PUBLISHER COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI FIRE and RESCUE DEPARTMENT EDITOR ANTHONY COLOM ART DESIGN & LAYOUT ANTHONY COLOM PHOTOGRAPHY ANTHONY COLOM CONTRIBUTING WRITERS CHIEF MARTIN ANDREWS ASSISTANT CHIEF MARK WARD CHIEF OF TRAINING DUANE HUGHES FIRE and LIFE SAFETY EDUCATOR CAROLE SUMMERALL STAFF MARTIN ANDREWS: CHIEF MARK WARD: ASSISTANT CHIEF DUANE HUGHES: CHIEF OF TRAINING NEAL AUSTIN: SPECIAL OPERATIONS CHIEF BOBBY BARKSDALE: A-SHIFT BATTALION CHIEF MIKE GIBSON: B-SHIFT BATTALION CHIEF : C-SHIFT BATTALION CHIEF TODD WEATHERS: FIRE MARSHAL CAROLE SUMMERALL: FIRE & LIFE SAFETY EDUCATOR MICHAEL CHANDLER: ACCREDITATION MANAGER ANTHONY COLOM: PUBLIC RELATIONS TABITHA BARHAM: ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Columbus Fire and Rescue Department 205 7th Street S. Columbus, MS 39701 (662) 329-5121 This publication may not be reproduced in whole nor in part without the written permission of the publisher. Copyright © 2014, Columbus, Mississippi Fire and Rescue Department.
chief's chair CARRYING THE BATON
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This is not your conventional race. It is a race that began in 1840, with a baton passed twenty-two times so far, each time with the same goal in mind: to improve the Fire Department. Columbus Fire & Rescue has advanced to comparison with the top 1% of all fire departments in the United States. How can I improve on that? This is a question I have asked myself several times since becoming Fire Chief in May of this year. The learning curve has not been easy. There are things that the Fire Chief must handle that cannot be gained through training; they must be learned as you go; things such as the budget process, and personnel issues. Of course, there are guidelines to follow, and you can begin by comparing previous years, however, these guidelines are just that, only guidelines, there really are no specifics. And I have learned that while the process is similar, it is also constantly changing. Staying one step ahead is not always going to be easy, but I am committed to trying my hardest to lead in the best way possible so that the twenty-third Fire Chief will have the same firm foundation to start with as I have had. I have many goals that I would like to see accomplished during my tenure as Fire Chief, and I am excited to see what kind of progress can be made. I am in the process of trying to prioritize these goals and advance while maintaining the high quality of service that we currently provide. The transition from Retired Chief Kenneth Moore's to mine has been pretty smooth. I am depending on my team, the entire department, as well as the Mayor and City Council to aid me in success so that I can pass the baton with a firm foundation. In closing, I would just like to thank all of the previous Fire Chiefs of Columbus Fire and Rescue for getting the "race" started. This "baton" will not always be easy to carry, but I am confident that we will continue to advance as a team while maintaining our bond. This race has never been determined by the quickest. A steady, unwavering pace will bring applause from those we serve. And when the baton is once again passed, Columbus Fire & Rescue will continue to lead the pack.
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I am committed to trying my hardest to lead in the best way possible so that the twenty-third Fire Chief will have the same firm foundation to start with as I have had. by CHIEF martinANDREWS mandrews@columbusms.org
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editor's note LIONS and DOGS Like most people, I 've never cared for the naysayers telling me what I can’t' do; but at the same time I kind of enjoy it - it’s' motivation. Most of my adult life I’ve ' had someone telling me that I couldn’t achieve a goal that seemed unrealistic to them; usually someone outside of my family. For some reason, a lot of Mississippians use to be, and in some instances, still are, stuck on the ‘because of where I live’' thinking, for either not trying or not ' accomplishing something. You know.... I’m ' from Mississippi, so I’ll ' never get hired to direct a movie. The reason my art and my music won’t sell is probably because I’m ' from Mississippi. Why would that corporation hire me? I’m not from New York. And, you have to leave this state if you ever want to accomplish anything.
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Those with that mentality are usually on a path to follow others all their life. I believe true doers and leaders grow up in an environment where they’ve ' seen or lived around great leaders. Born with the qualities? Maybe. But living with greatness or being told constantly that you can achieve anything can certainly help. You’re ' either a leader or follower, a doer or a doubter. Everyone can’t' lead and everyone shouldn’t' follow. Many people just don’t' care for the responsibility that comes with leading others; and some don’t have the drive nor the courage to say ''NO'' when they’ll ' need to. If you’re ' truly capable ' in a leadership position, make sure you’re of leading. If you happen to be a follower, know who it is that’s' leading you. French emperor and military leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, once said, ''If you build an army of 100 lions and their leader is a dog, in any fight the lions will die like a dog. But if you build an army of 100 dogs and their leader is a lion, all the dogs will fight like lions.''And, ''An Army of lions commanded by a deer will never be an army of lions. ''
For some reason, a lot of Mississippians use to be, and in some instances, still are, stuck on the ‘because of ' where I live’' thinking, for either not trying or not accomplishing something.
