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Dallas Fire-Rescue Changes Website To Rainbows Over SideCharlie Blog Post

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Well, what do ya know? After our first blog post and subsequent follow-ups asking that the photo on the front of Dallas Fire-Rescue’s website be changed – it finally happened. The original full size photo showing a firefighter not wearing any respiratory protection while surrounded in smoke with a link to their Respiratory Protection Program has been replaced with rainbows … and the removal of the respiratory program link. Coincidence? We think not! (more…)

Caught On Video: Kingsport (TN) Firefighters Rescue Woman From River

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Kingsport Tennessee firefighters were dispatched to a woman stranded on the roof of her car in the middle of the Holston River. Witnesses state the driver drove down a hill and into the river without ever slowing down. Our guess is that she was updating her status on Facebook. The entire rescue was caught on video by the Times News Online. Our favorite part of the video can be viewed at 1:01 of Troy Hall – a man with a huge bluetooth in his ear and no tooth in his mouth. He made us chuckle. Check out the video below … (more…)

NYC Law Firm Throws Firefighter & Daily Show’s Jon Stewart Under The Bus!

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SideCharlie.com has obtained a copy of the debut flyer that was provided inside the gift bags at the 2011 World Police & Fire Games fundraiser last week. The 8.5″ x 11″ handout depicts Firefighter Robert Keiley stricken with ailments as a 9/11 FDNY rescuer when in actuality he wasn’t employed until 2004.
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San Antonio Fire Captain Gets 60 Days Suspension Over Reckless Fire Response

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Fire Chief Charles Hood of the San Antonio Fire Department suspended three firefighters for traveling at an unsafe speed and not buckling up while racing to a fire on the Northwest Side last year. Firefighter Robert Arranaga, 30, was trapped and hospitalized with a broken neck and remains on medical leave. The crash destroyed Ladder 35 priced at $600,000. (more…)

RAW VIDEO: Dramatic Apartment Fire Flare Up Thanks To A Dry California Tree

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A video first reported by Statter911 over the weekend, is from an apartment fire last Wednesday in the 900 block of East Jones Street near Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, California. The most impressive part of the video is at 1:14 where a seemingly simple fire catches a typical dry California tree which dramatically helps spread the fire. (more…)

RAW VIDEO: Cell Phone Tower Fire Response And Mitigation

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Here is a fire response you don’t get everyday! A dual tier cellular phone tower with some sort of electrical fire extending from the base to the antennae. This tower fire occurred over the weekend and was located near the border of Wall, Tinton Falls and Neptune, New Jersey. (more…)

SHOT OF THE DAY: Ontario Firefighters Brave Cold To Extinguish Snow Plow Fire

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[fblike]KAWARTHA LAKES, ONTARIO, CANADA (Jan. 19, 2011) – Little Britain division firefighter Kevin Cunningham works to put out a fire that razed a City of Kawartha Lakes plough on Little Britain Rd. about 9:45 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011. The driver was not hurt. Photo courtesy Jason Edward Scott Bain. Send us your shots to pics@sidecharlie.com

Mayday Audio Of Baltimore County Firefighter Tragic LODD In Fire 1/19/2011

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Firefighter Mark Falkenhan, 43, was killed last night after becoming trapped and calling a mayday during an apartmentment fire where he suffered massive burns. He leaves behind his wife and 2 children. He was a member of the Lutherville Volunteer Fire Company. Radio traffic audio available after the jump (more…)

BELIEVE IT OR NOT: Super-Human Firefighters Attack Fire Without Protection!

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[UPDATE: Video has been pulled from YouTube]Thanks to the availability of video recording devices in the hands of everyday citizens we get to witness some amazing feats that were only legendary stories before. Watch with amazement (understatement) of a man in Smallville Uvalde, Texas armed only in white gloves attack the fire beast head-on with his trusty 1 3/4″ handline! Video after the jump (more…)

Dramatic Amateur Video Of St. Louis Car Fire, Firefighters Rescue Victim!

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[fblike]Dramatic amateur video posted today by YouTuber bmazanec of an apparent car fire in St. Louis. Upon arrival of the St Louis Fire Department Pumper 4 (A Shift) they discover someone is still in the car. The entire event is caught on video. There is no date of the actual incident mentioned in the video so we can assume it was probably in the last 24 hours. Check out the video after the jump … (more…)

Brotherhood Instructors Quick Video: Forcible Entry Using The Rex Tool

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[fblike]Our friends over at Brotherhood Instructors posted a new, very quick :44 second video demonstrating how to properly use the Rex Tool as a method of ‘through the lock’ forcible entry. Their YouTube channel (BrotherhoodInstrctrs) should be subscribed to due to the excellent quality of their videos. What’s so great about the vids? They get directly to the point in under 60 seconds without a lot of BS! Watch this video after the jump to see what we mean … (more…)

