Tag Archives: firefighters

General Safety Issues

A TRIBUTE TO HOLIDAY WORKERS

In the past, I have always thought of those workers whose jobs require that someone is on the job every day of the year.  There are benefits to working holidays, and many employees are happy to work and earn extra pay.  Some even volunteer to work so a co-worker can be off.  There are several types of work that this applies to, and here are some of them; maybe you will think of others:

  • Law Enforcement.  Prisons must be staffed 24/7, so correction officers and jailers must be there.  Also, police, sheriff officers, and of course, our State Troopers are out in full force, reminding us (by their presence)  to drive safely and observe the speed limit.
  • Nuclear Power Reactor Operators.  These require near-constant surveillance, and must be attended to.  They boast an exceptional safety record.
  • Electric power line and gas repairmen.  If your power goes out any day, you expect someone to answer the call.
  • Medical personnel.  We all know that illness and accidents never take a day off.  This requires staffing at hospitals, nurses, doctors on call, and emergency response teams to be on stand-by. 
  • How about telecommunication equipment repairers?  They may get called out in case of a shut-down emergency, and must have someone to respond.
  • Travel.  We take for granted that airplanes, air traffic controllers, pilots, and staff are flying every day to get us from Point A to Point B.  This includes luggage handlers, screaners, ticket operations, etc.  Trains don’t stop for Christmas, either.  Their conductors and yardmasters still must show up for work.  Buses make their usual runs, as well.
  • Water and wastewater treatment plant and systems operators are working around the clock to ensure that we have clean water.  Because this is non-stop, someone always has to be operating the system, even on holidays.
  • Our firefighters.  Fireworks are plentiful during holidays,  always causing the threat of fire.  Adding fuel to the fire is the possibility of someone “frying the turkey”, and having an accident.  Christmas trees and candles are also fire hazards.  But you can count on your fire department to be there day or night, any day of the year.
  • Last, but not ever least, the military.  They are ready 24/7.  Let’s hope for a more peaceful new year for the world, especially our troops.

There are many businesses that operate 365 days per year – hotels, restaurants, etc.  Travelers would find it hard to have successful journeys without their services.

We wish everyone, at home or work during these holidays, a very Happy Holiday Season.  Stay safe.

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues, Health Issues, Respiratory Safety

WESTERN UNITED STATES STILL BATTLING WILDFIRES

This year, the Western United States has been charred by several wildfires, many still burning.  Droughts, less spring snowpack, and higher summer temperatures are the main causes of these fires.  Firefighters from all over the United States have helped in the battles in these eleven states:  Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico and Arizona. 

When wildfire threatens, you won’t have time to shop or search for supplies. If ordered to evacuate, assemble a Disaster Supplies Kit with items you may need. Store these supplies in sturdy, easy-to-carry containers such as backpacks, duffle bags, or trash containers. Include:

  • Keep important family documents in a waterproof container. Assemble a smaller version of your kit to keep in the trunk of your car.
  • A three-day supply of water (one gallon per person per day) and food that won’t spoil.
  • One change of clothing and footwear per person and one blanket or sleeping bag per person.
  • A first aid kit that includes your family’s prescription medications.
  • Emergency tools including a battery-powered radio, flashlight, and plenty of extra batteries.
  • An extra set of car keys and a credit card, cash, or traveler’s checks.
  • Sanitation supplies.
  • Special items for infant, elderly, or disabled family members.
  • An extra pair of eye-glasses.
  • Pet food.  Make arrangements to get your pets to a shelter, if possible.

Health Threat From Wildfire Smoke

Smoke from wildfires is a mixture of gases and fine particles from burning trees and other plant materials. Smoke can hurt your eyes, irritate your respiratory system, and worsen chronic heart and lung diseases.  When smoke levels are high enough, even healthy people may experience some of these symptoms, caused by smoke:

  • Stinging eyes
  • A scratchy throat
  • Irritated sinuses
  • Shortness of breath
  • Chest pain
  • Headaches
  • A runny nose
  • Coughing
  • Asthma exacerbations

Smoke may worsen symptoms for people who have pre-existing respiratory conditions, such as respiratory allergies, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), in the following ways:

  • Inability to breathe normally
  • Cough with or without mucus
  • Chest discomfort
  • Wheezing and shortness of breath

If you have heart or lung disease, smoke might worsen your symptoms.  People with heart disease might experience—

  • Chest pain
  • Rapid heartbeat
  • Shortness of breath
  • Fatigue

In cases such as this, you should contact your physician as soon as possible.

