Firehouse Expo; PGFD Reaction to Kentland Plan; Frederick, MD Lawsuits; Shirt Still Happens

I spent yesterday afternoon at Firehouse Expo in Baltimore. Got to see a lot of old friends and meet some new ones. I won’t name names, because it might be hazardous to their careers or reputations to be associated with me. The exceptions are LightRock and FossilMedic. I figure they have so many self-inflicted wounds through the years, being seen with me couldn’t do any more damage.

I was allowed to sneak into a wonderful dinner of fire service veterans. The stories I heard, could provide enough material for STATter 911 for the next 5 years. Unfortunately it was all off-the-record.

For the details of the official happenings at Firehouse Expo, go to firehouse.com. I am heading back today, to see what we can scare up that I am able to print.

In the meantime, a few headlines:

Reaction to Kentland Plan.

PGFD responds to my questions about the Kentland EMS division. Or do they? FireGeezer thinks he is announcing a tennis match as he gives us his view of this ongoing issue.

(Also, if you scroll down on his page you will see that FireGeezer is showing his age, waxing poetic about Julie London. She was also one of my favorite singers and I loved her husband’s tunes, like Route 66 and Girl Talk, but Geez we have to work on connecting with a younger audience. At least that’s the bosses in my industry have been preaching for years.)

Apparently there are a lot of phones in Frederick, MD.

If you have a phone. You have a lawyer. Employees have filed 8 lawsuits against the Frederick County, Maryland Division of Fire & Rescue. Here is an editorial on the subject from The Frederick News-Post.

Flashover

That’s Jay Lowry’s topic on Firefighter Hourly today.

Shirt tale continues.

Fire chief does damage control, but disciplinary action stands.