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Detroit close call revisited: Additional video from warehouse & other Detroit fires with Belgian ride-alongs. Plus more on the controversial Charlie LeDuff comments.

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Previous coverage of reporter Charlie LeDuff’s comments

Previous coverage of close call involving Belgian firefighter

John Hanley was the videographer out of Toronto who captured the close call in Detroit Thursday night involving the Belgian firefighter who almost fell through the roof during a two-alarm vacant warehouse fire at John R and State Fair. In the clip above is John’s additional video from the same fire and a series of other fires in Detroit last week.

You will see more of the visiting Belgian firefighters on John’s video, particularly starting at 7:25 during a fire at Colfax and Vancouver.

The vacationing firefighters from Belgium who were riding along and training with the Detroit Fire Department became somewhat of a target of WJBK-TV reporter Charlie LeDuff on Friday. In a commentary where LeDuff also took some shots at the critically acclaimed movie “Burn”, LeDuff reported the visiting firefighters were part of Commissioner Donald Austin’s “pay to spray” plan (my term) and forked over $2,000 each to the City of Detroit. STATter911.com was contacted Saturday by Marc Opstal one of the Belgian firefighters who said while the firefighters did each pay their travel expenses, they were “guests of the Detroit Fire Department and did not pay a dime for this”.

That I’ve seen, there has been no update or correction on WJBK-TV’s site. LeDuff has long fought for improvements in the Detroit Fire Department and is normally a favorite of a lot of firefighters, including many readers of STATter911.com. This time though LeDuff is taking a lot of heat in the comments section on the WJBK-TV site from people who describe themselves as fans of the reporter. Here is an example:

Charlie, please, you lost me as a huge fan on this one!   You missed the boat! This film was about love, dedication, and a job well done by the DFD.   If you want to go see it I will buy you a ticket for this evening. As the proud mother of a Detroit Firefighter I really to took offense to your writing.

Posted by on October 2, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, must see video, News, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

UPDATE – Belgian firefighter says TV reporter wrong that they paid $2K each for Detroit FD ride-along/training. LeDuff rains on critically acclaimed ‘Burn’ local premiere.

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Close call involving vacationing Belgian firefighter

Earlier coverage of Commissioner Austin’s pay to ride-along proposal

Other Detroit coverage of “Burn” here, here & here

Official website for “Burn” where you can support documentary

SATURDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:

Belgian Firefighter Marc Opstal has been in touch with STATter911.com both in the comments section and by phone. Opstal says WJBK-TV’s Charlie LeDuff reported wrong information about the visit by the Belgian firefighters to Detroit and wished that LeDuff had contacted them for comment first. Here’s what Opstal wrote:

As one of the 10 firefighters from Belgium, I need to react on the report and comments. First of all we are guests of the Detroit Fire Department and did not pay a dime for this. The 2000 dollars refered to is the money we spent on airfaire, rental cars and hotels for the tourist trip we will be making next week, which will bring us to Toronto, DC, Philadelphia and New York. Secondly, this visit was planned more than a year ago, long before the “tourist thrill”. Finally, we have done similar trips to other US cities since 1996. Another group will be visiting Austin, TX next week. Oh, and by the way, we paid for our tickets to the “burn” premiere, and thus show our support.

EARLIER COVERAGE:

It’s buried near the end of WJBK-TV reporter Charlie LeDuff’s rant about the state of the Detroit fire department under the administration of Commissioner Donald Austin and Mayor Dave Bing. LeDuff, who broke the story of Austin’s proposal to charge those who want to ride-along and train with the Detroit Fire Department, says “10 guys from Belgium took him up on the offer, paying $2,000 each.” LeDuff adds, “For that they get to pull hose, sleep in a real-life firehouse, go to a Tigers game and stand on the red carpet of the Burn premiere.”

As the reporter mentions in the video above, for that money one of the Belgian firefighters experienced a close call first hand. As we showed you yesterday, the firefighter was on the roof of a burning vacant warehouse when the roof gave way underneath him (click here for the video and audio of that incident).

It’s interesting that in the WXYZ-TV story about the vacationing firemen where Commissioner Austin was interviewed there is mention the firefighters paid their own way and were on their own time, but no indication they paid the City of Detroit for this opportunity.

LeDuff’s story came as the critically acclaimed documentary “Burn” had its Detroit premiere. While the coverage of the movie elsewhere around town and the country has been very good, LeDuff does not appear to be much of a fan:

The Detroit premiere of the documentary “Burn” plays Friday night. With respect to the hard-working firefighters who lay it on the line every night, the movie doesn’t show anything that we don’t already know. The Detroit Fire Department is a disaster, made worse by the bonehead budget cuts by Out-To-Lunch Dave Bing.

Reporter Charlie LeDuff claims Belgian firefighters paid $2000 for the “tourist thrill ride”. This one got something the others didn’t, a close call as the roof of a warehouse gave way underneath him. Click here for more.