Are you a leader or follower? A lion or deer? If you’re ' not moving, you’re ' standing still. If you’re ' standing still, then you’re ' going nowhere.
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by anthonyCOLOM, PUBLIC RELATIONS acolom@columbusms.org (662) 329-5121
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Dive Rescue Training: Engineer shannonMURPHY Photo by anthonyCOLOM
command staff 27 YEARS LATER
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On September 30, 1987, Chief Martin Andrews and I began our careers as rookies with Columbus Fire Department. That date seems like a lifetime ago, but in many ways it seems like just yesterday. In 1987 the fire department only responded to fire calls. We did not respond to any calls for medical assistance, motor vehicle accidents, or any special rescues. We did perform annual inspections for all businesses within the City of Columbus. There was not an established program for fire prevention or public education conducted by the department.
Let's fast forward to September 2014. The department has had a name change. We are now Columbus Fire and Rescue. We respond to all calls for medical assistance in the City of Columbus. We are trained and respond to all water rescues and recoveries in the city as well as surrounding counties. We perform trench rescues, confined space/high angle rescues, overland search, structural collapse, and hazardous materials incidents in the entire Golden Triangle area. Columbus Fire and Rescue has a full-time Fire and Life Safety Educator and a full-time Public Relations Officer that directs and assists with all fire prevention and public education throughout the city of Columbus. The department conducts a mentoring program in area high schools, conducts a Citizens Fire Academy, and a Summer Youth Fire Academy. We have also reached the designation of being an accredited fire department: the only department in Mississippi and Alabama to achieve this designation. Writing this article made me think about all the changes that have occurred at Columbus Fire and Rescue in the last 27 years. I can proudly say that Columbus Fire and Rescue has evolved into a department that serves the community and its citizens in the best possible manner. Thinking about those two rookie firefighters who began their careers 27 years ago, they are now the fire chief and the assistant fire chief.
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We are now Columbus Fire and Rescue. We respond to all calls for medical assistance in the City of Columbus. We are trained and respond to all water rescues and recoveries in the city as well as surrounding counties. by ASSISTANT CHIEF markWARD mward@columbusms.org
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Lowndes County Full-Scale Disaster Exercise
SCENARIO : Mississippi University for Women receives a $1,000,000 donation from a corporation to set up animal testing labs. A group of students who happen to be members of an animal rights group on campus are protesting. Some of the students are in a dorm room attempting to make bombs from internet instructions. In the process of making the bombs they explode inside the dorm room killing several students. The dorm is on fire and those responding include: Columbus Fire and Rescue, Columbus Police Department, MUW Police, MUW Nursing, FBI, Lowndes County Emergency Management, MEMA, Mississippi Department of Health, Baptist Memorial Hospital, and Columbus Air Force Base Fire Department. Several activist outside are also found with bombs and are shot and killed by law enforcement. 14 l COLUMBUS FIRE and RESCUE MAGAZINE l
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Kids Fire Academy / Chief martinANDREWS, Columbus-Lowndes EMA Director cindyLAWRENCE,
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command staff BAGS and BED KEYS
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The job description for modern firefighters is constantly changing. Long gone are the days of only being responsible for fire suppression. Today's firefighters perform multiple tasks in a wide variety of missions. From overland search to confined space rescue, firefighters constantly train to become proficient in those skills the public requires of them. A wide variety of responsibilities has increased the amount of equipment a firefighter carries. This has also been reflected in the size of fire apparatus, which have grown immensely over the years to carry the increased loads. There was in the past a much simpler time, when all a firefighter needed was a bag and a bed key.
In the early history of our nation, homeowners kept leather buckets to hold water, and bags to carry out valuables in case of a fire. The firefighters in those times put out and stopped the spread of fire, along with saving lives and personal belongings. Standard equipment for these firefighters was a bed key for the dismantling of beds (a most precious possession), and a salvage bag (a large bag into which valuables could be quickly stuffed). It's interesting to note that a family's most valued possession in those days was the bed. It was typically the largest and most expensive thing the family owned. Saving beds was very important. It took months to have a bed made or ordered from a catalog. Most families lacked the money to buy a bed. Part of every fire company's equipment in those days was a "bed key" made of iron. These tools quickly and efficiently separated the rails from the head and footboards, so that the bed could be quickly removed and saved. The bed key was more like a wrench than a lock cylinder type key. Not surprisingly, these "bed keys" are highly prized by collectors today. The family bed has long since lost its place as a family's most valuable possession. The calls from today's frantic homeowners are to save a flat screen television or new automobile. The one thing that has not changed is the firefighter's commitment to save life and personal property. Whether it is the cries from a cell tower technician hundreds of feet from the ground, or the pleas for help from a family caught by flood water, firefighters respond. The tools change, yet the missions remain the same.
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It's interesting to note that a family's most valued possession in those days was the bed. It was typically the largest and most expensive thing the family owned. by CHIEF of TRAINING duaneHUGHES dhughes@columbusms.org
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While your boss may not appreciate the snoring in the office, the truth is that well-timed sleep actually boosts your effectiveness as a worker. “A brief mid-day nap can reduce levels of fatigue, improve reaction time, promote learning, and improve coordination,” says Michael A. Grandner, Ph.D., instructor and a member of the Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology at the University of Pennsylvania.
