EMT ....

In honor of pursing my EMT license I have decided to rewrite the old classic “Dry Bones”

The Phalanges connected to the Metatarsals, The Metatarsals connected to the Tarsals,

The Tarsales, connected to the Tibia, Tibia connected to the Patella, The Patella connected to the Femur,

The Femur connected to the Pelvis, the Pelvis, connected to the Coccyx/Sacrum, Lumbar, Thoracic, Cervical

The Cervical connected to the Cranium

Oh hear the word of the Lord!

Quiet Time.....

So it has been a quiet week (or two) since the four house fires and a plane crash in Eden Prairie. Even though we did not have any fires or rescues we did support a great block party with T41. Kids got soaked from a hose line and from the tower. These opportunities are as much of being a fire fighter as fighting fires……it at least helps the community understand where their tax dollars are going.

On a side note, I was reviewing our Fire Chief’s blog on the busy week we had two weeks ago. I especially liked the comment about the ‘risk’ associated with the use of our 100’ tower during the lightening storm……we spent four hours up in the basket with lightening all around (great view) ..at least the pike poll is made of fiberglass.

Add Another One to the list.

Wow..what a week.

Sunday night lightning strike produced a mutual aid call in Chanhassen…attic fire. Thursday night we had a fully involved Eden Prairie house fire (defensive). Friday there was a mutual aid for a kitchen fire in Edina (T41 standby) and Friday night we had another Eden Prairie house fire most likely from a lightning strike. In addition to another dozen or so fire alarms and medical related calls. This was by far the busiest weekend in my first year on the department.

Before joining the EPFD I had no idea what it meant to be a volunteer. You just come to expect that when an event happens people show up. Fire, Police, Medical….it is expected. The reality of the effort that goes into getting an apparatus & crew to the scene in a timely manner is impressive. I know this weekend I have spent more hours in my stinking, wet turn out gear than sleeping in my comfy bed……and I loved every minute!

Twofer

Second Fire in less than week. Last night’s page came during our weekly training. East side was the Edina Training tower performing engine company training while the West district was out in Lake Riley practicing some water-rescue. For E41 the call came when we out in the middle of Riley Lake. It took a few minutes of controlled chaos to get the ‘victims’ in the boat and back to shore while everyone else was scrambling to get in service.

We were 3 miles out and could see the flames over the tree tops. This two storey home was fully involved…it was impressive to see police secure the neighborhood and engines running water to the crews from multiple directions and speed at which command, staging and divisions were set up. Our crew ended up getting some defensive/exposure nozzle time, assisting with fire investigation, and a lot of salvage/clean-up. The scene cleared around 0:45 and then it took only another hour to get all the trucks back in service, hoses scrubbed and bottles filled.
2

Lightning Strike

Most Fires can be prevented…but when dealing with Mother Nature you just need to be prepared and hope for the best. Which is why prevention (what not to do) + awareness (what to do) is so important.

Last night we had a wicked lightning storm roll through the city about 2300 hrs. Just towards the tail end we picked up a mutual aid call for Chanhassen requesting our Tower. Upon arrival this two-story residential home had smoke rolling out of the ‘melting’ roof vents. Even without visible flames it was impressive how warm the roof felt inside the bunker pants. I am not even sure how involved the interior was but I think the group did a great job at knocking it down and preventing a significant loss.

Open House Planning

Starting the planning stages of this falls Open House on October 10 at EPFD Station #1. This being my first year at planning the Open House I don’t plan on deviating too much from the years past which have been extremely successful. We typically see of 2000 people come through the station in a little over 3.5 hours. This years events include:

· Engine Rides

· Squirt House

· Safety Trailer

· Ambulance Overview

· Car Fire – Extinguishment

· Auto Extraction

· Food

Give Away’s and plus many educational demonstrations. I’ll continue to build out an agenda as events get more firmed up.