not contain High Fructose Corn Syrup, which has been tied to the obesity crisis in America. They do not contain Cholesterol, Trans-Fatty Acids or Hydrogenated Oil.

The company works closely with national firefighter organizations and local firefighters nationwide. The nation's 1.2 million firefighters and their families - who represent nearly five percent of the American population - will be active participants in the company's growth and success. In addition to donating a portion of profits, local fire departments and firehouses can directly support their own fundraising efforts by purchasing Firefighter Brand Products at cost to consume in their firehouses and to sell at community events throughout the year. Firefighter Brand Products will also employ firefighters in cities across the country for operational and marketing-related opportunities.

Taken directly from the website

EMS HYDRO

Hose drill night...

2006-03-27T22:26:00.000-08:00

I just got home from probably one of the most boreing 'interacvite' night yet! I know, hose is EXTREMELY important, but I will also say that unloading and reloading it gets really old really quick! But, yes it is important to know in and out, and to know it like that you have to do it over and over again.

Anyway... It was fun to work together, and let all the people who have never done it before fumble around. I am also happy in a way, because it was a nice test to see if I could still remember how to do it from the Russian River... and I did! Yay for me!

Until next time...

- Justin

Terror Drill Response Lauded by NYC

2006-03-27T16:23:00.000-08:00

Honestly I think this is awesome! NYC is doing exactly what all major cities should be doing. The threat of another attack on the US is growing everyday... And honestly I don't think anyone is ready.

After 9-11, everyone was on high alert, but since then the alert has dwindled... This fact worries me. But major props to NYC for being prepared! GO GET EM' BOYS!

Read the article here...

Terror Drill Response Lauded by NYC - Firehouse.com News

Watch the video here...

Google news video

- Justin

Hose lecture... and pancakes?

2006-03-25T13:59:00.000-08:00

Well today was just another lecture day for the academy. We basically just talked about hose. Types of hose, fitting, nozzles, pressures, GPM's, lengths, locations, and just about everything you can think of as far as hose goes.

Next week is when we do all of the manipulative stuff with the hose.

But your not concerned about the hose, you are wondering about the huge pile of pancakes you see right there. Well that is what I did with another 2 hours of my day today.

No, I didn't eat them for 2 hours... We are going to be having our annual Mother's Day Pancake breakfast again, so me and the other volunteers and recruits got the awesome job of stuffing the envelopes with all the invitations for the entire district. Sound like fun... No. It was nice to sit and chat and all, but 8,0000 invitations kinda get old after a while, and you can very easily run out of things to sit and chat about.

Well that's about it for today... Until next time.

- Justin

Airline Passenger Who Made Threat Killed

2006-03-23T23:11:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone has heard about this, but honestly who would have expected anything less. I mean... Has this person thought about what they were saying. I would almost be scared to get up on the plane let alone say the word 'bomb!' This is the perfect display of human stupidity if I have ever seen it.

Read it for yourself
here

- Justin

Ringers Extrication Gloves...

2006-03-22T08:28:00.000-08:00

Over the last week I have been telling you about the extrication training I have been involved in. I have talked a little about some of the experiences I have had and some of the actual extrication equipment itself. What I haven't talked about or mentioned, is on awesome purchase I made, which has made this entire experience even better.

Ringers Extrication Gloves. These things are awesome. I bought these when I was doing my internship last year, mainly because at the Russian River Fire dept. We were on 2 really dangerous roads in Sonoma County, Hwy. 116, and River Road. Both of these roads have a lot of accidents per year, and I just thought that it might be a good idea to get something a little more flexible then my normal fire gloves. Thus the Ringers.

I totally think that these are a good investment for anyone who is in a location prone to getting vehicle accidents. I wont try to talk about the product itself, because there website does the job just fine (I would probably sound like an idiot). Check them out!

- Justin

Man charged with Healdsburg arsons found mentally competent

2006-03-20T22:39:00.000-08:00

Man charged with Healdsburg arsons found mentally competent

Well I may have been wrong about this guy... He didn't get off so easy! I'm pretty happy about this mainly because I think that too many people in this world do stupid crap and get off the hitch for the whole 'mentally competent' thing.

I say good job on this verdict!

- Justin

Rescue 42 Strut System...

2006-03-20T22:28:00.000-08:00

On Saturday as I wrote in my last post, we were doing auto extrication. It was pretty cool. What I forgot to mention until tonight when we watched a video on them were the Rescue 42 Struts.

Basically what the struts do is take an unstable car, truck, or even small structural members, and make them more stable for us and the patient to work around, and in. I never really thought of how important making something more stable was a really huge concern, but it is. Its a huge risk to the entire operation to have things unstable.