WHY A 20 MINUTE NAP COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE “fills up” like your voicemail inbox and wouldn’t be able to hold new information, meaning a siesta preps you for learning more stuff, concludes the study authors.
There is, however, a right and wrong way to grab some quick shuteye. Try to sleep as close to the middle of the day as possible, preferably 8 hours after you wake up, says Grandner, or else it will be more difficult to go to bed at night. Ideally your snooze should be 20 to 30 minutes—it’s best for regulating brain functions and keeping you from feeling like you’ve been hit by a truck when waking up from deeper sleep. Keep reading for three sound reasons to rest your eyes right now. Improve Your Memory A 2012 Northwestern University study showed participants could play a recentlylearned song on a keyboard more accurately after it played in the background of their afternoon nap. The reinforced tune helped consolidate the memory, making it more easily reactivated when awake, according to the study authors. Wondering why we’re pushing a catnap in place of simply a steaming cup of joe to motivate your noggin’s memory? According to a University of California San Diego study, people did significantly worse in memory exercises when hyped up on caffeine compared to people who slept in the middle of the session. Additionally, UC Berkeley research shows that memorized facts are briefly held in the brain’s hippocampus before being sent to the prefrontal cortex for more permanent storage, which occurs during your Stage 2 sleep, or the point you reach in a 20-minute nap. Without this transfer of memories, your hippocampus
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Relieve Stress Looks like it’s possible to sleep your worries away: Night shift nurses who took two 15minute naps during 9-hour work shifts reported feeling less stress and tension in a recent Japanese study. The researchers noted that if the medics followed a stricter snoozing schedule during their breaks, they would feel the napping benefits more strongly, such as feeling more alert. Need more convincing? In a study from Allegheny College in Pennsylvania, students who dozed after taking a mentally taxing math test had significantly lower blood pressure and thus higher cardiovascular recovery than those who stayed
awake. Lose Weight Immobility as a sort of calorie-burner? This sounds too good to be true. “What we know about sleep and weight loss, the more sleepdeprived you are, the less likely you are to lose weight,” says Michael J. Breus, Ph.D., author of The Sleep Doctor’s Diet Plan: Lose W e i g h t Through Better Sleep. If you’re consistently shorting yourself on pillow time, taking a longer, 90minute nap that encompasses a full sleep cycle will help lower your sleep deficit and positively alter your levels of hormones ghrelin and leptin, making weight loss more likely, Breus says. Leptin tells your brain when you’re full, while ghrelin gives you an appetite. Studies at the University of Chicago and Stanford University found that when participants slept less, leptin levels decreased while ghrelin increased, meaning the men felt more hungry and craved high-carb foods 45 percent more than those who got more shuteye. By Ashley Balcerzak / courtesy menshealth.com
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fire and life safety COOKING SAFETY FACTS
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With the rash of cooking fires our department has experienced lately, it is time to get down to fire safety basics. A fire needs 4 things to create combustion: fuel, heat, oxygen and a chemical chain reaction. Like it or not, the 3 leading causes of fire are men, women and children; either accidental or intentional. The fire department responds when you call 9-1-1 and are dispatched.
Based upon national accreditation standards, Columbus Fire & Rescue responds to 90% of fire emergencies within 5 minutes and 25 seconds; however, response time is influenced by factors such as distance from fire stations, time of day, traffic, weather, etc. It takes over 1 minute and 30 seconds for a smoke alarm to activate in a fire; add another minute and 30 seconds to report the fire by calling 9-1-1. Don't forget, a fire doubles in size every 30 seconds. Your home can become fully engulfed in flames by the time the firefighters arrive. The firefighters will risk their lives to save these men, women and children that cause the fire. Based on 2006-2010 annual averages (Source: National Fire Protection Association): - Unattended cooking was by far the leading contributing factor in home cooking fires. - Two-thirds (67%) of home cooking fires started with the ignition of food or other cooking materials. - Three of every five (57%) reported non-fatal home cooking fire injuries occurred when the victims tried to fight the fire themselves. - Clothing was the item first ignited in less than 1% of these fires, but these incidents accounted for 16% of the cooking fire deaths. - Frying poses the greatest risk of fire. - Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires. Stop a cooking fire before it starts: - Keep towels, pot holders, and curtains away from flames, ovens, and stove tops. - Never leave food that is cooking on the stove alone. A serious fire can start in just seconds. - Never use the stove or oven to heat your home. - Clean cooking surfaces regularly to prevent grease buildup, which can start fires.
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It takes over 1 minute and 30 seconds for a smoke alarm to activate in a fire; add another minute and 30 seconds to report the fire by calling 9-1-1. Don't forget, a fire doubles in size every 30 seconds. by FIRE and LIFE SAFETY EDUCATOR /PIO caroleSUMMERALL csummerall@columbusms.org
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Bicycle Safety Sessions: Engineer kevinBROWN Photo by anthonyCOLOM
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