FF Close Calls

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Submit Your Close Call / Near Miss Navigation Home Secret List Gallery EMS CloseCalls Drills Firefighter Staffing Personal Survival Safety and survival SOGs Links Modern Fire Behavior About Us Never Forget Fire Communications Pass it On LODD STATS Yearly Totals Year Totals 2015 8 2014 87 2013 101 2012 83 2011 81 2010 87 2009 93 2008 118 2007 118 2006 107 "In Memory Of" Click this patch   Custom Search Contact Info Email BillyG info@ firefighterclosecalls.com Email Weekly Drill Suggestions to Drills@firefighter closecalls.com Click Here for The 9/11 Widows' and Victims' Families Association Click Here: Skyscraper Safety Campaign       Also check the most current issue of THE SECRET LIST for related News and Updates-(Click Here) FIREFIGHTERS CLOSE CALL AT STUBBORN VEHICLE FIRE W/FUEL FLOW Ron Roberts Video Sunday, February 8, 2015   Vehicle fires are challenging from time to time-and are always dangerous. From "whatever" is in the vehicle, to the fuel, vehicle stability, exploding/projective struts and bumpers, the risks are there. In this video by PA's Ron Roberts, the burning fuel flowing "down the street" makes more work for the Firefighters.         3 LONDON, ONTARIO, CANADA FFs SUFFER MINOR BURNS AT FIRE Sunday, February 8, 2015   Three London firefighters were injured and taken to hospital after being caught in a flashover while fighting a blaze in a residential unit on Clarence St. Saturday.The injuries to the firefighters occurred when they attacked the fire in the building that housed four residential units. Platoon Chief Doug Shannon said the firefighters were in Victoria Hospital being treated for shock and burns to the face and neck. "I am not exactly sure how they are doing," Shannon said. All the occupants of the building were able to safely get out. Fire inspectors were going through the building Saturday afternoon looking for a cause and Ministry of Lab our investigators have also been called in. The fire broke out during the noon hour on Saturday in the residential neighborhood. http://www.lfpress.com/2015/02/07/london-firefighters-battle-blaze-saturday-in-housing-unit?... [ more ]   FIREFIGHTER DIES IN THE LINE OF DUTY-COLLAPSES ON A RUN-WEST VIRGINIA Sunday, February 8, 2015   We regret to pass on that Firefighter / Lt. Garry Rose, 67, of the McMechen Volunteer Fire Department died in the Line of Duty on Friday. Firefighter Rose was on an EMS call and was transporting a patient to Ohio Valley Medical Center. As he was wheeling the patient through the doors of the ER, he unfortunately collapsed inside of the emergency room-and shortly after collapsing, FF Rose was pronounced dead. The cause believed to a heart attack. He leaves behind a wife, his daughters, family and grandsons, Ethan, Broc, Logan, Heath and Zane. Our condolences to all affacted. RIP. MEMORIAL DETAILS  Friends will be received from Noon until 8 p.m. on Monday, February 9, 2015 at Altmeyer Funeral Home, Benwood- McMechen Chapel, 214 Marshall Street, McMechen, where he will be honored with a Fireman's Service at 7 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Tuesday, February 10, 2015, at 10 a.m. at St. James Catholic Church, M... [ more ]         FIREFIGHTER/SWAT PARAMEDIC SHOT IN FLORIDA FIREFIGHTER/SWAT PARAMEDIC JOHN MIKULA Saturday, February 7, 2015   A Polk County (Florida) Fire Rescue SWAT Medic was shot last night during an incident. Fire-Rescue SWAT Medic John Mikula, 35, who was wounded during an armed standoff with a suicidal man, is expected to make a full recovery. FF/PM Mikula, who was shot in the shoulder, was taken to Lakeland Regional Medical Center. He has been with Polk County Fire Rescue for 10 years and worked as a SWAT Medic for approximately five. The suicidal man barricaded himself inside the building for hours Friday, exchanged gunfire with sheriff's SWAT members and then likely set fire to the building. The chain of events actually started Thursday, when the man was being taken to the hospital by his mother--he had been threatening to harm himself. On the way to the hospital, the man jumped out of the car, fired a shot into the air with a handgun, and ran into the woods. Cops tried to locate him, but were unable to do so. His mother learned her son had barricaded himself Fri... [ more ]         LAWSUIT: CLAIMS FD LEFT BROOKLYN