So if you are just getting into the fire service, or you have been in for a while you should check out the the Rescue 42 site to learn more about them. They are freakin awesome!

Go HERE and they will send you a free DVD on how it all works! Awesome video...!

- Justin

Vehicle Extrication Training...

2006-03-18T21:55:00.000-08:00

First off let me explain 'Extrication.'

Extricate:

To release from an entanglement or difficulty; disengage.
Archaic. To distinguish from something related.

Basically, we have to extricate someone from there cars after a major accident and the damage to the vehicle traps the occupant inside. Thus needing to be extricated. Ok... Now the story.

Today we did some awesome training. It started at 8am sharp. We headed to a local junkyard where there is an endless supply of cars to chop up. When we got to the junkyard, they had already prepared the cars for us to practice on.

We had 7 cars on all four wheels, and 2 on there side (just to give us another perspective). After going over the game plan for the practice sessions and we reviewed all of the rescue equipment (Holmatro tools) we got to work.

From about 9am until 2pm, we broke windows, cut roofs off, ripped doors off at the hinges, and basically mangled these cars into huge chunk's of metal. This by far has been on of the most fun training we have had. Even though I did this course already at the Russian River, you can never do it enough.

Awesome day I wont forget soon.

- Justin

P.S. A word of caution... When St. Patty's day is before a major training day... Take it easy, trust me. I learned the hard way today! haha

RIC Training night...

2006-03-08T20:32:00.000-08:00

On Monday night at our academy training we were to be trained on act as RIC (Rapid Intervention Crew) members. Basically what a RIC crew does, is go interior and quickly but safely retrieve a downed firefighter, or at least replenish there air tank.

Over the course of the night we were put into a series of scenarios of darkness, heat, and obstacles. We were in full gear with our SCBA's on, to completely simulate a real situation as best we could. Everything was going great, until they decided to start throwing some curve balls at us.

During some of the scenarios they would gently reach out and turn off our air tank without us knowing. When this happens we are to notify our partner and hold our breath. Then he is supposed to pull an extra air line and connect it to me so I can breathe off of his bottle, then we evacuate. This is obviously to simulate me running out of air.

It works great, but when your partner isn't very fast (like mine) you cant hold your breath anymore... You gotta get air from some where but its just not there.

Well this is pretty much what happened to me on Monday. I guess what I'm tryin to make a point about is... You really don't know what its like until it happens. But it made me question how bad I wanted to be a firefighter... And decided... Regardless of the risk to my own life, I want it more then anything.

- Justin

Arson suspect to undergo evaluation - Judge halts proceedings, orders mental competency test for Healdsburg man

2006-03-03T06:15:00.000-08:00

This is just another follow up article about the arson that was causing quite a scare over the last couple weeks. They caught him, and his reasoning behind the fires was basically to add a little excitement to a quiet town.

Now they caught him and he is in court. But, (no big suprise here) he's crazy. So after the test tells us that... he will just go free. But since he is crazy thats ok right? NO F'n WAY!

I hate the system.

Arson suspect to undergo evaluation - Judge halts proceedings, orders mental competency test for Healdsburg man

Sorry for the long pause...

2006-03-03T06:09:00.000-08:00

I have been in a kind of transitional phase for the last couple weeks, so there really hasnt been aything extremely interesting going on.

In my Rincon Valley academy we have now moved (for the most part) out of the classroom and into more hands on stuff.

We just got into SCBA's (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus), so this next week should be fun.

Thats about it for now. haha

- Justin

Status Update...

2006-02-20T10:10:00.000-08:00

Well its been a while since I gave an update on my status. I have been working in the Rincon Valley academy for a few weeks now. I will be there until June, when I will receive my pager and all the stuff that says I'm a volunteer and not a recruit anymore.

As for Russian River... Well I have talked to them about any options they may have other then doing the entire year over... And there is nothing else I can do. Oh well... Just gotta keep moving.

Lastly, I have signed up for the prerequisite class for the SRJC fire academy for the summer. After completion of that I will be able to apply for the fire academy in the Fall semester. The only problem with this academy is that it is based on a lottery system and there is a chance that I wont get in the first time I apply. But we will keep our fingers crossed.

I will update as soon as something comes up.

- Justin

Arsonist strikes 4th time in 5 days

2006-02-20T10:09:00.000-08:00

I have been reading these articles as they have been coming down. Pretty scarey for the buisnesses and people involved. I hope they nail the guy!

