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Messages - slong

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 5
« on: September 11, 2020, 12:50:33 PM »
A time I found myself in the top left box was the first time I pumped a structure fire.  I remember driving E48 while working at Miami Township and being more nervous than I had ever been when we pulled off the ramp and saw a large column of black smoke rising in the distance. We had been dispatched to a working apartment fire on the 3rd floor.  We were first on scene.  I could feel myself starting to become overwhelmed with all the tasks before me.  E48's crew pulled a handline and was gone to make an attack on the fire.  I had to make sure and slow myself down mentally to ensure I did everything correctly. 

Slowing down and falling back to my training helped me manage a high stress situation.  I learned that training was vitally important.  It is import to train to the point you cant mess things up.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 4
« on: July 01, 2019, 08:17:20 PM »
Quote from: ross.moffitt on June 10, 2019, 03:39:03 PM
I don't fully agree with this guy. It appears to me this guy is an extremist and wants people to believe that only he knows whats best for firefighting. UL has spent millions of dollars to educate firefighters on the use of applying water from the outside. UL also knows that applying water from the exterior is only a temporary task. Crews are to move interior and check for viable victims and finish extinguishing the fire. I do agree that we have to get better with Gross Decon after an exposure. I believe overtime that once you exit a structure fire you will have to proceed to some kind of decon station.
Completely eliminating interior fire operations and then blaming the homeowner or business owner and making them financially responsible is the wrong step. I agree that continued public education, and working to require residential sprinkler systems would help a ton with limiting our exposure. Fire is going to happen no matter what we do, and denying a tax payer a service they pay for isn't going to sit well with them. So if we want to keep our jobs we might want to continue putting our citizens safety first.

I think your point about the tax payers is very true.  I would be very hard to pass a levy with this guys ideas.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 4
« on: July 01, 2019, 08:16:22 PM »
Quote from: dgerspacher on June 06, 2019, 01:15:11 PM
I disagree with this article. It is true that we should be more aware of the toxins that we are exposed to and do everything possible to stay safe. I know I want to milk the hell out of my pension.

I would feel sorry for the department PR guy that would have to tell the citizens of a district that you were not going to fight fire inside structures anymore and you were going to also fine them if they had a fire. Hopefully you will not be asking for a levy anytime soon.

Their is merit behind being aware of time limits on conducting interior firefighting operations. Structures are more lightweight and studies show that collapse times are reducing but this guys statement that we not go in at all is stupid. We have all been on fires that we saved the structure and our customers belongings with a quick knock-down on a room and content fire. Are we  supposed to stand by and wait until it gets big enough to then put out from outside? Anybody who has ever worked with me knows I am more on the conservative side and don't have a gung-ho attitude about running in the front door on everything but this guys ideas are ridiculous.

Imagine putting level A suits on every time we have a fire for overhaul. This guy must have stock in a company that manufactures haz-mat suits.

I agree with you.  I think the author is taking things to the extreme with his thinking.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 4
« on: June 25, 2019, 07:14:35 PM »
I can't agree with this article in its entirety. The author does make some good points about trying to prevent occupational cancer. This is a real concern with our job and it should be taken seriously. We as an organization should be doing everything we can to help prevent contamination when possible. However the reality of our job is at times we are asked to do things we know will place us in danger, either immediate due to obvious hazards or long term due to higher cancer rates. To say we should never go interior unless we have an absolute rescue is taking things to the extreme in my opinion. We train to know our "enemy". If we learn building construction, fire behavior, and train on transitional attacks then we can apply our knowledge and make an educated decision on the fire ground. Anytime someone takes a radical approach to something in the fire service and says "never" or "always" I think we all need to look into it deeper. Our job, in my opinion, is a hard job to use works like "always" and "never" because of the fluid problems we face.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 2
« on: September 25, 2018, 10:08:54 AM »
Quote from: Haggard on September 04, 2018, 08:26:28 AM
What strategies do you use to manage your time effectively?
I use a combination of my calendar and a note pad (to do list).  I check the daily requirements for myself and other's calendars and then write on paper any duties needing completed for that day. Once they are completed I can scratch them of my to do list.

What are some of the biggest obstacles to managing your time effectively ?
Having to deal with the unexpected (at work, runs), once a plan in in place.  Flexibility is the key word for time management in the fire service.

What can you do to remove some of theses obstacles?
Delegation is a great tool to use.  This gets the whole team involved and accomplishes the tasks.

I like the idea of using a notepad to keep track of things as well.  I guess I'm old school but I like being able to visualize it throughout the day.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 2
« on: September 25, 2018, 09:51:12 AM »
Quote from: NBaldridge on September 07, 2018, 02:41:47 PM
What strategies do you use to manage your time effectively?
     I begin the morning by looking at the CCFD Event calendar, Battalion's calendar, my Lieutenant's calendar, and my calendar to see what events and priorities there are for the day.  I then make a list of the items that I need to and want to accomplish for the day.  Another thing that I like to do it take on small but important tasks and get them done first thing in the morning and keep the accomplishment momentum going all day long.  Just like what US Navy Admiral William H. McRaven said, "If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed."

What are some of your biggest obstacles to you managing your time effectively?
     One of the biggest obstacles that I find for myself is the amount of tasks that I take on.  Like Capt. Cox, I do find that the more I have going on the more focused that I am.  One of the other obstacles is the obvious of the pop-up tasks.  It never fails, you get everything set out and ready to get started working and here comes FAR.

What can you do to remove some of these obstacles?
     Instead of taking on task after task, just take on a couple at a time that way as I get them done I can keep the momentum going to get others done.


That's good advice Nate, I like the idea of starting small and working your way up to the bigger stuff.

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CCFD Professional Development / Re: Assignment 2
« on: August 29, 2018, 09:55:28 AM »
What strategies do you use to manage your time effectively? I use the Microsoft calendar to keep track of training and daily duties that need to be accomplished.  At the beginning of each shift before breakfast I sit down and figure out what are the priorities and what needs done but can wait.  I have found in the last couple years what really helps me manage my time better is figuring out what I need to do and what can be done by other members of the crew with little or no assistance from me.

What are some of your biggest obstacles to managing your time effectively?  For me the biggest obstacle to managing my time is feeling the need to be part of the crew when they are working on projects or an improvised training they have come up with.  I let this distract me from some of my things that I'm working on and end up being up at work late catching up on things that got pushed back. 

What can you do to remove some of these obstacles? Again it goes back to making sure priorities get taken care of first.  Determining what is a priority and who it's a priority for are where the obstacles come in.

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