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Posted: Mar 1, 2019

USSC’s Continued Growth and Focus on Firefighter Safety

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USSC’s Continued Growth and Focus on Firefighter Safety


I’ve been traveling to Chester County, Pennsylvania, for most of my life. My grandfather, a retired Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department firefighter, moved his family there in the early 1970s. After retiring from the fire department, he worked for National Foam, in Exton, Pennsylvania, a short 10- to 15-minute drive from his new home.

When I was a kid, my grandfather would bring me there to take a look at fire apparatus that were at the facility. Back then, most of the Chester County I knew was still farmland. More than 40 years later, the area has seen the type of growth many communities located near major cities experience. As families moved west of the city but still within commuting distance, strip malls, shopping malls, myriad supermarkets, restaurants, housing developments, and highways began to appear. The National Foam facility predated much of this growth.

USSC Group recently invested approximately $55 million in its new Exton, Pennsylvania, headquarters. (Photos courtesy of USSC Group.)

1 USSC Group recently invested approximately $55 million in its new Exton, Pennsylvania, headquarters. (Photos courtesy of USSC Group.)

It had been close to 30 years since I was in that facility when I revisited in 2016 to tour the offices and manufacturing floor of the USSC Group, known to the fire service primarily for its Valor First Responder Seating. And, I made the trip back out in November 2018 to get a tour of the company’s new headquarters located just across the street. The company is growing both in square footage and product lines through acquisitions, which is a benefit to firefighters and the county it calls home. For the fire service, Valor First Responder Seating is a hub for a variety of other safety products USSC Group now produces.

USSC GROUP

USSC Group has been in business since the 1980s, rapidly growing from a small shop in a garage. The company started out making seats for trains and locomotives and moved into seats for buses in public transportation. According to Joe Mirabile, president and CEO of USSC Group, the company now enjoys a 60 percent market share of all public transit buses around the country. In the early 2000s, USSC Group began making seats for the military, and Mirabile says it manufactures the number one blast seat for the military. It is from its military DNA, says Mirabile, that the company began to make seats for the first responder market. “In about 2009/2010, we began to make seats for first responder, fire truck, and ambulance vehicles, and we also began to make fire suppression systems for vehicles,” says Mirabile. “We transitioned in 2009/2010 to a safety and survivability company where we were making a wide range of safety products outside of seating.”

Joe Mirabile is president and CEO of USSC Group, responsible for all divisions and company operations.
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Posted: Mar 1, 2019

The ResQmax Line-Throwing Gun

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The ResQmax Line-Throwing Gun


Anytime there is a body of water in a jurisdiction, there is a potential for someone to drown. Almost every city has a community swimming pool, and although lifeguards are employed, the fire department will more than likely be called to render emergency medical basic life support or advanced life support service.

When cities have larger bodies of water, like rivers, lakes, reservoirs, quarries, bays, and oceanfront, special teams like swift water rescue, ice rescue, dive teams, and ocean-surf rescue teams are necessary. Not every firefighter will get to be on the team, but if you have waterfront in your city, any firefighter can be the first rescuer on scene, so you better be ready.

The ResQmax™ is a nonpyrotechnic compressed-air-powered line thrower from Rescue Solutions International (RSI), Inc.

1 The ResQmax™ is a nonpyrotechnic compressed-air-powered line thrower from Rescue Solutions International (RSI), Inc. It is innovative and intrinsically safe and does not require gun shells, cartridges, or special storage. It is specifically designed for water rescue. (Photo courtesy of ResQmax.)

Seattle, Washington, is a city surrounded by water with many lakes within its boundaries. One of the popular tourist attractions is Ride the Duck—a fleet of World War II amphibious vehicles converted to take sightseeing tourists around the city by land and by water. Many waterfront cities have these vehicles as a tourist attraction. Seattle has had its share of Duck accidents, but the most recent one nationwide occurred on July 19, 2018 in Branson, Missouri. Seventeen people drowned, including children, when a sudden storm swamped the boat on Table Rock Lake.

