“Everyone can be a hero” is the title of Steve Pegram’s keynote presentation at the Fire Department Safety Officers Association’s 29^th Annual Apparatus Symposium, January 16-18, 2017, in Orlando, Florida. Pegram’s message is one of personal experience and the individuals who are part of the industry that support the brotherhood and sisterhood of firefighters.

Pegram, fire chief in Goshen Ohio and President of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI) said, “As firefighters and as vendors who provide items to the fire service, we all have an oath to help improve the safety, health and wellness of the communities we live, work and provide services to,” Pegram said.

“For some individuals it’s the role of firefighter, safety officer, or chief and for others it could be selling those firefighters’ equipment and apparatus to make their community and their family safer,” he said. Pegram added, “Often we become so involved in our own lives that we forget how blessed we are versus the needs of our friends and family.” Chief Pegram will share his story of “When tragedy struck and a community and the fire service came together to become heroes to save lives.”

In addition to his keynote address and as part of the Safety Forum Conference on Wednesday, January 18th, Pegram will present the program, “Safety Officer on the Training Ground.” The role of the safety officer on the scene of emergencies is critical, but often, in many smaller communities, this is a difficult task on a major fire let alone on some more routine incidents but what about in training?

Pegram said, “Firefighters should never be injured or killed while training, yet every year we report thousands of training-related injuries and even some fatalities.” Pegram will exam the safety officers’ role in training, common standards that address safety, and the need for a safety officer to be involved in training plans, as well as case studies where training wasn’t done safely. Chief Pegram will offer suggestions how to effectively provide and use a safety officer in your training programs and why it is so important in your department.

The 29^th Annual Apparatus Symposium will also include topics on:

• “Building maintenance into apparatus specs” Mike Bowman, Smeal Fire Apparatus
• “Fleet Replacement challenges” Brian Brown, South Metro Fire Rescue
• “Scene Lighting Best Practices” Sam Massa, Firetech & Peter Lauffenburger, Akron Brass

Details and registration are available at www.FDSOA.org

Nesquehoning, PA—KME, a member of REV Group, announces that that the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, has purchased an additional two 101-foot tractor-drawn aerials (TDAs) and 10 custom pumpers to join KME rigs already in service.

Tag-on’s, such as the pumpers, are often part of a long term purchasing agreement that allow customers to increase safety, efficiency, and cost for multiple years while minimizing the expense and delays of repetitive procurement processes.

The TDA tractors will be KME Severe Service™ cabs with 18-inch raised roofs,and Cummins ISX-12 500-hp engines. The aerials include custom fire bodies with transverse upper and lower compartments, a large ground ladder complement, and AerialCat™ 101-foot ladders with prepiped waterways.

The pumpers include 96-inch Severe Service cabs, Cummins ISX-12 450-hp engines, 2,000-gpm two-stage pumps, CAFS, 750-gallon water/40-gallon foam tanks, and aluminum fire bodies with customized shelving and compartmentation.

The units were sold by Hawaii Specialty Vehicles in Honolulu, KME’s dealer for Hawaii.

Honolulu is one of our nation’s largest cities, and the Honolulu Fire Department’s mission to save lives and protect property dates back to 1851. Today, the department protects the city and county of Honolulu with a force of more than 1,100 firefighters. The island is divided into five battalions containing 44 fire stations.

For more information, visit www.kmefire.com.