Arsonist strikes 4th time in 5 days - 'People are on the edge, calling in everything'; police have no suspects

- Justin

African American Florida Firefighters Find Nooses on Their Gear - Firehouse.com News

2006-02-20T10:07:00.000-08:00

African American Florida Firefighters Find Nooses on Their Gear - Firehouse.com News

This is a disrace to the fire service if you ask me. I dont understand how people who are there to help other people regardless of race, gender, or aything else, can do this to there own friends.

Makes me sick to read something like this happening to any of our countries bravest.

- Justin

Its over...

2006-02-12T13:25:00.000-08:00

Well I took my second try on the Firefighter 1 test and failed. Basically, the whole year at the river was a waste of time. I mean sure... I got some good experience, met some nice people, and showed that I was a good firefighter, but no certificate.

I guess I just wasn't ready for this quite yet. I don't know what exactly I'm going to do now, but I will just have to keep on trying.

- Justin

January 29th...

2006-02-02T15:44:00.000-08:00

At approximately 10pm we were dispatched to a possible medication overdose on a female patient. We arrived and were greeted by Sheriff deputies who filled us in on the story.

Apparently they were at this house earlier in the day for a domestic violence call, and arrested her husband for beating her. Well, after they arrested him she got a little irritated. Once they left she took about 23 of her psychiatric meds in an attempt to 'get back at them' for arresting her husband.

So now were here trying to figure out what it was that she took and what to do with her. When we arrived I was called many different names, and almost had to physically restrain her a few times. She was very combative, mainly because of the meds she took which were not beginning to take affect.

About 1 hour after we arrived we were able to convince her that we were there to help, and that everything was going to be ok. She finally got in the ambulance and was transported to a local hospital and placed on suicide watch.

When we arrived on scene, this lady was WHACKED! I have never seen pupils this big before on anyone. I have had many drug related calls; these people were on some strange stuff, but this was pretty crazy compared to that!

January 28th...

2006-01-28T12:17:00.000-08:00

Test day one was unsuccessful. I didn't pass this time. DAMN! Oh well, I got to take a good look at the test and now I know a little of what to study for.

I have one more chance in 2 weeks for the test again. I will be better prepared this time.

Bummer...

- Justin

Important Day...

2006-01-27T22:45:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I have talked much about this, but tomorrow is the day I take the written portion of my firefighters I certification test. This is a pretty big deal in my search and adventure for a paid job.

Since the beginning of the year, me and the another inters have been practicing and testing on the manipulative sections of the test. Mainly knots, ladders, pulling hose, and other technical hands on stuff. But tomorrow is a totally different beast. I don't do well on written exams.

Whatever happens tomorrow will have a major affect on the next couple years of my life.

Wish me luck.

- Justin

Santa Rosa Fire... Accident... I think not

2006-01-26T22:09:00.000-08:00

The two articles below are pretty cool. What makes them so interesting to me is that this fire took place in my new departments district, which mean that if I was out of the volunteer academy... I would have been on this fire. DANG!

Oh well here are the articles... Pretty cool:

Article #1

Followup article #2

Another interesting fact that was not mentioned in either of these articles is how they happened to find out originally that this was indeed a homicide. It just so happens, that my best friend who is also a RV volunteer, was doing overhaul and helping the investigators look for clues, was the person who actually found the bullet casing only a few feet from the woman!

Creepy yes. Cool... HELL YEA! My buddy... Real life CSI himself!

- Justin

Article attacking us?

2006-01-24T22:54:00.000-08:00

I was sent a link to this article from a friend of mine. Basically this article attacks us (firefighters) along with police and teachers. It has some good facts, but at the same time I do take offense to some of the things this guy has to say.

Check it out for yourself:

Click here for article

- Justin

Wednesday night drill...

2006-01-18T22:33:00.000-08:00

Tonight was my first Wednesday night drill, with the Rincon Valley volunteers.

It was pretty cool. For the past few weeks they have been going over swift water rescue and other related subjects. So tonight, we continued on that path. We told to take the engines out and basically drive all over to find the rivers and creeks that have major flood issues, and look at them from a rescue point of view.

Everything was going great when, to my surprise, we got a call for a structure fire! haha I didn't think I could be this lucky.

And... I wasn't. :(

It turned out to be steam. Oh well, it was pretty cool anyway, and I met a ton of new volunteers. Good night tonight.

- Justin

First day of training...

2006-01-14T19:11:00.000-08:00

Today was my first (second, but the first day was paper work) day of training with Rincon Valley Fire. I didn't know what to expect. I had an idea that it would be boring... And... It was.

