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Welcome

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

Genesee (ID) Seeking New Fire Station

Posted: Oct 10, 2017

Genesee (ID) Seeking New Fire Station

To replace a more than 120-year-old fire station, the city of Genesee and the Genesee Rural Fire Protection District are placing two bonds totaling $3.1 million on the November ballot. The fire station is so small emergency vehicles have to be custom-fitted when they are ordered to fit inside the station, as modern emergency vehicles have outgrown the space.

Becky Pickard, lead emergency medical technician for the volunteer fire department, said fire engines come within about 2 inches of taking the eaves off the building, and when too much snow accumulates on the sidewalk outside the station, engines aren't able to get out. One other fire engine housed at the station has to make a multiple-point turn just to exit the building, and customizing the ambulance the department purchased a few years back added about $50,000 to the original $100,000 price tag.

Lafayette (LA) Fire Department Holds Fire Prevention Classes in New Fire Safety House

The Lafayette Fire Department kicked off their Fire Prevention Week on Sunday where they unveiled their new Fire Safety House. Every year the National Fire Protection Association holds a Fire Prevention Week in efforts to educate the community on how to prevent and escape from a fire.

Every year the National Fire Protection Association holds a Fire Prevention Week in efforts to educate the community on how to prevent and escape from a fire. “Every second counts, plan two ways out,” is this year’s theme and the Lafayette Fire Department is tackling this message head-on.

The Fire Department is using the new Fire Safety House for Fire Prevention Week classes throughout Friday. Kids of all ages can visit and learn at 8:30 and 10:30 A.M.at the Central Fire Station.

Coronado (CA) Fire Battalion Chief Perry Peake Plays Pivotal Search And Rescue Role

Perry Peake is a Battalion Chief for the Coronado Fire Department, in charge of fire operations and emergency preparedness, which is a significant accomplishment in itself. But there is much more to the story, as Peake is also the Senior Leader for Task Force 8, which is one of 28 Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) elite units in the United States.

Peake, is the lone original member of Task Force 8 and he described the early days of the Urban Search and Rescue squad. “In 1991 the program was established nationally. I was a Rescue Captain at the time in San Diego Fire and I was assigned to the city’s only heavy rescue unit. When San Diego was selected for a task force, we made it a regional team. We carry 210 members and we can deploy 70 people at a time on an incident. We are three deep and have a water rescue team, dog handlers, doctors, and structural engineers. There are thousands of firefighters in the region and we have a max of 210 in California Task Force 8. It’s considered a privilege to get selected. Most of the task force members have spent thousands of dollars of their own money and time to get their training.”

Peake has responded to most of the major disasters in the past two decades as a member of Task Force 8, including being in charge of the task force at 9-11, working the still-burning World Trade Center for 10 days.

And he was part of the unit which worked Hurricane Katrina, being in the New Orleans area for 22 days. Peake recalled the natural catastrophe and said, “We had the Navy flying Chinooks for us, and we loaded our boats in the helicopter every morning.” Peake later showed me photos from the flooded areas in and around New Orleans. Task Force members paddled their boats through and among houses, rescuing residents from the rooftops. For guidance for their boats, they tried to stay inside the telephone and power poles that normally align the streets.

Oshkosh Airport Products Celebrates 100 Year Anniversary; Showcases New Technologies at Inter Airport Europe

OSHKOSH, WIS. – Oshkosh Airport Products, LLC, an Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) company, will celebrate Oshkosh Corporation’s 100 Year Anniversary at inter airport Europe, Stand C90, on October 10-13 at the Munich Trade Fair in Munich, Germany. The company will showcase and demonstrate a number of new technologies now available to airport customers around the world, including a StrikerÂ® Simulator virtual reality training system.

“The year 2017 is a historic year in Oshkosh Corporation’s history, and we are proud to celebrate this important milestone with our customers and industry colleagues at inter airport Europe,” said Erik Lampe, Oshkosh Airport Products group vice president and general manager. “One hundred years ago, our founders designed two vitally important all-wheel drive innovations that changed the world of transportation and today, we’re still innovating with products like the new OshkoshÂ® Striker 8 x 8 ARFF vehicle.”

Inter airport Europe visitors will have the opportunity to “test drive” the Oshkosh Striker Simulator virtual reality training system, responding to simulated emergency situations in a virtual reality cab environment. The system features actual cockpit components from the Oshkosh Striker vehicle, and includes a complete 180-degree view ahead as well as an overhead video monitor showing the SnozzleÂ® high reach extendable turret in action. The Striker virtual reality training system depicts different environmental and weather conditions such as rain, snow, fog, night, and bright daylight as well as the delivery of dry chemical, foam, water, and even Halon.

Other componentry on display includes Oshkosh’s innovative EcoEFP™ foam percentage test system. EcoEFP’s patent pending electronic foam proportioning system allows ARFF crews to test the foam percentages without discharging any agent from the vehicle. The K-Factor™ system display is a new alignment tool that utilizes a sensor on the Snozzle piercing tip and a video monitor inside the cab to display a target for the operator.

Finally, the Oshkosh interactive RunwayReady™ telematics system display shows remote diagnostics and vehicle readiness capabilities. This unique system enables maintenance teams to remotely check vehicle fault codes, and to receive maintenance reminders and alerts, as well as other data from a smart phone or similar device.

These innovative technologies and systems are available on the entire range of Oshkosh Striker vehicles, including the new Oshkosh Striker 8 x 8 apparatus with its matching pair of Scania rear-mounted, Tier 4F low-emission engines that deliver up to 1540 horsepower driving all eight wheels.

“The Striker Simulator, and other interactive displays we will showcase at inter airport Europe represent the ARFF industry’s most comprehensive approach to aircraft emergency response,” added Lampe. “We will have experts on hand at Stand C90 to explain and demonstrate their benefits and advantages.”

About Oshkosh Airport Products

Oshkosh Airport Products, LLC, an Oshkosh Corporation company, is a designer and builder of industry-leading airport firefighting and snow removal vehicles. Its flagship StrikerÂ® Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) vehicle and OshkoshÂ® H-Series™ snow removal chassis are known for their durability and superior performance and sold throughout the world. For more information, visit www.oshkoshairport.com.

About Oshkosh Corporation

Founded in 1917, Oshkosh Corporation is 100 years strong and continues to make a difference in people’s lives. Oshkosh brings together a unique set of integrated capabilities and diverse end markets that, when combined with the Company’s MOVE strategy and positive long-term outlook, illustrate why Oshkosh is a different integrated global ind