Wildland Fires: Fire-Adapted Communities

How the Fire Service, local officials, and the public can work together to withstand the devastating effects of a wildland fire.  They are called grass fires, forest fires, wildland fires, or by a variety of names. Yet, no matter the name, they pose an evolving threat to lives and property in an increasing number of communities across the United States. 

Homes near natural areas, the wildland/urban interface (WUI), are beautiful places to live. These pristine environments add to the quality of life of residents and are valued by community leaders seeking to develop new areas of opportunity and local tax revenue, but these areas are not without risk.  It is up to each home owner to build their home with the right kind of landscaping, away from the house, and have a water supply available to wet down the home and surrounding area, in order to protect it. 

Because fires are a part of the natural ecology, living adjacent to the wilderness means living with a constant threat of fires. Fire, by nature, is an unpredictable and often uncontrollable force.  Firefighters will always give their best effort, but with wind and weather changes, it may be a puzzle to outguess the fire. 

The concept of fire-adapted communities (FACs) holds that, with proper community-wide preparation, human populations and infrastructure can withstand the devastating effects of a wildland fire, reducing loss of life and property.  This goal depends on strong and collaborative partnerships between agencies and the public at the State, Federal, and local levels, with each accepting responsibility for their part. 

Your Role in Fire-Adapted Communities frames the FAC concept and current efforts to define its scope, explain the roles that groups can adopt to improve their fire safety, and provide leadership for future steps. The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) believes that by reviewing the roles and responsibilities each group can adopt now, communities will become better prepared to realize the FAC goal in the future.

 

Sources: U.S.F.A.; FEMA

General Safety Issues

A HOLIDAY MESSAGE

We’re off today to observe United States Independence Day, but on this day of celebrations, family get-togethers, and many activities, we want to remember the fallen firefighters of the elite team “Hot Shots” who lost their lives fighting the dangerous wildfires in Arizona.

Our hearts are saddened by their loss and all others who have given their lives in the line of duty.  Please remember those fallen heroes, and our men and women all over the world who so bravely serve our country, and help other countries.

May God Bless America!

General Safety Issues

APRIL IS NATIONAL 9-1-1 PUBLIC AWARENESS and EDUCATION MONTH

 For the past several days, we have learned to respect and appreciate our first responders, more than ever.  In Boston, we viewed the aftermath of two explosions, deliberately set to kill and hurt runners and bystanders at the Boston Marathon.  Within seconds, there were runners helping those who had been injured- police, firemen, SWAT teams, paramedics, EMT students, and physicians swarmed the scenes to treat and rush the victims to hospitals. 

Miles away, in the small town of West, Texas, again, the heroics were played out when a fire started near a fertilizer plant, and volunteer firefighters, paramedics and EMT students rushed to try to put out the blaze and assist with  injured.  Suddenly, the heat came too near ammonium nitrate being stored in the facility, and a huge explosion happened.  The explosion devastated a four-block radius of the plant, and many families have lost everything they had.  The death toll is now estimated to be 14, with the vast majority of those being first responders.  Approximately 200 persons were injured. 

It’s events such as these that we realize how truly important our first responders are.  This past week was spotlighted as National Public Safety Telecommunications Education Week, in order to promote awareness of proper practices when calling the emergency assistance number.  Behind the scenes, there are highly trained professionals who are the first persons to answer this life-saving number when a call is made.  Dispatchers take the calls and coordinate the response of emergency medical services, fire department, or local law enforcement.  

When 9-1-1 services are needed, we should understand how to place the call, as well as educate our children, too.  It is important that we describe the situation as carefully as possible, and give out any landmarks in order to assist the responders in finding your location.  Don’t text 9-1-1, as it won’t be received.  Don’t become frustrated with the dispatcher’s questions, as he/she probably already have a unit on the way, but it is helpful to the responding team to have as much advance information as possible. 