I have heard most of this stuff many times, but I will admit that it will be a nice refresher and practice on everything again. I was excited to start though and cant wait until Monday for our next training day.

I will keep you posted as things progress.

- Justin

New 2005 - 2006 Russian River Flood Pictures

2006-01-10T08:50:00.000-08:00

Here is the link to the NEW Russian River Fire website where these pictures are located! Some of these pics are pretty cool. Some of these pics show the National Guard units that were dispatched to us for aid. Pretty freakin cool!

http://www.russianriverfire.org/images/response/mmgallery/

Have fun!

- Justin

First meeting at Rincon Valley...

2006-01-09T22:06:00.000-08:00

Well, I just got home from my first meeting with Rincon Valley Fire Dept. All it was basically, was all of the paperwork, introductions, tour, bla bla bla stuff. Not to much going on here.

We were issued out t-shirts, and each a pair of new gloves (really nice new gloves!). Pretty cool stuff. So for then next 4 months I will be going every Monday night and every Saturday morning to training and class as part of my volunteer academy.

After that there is a series of testing that lasts about 2 months. When, I pass that testing, I will be issued my pager and can begin responding to calls. YES! Cant wait for that.

So there it is... haha zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Oops sorry. Fallin asleep after that meeting.

- Justin

Beginning of a new venture...

2006-01-09T11:07:00.000-08:00

Today is the day that I start a new chapter in my life. Sounds pretty huge huh? Well for most of you it isn't but for me, becoming a Rincon Valley volunteer firefighter is a huge step. I have my first meeting with Rincon Valley today after being accepted into there academy late last year.

It has been a few long months since I was accepted but today is finally here.

Check back later for more info on how the first day goes! YAY!

- Justin

Russian River Fire Web Site Goes LIVE!

2006-01-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

FINALLY! We are there... The Russian River Fire Dept. Web site is finally online. Not totally complete yet but I will be putting the finishing touches on in over then next couple weeks.

Plus, this is where you will be able to see all the picture of the Guernville floods that happened over New Years. I cant tell you how excited I am to finally get this project to its live state! YES!

Enjoy.

I have added a link to the site in my links section on the right side of this blog... But for those of you who cant find it here it is:

http://www.russianriverfire.org/

- Justin

Bodega Bay Fire...

2006-01-04T17:02:00.000-08:00

I have just made contact with the current webmaster of Bodega Bay Fire's web site... I will be officially working with him on a new design for their site! Cant wait to get started! I will let you know when there are more updates on this one.

Oh yeah! And we have officially purchased the domain name and web space for the Russian River Fire web site. All I have to do now is upload it... and... BAM!, were live!

Cant wait.

- Justin

Friday, December 6th 2005...

2006-01-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

I decided to switch my shift at the River from Sunday to Friday, so I could have some fun on New Years and not worry about my shift in the morning. So, I did. But to my surprise I ended up being in Guerneville when a major series of storms hit.

As many of you may have seen on TV, there was major flooding in many different counties, Sonoma County being one of them. Guerneville is right on the Russian River near the coast (the river runs right through the middle). So you can imagine what it was like.

Since this happened, switching my shift for the New Year didn't work out as planned, I ended up getting home on Monday night at 9pm. I worked 4 days on this flood, doing boat rescues, military aided evacuations, we responded to multiple gas related problems, and so much more.

I wont get into the details just yet because there is a lot to this story. But I will be posting a link to pictures of the incident. Keep an eye out for the updates...

- Justin

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-24T09:32:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

I thought I would give everyone an update for the new year. In January there is a lot going on in my firefighting world. For one, I'm going back to school for some more fire technology classes, for two my one year internship with Russian River Fire is coming to an end.

It has been a great year at the river, but now its time to move on. Also in January, I start my volunteer position with Rincon Valley Fire. I cant wait. This is a huge step after working with Russian River. Becoming a volunteer with this department is just getting me one step closer to becoming a paid firefighter. YAY!

Oh yeah, the Russian River Fire Dept. website is almost done and should be ready at the beginning of Februrary. Plus I have been contracted to create the Bodega Bay Fire Dept. site as well. Keep an eye for updates about those!

Well... That's it until next year. Happy Holidays!

- Justin

November 28th...

2005-11-28T17:20:00.000-08:00

Well I didnt get any other good calls last night, but I did decide to stay on today until about 4pm, working on the ambulance.

We didnt get any major calls but we did get a few... and I have come to the concluion that riding backwards for 100 total miles between 2 calls, is no fun. I started getting car sick back there. Oh well, it was a good expierence anyway.

