Happy New Year

The staff at 43 Firefighter.. who am I kidding, its just me. Well I want to wish everyone a happy and safe New Year. Hopefully there wont be too many calls tonight.

1st Responder Network

Let them know pa2251 sent you.

They are also looking for dispatchers.

12/28/2005 MVA

Stations 43 and West End ALS Station 8 were dispatched to a reported MVA with possible entrapment on Silver valley Road. Units on scene found a one car accident with negative entrapment. It was determined that the patient needed to be medevac'd out. Station 8 transported to the LZ at the Firehouse for Medevac 1.
Thanks to FF/EMT Chris Dotter for the photos:

Wet Down Movies

Here are a couple little short clips from the Riverdale NJ wetdown I attended over the summer. Just able to get them linked up on the web.

Working Fire 12/23/05

Station 43 and 35 and Station 8 ALS and BLS were dispatched to a working fire on Starry Lane. 43-8-1 reported fire on Division 2 on the A,B corners. Station 39 and 27 were also added to the box.
I will try and get more info on this call as I wasnt there.
Sorry, no pictures for now.

Here is article from PoconoRecord.com

Fire damages home in Effort
December 25, 2005


EFFORT — Quick work by volunteer firefighters kept damage to an Effort home to a minimum Friday morning.

It was initially reported that someone was trapped in the house on Starry Lane, but the owner was out of the house when firefighters arrived, according to West End Fire Chief Brian Snyder.

"Our guys did a really aggressive knockdown of the fire," he said "They did a great job."

The fire was contained to an upstairs master bedroom and bath, Snyder said, but the entire house had smoke damage and will not be habitable for a while.

The owner, an older man whose name was not released, is staying with his daughter, who lives in the house behind her father and who initially saw the flames.

The Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal was at the scene, but a cause was difficult to determine.

The West End Fire Company, Polk Township, Jackson Township and Sun Valley fire departments and West End Ambulance assisted at the scene.

-- Catherine Rodriguez

12/20/2005 MVA on route 115

Station 43 along with Station 8-1 and 8-2 toned out to an MVA on Route 115 in the area of Vincents of NY Pizza. Units on scene found two vehicles blocking the roadway. West End ALS and BLS provided patient care. Station 43 provided traffic control as well as spill control as there were fluids down in the roadway. Thanks to the member of Penn Forest 2 Fire Police who assisted with traffic.







801 on scene

WEALS and 43-4-6 in the road.

Dont forget to let me know where you are from

Sign in at my 43firefighter Map and let me know where you are from:
43Firefighter Map

There is also a forum on there. The link is on top of the page. Feel free to leave a message.

This is why you put water in your Tree.

This is a large file- not recommended for dial up users

Video of Christmas Tree Fire

Found this on the net
Good video of what can happen to a dried out christmas tree:

Video from Long Mountain Fire

I was finally able to find a place to host a short video from the fire the other night. Check it out:
Just click on the thumbnail

Working Fire 12/15/2005

12/15/2005 Effort, PA
A little before 11pm, Station 43 was toned out to a reported dwelling fire with possible entrapment in Long Mountain Estates on Arnold Court. Chief 43-7 quickly upgraded the box to include Station 35 Polk Township. Further information came in with a working fire. Due to the location and the poor road conditions, Stations 28 Kunkletown and 39 Sun Valley were also added.
First units on scene found a house fully involved and would be exterior operations only. All residents were accounted for. An attack was made with a 2.5” line. Water supply proved to be a challenge as the home was located at a bottom of a hill and trucks had difficulty getting in or out of the location. Chestnuthill Township road crews arrived with plow and cinder trucks. No firefighters were hurt during this operation.











This is what you have to do when you run out of water.


Safety Officer Fred Rosado say "Be Safe sucka"

12/13/2005- Rollover with Ejection

Station 43 was toned out to an early morning rollover with ejection on Route 115 near the Jehovah Witness Building. Medevac landed at the firehouse and transported the patient.
Thanks to FF/EMT Chris Dotter for the photos

Rollover MVA 12/13/2005

Stations 43 and 27 (Jackson Township)were dispatched to a reported rollover with entrapment on Route 115 in the area of Rocky Mountain Drive South. FF/EMT Taylor was first on scene as this accident was right in front of his house. Units found a minivan which had gone off the road. struck a large rock, went airborn then hit a tree with its roof. Patient was removed and flown via Pennstar to a trauma center. Route 115 was closed for a period of time with the helicopter landing near the crash site on Route 115.

Fatal Fire

Station 43 assisted Station 35 in Robin Hood Lakes for a working structure fire. Units went on scene just as the snow started to fall- found a fully involved two story wood frame house with one exposure. A 11 year old passed away in the fire. Penn Forrest also assisted with 2 tankers. When crews finally left there was about 6 inches of snow on the ground.
The pictures arent my best work but here they are




:

From WNEP.com
Deadly Fire in Monroe County
Friday, December 9, 5:25 p.m.
An eleven year old girl died when her home in Monroe County went up in flames Thursday night.
The fire started about 12:30 p.m.along Lake Drive in Robin Hood Lake development. State police said the body of Sierra Buckingham was found after firefighters put out the flames. There is no word of any other injuries from the fire.
State police are investigating the cause of the deadly fire.

