Quick Takes: May 9, 2011.

May 9, 2011

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Three-alarm rowhouse fire in Allentown, Pennsylvania: Another fire from this weekend shot by newsworking.org's Bill Rohrer. This was Sunday in the 400 block of Greenleaf Street. Click here for more on the fire.

TOP STORY: Two fire engines collide head-on at Missouri house fire this morning. Video and details at FireTruckBlog.com.

Was it the wetdown or the wet firehouse that caused the problem in Sea Bright, New Jersey?: We have a follow-up to the story from last Thursday about the fight that broke out between Sea Bright FD firefighters following the department's wetdown last October. At Thursday's trial it came out that there is video from a surveillance camera that shows the two brothers squaring off against another firefighter. This occurred in the bar area of the firehouse. Read more.

The green line rules the weekend: Until I read Chief Glenn Gaines' Firefighting Operations in Garden Apartments and Townhouses I thought you used garden hoses for garden apartments. But on Saturday and Sunday garden hoses ruled the day in Whitehall, Pennsylvania, stealing a a pair of house fires from the first arriving engine. As you will read in my thoughts posted with the videos from Bill Rohrer of newsworking.org, I think it's about time we have some rules of engagement for the green lines. So, I am will be writing Firefighting Operations with Garden Hoses. My very first book. Click here and here to learn about some of the important issues I will be addressing.

Downsizing in South Carolina: Glenn Usdin's FireTruckBlog.com has the story of Beaufort, SC going to all purpose vehicles to handle EMS runs rather than sending a fire truck. Here are the details.

Wheel chocks detain drunk man behind the wheel: In Santa Fe, New Mexico firefighters are being praised for making sure a driver police say was quite drunk didn't speed away from cops. A combination of chocks and a bar saved the day. Watch the video.

Vehicle fire video worth watching: Three separate fireballs from a vehicle fire in Florida. Click here for the video.

Do you want cream with that?: Two-years-ago when the Grand View coffee shop in Vassalboro, Maine burned down, both Firegeezer.com and STATter911.com covered it. Bill and Dave each had an interest in this story because we know news when we see it. This is a topless coffee shop. That doesn't mean they don't have lids for their to-go cups. Personally, while I think Bill's original article was good, I really brought the coverage to a new level. Unfortunately that level was even below Bill's. Now it appears the Grand View coffee shop has once again fallen on hard times. And, to my knowledge, the only fire service website to keep abreast of all of the developments has been Firegeezer.com. While I tried to titillate and went for the really cheap laughs, Bill never lost focus and kept his eyes on this one over the long haul. It's what we have learned to expect from Bill. With Bill on the case you can be sure there will be no cover-up at the Grand View topless coffee shop. Click here for the Geezer's coverage.

On-call firefighters hard to find during the day along the South Coast of Massachusetts: SouthCoastToday.com has a detailed and interesting look at fire chiefs concerned about the lack of on-call firefighters available during the day. Read the story.

The sound of silence: The fire siren in Monsey, New York has been silenced. The Monsey Board of Fire Commissioners made that decision based on citizen complaints. Here's the story.