    
Why allow a movie camera on the rigs to make yet another negative story about Detroit? We’re told it is to show the world the struggles of our emergency responders. Well, the cameras have left and the city still struggles. You don’t get rid of a negative image by making movies. You get rid of a negative image by fixing the problems. I thought we learned our lesson with Aiyana Stanley Jones, the seven-year-old who was shot to death by a cop with a cable television camera in tow.
   
What has the fire commissioner done? He has issued an official department-wide bulletin telling the rank and file that the movie producers request they come to the premiere in their dress blues. The good tickets go for 50 bucks. Can somebody tell Dennis Leary they just got their pay cut by 10 percent?

WDIV-TV reports this Friday night fire is an example of the “let it burn” policy. Click here for video.

Another station, WDIV-TV. filed a report on the same night as “Burn” clearly illustrating “let it burn”, Commissioner Austin’s plan that combines firefighter safety with urban renewal. At least one resident interviewed supports the idea.

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Detroit firefighters hosing down the rig but not the fire building Friday night.

Posted by on September 29, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fireground Audio, Fires, Funding & Staffing, must see video, News, Training, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Must see close call, plus fireground audio: Firefighters, including an international ride-along, on roof of Detroit warehouse during partial collapse.

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Click here to watch video of collapse

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Click here for fireground audio as roof paritally collapses

The video above from WDIV-TV, which includes a close call shot by CTV out of Toronto, was taken last night during a two-alarm vacant warehouse fire at John R and State Fair. Alertpage Text Alert Notification Service provided the radio traffic from the incident.

WDIV-TV says one of the firefighters on the roof is part of a group of firefighters from The Netherlands visiting Detroit on their own to learn from the city’s firefighters. WXYZ-TV reports that crew is actually from neighboring Belgium. Here’s an excerpt from a report filed yesterday:

“We know that Detroit has a lot of fires. So, there’s no better place to learn about firefighting than Detroit”, said Marc Opstal from the fire department in Zaventem, Belgium. “We have good prevention. We don’t have that much vacant buildings. So, we don’t get to see fire that much. And in order to really learn something, this is very good place for us”.

The Belgian firefighters arrived in town Sunday to spend the week training with Detroit firefighters, and what they learn here in the city is so valuable that each Belgian firefighter paid their own way to way to get here. They’re even using vacation time for the learning experience.

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Posted by on September 28, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, Emergency Communications, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fireground Audio, Fires, must see video, News, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Detroit fire commissioner sees money in firefighter tourists. Memo suggests charging for ride-along training program that would put the visitors to work.

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Want to learn to fight fires the Detroit way? Interested in riding-along and being put to work in a department that has lost firefighters due to layoffs? Willing to pay money for this privilege?

WJBK-TV reporter Charlie LeDuff says such a plan was outlined in an internal memo from Detroit Executive Fire Commissioner Don Austin. The commissioner’s idea gets the full LeDuff treatment with Austin telling the reporter he will call him back with a comment, but doesn’t. Instead the mayor’s office called the reporter claiming there was nothing to discuss publicly about the internal memo.

WJBK-TV:

Since Mayor Bing gutted the fire service, the department has been forced to close down rigs and layoff men.  What to do?  Here’s a firecracker of an idea.  Because Detroit for years has been a magnet for firefighter tourists riding along on the rigs, Commissioner Don Austin, according to his “ride-along training program” memo, is thinking, hey, why not put them to work and charge them for the privilege.

“What about when the roof falls on the guy that’s out helping.  Who’s going to take care of his liability part?” one firefighter said.“That’s not the answer, no.  We need firefighters, our laid off guys back.  That’s what we need,” said Darnell McLaurin with DFAA Local 344.How does one of the laid off guys feel about being replaced by tourists?“Tourists?  Wow.  Do they know what to do?” said Sam Shack.

In the video above LeDuff refers to a story he did on Tuesday where firefighters couldn’t get police to stop by the firehouse to pick up a confessed murderer. Click here to watch that story:

Seeing as the police precincts were closed, the self confessed murderer came to Engine 40 to turn himself in.  He begged them to call police, which they did.

“He shot four people and killed two,” said a Detroit firefighter.  “No cop ever came here, and this is supposed to be a priority call when you call Central and say, okay, we need a scout car at the fire station.” After three or four hours, firefighters say they put him in a cab where he went to a police precinct and turned himself in. 

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Posted by on September 7, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Buffalo Fire Department, Command & Leadership, Courts, Customer Service, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Dispatch, Fire Prevention & Education, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Uncategorized, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Chicago ride-along controversy: Columnist uses opening scene of Backdraft to explain latest battle between Commissioner Hoff & Inspector General.

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Read column by Alden Loury

There is a very interesting column on Huff Post Chicago by Alden Loury the publisher of The Chicago Reporter. It is about the latest dust up between Chicago Fire Department Commissioner Robert Hoff and Inspector General Joe Ferguson. You may recall the pair previously battled over how discipline would be handled after the IG's investigation found members of the Fire Prevention Bureau had falsified mileage reimbursements. Hoff also told Ferguson to basically butt out when the IG urged a cutback on the minimum staffing of fire apparatus.

