HONEYWELL and DUPONT KEVLAR have announced that applications are now being accepted to award 20 firefighters, EMS, and hazmat responders with expenses-paid scholarships to attend FDIC International 2017. Candidates must be nominated by a fellow firefighter or departmental peer. More details and applications are available at http://landing.penngage.com/honeywell-fdic-2017-scholarship. The scholarship is available to residents of the United States and Canada only, and career and volunteer firefighters, EMS, and hazmat personnel are eligible.

KOCHEK co-owners and brothers, Greg Kozey and Charlie Kozey, recently announced organizational changes in the company. Company founder Greg Kozey states, “After a great deal of discussion and thoughtful consideration, we have decided the time has come to transition our responsibilities. Charlie and I will concentrate on building relationships with our valued customers. We will be traveling the world developing new relationships and reestablishing communication with old friends.” Co-owner Charlie Kozey added, “We are confident the timing is right for this transition and the company is well-poised for continued growth. As part of the transition, Dan Olm will be assuming the role of president and CEO while overseeing the day-to-day management of Kochek.”

E-ONE, a member of REV Group, has delivered three trucks to Suncor Energy, Canada’s largest integrated energy company. The new trucks include a Cyclone® II Industrial Bronto, a commercial tanker, and a Cyclone II industrial pumper. The Cyclone II Bronto 116 RLP+, with 116-foot reach, has an articulating jib boom that allows extended access to reach up and over objects, with a maximum payload capacity of 1,275 pounds. This Cyclone Bronto features a 2,000-gpm pump, a 300-gallon foam tank, and a Williams® Hot Shot II 150 foam system. The commercial tanker has a 2,850-gallon tank and features a 1,000-gpm pump, a remote operated deck gun, and a Williams 1500 around-the-pump foam system. The Cyclone II industrial pumper has a four-wheel-drive chassis, 1,200-gallon “T” Combo Tank for water and foam, and crosslays installed into the bumper tray for less climbing at heights and fewer risks of injury.

E-ONE also recently announced that Cascade Fire & Safety is its new E- dealer for three states. In business since 1945, Cascade Fire & Safety has serviced customers throughout Washington, Oregon, and Idaho for more than seven decades. Located in Yakima, Washington, Cascade supplies the Pacific Northwest with custom fire and safety equipment such as trucks, parts, and loose equipment as well as certified EVT services. Cascade has an on-site 5,000-square-foot indoor space for apparatus testing and service along with four EVT-certified technicians who also provide troubleshooting expertise.

FERRARA FIRE APPARATUS recently announced that San Francisco, California, has awarded it a contract for five years to build triple combination pumpers. The pumpers will be built on the Igniter chassis and will carry 500 gallons of water. Chris Ferrara, president and CEO of Ferrara Fire Apparatus, states, “To be awarded a contract by the City of San Francisco is an honor and reward for this company, and we are excited to start building the first round of eight trucks for the city.”

MIDWEST FIRE EQUIPMENT & REPAIR COMPANY (MIDWEST FIRE) announced that the

By Alan M. Petrillo

Evergreen Fire Rescue, in Kalispell, Montana, had previously purchased only preowned ambulances for its fleet, all of which had seen service for the federal government as rigs used in the federal penitentiary system.

But when it applied for and was awarded a Montana Department of Transportation (DOT) grant, it was able to apply the money, with a small contribution on Evergreen’s part, to the purchase of a brand new ambulance.

1 Evergreen (MT) Fire Rescue purchased its first new ambulance, a Demers Type 1, through Apgar Ambulance with the assistance of a Montana Department of Transportation grant. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

“We put in for the Montana DOT grant in 2015 and got notification of receiving the grant late in the year,” says Craig Williams, chief of Evergreen Fire Rescue. “This is our first brand new ambulance, and we were lucky to receive the grant to purchase it.” He continues, “We then went through the bidding process, and Apgar Ambulance was chosen to provide the Demers ambulance for us. We were comfortable working with Apgar Ambulance because we had previously bought used federal government ambulances from them, going back to when we started emergency medical services (EMS) transport in 2007.”

Steve Apgar, owner of Apgar Ambulance, says the contract was through a Montana DOT safety grant that annually sets aside $1.2 million in federal highway funds to provide ambulances for rural providers in the state. “A lot of these grants are going to volunteer fire departments that have financial constraints,” Apgar observes.

2 The Demers ambulance is built on a 2016 4x4 Ford F-350 XLT chassis powered by a 6.7-liter turbo diesel engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

Response Area Requirements

Evergreen Fire Rescue is a combination department with 17 paid full-time firefighters, 20 volunteer firefighters, two stations, and a fire district that covers 20 square miles; its EMS district covers 108 square miles. Evergreen Fire Rescue had to come up with 10 percent of the total cost of the grant for the ambulance, which was $163,000.

Apgar notes that Evergreen chose some options that were allowed by the state contract to be added to its ambulance. “They chose to have drop-down chains installed, rear backup and interior module cameras, and a Liquid Spring suspension,” he says.

