Firefighter Blog

Take a moment to view this photo essay set to a beautiful hymn.

After watching the photo array visit the main site of Iwo.com. I spent over an hour exploring this great military site, once you start clicking links you can't stop.

Thank God for our military and the sacrifices they make every day for our freedoms.

Labels: Military heroes

Jason at Hamptons Fire is generously donating a portion of his earnings from Amazon.com to a worthy cause.

Labels: Burn Center, FDNY

Two quick thoughts came to my mind as I viewed this video from San Bernandino in 2002. One, why they were in there and two, how lucky they were to get all the personnel and vehicles out.

Labels: burnovers, wildland fire

Not many firefighter families have an accomplished writer in the family. The Kenney family does. Charles Kenney's book "Rescue Men" recounts the careers of his father Sonny and his grandfather "Pops". Pops was a first responder on the devastating Cocoanut Grove Fire in 1942. Kenney's dad Sonny followed his father's footsteps, becoming a firefighter with the Boston Fire Department. Sonny was instrumental in solving the mystery surrounding the Cocoanut Grove fire well after he retired from the department.

The book treats readers to a chronological look at Boston Fire Department history from the early 1930's to the present. Kenney's family was impacted by affirmative action policy enacted in the 70's. Kenney presents the fallout from the politics of that era on the department and his family brilliantly. One of Kenney brothers went on to become a firefighter and assisted in the rescue and recovery operations in Ground Zero after September 11.

I found myself reading a great American story. I won't be surprised to this story see on the big screen some day. "Rescue Men" is recommended reading for anyone in the fire service and anyone related to an active duty or retired firefighter. Buy a few copies and spread them to loved ones. To make it easy I have a link Amazon on the sidebar below where you can read other reviews.

Labels: firefighter books, recommended reading

Stories from the pages of FDNY Website.


Firefighters from Marine Company 1

"Firefighter John Rizzo, tethered by a rescue rope, jumped into the 40-degree water and searched under Pier 40."

Ladder Company 41, with assistance from Engine Company 90 and Engine Company 45

"Two victims were located just inside the front door on the first floor, and three others were located in two adjacent bedrooms..."

Firefighters from Engine 248 on Rescue 2

"“With no visibility and limited resources, they were able to save those kids.”"

Labels: FDNY, Rescues

To this point the biggest business mistake ever made by Mark Cuban was trading Steve Nash. This one dwarfs that astounding move.

File THIS under the heading;

I can't get enough attention owning an NBA team, owning interests in numerous businesses, had a reality TV show and made a billion $s selling a business to Yahoo! {just before the bubble burst} that I'm compelled to scrape the VERY bottom of the barrel to get even more attention!!

According to the NY Post article;

"Cuban e-mailed us: "We are having discussions about distributing the existing video with Charlie's involvement as a narrator, not in making a new feature. We are also looking for productions with an opposing viewpoint. We like controversial subjects, but we are agnostic to which side the controversy comes from."

Are you kidding me? What an insult to victims of terror on September 11, 2001. So Mark you are always looking for productions with an opposing viewpoint?

Read this production.

Think of all the good will you've rung up over the years and how fast that goodwill is going to race down the toilet if you throw in with the hate America Hollywood crowd in the interest of some perverted idea of "fair and balance".

Do the right thing Mark, remember where you are from.

Labels: first class boobs, Sept 11 war on terror

I posted a few days back my intentions to support Rudy Giuliani for President. Today I initiated a blog Firefighters For Giuliani. I am accepting links for exchange from firefighters or family members of firefighters who want their site associated with the Rudy Giuliani Presidential campaign effort.
Normally an apolitical sort I was moved by the unfair characterization of Giuliani by spokespersons of the fire union. I'm tired of ugly politics and want to direct my efforts towards supporting a true friend of firefighters.

(email; mikeswebmail AT gmail.com)

Labels: Firefighters For Giuliani, Rudy Giuliani

Job well done by the volunteer squads including volunteer firefighters from departments like NWFD Station 21. According to their dispatch they had volunteers on the line helping throughout!
Well done.

Labels: search and rescue, volunteer firefighters

I'm currently reading Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America by Brigitte Gabriel. Brigitte is intimately qualified to warn the U.S.A and the West of the intentions of radical Islam. Her story of an idyllic childhood in Lebanon shattered at age 10 by a war between Christians and Muslims is chilling. Brigitte witnessed first hand how radical elements of Islam used the laws of a country to their perverted end. I am only halfway through Brigitte's captivating story.

A book I finished last month is The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11. Author Lawrence Wright details the birth of Al-Qaeda. I was surprised to learn Bin Laden is actually a dolt, that he has more in common with Forest Gump (being in the right place at the right time) than religious charismatics. Bin Laden is led by the nose by fellow tyrant Ayman al-Zawahiri. The road to September 11, 2001 is chronicled thoroughly as are other terrorist attacks preceding it. Wright also focuses on the investigators tasked to catch Bin Laden operatives. Anyone interested in knowing more about the history of our enemy should pick this one up.

I finished reading "Rescue Men" by Charles Kenney last week and I am having quite a time trying to properly summarize Kenney's brilliant book. It's a MUST read for anyone in the fire service. I intend to post a proper summary of the book soon. In the meantime please refer to the Amazon ad on the sidebar for others reviews. Rescue Men would make a perfect gift for anyone interested in firefighters, firefighting or Boston Fire Department history!

Labels: book reviews, terror related

Official fire information site Orange County Fire Authority

* An O.C. photographer snapped a great picture of the fire here.
* A family in the evacuation zone blogs from their perspective.
* Weather is expected to be hotter on tomorrow with humidity predicted to be 4%.