The latest disagreement is over ride-alongs. Here's how Loury describes the issue:

Investigators with Chicago Inspector General Joe Ferguson's office discovered that a battalion chief took an adult son along on fire emergencies and allowed him to stay overnight at a Chicago firehouse for a period of nearly two years. Ferguson recommended a 20-day suspension for the battalion chief, who "recklessly exposed the City to liability," according to the OIG's office.

But Commissioner Hoff ignored that recommendation and gave the battalion chief — whom city and fire officials wouldn't identify — a "verbal reprimand" with no time off, in the process creating more friction with Ferguson's office. (This is at least the third time in the past few months that the commissioner and Ferguson have squared off.)

CFD spokesman Larry Langford says Commissioner Hoff cited progressive discipline as his justification for the verbal reprimand, pointing to an otherwise good record for the BC.

Langford also had to tell Loury that Commissioner Hoff's childhood did not weigh heavily in the decision making on this one. Loury was talking about Commissioner Hoff, his brother and father being inspirations for the 1991 movie Backdraft. Alden Loury begins his column by describing the opening of the film where the younger brother rides along on a fire that ends up taking his father's life.

While that is a fictionalized account of the 1962 death of Commissioner Hoff's father, Loury continues with the ride-along theme by citing a quote from the Commissioner's interview with the Chicago Sun-Times last year after the death of his firefighter older brother Raymond, whom he lived with as a teenager. "I was 14. Every weekend he took me to work with him. He showed me everything."

As for the rules on CFD ride-alongs, here's more from Loury:

Langford said requests for ride alongs are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, but approval is typically reserved for individuals with a legitimate interest in firefighting activity or research — such as journalists or academics. Anyone approved for a ride along must complete a waiver of liability (which apparently was not filled out in the case of the battalion chief.) Langford said the department also has a program allowing medical students to ride along in ambulances as a part of their educational process.

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Posted by on January 27, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Chicago Fire Department, Command & Leadership, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, News • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Detroit fire documentary getting caught up in aftermath of police chief scandal. Mayor’s office has to set policy. It’s an image thing.

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BURN Trailer from Tremolo Productions on Vimeo.

Many of you have seen the rather riveting trailer for a proposed documentary on the Detroit Fire Department. Firegeezer, among others, told the story last month about the producers looking to raise money and get the doc shot as soon as possible (click here for the message directly from the producers).

It looks like money may not be the only obstacle in telling the story. In late July Mayor Dave Bing fired Warren Evans, his police chief of a year. Among the reasons cited by Mayor Bing is Evans’ decision to be featured in a reality show called “The Chief”.  According to the Detroit Free Press, “The footage showed the chief holding an assault rifle and declaring he would do whatever it takes to clean the city’s streets.”

Mayor Bing also recently canceled a two year relationship with the A&E series, “First 48″. This one shadows homicide detectives in a number of cities. More from The Free Press:

Critics of Detroit’s participation have said that officers may be showboating for the cameras. They point to the use of a flash-bang grenade in some raids, including the one early May 16 that left 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones dead from a police officer’s bullet.

After that incident, Bing nixed the A&E tagalongs.

It is all about image. Mayor Bing thinks these reality shows (and even an ABC police drama based on Detroit homicide detectives) could be portraying Detroit in a negative fashion. The Free Press article quotes a spokesman for the City of Baltimore who says they are still dealing with negative image problems from the HBO series “The Wire”.

All of this is now apparently having an impact on efforts to feature the Detroit Fire Department in the documentary “Burn”. Crain’s Detroit Business reports that getting permission from Detroit officials could be a problem:

We are re-evaluating our policies and practices as it relates to film opportunities, citywide and inclusive of (the Detroit Police Department),” Karen Dumas, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing’s chief communications officer, wrote in an e-mail to Crain’s. “We look forward to having practical guidelines in place soon.”

I admit it is a dilemma when you are talking about something as important as a city’s image. But to me it always seems a better idea to fix the problems rather than spend the time, effort and money to manipulate and sanitize the message. While you certainly don’t want showboating for the cameras and having the film alter the reality of something as important as public safety, don’t you think in some cases you will also be preventing a very positive message from being heard and seen by the public?

What I often see in these ride-alongs from Detroit and elsewhere is, despite all of the decay and heartbreak surrounding them, there are still dedicated public servants who get the job done with expertise and compassion. I think of the video a Detroit journalist shot while riding with Engine 23 and the great interviews with the firefighters like Walt Harris, who died in the line-of-duty before the year was out (the video does not seem to be online anymore). Similarly, Firehouse USA’s up close and personal views that included those phenomenal moments with Boston’s Lt. Kevin Kelley, who died last year in the crash of Ladder 26. To me the world would be a little less tolerable without those videos bringing a little sanity and understanding of the bureaucracy and chaos of city life.

Remember, it is what it is. You aren’t going to change it by hiding behind a curtain. And a major TV series or movie shot in city brings money and even jobs. Both, if I am not mistaken, are things that are desperately needed in Detroit, Michigan.

Posted by on August 9, 2010 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, Funding & Staffing, News, Social Media, Reputation Management, News Media, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,