Archive for December 13th, 2018

Urbana Fire Department news

Excerpts from the news-gazette.com:

For fire departments, earning a Class 1 rating from the Insurance Services Office is the dream. The inspections are so rigorous that this year, just 305 of the more than 46,000 departments certified by the agency across the country earned that designation.

Only 16 of them are in Illinois — and Champaign County now has two, as the Urbana Fire Department has joined its sister agency across Wright Street in the exclusive Class 1 club.

In calculating its Public Protection Rating, the ISO looks at four factors: the fire department, the needed fire flow — the amount of water an engine needs to put out a fire — water supply and distribution, and emergency communications. So it’s not just the fire department that gets scrutinized but also METCAD and Illinois American Water.

The ISO grades communities on a 100-point scale, and anything above 90 earns a Class 1 rating. Urbana got a 90.92 this year, with the fire department scoring 42.02 out of 50, Illinois American Water scoring 36.65 out of 40 and METCAD scoring 9.55 out of 10.

thanks Martin

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2-11 Alarm fire in Chicago, 12-9-18 (more)

This from Steve Redick:

This was Sunday morning, 12/9/18.  Some kind of mattress warehouse that was fully sprinklered and metal clad. Initial response was an automatic alarm I believe. Not much to be seen from the outside but got to watch truck 26 do some aggressive ventilation with the aerial as well as some saw work on the side of the building. Here’s a few images and all the rest including video can be seen here:
 
Steve
Chicago FD apparatus at fire scene

Steve Redick photo

smoke from warehouse during a fire

Steve Redick photo

Chicago Firefighters on aerial ladder turntable

Steve Redick photo

Firefighter vents metal clad building

Steve Redick photo

Chicago FD Tower Ladder 14

Steve Redick photo

Chicago FD Engine 95 on a hydrant

Steve Redick photo

Chicago FD MVU 9-

Steve Redick photo

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Blue Island Fire Department history

This from Mike Summa:

 TBT-Not an apparatus photo, but a question for fire buffs?  Two Blue Island firemen posed in front of their station.  What is that pump behind them?  Air or Gas?
Mike Summa
 
Blue island Fire Department history

source unknown

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Rockford Fire Department news

Excerpts from mystateline.com:

Ryan Curry is an Iraq veteran who does charity work through his group “Beneath the Beard,” which was formed to help military veterans with PTSD.

On Tuesday, some of Curry’s colleagues from the Rockford firefighter’s union invited him out to Old Chicago for lunch. “I was getting a hold of some other people with the fundraising things we were doing, and a police officer came in and said someone had hit my car,” said a surprised Curry. What started as a white lie ended with a wounded Marine vet receiving a much needed pickup truck. 

The Rockford Firefighters Local 413 raises money each year to purchase cars for wounded vets, and Curry was this year’s winner.

“I got wounded in Iraq in 2006, August 30th,” Curry said. “I hit and IED and I hit a lot of them. So, that was my 7th concussion within 30 days, so I had some damage to my frontal lobe. The final time I hit, I put some shrapnel in my body, and severed by ear drums.”

Curry’s mission didn’t end in Iraq. He learned that, in order to help himself, he had to help others. “I felt that this natural, little part of us that helps us, mentally helping somebody else, and that kind of catches on, and that’s where it has kind of gone from,” he said.

Curry’s work with the department involves charity work, collecting donations and delivering them to the people who need them. Over the past few months, firefighters noticed that he was making multiple pick-up runs in his old car. “We raised close to 80 turkeys, and I delivered them to all the veterans in hospice care and people who are in need,” Curry said. “It takes a lot of trips in my old vehicle, so I can load the back of [the new pickup truck] with Christmas gifts.”

“It was important for us to touch base with Ryan and acknowledge his service, and the sacrifice he made,” Firefighter Christopher Scol said. “And not just the sacrifice he made, but when he got back from being deployed [in the military] and dealt with his personal issues and injuries, he continues to serve the community in a capacity that’s just inspiring.”

To help Curry in one of the many causes he is involved in, visit beneaththebeard.org

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