Fire Service Today

Special Operations Protective Clothing and Equipment Technical Committee Seeking New Members

The Technical Committee on Special Operations Protective Clothing and Equipment is seeking new members in the Consumer, Enforcer and Special Expert categories. This technical committee has responsibility for NFPA 1951, Standard on Protective Ensembles for Technical Rescue Incidents; NFPA 1952, Standard on Surface Water Operations Protective Clothing and Equipment; NFPA 1975, Standard on Station/Work Uniforms for Emergency Services; and NFPA 1983, Standard on Life Safety Rope and Equipment for Emergency Services.

In addition, the technical committee is beginning work on a new document, NFPA 1953, Standard on Contaminated Water Operations Protective Clothing and Equipment. The TC would be especially interested in applicants who have the expertise to assist in the preparation of this standard.

To apply for technical committee membership, please use this application form.

Dave Trebisacci

Manual Adjustment of Automatic Slack Adjusters May Contribute to Unexpected Brake Failure on Automotive Fire Apparatus

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommends that all fire departments operating fire apparatus equipped with automatic slack adjusters immediately take the following actions to reduce the risk of firefighters being injured in an apparatus crash due to brake failure:

1.) Ensure that automatic slack adjusters are not manually adjusted.

2.) Establish procedures to ensure maintenance on fire apparatus is conducted as recommended in NFPA 1911 Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Automotive Fire Apparatus. 

3.) Ensure maintenance is only performed by qualified technicians who meet NFPA 1071 Standard for Emergency Vehicle Technician Professional Qualifications.

More information regarding NIOSH's Safety Advisory can be found at this link.

Larry Stewart

NFPA 1401, 1402, 1403, and 1451 accepting proposals

NFPA 1401, Recommended Practice for Fire Service Training Reports and Records, NFPA 1402, Guide to Building Fire Service Training Centers, NFPA 1403, Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions and NFPA 1451, Standard for a

Fire Service Vehicle Operations Training Program will be entering the Fall 2011 cycle. The proposal closing date is May 28, 2010. Go here for a proposal form.

NFPA 1999 Seeking New Members

The Technical Committee on Emergency Medical Services Protective Clothing and Equipment is currently seeking new members in all interest categories. NFPA 1999, Standard on Protective Clothing for Emergency Medical Operations, specifies the minimum design, performance, testing, documentation and certification requirements for new single-use and new multiple-use emergency medical operations protective clothing, including garments, helmets, gloves, footwear, and face protection devices used by emergency medical responders prior to arrival at medical care facilities during emergency medical operations. The standard also specifies additional minimum requirements for multiple exposure use ensembles that provide limited protection from CBRN terrorism agents.

NFPA Technical Committee membership application.

Dave Trebisacci 

 

DHS Proposes to Adopt NFPA 1600 for PS-Prep

On Thursday, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano announced new proposed standards for the private sector to improve preparedness for disasters and emergencies. Secretary Napolitano says "Preparedness is a shared responsibility and everyone - including businesses, universities and non-profit organizations - has a role to play. Ensuring our private sector partners have the information and training they need to respond to disasters will strengthen our efforts to build a culture of preparedness nationwide."

Thursday's notice in the Federal Register seeks public comment on NFPA 1600 and two other standards identified for adoption under the Voluntary Private Sector Preparedness Accreditation and Certification Program (PS-Prep). PS-Prep is a partnership between DHS and the private sector that enables private entities (businesses, non-profit organizations, and universities) to receive emergency preparedness certification from a DHS accreditation system created in coordination with the private sector.

If you want to submit comments to DHS, you can get a comment form and instructions for submitting online at www.regulations.gov, in Docket ID: FEMA-2008-0017. DHS says it would like comments to be submitted by November 15, though it will continue to accept submissions at any time thereafter.

For more information, visit http://www.fema.gov/privatesectorpreparedness/.

Dave Trebisacci

 

PPE Works

When I came into the fire service in 1972, I was issued a tin helmet, a cotton duck jacket that was little more than a rain coat (a lousy one at that), and a pair of rubber boots. Gloves were optional, and considered by many to be a sign of weakness. How things change.