Every fire apparatus in Seattle has a life ring and a water rescue throw bag, both with 150 feet of eight-millimeter (mm) water rescue rope (that floats), but to my knowledge, there is no requirement to train on throwing the life ring. Drownings are low-frequency events, so when the life ring is needed, you better be accurate. This is no time to be fumbling with the rope or trying to figure out the best way to hold and throw the life ring to a drowning victim. In addition, the public will probably be watching and recording you. Nothing can look worse than a professional charged with saving a life, swinging a rope with a life ring, only to step on the rope or have it get snagged in the bushes or a tree.

It was this vision of public embarrassment that prompted me to drill my crews on throwing the life ring on a regular basis. I picked up a few sticks from the shoreline and threw them out in the lake. At first, crews thought it was silly—until they realized throwing the life ring for distance and accuracy was harder than they thought. They all took turns laughing and kidding each other; then it became a competition to see who could throw the life ring the farthest and hit the floating stick. No one wanted to quit until they outdid each other. The loser had to buy Slurpees for the crew at the 7-11. Needless to say, what would normally be a quick 10- to 15-min

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Posted: Mar 1, 2019

The ResQmax Line-Throwing Gun

1903FA_050-053

 

The ResQmax Line-Throwing Gun


Anytime there is a body of water in a jurisdiction, there is a potential for someone to drown. Almost every city has a community swimming pool, and although lifeguards are employed, the fire department will more than likely be called to render emergency medical basic life support or advanced life support service.

When cities have larger bodies of water, like rivers, lakes, reservoirs, quarries, bays, and oceanfront, special teams like swift water rescue, ice rescue, dive teams, and ocean-surf rescue teams are necessary. Not every firefighter will get to be on the team, but if you have waterfront in your city, any firefighter can be the first rescuer on scene, so you better be ready.

The ResQmax™ is a nonpyrotechnic compressed-air-powered line thrower from Rescue Solutions International (RSI), Inc.

1 The ResQmax™ is a nonpyrotechnic compressed-air-powered line thrower from Rescue Solutions International (RSI), Inc. It is innovative and intrinsically safe and does not require gun shells, cartridges, or special storage. It is specifically designed for water rescue. (Photo courtesy of ResQmax.)

Seattle, Washington, is a city surrounded by water with many lakes within its boundaries. One of the popular tourist attractions is Ride the Duck—a fleet of World War II amphibious vehicles converted to take sightseeing tourists around the city by land and by water. Many waterfront cities have these vehicles as a tourist attraction. Seattle has had its share of Duck accidents, but the most recent one nationwide occurred on July 19, 2018 in Branson, Missouri. Seventeen people drowned, including children, when a sudden storm swamped the boat on Table Rock Lake.

Every fire apparatus in Seattle has a life ring and a water rescue throw bag, both with 150 feet of eight-millimeter (mm) water rescue rope (that floats), but to my knowledge, there is no requirement to train on throwing the life ring. Drownings are low-frequency events, so when the life ring is needed, you better be accurate. This is no time to be fumbling with the rope or trying to figure out the best way to hold and throw the life ring to a drowning victim. In addition, the public will probably be watching and recording you. Nothing can look worse than a professional charged with saving a life, swinging a rope with a life ring, only to step on the rope or have it get snagged in the bushes or a tree.

It was this vision of public embarrassment that prompted me to drill my crews on throwing the life ring on a regular basis. I picked up a few sticks from the shoreline and threw them out in the lake. At first, crews thought it was silly—until they realized throwing the life ring for distance and accuracy was harder than they thought. They all took turns laughing and kidding each other; then it became a competition to see who could throw the life ring the farthest and hit the floating stick. No one wanted to quit until they outdid each other. The loser had to buy Slurpees for the crew at the 7-11. Needless to say, what would normally be a quick 10- to 15-min

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Posted: Mar 1, 2019

Personal Escape System Makers Help Firefighters Keep Self-Rescue Equipment Close

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Personal Escape System Makers Help Firefighters Keep Self-Rescue Equipment Close


Personal protective equipment (PPE) makers are building personal escape equipment into structural firefighting pants, while personal escape system and other manufacturers offer new and redesigned bailout devices, anchors, and ropes for the latest technology in personal safety< equipment.

