Keeping It Safe Robert Tutterow

The topic of liability drew my attention in a somewhat strange way recently. I was involved in a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Technical Committee’s Task Group working on developing job requirements for a department’s personal protective equipment (PPE) manager and PPE technician.

The premise is that a department’s PPE manager is responsible for the overall PPE program, whereas the PPE technician is more or less the person who does the “hands-on” cleaning, drying, inspection, and repair of the PPE. In smaller departments, this person could be one and the same.

Public inputs into the next revision of NFPA 1851, Standard on Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Fire Fighting and Proximity Fire Fighting, soon to be NFPA 1850, Standard on Protective Ensembles for Structural and Proximity Firefighting and Self- Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA), with the standards consolidation, raised a few liability concerns among those who read the inputs. Primarily, the concern was that this was too much responsibility—i.e., liability—to put on one person or persons, as the case may be. What? A multitude of “but, what abouts?” entered my mind. What about the current liability of the person who does this? What about the liability of the department’s SCBA technician? What about the liability of the department’s health and safety officer? What about the liability of the department’s incident safety officer? What about the liability of the driver/operator? What about the liability of the incident commander? What about the liability of the company officer? What about the liability of the chief officer? And, there are many more “but, what abouts?” that can be added to this list.

To my knowledge, there is no evidence that suggests liability is a deterrent in getting firefighters to take on these roles. The organization is typically held liable in cases of extreme negligence. Granted, anyone can sue anybody for anything. Are there any jobs in any field where the employee has absolute zero chance of being held liable for an action or inaction? A Walmart greeter can be held liable for something—I am sure the firehouse lawyers can come up with something. Clearly, life safety roles carry an inherent risk that is higher than most other roles. But is that not what we all signed up for? Even civilian employees and those in support roles are in a somewhat similar situation.

Going back to the PPE manager and PPE technician, the concern expressed was, what if a firefighter gets burned or otherwise injured and there was an issue with the PPE being worn? Is the PPE manager/technician liable? Absolutely not, if the care and maintenance of the PPE were performed as they should be. If firefighters get burned because they were in an environment where the limitations of the PPE were exceeded, who is liable?

The PPE manager and technician responsibilities are not new to fire departments. For several years, NFPA 1851 has stated what the organization’s responsibilities are in maintaining PPE. The recent public inputs and subsequent public comments simply state (if adopted) that the organization should have a person or persons educated and trained to manage the overall PPE program and conduct the necessary tasks required to ensure the PPE is properly maintained. This means all aspects of the program including educating the membership about the PPE (especially its limitations), selection, sizing, cleaning, inspecting, repairing, storing, retiring, and disposal. This person or persons should be involved i

Ishani Desai
The Sacramento Bee
(TNS)

A West Sacramento firefighter, who had been serving in the city’s department for 18 years, died Monday during a training exercise.

Tim Hall, 59, served as a fire engineer with the West Sacramento Fire Department while also balancing duties as a volunteer firefighter with the Clarksburg Fire Protection District, according to a city news release. His cause of death was not disclosed.

“We all value and respect the courage, bravery, and commitment that defines the city’s first responders, yet it doesn’t lessen the pain we feel for a life lost or for a family and friends grieving such a profound loss,” West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero said in a statement on social media.

West Sacramento officials said Hall also had worked as a fire investigator and as a member of the search and rescue team during his tenure. He graduated from Delta High School in Clarksburg in 1983, according to his Facebook page.

A calling to become a firefighter struck later in life and he graduated from the Sacramento Regional Fire Academy in 2006.

Guerrero also extended her condolences to Hall’s wife, children and loved ones.

“We will honor his memory and service to our city, and his sacrifice will never be forgotten,” Guerrero said in her statement.

©2024 The Sacramento Bee. Visit sacbee.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

A man was struck and killed by a Long Beach Fire Department apparatus just outside the doors of the fire station early Tuesday, Sept. 24, ktla.com reported.

Fire department personnel rendered aid but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene, the report said.

It was unclear what the pedestrian was doing outside the fire station at 12:30 a.m. 

Long Beach firefighters were responding to a call around 12:30 a.m. when the engine hit the pedestrian as it was leaving the station at Claremont Avenue and Second Street, according to the report.

An investigation is underway.

KEACHI, Louisiana – On Saturday, Sept. 21, at approximately 12:15 p.m., the Louisiana State Police responded to a single-vehicle crash, at the intersection of Louisiana Highway 5 and Louisiana Highway 172, involving a DeSoto Parish Fire District vehicle, the state police said in a Facebook post. The crash resulted in the arrest of 39-year-old Mark Magee, a DeSoto Parish fire chief.

The investigation revealed that a 2022 Ford F-250, driven by Magee, was traveling south on Louisiana Highway 5. For reasons still under investigation, Magee lost control and ran off the left side of the roadway, before colliding with a fire hydrant. The Ford is assigned to Fire District 1, unmarked and equipped with emergency lights.

Upon contact with Magee, Troopers detected signs of impairment. During the investigation, a blood sample was collected and submitted for analysis. Magee was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI 1st offense) and careless operation. This investigation remains ongoing.

Magee has been placed on administrative leave, according to ktbs.com.

By Bob Vaccaro

Located in southwestern New York, Warwick consists of three villages and eight hamlets. As of 2020, the Orange County community had a population of just over 32,000.  

The Warwick Fire District provides fire and rescue services to an area of 104 square miles, which has several target hazards, including the following: JCI Jones Chemicals, Inc., St. Anthony Community Hospital, Warwick Municipal Airport, Greenwood Lake, NY and New York State Routes 17A and 94. 

The area also has a high concentration of residences, apartments, and strip malls, all in a mostly rural unhydrated area.  

Back in 2020, the Warwick Fire District recognized that it was time for a new engine and heavy rescue. “The fire district tries to keep to a schedule replacing its apparatus,” said Chris Gardner, current vice president and truck committee chairman for Warwick. Gardner added that the current timeframe for replacement is 15 years for an engine and 20 years for a truck. He pointed out that sometimes, because of finances, the periods between purchases may exceed those lengths of time.

“After looking at various manufacturers and writing our specs, Rosenbauer came out the winner,” said Gardner, adding, “The engine came first—and then the heavy rescue.” The new engine replaces a 2009 KME engine that was due for replacement. The rescue replaces a 2000 International 4 Guys truck that the department had outgrown. 

”The rescue we were replacing had a commercial cab with a 17-foot box,”