If you should call 9-1-1 by mistake, don’t hang up, because there will probably be a unit sent to your address.  Just stay on the line and explain what happened.  Teach your children never to play a prank call on anyone, especially that important number. 

Dispatchers are screened thoroughly and receive classroom and on-the-job training.  They are entrusted with medical information as well as the law enforcement side of the occasion. Stop and think how fortunate we are to have seen the display of courage that law enforcement, firefighters and medical teams play on an every-day basis.  It is times like these that we need to stop and be thankful that they stand at the ready.  And give a pat on the back to those dispatchers and others in the 9-1-1 call center that can save lives with a speedy response or just knowing how to talk to persons who are in highly emotional states at that time.

As has been mentioned several times: when there is an emergency, our fire departments, healthcare providers and law enforcement are headed toward the situation when everyone else is running away.

General Safety Issues, Respiratory Safety

SAFETY FOR OUR FIREFIGHTERS

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Wildfires continue to make their way through the state of Texas, and the firefighters, both volunteers, professionals, and other firefighters from all over the United States are doing their best to contain them.  Thousands of persons have been left homeless, having been left with only the clothes on their backs.  The brave personnel who have been fighting wildfire after wildfire must be totally exhausted, but they keep going back to answer the calls for help. 

Workers are exposed to many obstacles, such as electrical hazards, carbon monoxide poisoning, lifting, extreme heat, respiratory problems, snakes, rodents and insects, and slips, trips and falls.  They also must bear the extreme weight of the protective clothing that they wear.  Depending upon the site’s job tasks, listed are some of the personal protective equipment that they must use:

  • Disposable cut/abrasive resistant work gloves.
  • Chemical gloves.
  • Fully enclosed goggles (best for ash) or safety glasses.
  • Ear protection in noisy areas.
  • Head protection.
  • Respirators. 

Fire fighters must be medically cleared to wear the correct respirator.  Other instructions per OSHA standard (29 CFR 1910.134), include:

  • Proper training.
  • Fit testing for respirator.
  • Inspect respirator each time it is put on and taken off.
  • Perform a user seal check every time it is donned.
  • Clean the elastomeric respirator at least once a day in accordance with manufacturers recommendations.
  • Store elastomeric respirators in a clean bag.
  • Stop work and retrieve a new one should the respirator become damaged or fail to function. 

Firefighters are also exposed to the fire retardants that are dropped by planes.  Desperate measures are demanded to try to extinguish or control the strength that these fires contain because of the extreme drought for the past eleven months of this year in the state.   So far, approximately 1,600 homes have been lost, (the count changes daily), and more than 3.7 million acres have burned.  Firefighters have saved countless homes.  Four persons have died as a result of the fires. 

Once the fire is over, firefighters and other workers may be involved in a variety of response and recovery operations.  Some, such as utility restoration, cleaning up spills of hazardous materials, and search and rescue, should only be conducted by workers who have the proper training, equipment and experience.  Because of demand, many other community volunteers will be involved with cleanup, and should take the same precautions as trained workers.

Please think positive and say a prayer for rain for those parts of our country that so desperately need it.  There are some states who have had too much rain, so it seems to be “feast or famine” where the weather is concerned.  The words “Thank You” cannot express the gratitude we owe our firefighters everywhere, every day – men and women who work so diligently to save homes, people, wildlife and land. 

Source: OSHA, NIEHS, NIH

Fall Safety, General Safety Issues

YOUNG WORKER SURVIVES 55′ FALL INTO SHAFT

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Imagine falling into a hole 55’ deep and only 33” wide.  That’s exactly what happened to Zach Rogan, in Carrollton, Texas, last week.  A student on summer break from the Weatherford Fire Academy, Zach had taken a job with Texas Shafts for the summer.  As he was cleaning around the hole, finishing his work for the day, things suddenly went wrong.  He took a step forward and his left leg went into the hole and he started falling.  Quick thinking helped make this terrible accident better than it could have been.  Zach kicked his legs out and pushed the sides of the hole with his arms to slow the fall.  He made it to the bottom of the shaft alive! 

