On September 10, 2001, my wife and I started moving into our new home. Two months late getting the house completed, we had grown impatient and were glad to finally be moving in. Our plan was to get all the furniture and “big stuff” in on the 10th and then get all the “other stuff” in on the 11th. As we got started early on the morning of the 11th, we did not yet have our cable TV hooked up and our radio was still packed away, since it was “small stuff.” My wife ...

Fire Department apparatus have weight problems; they are ever changing to meet departmental needs and those of the communities they serve. Over time operational equipment changes and this equipment will move from one side to the other or be transferred between several units. Most often, functionality and fit win the battle on relocating tools, but vehicle weight can be a very important factor effecting the handling and safety of the apparatus. Vehicles will display a ...

Recently, I read an article about seven rules for a successful NFL team; as I read, I couldn't help applying the rules to fire departments and firefighters. One of the primary reasons for the IAFC/IAFF Labor-Management Initiative (LMI) is to encourage strong relationships with and trust and respect for each other. When we work together, we have a better team, we have better results and the community receives better services. I thought about similarities between the ...

With winter now in full swing, it should be a high priority of all Fire Departments to enact their own form of property conservation. Washington State is one of many states that utilize de-icing and anti-icing products on the roadways to increase the safety of our roads. We have been warned many times of the negative effects of these products on our vehicles, and some of us have experienced these effects already, but this subject should be re-visited on an annual ...

After nearly 20 years, fire officials were finally successful in getting residential fire sprinkler requirements into the body of the 2009 International Residential Code. The immediate impact it had on Washington state was that It removed the road block requirement that adoption of a residential sprinkler ordinance by any jurisdiction be first approved by the building industry controlled State Building Codes Council, (SBCC).    But since that ...