Fireline spring 2015

SPRING 2015 FIRELINE

FROM THE DESK OF THE CHIEF T H O M A S M. B I L L I N G T O N

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 3

BATTALION 1 5

THE SOUTHERN VOICE 6

NORTHERN LIGHTS 7

TRAINING 8

ANNOUNCEMENTS 9

THE F IRELINE NEWSLETTER

FAUQUIER COUNTY

DEPARTMENT OF FIRE, RESCUE

& EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

Phone: 540-422-8800

www.fauquierfirerescue.org

Happy Spring! It has been a rough and busy winter. First, if you haven’t

noticed already, the Fireline will be going to a quarterly publication. This is

so we can present good information and not be in a rush to find

something to say. Anyone that would like to contribute to the Fireline is

welcome. Just send your “brief” article with any photos you would like to

Liz Bisutti.

July 1 starts fiscal year 2016. This was the second year of the budget

cycle. Several budget issues that affect all or many of us:

2% pay increase to employees.

NO increase in health or dental coverage (this is a very big

accomplishment that the County was able to pull off).

An Ambulance replacement program that will be County funded. More

information on this program forthcoming.

Although no new career positions have been added, the Board of

Supervisors approved DFREM to apply for the Staffing for Adequate

Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grants program. We have

asked for 18 positions. News on grant status should be in September.

Ongoing issues in play:

DFREM and VFRA Chief Officers and staff will be meeting to review the

Services Agreement Plan between the VFRA and Fauquier County. This

meeting will occur on Saturday, April 11th.

Our new replacement EKG/Defibrillators have arrived and are being

inventoried, assembled, and will be distributed in the near future.

The Chamber of Commerce is holding the annual Honor Awards on

April 23rd. Many of our volunteer and career members will be

recognized at this very special event.

More updates and news will be coming in the future. Thank you for your

service.

FAUQUIER COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF FIRE , RESCUE & EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

SPRING 2015 FIRELINE 2

Youth in Government Day AC Stevens

Last week our office participated in Warrenton Middle School’s Youth

in Government Day, and over 120 rising 8th graders passed through in

small groups to learn about how we serve our community.

After a brief overview of the services we provide I walked them through

the “day in the life” of a new fire rescue recruit, explaining the concept

of learning in the classroom, moving outside to hone the skills and,

finally, evaluating the lessons learned during practical testing. We

talked about the hard work and dedication required to be successful

in this field and the opportunities for volunteerism. Then we got

serious…

Truth is, we are blessed. I explained that there is no greater reward

than living a life filled with service to others. I told them, “If any of you

feel that the fire service could be for you then listen closely, wearing a

firefighters uniform is a privilege that must be earned; we only want

the best people, people that do the right thing, even when no one is

looking. High school can be a difficult time that is filled with tough

choices, and the decisions you make stay with you a long time. Don’t

figure it out when it’s too late.”

My advice for them is good for anyone considering public service: work

hard, remain focused, and live a good life. During each hiring cycle we

come across an applicant that is simply un-hirable because of poor life

choices, don’t let that happen to you.


E M E R G E N C Y M A N A G E M E N T B Y : S A R A M A K E L Y

When it comes to tornadoes, there’s no such thing as a “tornado

season.” Tornadoes can strike anywhere, anytime, and you need to

know the drill.

Tornadoes are nature's most violent storms. They can appear

suddenly without warning and can be invisible until dust and debris

are picked up or a funnel cloud appears. Be prepared to act quickly.

Tornado Watch: a tornado is possible in your area. You should monitor

weather-alert radios and local radio and TV stations for information.

Tornado Warning: a tornado has been sighted in the area or has been

indicated by National Weather Service Doppler radar. When a warning

is issued, take cover immediately.

To ensure you receive weather warnings and emergency notifications

signup or update your information by clicking on the following link:

https://member.everbridge.net/index/453003085611352#/login



March Birthdays

3/3—Lynne Clegg

3/8—Stephanie York

3/9—Jeffrey Bates

3/11—Charles Myers

April Birthdays

4/15—Eric Neese

4/15—Chief John Woodburn

4/21—Deputy Chief Kight

4/23—Battalion Chief Arft

4/28—Michael Gillam

Fauquier Alert Network (FAN)

Fauquier County Emergency Notification System

Effective July 1st, 2014 - Fauquier County has launched a new emergency notification system, Fauquier Alert Net-work (FAN) provided by Everbridge. Everbridge is a web based service that enables the County to provide mass no-tification quickly and easily. Notifications may include evacuations, missing person alerts, hazardous materials inci-dent, flooding, and other emergency incidents where rapid and accurate notification is essential for life safety. Mes-sages are delivered by phone call, text, and email. To ensure you receive emergency notifications, sign up by clicking on the image link below.

