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The Finest Supporting the Bravest!

The purpose of the Fire Mechanics Section is to promote standardization of fire apparatus and equipment preventative maintenance, improve safety standards and practices, promote workshops, conferences, and seminars related to the purposes of this Section, and to promote cost savings through standardization of building and equipment purchasing and maintenance.

RECENT FIRE MECHANIC NEWS

Posted: Jun 14, 2021

Coxreels® Exceeds Industry Recommended Salt Spray Testing Hours

Due to its numerous properties and, specifically, its corrosion resistance, powder coating is used for many applications in the industrial sector. The salt spray test is the oldest corrosion resistance test and the most widely preferred to evaluate anti-corrosion coatings. Coxreels is proud to announce that they recently exceeded 20% more hours than the recommended industry standard for salt spray testing.

The independent lab test performed measured the corrosion and UV resistance of Coxreels’ powder coated materials and results indicated that Coxreels’ products ranked in the top tier of the grading system for both UV and corrosion resistance. With these results, Coxreels’ powder coating is ranked at a higher level than under hood automotive applications as well as a standard piece of heavy-duty construction equipment.

Coxreels is always making continuous improvements to provide the best quality product to our valued customers – the recent milestone in anti-corrosion coatings is no exception.

For further information on Coxreels® extensive product line, contact Customer Service at (800) 269-7335 or visit www.coxreels.com.

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Posted: Jun 14, 2021

From Tactical to Practical: The Fire Investigation Team at High-Rise Fires

SPONSORS: Dräger

DATE: July 19, 2021 | 1 PM EDT

DURATION: 1 Hour

CEU: A certificate of attendance will be offered.

PRESENTED BY: James Davis, Lieutenant, Chicago (IL) Fire Department

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This webcast highlights the important functions of the Fire Investigation Team (FIT) during the first few crucial minutes of a high-rise incident, which will undoubtedly set the tone for the entire incident. The FIT becomes the incident commander’s (IC’s) “eyes and ears.” The instructor walks you through the front door of a high-rise building and methodically works your way up to the fire floor.

Along the way, you will see that the FIT is responsible for gathering vital building information, controlling elevators, advising occupants, mitigating any immediate life hazards, managing the flow of occupants, controlling the stairwells, assessing conditions, and communicating real-time information to the IC. Initial tactical necessities are discussed as you move swiftly toward your strategic goals: water on the fire, protecting building occupants, and containing and controlling smoke.

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Presented By:

JAMES DAVIS, LIEUTENANT, CHICAGO (IL) FIRE DEPARTMENT

James Davis is a lieutenant and a 24-year veteran of the Chicago (IL) Fire Department (CFD), where he has served for 24 years. He teaches at Quinn Fire Academy and is responsible for delivery and implementation of the department’s high-rise standard operating procedures. He is a certified state level instructor 2. He is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in fire science through Columbia Southern University. He has written training bulletins for the CFD.

Sponsored By: Dräger Inc.

Before anything else, a firefighter must first protect himself or herself with gear that gives the confidence to concentrate on the task at hand. For more than 100 years, Dräger provided equipment that saved American lives of first responders who enter some of the most dangerous conditions to save others. Today, Dräger offers remarkable gear for firefighters including SCBAs, air-purifying respirators, gas detectors, and fire training systems. Find out how Dräger can provide today’s firefighters confidence that they’re protected.

Please visit us at Draeger.com.

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Posted: Jun 14, 2021

FDIC International 2022 Call for Presentations

Deadline is Tuesday, July 2, 2021

FDIC International offers 35,000+ Fire & Rescue professionals from 65+ countries around the world, quality world-class instructors, classrooms, workshops, H.O.T. evolutions and the most innovative products and services available to the industry displayed by over 800 exhibiting companies. 

The FDIC Experience is more than your traditional trade show; it’s about the learning and sharing with your peers formally and informally through hallway conversations, developing life-long friendships and recharging your passion for the industry.

More information on FDIC International 2022 can be found here.

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Posted: Jun 14, 2021

Multi-Use, Fast-Acting Fire Apparatus in Rural Communities

By Bill Adkins

With the budget restraints in today’s fire departments, we may be called to improvise to get the biggest bang for our buck. We know fire apparatus is already expensive, so buying multiple units to accommodate the needs of the public can be somewhat unrealistic.

Taking the budget problem out of the equation, most of our members drive small cars or light trucks.  Now we are asking them to drive large fire apparatus that may be 10 times heavier than anything they have ever driven before. Not to mention we are asking them to drive in emergency situations.

Now I am not saying we need to do away with the big apparatus. This article is not referring to the structural fire responses, even though some of these apparatus are capable. This article is referring to the hundreds of other situations we as firefighters respond to. From wildland fires, vehicle fires, rescue responses, and mutual aid, just to name a few, these smaller, multi-purpose response vehicles may be more accommodating.

Ultra-High-Pressure (UHP) Vehicle
When referencing fast-acting fire apparatus, we’re talking about smaller, lighter, and more versatile vehicles. One way to keep a vehicle lighter is to use less water; UHP pumps use pressures above 1,100 psi to break up the water into smaller water droplets to absorb more heat. Because of the small droplets, when paired up with foam it creates a dense foam blanket on the surface of what may be burning.

UHP is not a new technology, but it’s not well-known in the southwestern part of Ohio. We recently tested out the UHP vehicle at a car fire training. Concord and Green Townships in Fayette County, Ohio, allowed us to use their UHP truck for this training. This fire apparatus holds 150 gallons of water with a 30-gallon foam tank. When conducting the training we successfully extinguished five car fires and still had a quarter of a tank of water. I have not had that same result when using a pumper with 1,000 gallons of water.

When talking to the crew from Concord/Green Townships, I found that they use this vehicle for auto accidents, rescue incidents, car fires, wildland fires, and any other time they do not need an apparatus with a significant amount of water. This helps them to respond on incidents when they do not have someone cleared to drive the larger apparatus as well. Because of its smaller tank it allows for much more compartment space. With additional compartment space comes more options for tools needed on a magnitude of different emergency scenes.

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Fire Mechanics Section Board

Chair

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Chair

Elliot Courage
North Whatcom Fire & Rescue
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Vice Chair

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Vice Chair

Mike Smith 
Pierce County Fire District #5
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Secretary

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Secretary

Greg Bach
South Snohomish County Fire & Rescue
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Director #1

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #1

Doug Jones
South Kitsap Fire & Rescue
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Director #2

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #2

Paul Spencer 
Fire Fleet Maintenance LLC
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Director #3

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #3

Jim Morris
Mountain View Fire Department
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Director #4

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #4

Arnie Kuchta

Clark County Fire District 6

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Director #6

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #6

Brett Annear
Kitsap County Fire District 18
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Director #5

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Director #5

Jay Jacks
Camano Island Fire & Rescue
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Legislative Representative

Posted: Oct 21, 2015

Legislative Representative

TBD
TBD
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Immediate Past Chair

Posted: Oct 20, 2015

Immediate Past Chair

Brian Fortner
Graham Fire & Rescue

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