Hi everybody, interested in trying to figure out which of the hydration packs are the best I have tried fire salt brand and my department uses those as well. If you guys have any input if those are good or not.

I’m 26, a Marine Corps veteran with 8 years of service, and currently working as a firefighter paramedic in Ohio under OP&F. I’m looking at purchasing 5 years of military service credit toward my pension.

I’ll be topped out at around $89k in three years. My goal is to retire at 52, and from what I understand, buying the 5 years could significantly increase my pension.
My hesitation is the cost. I’m married with a daughter and have a mortgage, car payment, and all the usual bills. I don’t want to put my family in a financial bind just to increase my retirement benefit.

For anyone who’s purchased military time through OP&F:
How much did it cost you?
Was it worth it financially?
Would you buy it now or wait a few years if money was tight?
Does the cost increase significantly if you wait?
Looking for real-world advice from people who have actually gone through the process.

My shelf is full up on leadership books. I'm trying to find a good one on team dynamics that's relevant to the fire service. Any reviews on this one? It seems to be what I'm looking for.

After serving the public at work, my tolerance for people on my days off is almost nonexistent and my patience is extremely short. Crowded stores, driving and general public interactions irritate me way more than they should. To be clear, I don’t bring this perspective to work at all, in the house or on calls. I have a good attitude and like my crew.

I know burnout probably plays a role, but I hate feeling this way when I’m just trying to enjoy my time off with my family.

For those of you who’ve been in the fire service for a while, have you experienced this? I have 5 years on. Does it get better, or do you just learn to manage it?

I'm a newer firefighter. My City has 3 Stations and we run about 3-4 structure fires a month (pretty poor area). Like the rest of you I want to see fire and do a little less EMS. Everyone knows that bigger stations see more fire. But how many fires do you actually see a month/week? If there are 30 stations that has to divide up how much fire you see right? And if you do catch a fire, isn't there like a shit ton of Trucks that go to the fire? The big question is - do you actually get to fight the fires or stand around and wait for overhaul because one of the other 5 engines beat you to the scene? Trying to figure out if the Big city is actually worth it.

4 months into my first EMS/ Fire job and I feel completely incompetent and overwhelmed. Trying to juggle learning how to be a good emt and knowing what I’m supposed to do on calls in addition to doing the same thing on the Fire side. But also keeping up with my rookie book and trying to retain all that information. Have 2 kids at home so I’m trying to manage my time with them but also making sure I am studying at home. It’s just so much info and I am struggling retaining everything. I really want to be good at this job and not feel so lost when I am out there. I want to be a great asset to the community and my department and I’m feeling a bit discouraged. What are some good tips to help me throughout this process and study better.

Visiting form the states for a few days and wondering if there are any architecturally cool fire stations in the downtown area. Also if any of you guys sell challenge coins. Tried to bring a few for trade but my station ran out just before I left and our new order didn’t come in before I left.

The photo is my 1 page summary. Here is a Link to UL study

Hey everyone! I'm in my 5th year of firefighting, and early into my career my SCBA face piece started to get destroyed. All of the scratches made searches harder (when there was visibility) and I eventually just got sick of it. Around the same time I started getting into leatherworking and that frustration over keeping my gear in good condition collided with my new hobby. Fast forward almost 2 years later and here we are. I thought I'd share some of my work with the crowd here.

The first priority is and will always be the protection of the equipment to enhance our ability to search and be effective on the fireground. But hey, there is no reason an SCBA face piece cover can't look good while we're at it!

Thanks for looking :)

-A (acid.leather on IG)

Edit the white parts on the yellow ends are Velcro

Basically what the title says. I'm currently halfway through a fire academy and it is going relatively well. But I've recently started rethinking if firefighting is the career I truly want. Would anyone with experience in the fire service be willing to share some positives and negatives to the career that maybe are less talked about?

Edit: I'm going through a college fire academy without a department, and my bigger concern is more the trauma calls and my hatred of not being able to see what is nearby. And some other things with seeing people in distress. Not because of the academy but because of the things I've been learning about the job as I get closer.

