Recent content by pauloghia

Other than the obvious that the Ferrara Ember uses an HME cab with the Ferrara front end superimposed onto it, are there any other differences between the Ember and Intruder 2?

I see KME use MFD, XMFD, LFD and XLFD to describe their cab sizes. I also see other manufacturers use similar acronyms on their specifications. Can somebody trabslate this for me?

It seems that some major departments have a basic spec they use and possibly even designed themselves, regardless of the manufacturer. It seems like some have a  spec that regardless of the manufacturer, is always the same behind the cab. An example is the FDNY, having the same basic spec on...

What about when the FDNY responded to New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina? Competitions and parades aside, that of course was an actual incident.

Does anyone have old pics of Engine 155/Ladder 78? I think I remember seeing a pic once in the firehouse of one of the old firehouses that was on Jersey Street at their formation.

What about HME and Metz? Chicago has already ran HME cabs in the past and Metz has their North American presence. There's only so many times the CFD administration can rebuild an aerial device before it just completely wears out from age. If Metz builds a device similar to what they require, I...

If foreign companies build snorkel type devices, who doesn't Chicago and other cities that still have them within their department operations replace the old Pitman devices with one of those?

I'm going to explain how it works in Kentucky where I live, as well as everywhere I've visited. Career firefighters volunteer in the town or community which they live in during their off hours. The career guys provide an added wealth of knowledge for the volunteers and they often serve as...

As long as these departments keep their high standards, then it's my opinion that they're an asset, especially as the city disbands companies or in the areas like Broad Channel or Travis where existing companies are farther away. Their equipment tends to be more specialized for the neighborhood...

With apparatus having grown to super sized proportions with tons of options, when was it that the rigs began to be spec'd out very specifically and not just built to one blueprint? Also, is it possible to order a highly spec'd pumper on a modern commercial cab, like a Freightliner or Kenworth...

I remember seeing a pic several years ago in a book of I think an FDNY battalion chief from the 1930's. It was in black and white obviously. The photographer took the shot of the front of the chief, as he was standing in his rubber coat and leather helmet and boots, looking up at whatever...

I was hired on the job early in 2001 and left in 2007, then returned recently as a volunteer. I was surprised at the changes from the time I left to now and the ones I've seen in the fire service in the span of time from 2001. For example, I read that a change to NFPA 1901 says that firefighters...

How is training done for the nine or ten volunteer fire departments left in the city? Are new members required to attend a fire academy, do they go to Randall's Island any or train with the FDNY somewhere else, do they participate in drills also, or is training completely left in-house to the...

What exactly is the Metropolitan Fire Association, what do they do and what function and capacity do they serve? I've heard they're everything from an explorer post with fire apparatus, to freelancers who fight brush fires. Are they recognized by the state of NY as a fire department or what?

I used to ride with Engine 155 in 2002 and 2003, but have lost all of my pics of the engine (the SP9715 rig), firehouse and crew. Other than fdnytrucks.com, does anyone have pics of Engine 155 and  it's crew and quarters? A friend of mine who I lost touch with should be retired from there by now.