Firefighters from Carrollton and Coppell worked quickly to lower a rescue worker to the bottom of the shaft.  That task took 30 minutes.  A tripod with a pulley was set up over the shaft, as the team of paramedics got ready.  A firefighter quickly put a strapped vest on Rogan, and a cable slowly lifted the men up out of the hole to safety.  This was a tough assignment, since a 33’ hole is only slightly larger than the width of a man’s shoulders.  

In researching a situation like this, I found that shafts 30” or greater in diameter and 6’ or more in depth require some form of fall protection at the surface of the shaft.  Fall protection, including a rescue plan, must be in place prior to drilling any shaft.  Guardrails must be around the shaft.  At the end of the day, there should be a sturdy cover placed over the shaft. 

Companies should have fall protection guidelines for workers, so they understand what is required for their safety.  They should participate in fall prevention training, and use fall protection equipment  if required for the job.  Workers also need to be taught how to inspect the devices they may use, to ensure they are in good condition.  

We are thankful that Zach survived this fall and hopeful that more care will be taken when working around shafts.  It only takes a few seconds for accidents to happen.  Rogan, 20, is a very lucky young man.  He is recovering from surgery to stabilize his crushed vertebrae, as well as suffering some nerve damage.  He still plans to become a firefighter, and hopes to be on the other side of an accident like this….as a rescuer and not a victim.

Source: WFAA.com

General Safety Issues

WILDFIRES TAKE A HUGE TOLL ON TEXAS

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For several weeks, the Texas Forest Service, volunteer fire departments, and firefighters from other states have been fighting fires that have been rampant in several areas of the state.  Last week, devastating fires in far West Texas burned much of the Fort Davis area.  A fire that started north of Marfa, Texas, took only 20 minutes to reach Fort Davis, located 21 miles away.  As of today, the Texas Forest Service reports at least 800,000 acres have burned.  Several homes, businesses, property, and a church have been destroyed by fire.  A firefighter from Eastland, Texas, lost his life when he and others exited their truck; he was hit by either a vehicle or a piece of equipment.  Visibility was limited because of heavy smoke, so at this time, the Texas Department of Public Service is classifying this incident as a traffic fatality, pending further investigation.  

We live in a small rural area in North Central Texas, and wildfires have come within 30 miles of us.   A community eleven miles west of our town was evacuated on Friday as a result of nearby fires.  Because this has hit very close to home, it makes us aware of  how seriously we must prepare for the safety of our families.  We should have emergency supplies (water, flashlight, non-perishable foods, medicines, important papers, etc.) on hand, and know what we will  take with us if we have to leave quickly. 

If Mother Nature would wave her magic wand and send rain, while stopping the gusty winds for a while, both firefighters and homeowners would be very grateful.  The dry terrain and low humidity levels combine for fires just waiting to happen.  Ranchers have lost livestock ,and much wildlife is gone.   In an article in today’s (Sunday) Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, writer Bud Kennedy’s headline is “Just one cigarette is all it takes to inflict a world of damage.”  According to the Texas Forest Service, humans start 9 in 10 wildfires.  Kennedy goes on to say that any spark can burn a town, taking with it homes, dreams, and sometimes, firefighters’ lives.  In Texas, the punishment for tossing a lit cigarette is only a littering ticket.  However, Texas’ arson law includes felony punishment for anyone whose cigarette recklessly sets fire to a building or injures anyone.  Arson is a second-degree felony in Texas, punishable by two to 20 years in prison, but if a person is hurt or killed or if the fire involves a church, arson is a first-degree felony, and the arsonist can face up to life in prison. 

 Many firefighters are volunteers – they risk their lives every time they are called out.  They are trained to use their equipment to save lives, homes, and  properties of their neighbors.  When things become as serious as they are right now, other firefighters step in to help.  The Texas Forest Service reports that  there are around 1,250 personnel on the ground  now, including firefighters from 34 states.  Our firefighters will do the same for them when they are called.  We, as citizens, must be vigilant in preventing fires when weather conditions create dangerous situations.    We appreciate the hard work they are doing.   The next time you see a firefighter, give him or her a big THANK YOU!  (And, pray for rain!)

 

Sources: Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, Texas Forest Service