Dont forget the Archives

If you are new to the site, the last 30 posts are on the first page. There is an archive section on the right side of the page to click on. Dont miss some of the older entries and photos.

Let me know what you think of the site.

Rollover MVA

Stations 43 and 35 were toned out to an MVA with possible entrapment. Call was dispatched as being near the Jonas Hotel but was actually about a mile down Route 534 towards Route 209. Units on scene found a car on its side into the woods. The driver and her child were able to self extricate from the car.

Article from The Pocono Record

Plow driver pulls man from burning car



By MICHAEL SADOWSKI
Pocono Record Writer
On the road ahead, he saw flames.
He drove closer, and flames grew larger. From his Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plow truck, even with the falling snow, Greg Dorn could easily make out the disabled car riddled with fire.
Quick-thinking time -- and Thomas O'Reilly, 36, of Kunkletown, is alive because of it. Dorn pulled the man from the burning car.
"Looking back, it was scary," Dorn, a volunteer firefighter, said about running to the flaming car. "Now I'm thinking about all the what-ifs. What if I didn't get the fire knocked down enough, what if I hurt myself and all of those. But I'm glad I did and I was able to save a man's life."
It was early Saturday morning and Dorn was plowing the same stretch of Route 715 in Chestnuthill Township he had plowed other times in his three years at PennDOT.
On his way toward Saylorsburg around 3:45 a.m., he saw the burning car. State police would later conclude that O'Reilly's car slid off the icy road when he couldn't negotiate a curve, hit a tree and rolled the car onto its side. The car then burst into flames.
It has not been determined how long O'Reilly was in the fiery car before Dorn drove by in his truck.
Dorn quickly pulled the truck over when he saw the flames, and called to the Monroe County emergency dispatch to bring his fire department, the West End Fire Company, to the scene.
But there was a chance it could be too late by the time his fellow firefighters arrived. So Dorn grabbed a fire extinguisher from his truck and tried to knock down the flames while calling to the car to see if anyone was inside.
At first, he heard nothing. But after calling a few times, he heard someone asking for help and trying to get out.
"He was kicking the windshield, but he just wasn't getting anywhere with it," Dorn, 32, of Effort, said. "So I told him to stop his kicking, and I started. I was able to get it kicked in, then I peeled away the glass."
Dorn was able to reach in and rescue O'Reilly from the car, pulling him back near the road and safety. Just as he reached the road, emergency officials arrived on the scene and extinguished the flames.
O'Reilly was flown to Lehigh Valley Hospital, where he is listed in stable condition.
As for Dorn, he suffered some minor cuts on his hands, but is fine, his selflessness and awareness probably saving a man's life.
"Even after 15 years as a firefighter, all the training in the world couldn't have prepared me for what happened," Dorn said. "I'm just glad I was able to help someone."

Another write up on Greg Dorn

PENNDOT WORKER SAVES MAN FROM BURNING VEHICLE
Plow operator notices crash while working on State Route 715 over weekend

ALLENTOWN (Dec. 6) – A quick-thinking Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) snowplow operator is being called a hero today after saving the life of a man who was trapped in his burning vehicle along Rt. 715 in Chestnuthill Township, Monroe County, on Dec. 3.
PennDOT Secretary Allen D. Biehler, P.E., said Greg Dorn, of Engineering District 5, rescued the man while working early Saturday morning.
“This act of heroism is indicative of the type of employees we have at PennDOT,” Biehler said. “Greg exemplifies the commitment our employees have to their work and the safety of their community.”
Dorn was plowing snow from the highway at 3:45 a.m. when he noticed the road had been blocked by a fallen tree. He then noticed the burning vehicle and immediately called local emergency services.
Unsure if there were any people in the vehicle, Dorn moved closer and heard a man crying for help.
Dorn grabbed a fire extinguisher from his truck and ran back to the burning vehicle, but Dorn was unable to stop the intense flames. So, he jumped on the vehicle’s hood, kicked holes in the windshield and pulled it off with his hands.
Dorn then helped the injured driver escape the burning vehicle and dragged him up an embankment, over a guide rail to safety.
Emergency services arrived and treated Dorn for a few cuts on his hands. Otherwise, he was okay. The driver of the vehicle was taken by helicopter to Lehigh Valley Hospital Cedar Crest and was listed in stable condition Saturday night.
-more-

Rescue, Page 2
Dorn, a 3-year PennDOT employee, lives in Saylorsburg with his wife, Valerie, and two children. He has been a volunteer firefighter with the West End Fire Department in Monroe County for 15 years.

Structure Fire 12/4/05 Assist Station 42

Station 43 ws toned out to a working structure fire at WT Campground. 42-7 requested a tanker and an engine to man the fill site. 43-2-5 responded to the scene with water, 43-1-1 set up a draft at the dry hydrant in Stonecrest Development.

Site Problems

For some reason Blogger was down on monday night. Hopefully everything is back to normal.

Great Job Greg!!!!