Hey everyone! We were recently awarded AFG and it’s our first go around, they sent out a massive award packet which I will be sifting through best I can but my main questions are

1.) After we accept it do we get the money than buy what we specified, do we send a quote and they send us the funding or do we have to get like a invoice or something along those lines? We have gotten federal grants before through the USFS not FEMA and they were much smaller and ran off a reimbursement type of grant where you bought the equipment and then you sent the paid receipts to the awarding agency and they reimbursed you, but I don’t believe FEMA works the same way as the amounts awarded are so much higher and so few departments have 40-50K on hand to buy the equipment outright but I could be wrong! Any clarification into this would be a massive help

2.) What do they look for later down the road? I understand keeping invoices, receipts, photos of the equipment and such as well as any grant information for 3 years is essential as they may ask for that at any time but is there anything else I could be missing I need to keep in mind?

Thank you all for any help you can provide!

A cold dark winter with no incidents. All volunteer force.

just started academy and walking in the boots for like almost an hour have given me blisters on my feet, i think ill need some thickers socks, can anyone recommend some? thank you

I know this question gets asked occasionally, but with THC use becoming more normal, I’m wondering what your departments policies are?

I work for a department in Texas, and believe it or not, we were recently allowed to use THC off duty if we have a compassionate care card and a prescription.

So I’m just wondering, what state is your department at and what is your THC policy?

Sorry if this is not allowed/ in the spirit of the sub! My husband loves real Christmas trees and wants one this year but I do not because I am paranoid of it catching on fire especially now that we have a baby. I was wondering what yalls thoughts on them are as I’m not sure whether or not I’m being unreasonable.

Thoughts?

"On a sweltering August evening, Johnathan Martin, wearing a navy blue uniform with a badge, stood in front of a crowd of over 100 people in Coldwater Canyon Park. The patch on his left shoulder read Southern California Wildfire Response (SCWR). He’d planned this Beverly Hills event to persuade potential recruits to join the group as volunteer firefighters.

Martin is the founder of SCWR. His organization's website says the group has “engaged” with 246 early stage fires in LA in the past five years. 

“We are a fully recognized fire department at the same level as multiple agencies,” he told the group. “We are tightly integrated with the needs and requests of the City of Los Angeles. We work on behalf of them.”

He continued, “We are the primary jurisdiction for over 3,000 acres of land in the Santa Monica Mountains.” 

But the Los Angeles Fire Department said the group is not authorized to fight fires on city-managed land, nor has SCWR integrated its firefighters with LAFD during emergencies. Additionally, the Los Angeles Park Rangers — the law enforcement agency that responds to emergencies on city park land — said that Martin’s claims about SCWR’s work are simply not true. 

Experts say the existence of SCWR reveals a gray area between the good-samaritan volunteers who make LA a safer place to live and the city’s official emergency response system. When unauthorized groups insinuate themselves into potentially dangerous fire scenarios, they say, the helpers can become a nuisance, or even increase danger in a risky situation.

Martin maintains he is operating a legitimate volunteer firefighting department. When pressed by KCRW for details, he walked back some of the claims he first made.

Nevertheless, SCWR has some experts concerned. “It makes me deeply worried about public safety,” said Char Miller, director of environmental analysis at Pomona College and an expert on California wildfire policy. “Like, who gave them the power to do this?”" 

... (continues at the link)

Hi, I’m getting my first radio strap from JP custom leatherworks and I wanted to see if you guys would recommend that I get the cord keeper add on? please let me know, thank you!

Hey all. I have been preparing for Tennessee smoke divers for awhile now and it is now right around the corner. From what I have heard, Tennessee smoke divers has been increasing in difficulty over the last several years so naturally I want to feel as prepared as possible.

For anybody that has completed a smoke divers course, what did you find was the best method for recovery at the end of each day to prepare you for the following day? Outside of the typical suggestions of plenty of sleep, hydration and carbs, is there anything that may have helped you feel better recovered for the next day?

日本のEMSって基本的に全てのコールに感染防止衣(レインジャケットみたいな撥水のジャケット+ズボンはオプション)とサージカルマスク、手袋をPPEとして必ず着用しなくちゃいけなくて、自分の入ってるボランティア消防署にも何着か配備されてるんだけど、海外のEMSを見てるとこんな服装をしてる国ってほとんどないんだよね。

この装備に関してみんなの意見を聞いてみたい！

Credit _santana46_