LION

Karen Lehtonen, vice president of innovation and product development for Lion, says Lion offers a Class II harness integrated into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. “The harness is integrated into the pant and is removable for laundering,” Lehtonen points out. “It goes through welts in the front of the pant, and internal loops hold the harness in position. It can be set up left to right or right to left depending on which side the customer wants the escape system< on.”

Lion integrates a Class II harness into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. Lion also makes variations in the turnout pant pockets to carry the escape kit. (Photos 1 and 2 courtesy of Lion.)

1 Lion integrates a Class II harness into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. Lion also makes variations in the turnout pant pockets to carry the escape kit. (Photos 1 and 2 courtesy of Lion.)

Lion’s bailout kit includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether, and optional CMC carabiners.

2 Lion’s bailout kit includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether, and optional CMC carabiners.

Lion also makes several variations in the pockets on its turnout pant, one being a removable pocket that also can serve as a throw bag, a version that allows rope to be stacked at the bottom, and others that have a pocket for an anchor hook. “They all interface with our bailout kit that includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether made of DuPont™ KEVLAR® webbing, and optional CMC ProTech™ carabiners,” she< says.

FIRE-DEX

Jeff Koledo, national sales manager for Fire-Dex, says Fire-Dex designed its I2H pant around a proprietary Class II harness, which is installed between the outer shell and inner liner of the pant so it’s always there when a firefighter needs it. “The I2H has an external belt with a waist strap while the leg loops are internal,” Koledo says. “The benefits are the ease of adjustment to allow the waist to tig

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Posted: Mar 1, 2019

Personal Escape System Makers Help Firefighters Keep Self-Rescue Equipment Close

1903FA_044-047

 

Personal Escape System Makers Help Firefighters Keep Self-Rescue Equipment Close


Personal protective equipment (PPE) makers are building personal escape equipment into structural firefighting pants, while personal escape system and other manufacturers offer new and redesigned bailout devices, anchors, and ropes for the latest technology in personal safety< equipment.

LION

Karen Lehtonen, vice president of innovation and product development for Lion, says Lion offers a Class II harness integrated into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. “The harness is integrated into the pant and is removable for laundering,” Lehtonen points out. “It goes through welts in the front of the pant, and internal loops hold the harness in position. It can be set up left to right or right to left depending on which side the customer wants the escape system< on.”

Lion integrates a Class II harness into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. Lion also makes variations in the turnout pant pockets to carry the escape kit. (Photos 1 and 2 courtesy of Lion.)

1 Lion integrates a Class II harness into its turnout pant that attaches to a firefighter’s bailout kit. Lion also makes variations in the turnout pant pockets to carry the escape kit. (Photos 1 and 2 courtesy of Lion.)

Lion’s bailout kit includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether, and optional CMC carabiners.

2 Lion’s bailout kit includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether, and optional CMC carabiners.

Lion also makes several variations in the pockets on its turnout pant, one being a removable pocket that also can serve as a throw bag, a version that allows rope to be stacked at the bottom, and others that have a pocket for an anchor hook. “They all interface with our bailout kit that includes 50 feet of CMC ProSeries™ Escape line, a CMC Escape Artist™ descent control device, a CMC Flash™ Hook Escape Anchor, a stainless steel quick link and tether made of DuPont™ KEVLAR® webbing, and optional CMC ProTech™ carabiners,” she< says.

FIRE-DEX

Jeff Koledo, national sales manager for Fire-Dex, says Fire-Dex designed its I2H pant around a proprietary Class II harness, which is installed between the outer shell and inner liner of the pant so it’s always there when a firefighter needs it. “The I2H has an external belt with a waist strap while the leg loops are internal,” Koledo says. “The benefits are the ease of adjustment to allow the waist to tig

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