FireLink

We only have two trucks and 16 firefighters so we have to take our own vehicles to the seen. We have to go to the fire hall first though as we are not allowed to carry our gear in our vehicles. I have been fighting that since I've been on though because where I work is in the same township and roughly eight minutes away from the hall. On most calls I am passing the trucks to get my stuff and then coming all the way back to the scene.

See, my station has lockers to keep our gear in, and you are required to respond to the station and catch a truck. If you do not make the truck, then you are to remain on standby at the station. On certain circumstances (few, if any), you radio/call a chief or Lt. they may tell you to respond POV. We have a department in our county that does not have lockers for their gear, so that forces them to carry their gear in their cars, and instead of responding to the station, most of their members respond strictly POV to every call, especially the newer members. It is quite ridiculous. For example, this saturday we had a possible structure fire in our township. They toned us (Independence St. 80), Hanover (68), Hookstown (60) and Hopewell (92). This call was on a back road in our township. Already on scene were our Engine (801), three Hopewell trucks, two Hanover trucks, and a Hookstown truck. Hanover had a heavy rescue en route, as well as our tanker and ambulance, and a local ambulance service was en route. About halfway to the scene, our chief radioed for all en route units to standby on the main road. Then later we come to find out that most of Hanover's guys that responded did so via POV, clogging up the driveway and road, and had this been a true structure fire, we would have had no way to have gotten our other trucks back there due to the POV's on scene. I feel that when a station rolls three trucks out with only one, maybe two people on them and the rest of their members on scene via POV, that they should sit down and look at the situation. It may be ok for one of their scenes, but as a member of another department and we use them for mutual aid, it is not respectable for one of our fire scenes.

omg not this subject again : |

Ok well I'm glad you people that have been here for awhile have had this discussion. But us new people apparently want to discuss it, and if you don't care to, you don't have to. If you have an opinion, feel free, but let's continue this discussion because it doesn't seem to be any arguments of any kind.

All our volunteers go POV's, unless they are at the station and ride with the shift on duty. Also the off duty respond POV's.
We make sure all vehicles are parked on the same side as pumper so roads are not blocked.

Hey emtjad...see above, we've already had this dicussion about posting the discussion again. We're keeping it!!!

BLPavlovich said:

Hey emtjad...see above, we've already had this dicussion about posting the discussion again. We're keeping it!!!

http://www.firelink.com/discussions/3/topics/886

http://www.firelink.com/discussions/3/topics/1126?page=1

http://www.firelink.com/discussions/3/topics/1040

http://www.firelink.com/discussions/3/topics/989

http://www.firelink.com/discussions/37-florida-firefighter/topics/493-emergency-lights-on-povs

I am sorry for gettin snippy with you emtjad. I did not realize there were so many discussions about POV's. I do think though that it's easier to just start a new discussion instead of just bringing back an old one.

i agree snippy it is :)

BLPavlovich said:

I am sorry for gettin snippy with you emtjad. I did not realize there were so many discussions about POV's. I do think though that it's easier to just start a new discussion instead of just bringing back an old one.

emtjad said:

It's cool Brianna. No worries.

BLPavlovich says ...

What is your department's regulations on POV's at scenes? My fire department bylaws states that unless the call is directly on your path to the station, you are to respond to the station and go to the call on a truck.

Our SOP states the same thing. What good does having 10 firefighters at a structure fire with turnout gear and no fire trucks? And I live 10 miles from our station, where my gear is. If there is a fire or medical run nearby or while I am enroute to the station I will get on the radion and stand by until the apparatus gets there.  I do run lights and siren to the station on all calls though.

dept24emt says ...

well...i know this has been bitched about extensively, but here goes my take on it. in our dept, we are allowed to respond POV to just about everything, and since i live 6 min out (going 60+ on dirt roads), i usually go on scene. i ususally have a radio so i can contact what ever unit is in route, and give a simple scene size up, or help them with directions. we have gear lockers at the station, but since i live so far out, i usually carry mine with me in my car. ususally there are enough drivers around that all the trucks will roll (whether full or not) and pick up a crew on scene. an example of this...we had a fire the 1st thursday night/friday morning in january. we were full assit to a neighboring dept. for working structure fire. our 1st engine rolled with our chief and a FF packing up (scba). our second engine rolled with 2 ff's packing, and a driver. our tanker rolled with a driver and ff (a crew for it). on scene, we had an entire parking lot (keep in mind it was a parking lot for a game lands access) filled with people who responded POV for the incident. needless to say, we had plenty of people to man the trucks.

I know, I'm a little late on answering this, as I siad, got distracted.

 

In NH, and when I lived in Alaska, if you are responsing as assist/mutual aid in another town/city, most of the departments strictly prohibit POVs.  This is due to the department in the area already has people responding POV, if you tone out four towns for Mutual, and get ten or twenty people from each department ( keep in mind some of our departments have upwards of forty volunteers), that makes for a hell of a mess on scene, and at the staging area.

BLPavlovich says ...

ahk_51 says ...

BLPavlovich says ...

What is your department's regulations on POV's at scenes? My fire department bylaws states that unless the call is directly on your path to the station, you are to respond to the station and go to the call on a truck.

Our SOP states the same thing. What good does having 10 firefighters at a structure fire with turnout gear and no fire trucks? And I live 10 miles from our station, where my gear is. If there is a fire or medical run nearby or while I am enroute to the station I will get on the radion and stand by until the apparatus gets there.  I do run lights and siren to the station on all calls though.

Thank you, someone finally sees my point of view!!!!!

I think good communication is the key.

You just can't what????