FIRE SCENE, SHUTDOWN SPRINKLERS AFTER FIRST FIRE, THEN THERE WAS THE 2ND FIRE-$20 MILLION DOLLAR CLAIM Saturday, February 7, 2015   A Manhattan attorney is the first to sue the city for $20 million in a proposed class-action case after he lost 700 boxes of files in a seven-alarm fire that engulfed a Williamsburg warehouse last week. Lawyer Robert Vilensky, who has represented victims of the 2013 Metro-North derailment and last year’s deadly gas explosion in Harlem, filed a notice of claim with the city Comptroller’s Office Friday. Vilensky blames the FDNY for failing to ensure that all the embers from a fire that started at the North 11th Street Citi­Stor­age building at about 4 a.m. on Jan. 31 were extinguished before firefighte... [ more ]         FIRE DEPARTMENT RESPONDING SEMI-WATER TANKER CRASH Saturday, February 7, 2015  2 Whatcom County (Washington) firefighters were taken to the hospital as a precaution early yesterday, when their responding water tanker crashed at a bend in the road. Fire companies were called to North Fork Road, a long drive up a gravel road for a large fire in a roughly 30-by-40-foot outbuilding Friday morning. The 911 caller reported a propane tank had exploded near the building. Cody James Hollibaugh, 25, an on-duty volunteer firefighter from Maple Falls, left the Welcome firehouse driving the apparatus, a 2010 Peterbilt semi tractor hauling a 3,000-gallon water tank. Another volunteer firefighter, Kendra Lee Hollibaugh, 18, was in the passenger seat. Moments after the tender crossed a bridge, the driver lost control to the left, then over corrected to the right at a slight bend, about a quarter-mile east of the fire station. The apparatus started to spin, then rolled over at least once as it crashed. The tank separated from the tractor, broke open and gush... [ more ]         FF DIES OF HEART ATTACK IN MN - POSS. LODD John Merkins is remembered as a family       man who loved the outdoors and helping       others. Submitted photo Saturday, February 7, 2015  For the first time in as long as anyone can remember, Perham has lost an active-duty firefighter whose passing is being investigated as a possible line of duty death.Friends, family members and firefighters from around the community and the area gathered in Perham earlier this week to pay their respects to John Merkins, who had been with the Perham Fire and Rescue Department since 2006. Merkins died Jan.28 at the age of 50. Perham Mayor Tim Meehl, who has long been involved with the fire department, said Merkins died of a heart attack one day after fighting a fire at a Barrel O’ Fun facility. “He was an easygoing guy, always saying everything would be OK,” Meehl said. “He loved his work, and looked to help everyone else out, yet always made time for his family.” Meehl said Merkins’ death is being investigated as a possible line of duty death. A death may be considered as such when a firefighter dies within 24 hours of fighting ... [ more ]         FF LODD UPDATE: Village Won't Appeal Latest Ruling In 2010 Manhole Deaths ohn Kelly, (pictured) a Tarrytown       firefighter and Anthony Ruggiero a       firefighter and village Department of       Public Works employee died Sept 6 2010       after falling unconscious in a manhole       behind a the Consolidated Engine Company       firehouse at Sheldon Avenue and Meadow       Street in Tarrytown. Friday, February 6, 2015  Village officials said Friday that they will not appeal a state appellate court ruling faulting the village in the 2010 asphyxiation deaths of a public works employee and a volunteer firefighter inside a 20-foot manhole.The announcement comes one week after a four-judge panel of the Appellate Division said that the village knew that there were regulations for entering confined spaces but did not follow them Sept. 6, 2010, when DPW foreman Anthony Ruggiero and firefighter John Kelly entered the manhole and were overcome by noxious fumes. The panel also said the village did not have guidelines nor had it provided training for entering confined spaces. "Here, the evidence established that the (village) was aware of the requirements of the subject regulations," the justices wrote in the decision released Jan. 29. "Although the (village) allegedly restricted its DPW employees from entering confined spaces, a practice existed in which its DPW employees entered