Kentland: Everybody’s Talking ‘Bout Me; FDNY After-Action Risk-Assessment; 2 Mayors on 2 Chiefs; VA Mayday; Video: Ticket Writers Block Plugs

FireNews.net has more on this NC lumber yard fire. They are also taking another look at the numbers game and have a revamped Carolinas Fire Page.

Kentland comments.

Officially, there is no change in the situation between Kentland VFD and PGFD. Also, there have been no working fires where a fully-staffed fire truck has been bypassed (as of 11:04 a.m.).

What has happened, so far, is being dissected by many on this and a number of other forums. I have a look at some of the possible reasons behind the great interest in this battle.

If you want to see our coverage of the story and/or leave your own thoughts, click here.

Mayor Dixon: Confidence level in chief “is very questionable”. Chief Goodwin: Doubts key part of report.

As we told you yesterday afternoon, Baltimore’s mayor has some of her strongest criticism yet of her fire chief. This comes after The Baltimore Sun’s Annie Linskey comes up with the details from the latest report into the training death of recruit Racheal Wilson.

According to The Sun today, Chief William Goodwin believes the report “was ‘thorough’ but he disagreed with the finding that Wilson wasn’t properly prepared to fight a live fire”.

The report’s release and Mayor Sheila Dixon’s official comments weren’t scheduled until tomorrow, but reporter Linskey’s scoop has everyone talking a little sooner than planned.

Charleston mayor has a different take on his fire chief.

“He is the fire chief, the excellent fire chief, and I support him unequivocally”. The words of Mayor Joe Riley in today’s The Post & Courier. This comes as the department officially bans the use of booster lines for interior firefighting.

Investigators were back in the Sofa Super Store on Tuesday looking for evidence related to doors being padlocked.

As usual you can find the latest from Charleston on SConFire.com and Firefighter Hourly.

FDNY tactics, pre-plan and inspections questioned.

As they prepare to bury two firefighters, a lot of questions are being asked about FDNY’s lack of pre-planning and inspections, the failed standpipe system, and firefighting tactics. Investigations are underway into what FDNY, the building’s owners and the contractors did or didn’t do. Here is an excerpt from the latest out of the The New York Times:

… at one point, more than 100 firefighters were inside the building even though the fire was out of control and wildly unpredictable — and that those men had to be called out. And they were inside even though, unlike the situation in the twin towers, no workers were trapped.

“Clearly firefighters were sent into a deathtrap,” said Stephen J. Cassidy, president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association. “I think the Fire Department’s position is they didn’t know how bad it was. We certainly need to find out why they didn’t know.”

Yesterday, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta directed his investigators to determine why the department did not have a plan in place to fight a fire in the building.

Here is a new video from Saturday’s fire. It is a bit of a tribute to the fallen firefighters, but has a few shots that you may not have seen. It is a longer version of one we linked to earlier.

FireGeezer is again talking about this topic and has also been keeping up on the reporting out of New York.

A mayday at this fire, Tuesday afternoon, in Prince William County. Everyone’s okay. Manassas VFC has the details at its site.

Raw video from D.C. rescue.

We finally put up DCFD’s raw video of Saturday’s rescue from the 8th floor of a burning apartment building. Not quite as dramatic as the version on YouTube, but the quality is better.

Firefighter can’t sue.

A federal judge has told an Annapolis, Maryland firefighter that he can’t sue for reverse discrimination.

Talk to me.

A little clarification after a state report about communications during the May 10th wreck on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge that killed 3 and tied up traffic for hours. Fire and EMS from both sides of the water say they talked to each other that day and do so every day. The fire chief in Anne Arundel County was not too happy about the report.

You will have to read the article to find out who actually was on a different page, or frequency.

Fire safety on campus.

CPSC held a press conference yesterday on college fire safety. No, they are not recalling your college-aged child, but they are talking about how to keep him or her safe. 9News Now reporter Cindy Pena visits the University of Maryland for a closer look.

Jimmy Justice to the rescue.

Check out this one. New York ticket writers blocking fire hydrants. Jimmy Justice gets a bit personal, but he makes his point.

Click on the picture to take you to WithTheCommand.com and more on this fire in 6 homes under construction in Texas.