Category Archives: Uncategorized

COLLAPSE HAZARDS OF PARAPET WALLS

A parapet is the portion of an exterior wall that extends above the roof line. On commercial buildings it is not uncommon for a parapet to extend several feet above the roof to conceal ventilation equipment. Laddering the roof at the front of a commercial building can be difficult; a firefighter who climbs an aerial or ground ladder to the top of a parapet can find himself several feet above the roof. Parapets are prone to collapse because they are …

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Care, Maintenance & Operation of Rotary Saws

Our gasoline-powered rotary (K-12 and K950FD) saws are powerful and effective rescue, forcible entry and ventilation tools. The saw’s safety, performance and reliability depend on how well the saw is inspected at shift change and after each use, the skill of the operator and the operator’s knowledge of cutting techniques. Our saws have the potential to seriously injure an operator and firefighters working near its operation. There are three main causes of injuries from rotary saws; they are: Accidental contact …

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Hazards of “Twin-T’s”

Recently MDFR units responded to a fire in a one story commercial building. The fire building was a one story single bay warehouse with concrete block walls and a roof consisting of precast Twin-Ts. This fire presented firefighters with some life-threatening hazards; hazards that they avoided by attacking the fire with a defensive, exterior attack (Photo #1). FIRE RESISTIVE VS NONCOMBUSTIBLE There is a vast difference between fire resistive and noncombustible construction. A building classified by the building code as …

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“A Message from Captain Gustin”

We can avoid line of duty deaths and career-ending injuries by learning from the experiences and tragedies of other fire fighters who have been there. We do this through rigorous training and research. Every lesson that you learn from what went wrong at a fire that YOU DIDN’T GO TO is another bullet that you dodge.

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Welcome to Gustin Fire Training

Bill Gustin, a 39 year veteran of fire service is captain of Miami Dade Fire Rescue and lead instructor in his department’s officer training programs. Gustin currently serves on the editorial board and is a technical advisor for Fire Engineering Magazine. He began his fire service career in the Chicago area and teaches fire training programs in Florida and other states.

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