Dramatic Video Of Apartment Fire Before Firefighters Arrive, People Feared Trapped

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[fblike]Dramatic video provided to KOCO-TV News of a large apartment complex fire at the Quail Ridge apartments in northwest Oklahoma City back on Jan. 11, 2011. No fire department units are on the scene. Several items to note: At 0:02 you will see the attic vent out of the gable end. At 0:25 a panic flows through the crowd as they hear someone cough and believe someone is trapped in the building. Check out the video – lots of training worthiness … (more…)

Dallas Fire-Rescue’s Website Has A Funny Way Of Promoting Respiratory Safety

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[fblike]For the record, we LIKE Dallas Fire Department. This is not meant to take a cheap shot at them whatsoever. That said, we were searching around fire department websites on another article project and came across the front page for the DFD. The main photo on the front page shows a firefighter standing in the window with no hood or respiratory protection. Reading the smoke tells us there is active fire. Why?? (more…)

NY TIMES: FDNY Firefighter Roy Chelsen Recalled As A Leader On 9/11

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[fblike]This past Sunday, FF Roy W. Chelsen of FDNY Engine Company 28 died as a result of multiple myeloma, a cancer that many link to his incredible work on 9/11. He is also the first firefighter to die after the signing of the 9/11 Health Law. Today in the New York Times is an incredible article we recommend to all, from rookie to vet,  to read and discuss. It talks of a man when faced against a worst-case scenario stood up and made decisions that saved many on that fateful day. FF Roy Chelsen is a firefighter’s firefighter. (more…)

Amateur Video: Fully, Fully, Fully Involved House In Alabama

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[fblike]New video posted on YouTube by nelmore11 (no date on the fire, but we can assume it was yesterday) of a fully involved house. The fire is along a highway out in the middle of nowhere and the structure is almost completely on the ground. Funny thing about amateur videos – they catch you doing interesting things (3:40 in the video) like using an 1 3/4″ hand-line downwind of a house fully involved and on the ground. Dude, just let it burn. Video after the jump … (more…)

Amateur Video Of Attic Fire, Rochester NY

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[fblike]Overnight amateur video posted on YouTube by guyz65 (Guy Zampatori) shows a vented attic fire in an old 2 story house. Looks like they also have about 6-8″ of snow to deal with. The weather forecast for last night stated light snow with overnight lows of 10F degrees and factoring humidity and wind it would feel like 3F degrees. Throw in some snow and wet gear … well, you know. Watch the video after the jump … (more…)

New Device Lets You Turn Your Cellphone Into A Satellite Communicator!

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[fblike]Another gadget from CES that may be of interest to those in the emergency services is the inexpensive SPOT Communicator. The little device connects via Bluetooth to your smartphone and allows you to call for help, update Facebook and Twitter, send global satellite messages and transmit your coordinates from anywhere. (more…)

Feds Forcing Guam Fire Department To Use Scout Units As Front Line Apparatus

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[fblike]KUAM News is reporting this morning that the Guam Fire Department may lose a precious $1.2 million dollar grant awarded 2 YEARS AGO from the Interior Department for new fire apparatus. The United States GSA and the Attorney General’s Office appear to be dragging it’s feet keeping the process from going through. This delay may cause the grant to expire thus leaving the GFD in a very dangerous position. (more…)

VIDEO: Summertime Blaze Burns New Zealand School To The Ground

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[fblike]A massive fire ripped into 12 buildings at the Auckland’s Glendowie Primary School in New Zealand burning them to the ground. The fire has been determined to be arson. The summertime blaze brought 80 firefighters to the scene. No injuries were reported. (more…)

Is ‘Surface’ In Your Ops Centers Future?

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[fblike]I remember seeing Microsoft Surface early last year for the first time. It was bulky, expensive, and one of those tech things that you never see become reality. That’s about to change. At the Consumer Electronic Show yesterday, Microsoft revealed the next generation of Surface. Only this time we have a manufacturer and a price. (more…)

Firefighters Retreat From 9mm Bullets

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[fblike]A new video posted on YouTube this evening shows a well involved dwelling fire in Pennsauken, New Jersey. The video states that firefighters arrived to find fire and smoke showing, however, firefighters had to evacuate and perform defensive operations due to 9mm shells exploding inside the structure! Check out this amateur video after the jump …
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Florida Firefighter Gets Paid To Stay Away!

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[fblike]A Florida female firefighter has accepted a $500,000 settlement offer by the Daytona Beach City Commission to stay away from the fire department and never, ever come back. According to the News-JournalOnline.com, she would receive the money over a three year period to resolve her gender-bias claims. (more…)