such c... [ more ]         DC CREWS ARE BETTER WITH CELL PHONES IN THE METRO Friday, February 6, 2015   D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services union representatives said Thursday that first responders would be better served using cellphones to communicate in Metro stations due to long-term problems with radio systems within the transit system.The comments came as part of a roundtable hearing by the D.C. Council's public safety committee to learn more about the events that led up to a fatal Jan. 12 incident in which passengers became stuck inside a disabled Metro train in a smoke-filled tunnel. "You'll be better using your cellphone," said Kenneth Lyons, president of the union that represents civilian paramedics in the fire department. "I don't think that's changed since the incident." First responders who entered the Metro tunnel to evacuate trapped passengers did resort to cellphones and walkie-talkies after they were unable to communicate via radio — a problem Metro and fire officials discovered and were working to fix in the days before the Jan. 12 i... [ more ]         FIREFIGHTER MENTAL HEALTH/SUICIDE PREVENTION - YOUR ASSISTANCE NEEDED Friday, February 6, 2015   In collaboration with the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), researchers at Florida State University are conducting a national survey on the behavioral health of firefighters. The survey will take approximately 25-30 minutes, during which you will be asked various questions about your demographics (e.g., age), your history as a firefighter (e.g., years served), and your mood (e.g., depression, suicidal ideation). You will not be contacted for any follow-up surveys. You will receive a $10 Amazon.com electronic gift card if you complete the survey (you will need to provide your email address for payment, otherwise you can opt-out and not receive compensation). Participation is strictly voluntary and all information will remain confidential; your chain of command or other individuals will not know whether or not you participated, nor will they know your responses to our questions. In order to receive the gift card, your email address will need to be obtai... [ more ]         CLOSE CALL: Firefighter Catches Fire While Fighting Fire NBCDFW Video Friday, February 6, 2015   A Dallas Fire-Rescue firefighter caught fire while battling flames in Oak Cliff. The fire broke out at a home in the 110 block of East Woodin Boulevard in Dallas at about 5:30 p.m. Thursday evening. One of the firefighters, who was on a ladder near one of the home's second-story windows, caught fire on his back, with flames shooting from his protect gear uniform. A fellow firefighter, who was right behind him, patted him down, extinguishing the flames. Without missing a beat, the firefighters continued to fight the blaze. The fire gutted the home and killed one of three dogs that lived inside, according to the father of the woman who lives there.That man, Morgan Moore, lives next door to his adult daughter and her fiancé. He told NBC 5 he and the fiancé heard a woman shouting outside before they knew the house was on fire. “And then the lady came up and told us that somebody had just come out of the house, got in a vehicle and took off,” Moore said. “And th... [ more ]         ANOTHER LAWSUIT: FIREFIGHTERS DID NOT DO ALL THEY COULD TO FIGHT THE FIRE...OR DID THEY? Friday, February 6, 2015   The owners of a Bass Harbor (Maine) restaurant and attached home that was destroyed in a fire 14 months ago have sued in U.S. District Court members of the Trenton and Southwest Harbor fire departments alleging firefighters were negligent in fighting the blaze. Robert L. and Judy A. Cousins, owners of Cap'n Nemos, also sued a reporter, editor and publisher of a Mount Desert Island weekly newspaper alleging the paper libeled them in an article that incorrectly said the Cousinses had pumped their sewage holding tanks into the road. The complaint did not say when the article was published. The restaurant, which looked like a lighthouse and served burgers and seafood, burned to the ground the night of Dec. 3, 2013, according to a previously published report. The Cousins have demanded a jury trial. Answers to the complaint have not yet been filed but the Portland attorney representing the Tremont firefighters said Thursday that he has received it. more ]