Labels: 2007 fire season, Windy Ridge Fire

A car fire turned quickly into a wildland fire in Anaheim Hills in Orange County today. Helped by temperatures in the mid 90s and pushed by sustained onshore winds of 40 mph the fire made for quite a challenge for firefighters.

Fox News has broadcasted live footage from local television feeds for most of the afternoon. More news coverage about the fire can be found on Google News. Hundreds of residents were warned to evacuate. The fire grew to an estimated 1000 acres in 9 hours.

This is way too early for this kind of activity!

Labels: 2007 fire season, wildfires, wildland fire

Hamptons Fire blog has gone almost completely to video and images. In fact their description line is now, "Home Of The Best Firefighting Video.." I like the straight forward presentation of Hamptons Fire Blog. The site now fits the definition of a vlog . Hamptons Fire may be the first "Firefighter Vlog".

Labels: fiirefighter blogs, fire bloggers, vlogs

Bloomberg via Yahoo! News reports,

"The International Association of Fire Fighters union said it wants its 260,000 U.S. members to know the ``real story'' of the former New York mayor, contending that Giuliani sought to curtail search-and-recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001...
...
The union wants ``to make all of our members aware of the egregious acts Mayor Giuliani committed against our members, our fallen on 9/11, and our New York City union officers following that horrific day,'"

Here's the real story. Mayor Giuliani, "America's Mayor" on September 11, 2001 distinguished himself to those of us who did not live in New York and knew little about him. I was impressed by his take charge response, calming manner, leadership and human emotion.

Some now want to play politics years later and they should be ashamed.

This quote from the article is hard to believe,

"He (Guliani) valued the money and gold and wanted the site cleared before he left office at the end of 2001 more than he valued the lives and memories of those lost,'' the letter said."

Who believes that garbage? Mayor Giuliani attended dozens of memorials and funerals of FDNY personnel killed by the terrorists on 9-11. It's safe to say no mayor has attended more firefighter funerals.

What this is is dirty politics, Clinton style politics and it's ugly. I made up my mind the minute Rudy Giuliani announced his intention to run for President I would support him over all others. It's a decision I hope all independent thinking fire personnel and good Americans come to as well.

President Rudy Giuliani, it sounds right!

Labels: politics, Sept.11

FoodFit from IAFF reminds their membership during "National Nutrition Month" that fad diets don't work.

"Fad diets are popular because many of them do work for a short time. However, it is likely that much of the weight you lose is from water and lean muscle, not body fat. Most individuals cannot keep up with the demands of a diet that restricts certain foods and many calories. In addition, when calories are severely restricted, your body goes into starvation mode, causing your metabolism to actually slow down. You end up gaining back any weight that you may lose – known as the “yo-yo diet” effect."

EatRight.org has a list of fad diets through the years.

1820	Vinegar and Water Diet Made popular by Lord Byron
1825	Low Carbohydrate Diet First appeared in The Physiology of Taste by Jean Brillat-Savarin
1830	Graham’s Diet Only legacy: Invented Graham crackers
1863	Banting’s Low Carbohydrate Diet “Banting” becomes a popular term for dieting
1903	Horace Fletcher promotes “Fletcherizing” Chew food 32 times
1917	Calorie Counting Introduced by Lulu Hunt Peters in her book Diet and Health, With Key to the Calories
1925	Cigarette Diet “Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet”
1928	Inuit Meat-and-Fat Diet Caribou, raw fish and whale blubber
1930	Hay Diet Carbohydrates and proteins not allowed at the same meal
Dr. Stoll’s Diet Aid First of the liquid diet drinks
1934	Bananas and Skim Milk Diet Backed by the United Fruit Company
1950	Cabbage Soup Diet Flatulence is listed as a main side effect
Grapefruit Diet Also known as Hollywood Diet
1960	Zen Macrobiotic Diet Created by Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa
1961	Calories Don’t Count Diet FDA filed charges regarding diet’s claims
1964	Drinking Man’s Diet Harvard School of Public Health declared diet unhealthful
1970	Sleeping Beauty Diet Individuals heavily sedated for several days
Liquid Protein Diets Liquid protein drinks were low in vitamins and minerals
1981	Beverly Hills Diet Only fruit for first 10 days but in unlimited amounts
1985	Fit for Life Avoid combining protein and carbohydrate foods
Caveman Diet Foods from the Paleolithic Era
1986	Rotation Diet Rotating number of calories taken in from week to week
1987	Scarsdale Diet Low-carbohydrate, low-calorie diet plan
1990	Cabbage Soup Diet Diet from 1950s resurfaces on the Web
1994	High Protein, Low Carb Diet Dr. Atkin’s version
1995	Sugar Busters — Cut Sugar to Trim Fat Eliminates refined carbohydrates
1996	Eat Right for Your Type Diet based on blood type
1999	Juice, Fasting and Detoxification Perennial dieting favorites reappear in combination
2000	Raw Foods Diet Focuses on uncooked, unprocessed organic foods
2001	High Protein, Low Carb Diet 1994 diet updated
2004	Coconut Diet Fats replaced with coconut oil
2005	Cheater’s Diet Cheating on the weekend is required
2006	Maple Syrup Diet Features a special syrup-lemon drink

Labels: firefighter diets, foodfit, IAFF foodfit

On Wednesday, February 7 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed SB 41 authored by Senator Jim Battin that enacts the California Fallen Firefighters Assistance Tax Clarification Act of 2006 in the wake of the five firefighters who died in the line of duty fighting the Esperanza fire last year. This bill will "help the families of the fallen firefighters by allowing them to receive charitable donations directly from tax exempt organizations without penalty".

While looking at the above press release I noticed a new website for fire information from the State of California here. It's nice to see such a professional website dedicated to fire news and information on ongoing incidents. Well done!

Labels: CDF, Fallen Firefighters, Governor Schwarzenegger