Back in Action

Sorry for the lapse in posts. I have been too busy with snow and sickness to write much. I am back at Station 7 once again and on the Medic unit. It's been a busy day on the Medic units today. Everyone has been out in full force running calls. As of the post we are sitting on 8 runs. The department is finally settled down of the on slot of massive snowstorms. We handled it well and survived. Six of our members responded to a mutual aid request to Northern VA to help assist them with the snow. We wish them luck and a speedy return.

Rescue 1

Today I have been riding the seat on Rescue 1, filling in for the normal crew as they take the day off. I was previously assigned to Rescue 1 before my promotion. Well I just have to say that it didn't take long to get back into the swing of it. We are sitting on 7 calls and knowing that the dispatchers have more planned for us tonight. Most of the calls have been EMS runs as we are back filling for Engine 3 due to manpower shortage. There have been some interesting calls to say the least.
For those who don't know about Rescue 1, it is the sole rescue company here in Lynchburg. It responded to all working structure fires within the city as well as all major vehicle accidents, technical rescue calls and Hazmat incidents. If something goes bad in Lynchburg, Rescue 1 is going to be there.
Well it is too cold to be outside, so that must mean we will have to be out in it. Until next day, Keep warm and stay safe.

Burn in the New Year

UPDATE: We had a small apartment fire in Engine 7's first due. We were able to make a quick knockdown and contain it to the room of origin. As I mentioned in the last post, when you work New Year's Eve, you get to run the first calls of the new year. And we got to have the first fire of 2010 and in our first due no less. Units responding E7, E6, E5, T2, R1, M7, B2 and B1.

2009

It's always nice to work the last shift of the year. Not only can you run the last call of the year, you can run the first call of the new year. I just check the latest run totals and it appears that the LFD will have run just over 17,800 calls for service in 2009. That's quite a feat for the 180 bravest of the LFD.
Been kind of a quiet day so far, the usual medicals are the bulk of the runs. We had a possible appliance fire at an apartment building but it turned out not to be much. We missed the big fire last night downtown.
The last several days have been the last for 8 members of our department. They are venturing out into the wonderful world of retired life. A lot of rank and years of service not to mention stories will be greatly missed. Good luck to all the new retirees in their future endeavors.

Snowed In...

Its been a hectic past two days here in Lynchburg. The snow started on A Shift and continued on into B Shift today. We here at the LFD have had to adapt to meet the challenges of the blizzard. We have personnel manning all available 4-wheel drive vehicles running as Quick response units with the Medic units. The secondary roads are pretty much impassible so the QRVs have been trekking in and stabilizing the patients and bringing them out to the Medic units. We're running a lot of calls mostly EMS runs and a few MVCs as well as a chimney fire. Hopefully everyone will stay off the roads and stay safe. No pictures as of yet, I'm having issues with the blog not wanting to post my photos. But I'll keep trying. Until next time....Be Safe.

Station 7

Today, I am at my new, old home, Fire Station 7. As a Probie firefighter, I was assigned to Station 7. I spent about 5 years here before being transferred to Station 3 then 6. But now I'm back and currently the Master Fire Fighter assigned to the station on B shift. Station 7 is the home of Engine 7, Truck 2, Medic 7, and Battalion 2. All these units comprise the city's Hazardous materials response team. Station 7 is located on the western edge of the city and responses to industrial, commercial, and residential sections of the city.

So far not much has happened yet today. The medic unit has a few on the books, but most of the action here occurs at night. So the night is still early and plenty of time to get busy.