The Fireline is now quarterly! Look for our next issue in Summer 2015!

May Birthdays

5/4—Joseph Troilo, III

5/6—Charles Hunter, Jr.

5/7—Lieutenant Hart

5/7—Cliff Krieg

5/7—Lieutenant Shields

5/9—Shirley Allen

5/9—Battalion Chief Johnson

5/10—Kelly Burnthorn

5/11—Mark Klinkenberger

5/21—Scott Chamberlin

5/22—Fred McEvilly

5/25—Dale Kidwell

5/27—Jessica Best



It has been a few busy months since the last Fireline issue, and not much has changed here in the First

Battalion. We continue to run a large amount of incidents while maintaining situational awareness. Let’s

take a few minutes and talk about and attempt to understand what situational awareness really is.

Situational awareness is “knowing what is going on so you can figure out what to do” (Adam 1983). This

seems like a simple and relatively easy task, right? Well, each and every one of us have lost track of

situational awareness (SA) at one time or another.

Understanding SA began a relatively short time ago and was the concept studied and coined by the US Air

Force (I know, I know yut yut Semper Fi) in the early 1990’s. The USAF starting looking at what were the

commonalities the Fighter ACES had during the wars in Korea and Vietnam. After studying the success of

all of the fighter aces during this time frame, what was noticed was the pilot’s ability to understand and

calculate the enemy’s current maneuvers and then predict what they were going to do before the enemy

actually did it.

So how does SA apply to what we do in the fire service? This is simple, and I know that most of you have

heard me say in past “maintain SA” or just a simple “be safe”. In a sense, it is the same thing. Leaders

of our organization need teach it the new and younger members of the departments. As leaders we need

to set a good example of SA. In our profession maintaining SA is not just watching for the car in front of

your engine stop in the middle of the road because you knew they are going too. SA is watching the color

of the smoke, observing the conditions of the structure outside as crews operate on the inside, and

making the decision to pull them out before it is too late. It is also having the knowledge and

understanding of fire behavior and building construction and what to look for. SA is not letting the big-

eyed monster take over your training and sound judgement. SA is putting all of what you know together

so you are able to make sound and decisive decisions in the heat of the monument.

In the Fire/EMS service SA is imperative. From the time we leave the station, to arriving on scene, to re-

turning back to the fire house, we must always maintain our SA. Our SA may save the life of a citizen as

well as one of our brothers or sisters.

B A T T A L I O N 1 B A T T A L I O N C H I E F A R F T


In this past quarter, the Southern Battalion has seen an increase in calls to include

abandoned house fires, commercial vehicle fires, house fires, EMS calls, and many more.

This increase in calls helps remind us all that at any time calls can increase and the

equipment and tools we use must always be ready to go.

This past month the Catlett Volunteer Fire Department held their annual banquet awards

dinner. Everyone had a good time and enjoyed a stroll down memory lane of the calls from

the past year. Several awards were given out for highest call runner, EMS provider of the

year, firefighter of year, and many more.

This month, Technician Jenks finishes up his ALS precepting and prepares to take his

protocols class. We wish him the best of luck. He is one of the first providers to be

released through the new protocols. We are eager to see him show his skills and

knowledge.

As we start to move into the months of spring we would like to remind everyone to keep

hydrated. It only takes moments to become dehydrated and feel the fatigue. We must

prepare ourselves to be ready at all times for incidents that may last hours.

T H E S O U T H E R N V O I C E


Finally, spring is in the air and there is

no reason to head south for warmer

weather (Technician Nugent). With the

warmer weather and dry conditions

have come various large and small

brush fires. We have had a few

incidents this spring already and the

importance of safety is no less than on

a house fire. Remember to drink plenty

of water, call for resources early and to

fight the fire from the already burned or

the black area. In addition to preventing dehydration and overexertion,

personnel must also remember to examine walking surfaces for slick

conditions and to keep an eye on the sky for overhead power lines and other

hazards.

In addition to brush fires, the Northern

Battalion has also been busy with multiple

crawlspace fires, house fires, and shed

fires. These fires presented a few

surprises; but not as many as the yard

where the flamingos decided to land. Can

anyone guess whose yard this is?

N O R T H E R N L I G H T S T E C H N I C I A N F R I N K S


T R A I N I N G D E PA R T M E N T

We have begun the new Spring EMT class with 15 students and they

are at the point where they will be getting on the ambulances to ob-

tain their required EMS calls. Please work with them to obtain those

calls.

We have one more weekend for CEU class. We have had good attend-

ance at these.

Be sure to RENEW your NREMT if your expiration date is upcoming!

The 2014-22 Night Fire academy has just completed Firefighter I

testing with VDFP we are awaiting written exam results. The class will

be completing their FF II burns very soon and state testing will be

sometime in April. The class has been in training since August of

2014.


Fireline spring 2015

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