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I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving Day. In the past 3 days we've responded to 19 calls for service. 3 medical calls, 5 MVA's, 11 Wires/Tree down calls. Of the 17 calls on Wednesday, 5 of them were back-to-back. Manpower was at a premium. The first call on Wednesday was an MVA on Route 5. Two patients, one ambulatory, one critical that required extrication and a paramedic. Desk box 8 was struck. Hollis was called for a paramedic and extrication assistance, Buxton Rescue for the ambulatory patient. The weather delayed there arrival. 3 senior firefighters, 3 junior firefighters and one fire-police handled this call. We were all quite busy. Rescue 85 transported to MMC with Hollis's paramedic. The next 2 calls were covered with 3 Juniors, 1 fire-police and 1 senior firefighter. Of the next 4 calls; Arundel FD covered one, 2 senior firefighters covered the other, Fire-police covered the 3rd and as luck would have it R85, returning from MMC was "in the neighborhood" when the rescue call to Cal Vista Drive came in. The better part of the evening was spent responding to trees in the road, lines down or wires on branches. Needless to say, Wednesday was a very busy afternoon and evening.
Open Shifts: December: 27th (Must be EVO2) January; 5, 14 February: 21 (Must be EVO2), 25, 26. All shifts are 0700-1900.
Recent Fires: Thanks to everyone who responded to Biddeford's fire on Route 111 on the 21st. Then again to Biddeford for the 3rd Alarm on the 23rd. For that fire we had 10 on scene and 4 covering the station. E84 was pumping the hydrant assist at Green & Mason. R85 covered an EMS call in Arundel.
Turf Farm Burn: Again, I want to thank the crew that turned out last Sunday for the controlled burn. The fire lasted less than an hour. We had about 10 Firefighters plus 5 Juniors. A lot of good training on pump operating, master streams and hand lines. And a very happy property owner!
EVO1 Test: We plan to hold an EVO1 test on Sunday 11/30. To do this we need evaluators, Please contact the Training Officer if you are able to help run the test. If you're ready to test out for EVO1, you should have your paperwork submitted already. If you have questions, please contact Capt Hooper. Regarding our EVO qualification process. I realize it's rather cumbersome, time consuming and confusing. We need to streamline it, yet ensure we meet the requirements of the Bureau of Labor Standards (BLS) and ensure we have competent pump operators. I've tasked the Training Officer, with the assistance of the Engineers to provide recommendations for improvement.
Traffic Safety: Early this morning a Chelsea, MA, a firefighter was dragged down the road when a passing car caught the line the firefighter was connecting to a hydrant. This Boston Globe article has the details. Be very careful when working in the roadway. They aren't looking out for us!
Students on Break: This weekend the students are on break. Also, Winter Break begins around December 16th. Please keep this in mind. Only one person will be in the station overnight. We'll need a driver and additional support on all calls. What would be very helpful, when you're home and available/intending to respond to calls, make yourself available on I AM RESPONDING. This provides some info on who is available and will be responding. Also, by putting yourself "on-call" you get credited towards meeting the minimum activity requirements.
Coffee Break Training: Compressed Gas Cylinder Control Valve Pressure Relief Devices http://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/coffee-break/cb_fp_2014_44.pdf
11/04/2014 09:44 AM EST. Learning Objective: The student will be able to explain the operation of compressed gas cylinder control valve pressure relief devices. (PDF, 130 KB)
National Fire Academy: The NFA has vacancies in upcoming classes! Click this link NFA Class vacancies for a list of all courses with vacancies and direct links to the description and selection criteria for each. If interested apply today! Vacancies fill quickly! Don’t miss out on this free training at your National Fire Academy. Tuition, lodging and transportation (roundtrip Maine/Maryland) is paid for by the NFA. All you have to cover are your meals.
Maine & Florida Weekend at the NFA: May 29-30, 2015. Flyer is on the bulletin board. NFA classes are management/leadership courses. Typically, we send officers. Officers will continue to get first priority to attended. Second priority will be to Firefighters with 3 plus years of service and who've never been to the NFA. FMI contact the Training Officer or Facebook: Maine State Weekend/NFA.
Certificates from Recent Classes: If you haven't done so yet, Please get your training entered into Data Trac and certificates to Training Records for completing recent Pumps 1 class in Arundel, EVOC (or any other class at the September school).
Christmas Lights: Thanks to Capt Lang, Juniors and all others involved in putting up the Christmas lights last Tuesday. Tuesday was a nice warm day, all the outside work got done before the big one hit on Wednesday. Last Tuesday's Thanksgiving Dinner was a great success. Great food and good company.
Next Blood Drive: Saturday, December 13, 2014. 0900-1400. FMI: Contact FF Chris Ray.
Santa's Visit: I still need to confirm this with Lyman Parks and Rec., but I believe we'll be doing the tree lighting and Santa's visit on Sunday, December 14th.
Events Next Week: Tuesday, GMFRA at 1900. Thursday; NFPA 1851Class (Turnout Gear Cleaning and Maintenance) sponsored by Globe. Hosted at Alfred FD at 1800.
Out of the Office: I'll in a training class in South Portland on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week.
Duty Officer: The calendar says Lt Carpenter. But, Chris is departing for military service on Saturday and will be away for a few weeks. So, I guess by default I'm the duty officer this weekend.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Chief
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Roger S. Hooper, Fire Chief
Goodwins Mills Fire-Rescue
481 Goodwins Mills Road
Lyman, ME 04002
Office: 207-499-7878
Station: 207-499-2362
Fax: 207-499-2893
E-Mail: rhooper@gmfd.org
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