The transition to modern turnout gear did not occur smoothly. Truth be told, many fought the change. I had my own reservations about the weight and insulating qualities of NFPA approved PPE, and wondered what the folks on the technical committee that developed the standard were thinking.

About the time I became the Safety Officer in Providence, and began investigating the burn injuries we were sustaining, the magnitude of the problem started to become apparent. It was a perspective I could not see from my vantage point riding on a fire truck. At the company level, all I could see were the injuries happening to personnel I worked with. It seemed like there was an occasional burn injury here or there, but nothing too significant. What emerged when I looked department-wide was a regularly occuring pattern of burn injuries to legs, thights, hands, ears and necks, all associated with routine fireground operations in a busy urban fire department. When the same data was looked at nationwide, the magnitude of the problem became painfully obvious. It also became obvious that nationwide many firefighters were sustaining severe burns.

Many times, I think back to the days of lighter weight, and less expensive PPE. And then a story like this one from Buckeye, Arizona reminds me that our PPE standards are as stringent as they are for good reason.

Curt Varone

NFPA 1051 Standard for Wildland Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications is Actively Seeking Members and Proposals for the Next Revision Cycle.

The NFPA 1051 Technical Committee is actively seeking members in any of the nine classifications as the document is getting ready to enter into cycle. The date the document enters its revision cycle is January 1, 2010 with a proposal closing date of May 28th 2010.

Below is a breakdown of the committee member classifications:

GUIDELINES TO CLASSIFICATION OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS

These Guidelines are for use by the Standards Council and the staff to assist in complying with

3.2.5 of the Regulations Governing Committee Projects.

The following classifi cations apply to Committee members and represent their principal interest

in the activity of the Committee.

1. M Manufacturer: A representative of a maker or marketer of a product, assembly, or system,

or portion thereof, that is affected by the standard.

2. U User: A representative of an entity that is subject to the provisions of the standard or that

voluntarily uses the standard.

3. I/M Installer/Maintainer: A representative of an entity that is in the business of installing or

maintaining a product, assembly, or system affected by the standard.

4. L Labor: A labor representative or employee concerned with safety in the work place.

5. R/T Applied Research/Testing Laboratory: A representative of an independent testing laboratory

or independent applied research organization that promulgates and/or enforces

standards.

6. E Enforcing Authority: A representative of an agency or an organization that promulgates

and/or enforces standards.

7. I Insurance: A representative of an insurance company, broker, agent, bureau, or inspection

agency.

8. C Consumer: A person who is or represents the ultimate purchaser of a product, system, or

service affected by the standard, but who is not included in (2).

9. SE Special Expert: A person not representing (1) through (8), and who has special expertise

in the scope of the standard or portion thereof.

 

Please also find the attached proposal form and TC applicaiton form.

Download NFPAProposalForm

Download TC App 2-09

Please contact me should you have any questions.

Thank you.

Ken Holland

 

 

 

 

Video Cameras on Fire Apparatus......

I found an interesting article regarding a fire department installing video cameras in fire apparatus as a second set of eyes watching how the vehicle is being driven.  The video system can email fire department supervisors and send video of bad driving habits.  I'd be really interested to find out how widely accepted this technology would be in the fire service.

Larry Stewart

Stimulus money to be used to rehire laid off fire fighters in Massachusetts

The Governor of Massachusetts has used some of the Federal stimulus money to rehire 127 fire fighters who have been laid off due to budget cuts. PLease see the press release below that is posted on the Mass.gov website which also contains what cities have received this money and how many fire fighters they will be hiring back.

Stimulus money

Ken Holland

Urban Fire Safety Task Force Meeting

NFPA hosted the Urban Fire Safety Task Force at NFPA Headquarters in Quincy to discuss safety challenges facing urban populations.  To read an article written by one of the atendees click on the following link for FireRescue 1 News.  For more information regarding the Urban Fire Safety Task Force contact Sharon Gamache at sgamache@nfpa.org .