Until next time,

- Justin

November 27th 2005…

2005-11-27T22:53:00.000-08:00

Today has been a pretty good day so far. I started the day with a simple gas leak on a stove. Nothing special just turned the gas off and we were gone. The real action cam at about 11:45am.

We are dispatched to a motorcyclist down. Yes! We suit up and are on our way. When we arrive on scene we find a male motorcyclist down on the side of the road. His motorcycle is laying just a few yards away in the grass. I am immediately sent to traffic detail but luckily for me I was able to see the majority of what was going on.

He was conscious but was unable to get off the ground. The paramedic and the other firefighters on scene put him in full C-spine.

While listening to the radio there was a lot of talk about possibly landing a chopper in a nearby field, but as the chopper circled he scene, the paramedic determined that he wasn’t in any life threatening damage, and decided to transport by ambulance.

So, another call that was kind of boring since there was nothing for me to do other then traffic control. But it was pretty cool to go to anyway.

If I get any more interesting calls tonight I will be sure to post them up tomorrow.

- Justin

November 20th 2005…

2005-11-21T10:52:00.000-08:00

Call #1:

Today we are doing our monthly intern training on Sunday because of the thanksgiving weekend. I don’t know if I mentioned it before but we have monthly intern training normally on the last Saturday of every month.

When everyone finally arrived and we started the in class portion of our training day, we got a call almost immediately. We were dispatched to a possible structure fire at 8:30am. Since all of the interns were training, the captain decided that we should all go just in case it was a ‘real’ fire.

When we arrived (since I was normally on shift that day) me and my partner intern were the first into the building. We strapped on our SCBA (self contained breathing apparatus) and grabbed all the standard entry gear we went to the front door.

When we opened the door, there was a ton of smoke. It wasn’t too thick yet but there was a lot of it. The other intern and I moved inside to search for the source. As we walked through the smoke we couldn’t feel any heat or see any flame. As we moved farther into the house we started noticing that the smoke was getting much thicker.

We finally entered the last room of the house where the smoke was the thickest. As we looked around the room we noticed that on one wall the paint was turning yellow… so I took off one of my gloves and felt the wall and sure enough it was hot. After some more investigation we found that the source of the smoke was a faulty wire in the heater that was burning all of the spider webs and dust that was accumulated in the wall.

Too bad we got there in time… haha other wise there would have been a ‘real’ fire.

Call #2:

At approximately 9:15pm we are dispatched for a vehicle accident. We get all suited up in our gear, getting ready for the worst. As we come on scene we see a sheriff officer off the sire of the road and another local fire chief already on scene.

As we round the corner we see an early 90’s Jeep Cherokee upside down in a small dry creek. We hop out of the rig and as we get to the car we find it empty. All around there are beer cans and bottles of various open alcohols. Apparently the drunk driver of the vehicle crashed his vehicle when he came around the turn to quickly.

After he flipped the vehicle over, he thought it would be better to just leave. To most this seems like a stupid idea. For the most part… it is, but at the same time they can’t nail him on drunk driving, all they have on this individual is leaving the scene of an accident.

Oh well, this call did have some potential, but just didn’t pan out tonight.

- Justin

Exciting news...

2005-11-01T21:15:00.000-08:00

Well its been a while since my last post. I have done a lot since I left for New Orleans. Dont worry I will have stories from that very soon. But just a quick update on my current situation.

I applied for a volunteer position with Rincon Valley Fire Dept. last year and didnt get accepted mainly because I lacked the necessary expierence. So I applied again this year and was overwhelmingly accepted by every member of the interview board.

It was said that I was one of the best interviews they ever had. I feel great... Wish me luck.

I will keep you posted.

- Justin

It's Official...

2005-10-01T22:47:00.000-07:00

It is official... I am deploying to New Orleans on October 8th. We are departing from San Jose airport on Saturday, bound for Minnesota, then to New Orleans.

I will be there until October 11th, doing relief work (basically whatever needs to get done). I will try to take a bunch of pics and write some stories to post up here. Keep your eyes open for some new stuff when the I get back.

Wish me luck.

- Justin

Santa Rosa Fire E1...

2005-09-12T21:39:00.000-07:00

Well today I had my 12hr ride along with Santa Rosa Fire Departments, Station 1 (headquarters). I was really excited to get the opportunity to ride with these awesome guys. I have been waiting for this day for a long time.

But... I hate to inform you that it was a very uneventful day and nothing really awesome happened. But what can I expect... Since I was a 'ride along...' well... The 'Ride Along Curse' was very much with me today, lets put it that way.

Until next time... Keep it safe.

- Justin