Williams points out that Evergreen wanted a Type 1 ambulance with four-wheel drive, “because we needed a high clearance on the vehicle and had to get into some congested and mountainous areas.” Evergreen also wanted different lighting packages than the standard, he says, “so we upgraded to high-wattage LED lighting because we’re in a rural area and need the additional visibility. We also chose all clear lenses instead of the stock lenses because we felt they were more visible.”

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1 Evergreen (MT) Fire Rescue purchased its first new ambulance, a Demers Type 1, through Apgar Ambulance with the assistance of a Montana Department of Transportation grant. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

“We put in for the Montana DOT grant in 2015 and got notification of receiving the grant late in the year,” says Craig Williams, chief of Evergreen Fire Rescue. “This is our first brand new ambulance, and we were lucky to receive the grant to purchase it.” He continues, “We then went through the bidding process, and Apgar Ambulance was chosen to provide the Demers ambulance for us. We were comfortable working with Apgar Ambulance because we had previously bought used federal government ambulances from them, going back to when we started emergency medical services (EMS) transport in 2007.”

Steve Apgar, owner of Apgar Ambulance, says the contract was through a Montana DOT safety grant that annually sets aside $1.2 million in federal highway funds to provide ambulances for rural providers in the state. “A lot of these grants are going to volunteer fire departments that have financial constraints,” Apgar observes.

2 The Demers ambulance is built on a 2016 4x4 Ford F-350 XLT chassis powered by a 6.7-liter turbo diesel engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

Response Area Requirements

Evergreen Fire Rescue is a combination department with 17 paid full-time firefighters, 20 volunteer firefighters, two stations, and a fire district that covers 20 square miles; its EMS district covers 108 square miles. Evergreen Fire Rescue had to come up with 10 percent of the total cost of the grant for the ambulance, which was $163,000.

Apgar notes that Evergreen chose some options that were allowed by the state contract to be added to its ambulance. “They chose to have drop-down chains installed, rear backup and interior module cameras, and a Liquid Spring suspension,” he says.

Williams points out that Evergreen wanted a Type 1 ambulance with four-wheel drive, “because we needed a high clearance on the vehicle and had to get into some congested and mountainous areas.” Evergreen also wanted different lighting packages than the standard, he says, “so we upgraded to high-wattage LED lighting because we’re in a rural area and need the additional visibility. We also chose all clear lenses instead of the stock lenses because we felt they were more visible.”

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1 Evergreen (MT) Fire Rescue purchased its first new ambulance, a Demers Type 1, through Apgar Ambulance with the assistance of a Montana Department of Transportation grant. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

“We put in for the Montana DOT grant in 2015 and got notification of receiving the grant late in the year,” says Craig Williams, chief of Evergreen Fire Rescue. “This is our first brand new ambulance, and we were lucky to receive the grant to purchase it.” He continues, “We then went through the bidding process, and Apgar Ambulance was chosen to provide the Demers ambulance for us. We were comfortable working with Apgar Ambulance because we had previously bought used federal government ambulances from them, going back to when we started emergency medical services (EMS) transport in 2007.”

Steve Apgar, owner of Apgar Ambulance, says the contract was through a Montana DOT safety grant that annually sets aside $1.2 million in federal highway funds to provide ambulances for rural providers in the state. “A lot of these grants are going to volunteer fire departments that have financial constraints,” Apgar observes.

2 The Demers ambulance is built on a 2016 4x4 Ford F-350 XLT chassis powered by a 6.7-liter turbo diesel engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. (Photo courtesy of Apgar Ambulance.)

Response Area Requirements

Evergreen Fire Rescue is a combination department with 17 paid full-time firefighters, 20 volunteer firefighters, two stations, and a fire district that covers 20 square miles; its EMS district covers 108 square miles. Evergreen Fire Rescue had to come up with 10 percent of the total cost of the grant for the ambulance, which was $163,000.

Apgar notes that Evergreen chose some options that were allowed by the state contract to be added to its ambulance. “They chose to have drop-down chains installed, rear backup and interior module cameras, and a Liquid Spring suspension,” he says.

Williams points out that Evergreen wanted a Type 1 ambulance with four-wheel drive, “because we needed a high clearance on the vehicle and had to get into some congested and mountainous areas.” Evergreen also wanted different lighting packages than the standard, he says, “so we upgraded to high-wattage LED lighting because we’re in a rural area and need the additional visibility. We also chose all clear lenses instead of the stock lenses because we felt they were more visible.”

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1 Using a thermal imaging camera can increase the speed with which a firefighter and his crew can move; the lead firefighter with the camera must always remember to stay with his partner and not jump ahead and risk losing the crew. (Photo courtesy of Bullard.)

This is where your TIC training is extremely useful. It’s important for the firefighter with the TIC to stay focused on the job at hand, which means looking for fire, victims, or secondary egress. When performing a primary search with a TIC, firefighters need to remember that going too slow or too fast can have devastating results for the lead firefighter and the crew. Always keep in mind, as the team advances, the firefighter using the TIC cannot just stare at the display; he must share his observations verbally with the rest of the crew so everyone is aware of the current situation. The more time you spend training with a TIC, the more comfortable you will become and the easier it will be to establish an appropriate speed to maneuver through a burning structure.

During my TIC training, I often find that firefighters don’t fully understa