What this article fails to mention is that Greg is also a memebr of the West End Fire Company
from the morning call:
Penndot Worker Saves Man From Burning Car

CHESTNUTHILL TOWNSHIPA state Department of Transportation worker rescued a man from a burning car Saturday morning in Chestnuthill Township.

Thomas O'Reilly, 36, of Kunkletown was trapped in his car after it drove off an icy road, hit a tree, rolled onto its side and caught fire about 4 a.m. on State Route 715 near Bonser Road, state police in Fern Ridge said.Greg Dorn, a PennDOT worker, was salting the road when he noticed the burning car, police said. He stopped his truck and pulled O'Reilly out.O'Reilly was flown to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, where he was in stable condition Saturday night, a hospital spokeswoman said. Dorn received minor cuts on his hands, police said.

Another Interesting Write up

Got this off of Roanoke Firefighter

I wish you could know what it is like to search a burning bedroom for trapped children at 3 AM, flames rolling above your head, your palms and knees burning as you crawl, the floor sagging under your weight as the kitchen below you burns. I wish you could comprehend a wife's horror at 6 in the morning as I check her husband of 40 years for a pulse and find none.I start CPR anyway, hoping to bring him back, knowing intuitively it is too late. But wanting his wife and family to know everything possible was done to try and save his life. I wish you knew the unique smell of burning insulation, the taste of soot-filled mucus, the feeling of intense heat through your turnout gear, the sound of flames crackling, the eeriness of being able to see absolutely nothing in dense smoke-sensations that I've become too familiar with. I wish you could read my mind as I respond to a building fire, Is this a false alarm or a working fire? How is the building constructed? What hazards await me? Is anyone trapped?. Or to call and ask what is wrong with the patient? Is it minor or life threatening? Is the caller really in distress or is he waiting for us with a 2x4 or a gun? I wish you could be in the emergency room, as a doctor pronounces dead, the beautiful five-year old girl that I have been trying to save during the past 25 minutes, knowing she will never go on her first date or say the words, "I love you Mommy", ever again. I wish you could know the frustration I feel in the cab of the engine, squad, or my personal vehicle, the driver with his foot pressing down hard on the pedal, my arm tugging again and again at the air horn chain, as you fail to yield the right-of-way at an intersection or in traffic.When you need us however, your first comment upon our arrival will be, "It took you forever to get here!" I wish you could know my thoughts as I help extricate a girl of teenage years from the remains of her automobile. What if this was my daughter, sister, my wife or a friend? What were her parents reaction going to be when they opened the door to find a police officer with hat in hand?I wish you could know how it feels to walk in the back door and greet my parents and family, not having the heart to tell them that I nearly did not come back from the last call. I wish you could know how it feels dispatching officers, firefighters and EMT's out and when we call for them and our heart drops because no one answers back or to here a bone chilling 911 call of a child or wife needing assistance. I wish you could feel the hurt as people verbally and sometimes physically abuse us or belittle what I do, or as they express their attitudes of "It will never happen to me". I wish you could realize the physical, emotional and mental drain of missed meals, lost sleep and forgone social activities, in addition to all the tragedy my eyes have seen.I wish you could know the brotherhood and self-satisfaction of helping save a life or preserving someone's property, or being able to be there in time of crisis, or creating order from total chaos. I wish you could understand what it feels like to have a little boy tugging at your arm and asking, "Is my Mommy okay?", not even being able to look in his eyes without tears from your own and not knowing what to say. Or to have to hold back a long time friend who watches his buddy having CPR done on him as they take him away in the Medic Unit.You know all along he did not have his seat belt on. A sensation that I have become too familiar with. Unless you have lived with this kind of life, you will never truly understand or appreciate who I am, we are, or what our job really means to us...I wish you could though.

MotorCoach Fire

Station 43 was tone out to a motorcoach on fire at the Gold Star Diner in Effort. Members at the Sub-Station wokring on the trucks could see flames as soon as they looked outside. Units arrived on scene fairly quickly. The driver of the bus was able to knock the fire down with an extinguisher. Appears the bus just had its heating system worked on. The driver suffered some smoke inhalation.
Sorry no pics- wasnt much to shoot.

Please help the West End Fire Company

Please check out the banner ad for Picks Pal on top. This is a site which allows you to make picks on sporting events. Its not a gambling site. PicksPal members compete in the weekly game, playing and earning points by picking real events based on real odds. PicksPal members have the opportunity to risk their points on any of their favorite sports, including pro and college football, pro and college basketball, baseball, golf, boxing, motor sports, horse racing and others. At the end of the week, the member accumulating the most points wins.

We need as many people to sign up as possible. You need to sign up, not just click the link.
Through the generosity of the site, they are paying $4.00 for each person who signs up through the banner. ALL MONEY RAISED WILL GO TO THE WEST END FIRE COMPANY.
Please help us out.
Thanks.
Free Sports Picks at PicksPal.com

Why you shoudn't park on leaves

These photos were sent to me by my brother. A Bloomingdale, NJ Police Officer responded to a medical call and didn't realize where he parked. Another reason not to get tunnel vision when responding to a call. This is the end result: