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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAnnual Report of the Fire Department 19791979 A N N U A L R E P O R T F I R E D E P A R T M E N T V I L L A G E O F C A Y U G A H E I G H T S t CAYUGA HEIGHTS FIRE DEPARTMENT 194 Pleasant Grove Road Ithaca, N.Y. 14850 Honorable Frederick G. Marcham, Mayor and Members of the Board of Trustees Village of Cayuga Heights Gentlemen: I am submitting herewith the Annual Report of the Fire Department for the year ending December 31, 1979. The Department responded to 225 emergencies of which 111 were general alarms and 114 were incident investigations. The insured fire loss for the Village in 1979 was $14,570.00, a slight in- crease over last year. The loss in that part of the Town of Ithaca in'our• Fire District was $98,165.00, a substantial increase because of the Winston Court Apartment fire. Our Volunteer Fire Department has 50 active members. Of these, 36 are active firemen and 14 are fire police. We are very interested in recruiting new members and urge anyone interested to talk with me or any of our firemen. This past year our volunteers spent many hours responding to fire calls, attending drills, fire schools, and at work details at the fire station. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each of the members for their interest and dedication to the department. I would also like to thank the Board of Trustees for their cooperation, interest, and support of our department this past year. Respectfully sub 'fitted, well T. George Fire Chief I N D E X Page No. Officers - Fire Department and Fire Company 1 Classification and Number of Alarms 2 Fire Causes 3 Type of Situation Found 4 Fire Loss 5 Incident Responses 6. Mutual Aid q Manpower Response /Membership 8 Equipment Used at Alarms and Incidents g Present Status of Vehicles /Department Vehicles 10' First Aid Squad 11, 12 Training 13, 14, 15 Fire Prevention 15 Fire Inspection 16 page 1 ANNUAL REPORT 1979 CAYUGA HEIGHTS FIRE DEPARTMENT * Lowell T. George, Fire Chief * Edward C. Collins, 1st Assistant Fire Chief * Francis L. Miller, 2nd Assistant Fire Chief * Robert J. Hults, 3rd Assistant Fire Chief Daniel R. Rogers, 1st Lieutenant Christian M. Boissonnas, 2nd Lieutenant Warren W. Buck, 3rd Lieutenant. Richard A. Vorhis, 4th Lieutenant (Fire Police) CAYUGA HEIGHTS FIRE COMPANY NO. 1, INC. Robert C. Swarthout, President Theodore P. Penalver, Vice President Frederick B. Warner, Secretary Edgar A. Whiting, Treasurer * Ronald E. Anderson, Fire Warden * John Millier, Fire Warden * Denotes Member of Fire Council PUBLIC ASSEMBLY EDUCATION INSTITUTION RESIDENCE APARTMENT DORMITORY PRIVATE DWELLING HOTEL MOTEL MOBILE HOME MERCANTILE STORES OFFICES UTILITIES INDUSTRIAL -MFG. STORAGE SPECIAL PROPERTIES MOTOR VEHICLE OTHER STAND BY TOTALS CLASSIFICATION AND NUMBER OF ALARMS VILLAGE FIRE DISTRICT FIRES NON FIRES FIRES NON FIRES page 2 MUTUAL AID FIRES NON FIRES �+ 7 1 1 2 2 3 1 1 3 10 6 6 1 1 1 4 21 3 7 5 5 1 1 2 1 3 1 6 17 22 16 16 8 32 page 3 FIRE CAUSES The Department responded to 41 actual fires during 1979. Listed below are the breakdown causes in two categories. ACT OR OMISSION (N.F.P.A. 901 Chapter J) Incendiary Act 1 Suspicious Act 0 Misuse of Heat of Ignition 9 Misuse of Material Ignited 5 Mechanical Failure or Malfunction 17 Construction, Design, or Installation Deficiency 2 Other Act or Omission 7 TOTAL 41 EQUIPMEIIT INVOLVED IN IGNITION (N.F.P.A. 901 Chapter F) Heating System 3 Cooking Equipment 5 Air Conditioning, Refrigeration Equipment 0 Electrical Distribution Equipment 13 Electrical Appliances and Equipment 2 Special Equipment 3 Processing Equipment 0 Service or Maintenance Equipment 0 Other Object, Exposure Fire 15 (includes any fire not caused by above) TOTAL 41 page 4 TYPE OF SITUATION FOUND VILLAGE FIRE DISTRICT MUTUAL AID Fire 1T 17 T Explosion -No Fire 1 0 1 Rescue Crash -No Fire 1 2 0 Hazardous Condition 4 3 2 Public Service Call 1 1 1 Alarm -No Fire 6 9 16 False Alarm (Malicious) 2 2 6 Electrical Failure 3 1 2 Other 1 1 0 Stand By 0 0 • 4 TOTALS 36 36 39 page 5 FIRE LOSS TOWN OF ITHACA 1975 1976 1977 VILLAGE 1979 Buildings and Contents 15,455.00 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 Buildings and Contents $2,060.00 36,300.00 46,451.49 59943.42 12,557.00 Autos 3,157.00 1,400.00 4,580.00 3,333.56 2,013.00 Exposure Loss -0 -0 -0- -0- -0- TOTAL 5,217.00 37,700.00 51,031.49 9,276.98 14,570.00 TOWN OF ITHACA 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 Buildings and Contents 15,455.00 2,075.00 3,735.00 4,000.00 96,965.36 Autos 200.00 650.00 1,050.00 72.56 1,200.00 Exposure Loss -0- -0- -o- -0- -0- TOTAL 15,655.00 2,725.00 4,785.00 4,072.56 98,165.36 INCIDENT RESPONSES page 6 INCIDENTS VILLAGE FIRE DISTRICT MUTUAL AID Alarm Malfunction 1 1 Arson Investigation 1 Auto Accident/ Medical Emergency 1 Animals in Building 1 Assist Other Departments Assist Police 1 Dangerous Condition 1 4 Electrical Problem 3 2 Flooding 3 5 1 Furnace Problem 2 Grass Fire /Medical Emergency 1 Gasoline Leak 2 1 Investigations 1 Medical Emergency 25 25 16 Stump Fire 1 Smoke Investigation 5 1 Standby for Halloween 2 Trash Fire 1 Water Leak 1 Wires Down 3 1 Other 1 TOTALS 54 41 19 MUTUAL AID RECEIVED FROM 1 Lansing Alarm No. 29 Lansing - for standby at Cayuga Heights Station Alarm No. 103 Lansing - fire at 604 Winston Court Alarm No. 103 Varna - for standby at Cayuga Heights Station GIVEN TO Alarm No. 1 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 3 Lansing - at Cayuga Mall Alarm No. 4 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 10 Lansing - at Holiday Inn Alarm No. 13 Lansing - at J.C. Penney Alarm No. 15 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 17 Lansing - standby at Cayuga Heights Station Alarm No. 19 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 22 Lansing - at Lansing West Apartments Alarm No. 24 Lansing - at Triphammer Plaza Alarm No. 28 Ithaca - to standby at Ithaca Fire Station Alarm No. 32 Varna - to standby at Varna Fire Station Alarm No. 34 Lansing - at Route 13 Alarm No. 36 Lansing - Triphammer Mall Alarm No. 46 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 49 Lansing - at Triphammer Mall Alarm No. 51 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 52 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 53 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 54 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 60 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 61 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 67 Lansing - at Triphammer Road Alarm No. 70 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 71 Ithaca - at Suspension Bridge on Cornell Campus Alarm No. 72 Lansing - at Route 13 Alarm No. 77 Dryden - to standby at Dryden Fire Station Alarm No. 82 Lansing - at Pyramid.Mall Alarm No. 85 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 89 Ithaca - to standby at Ithaca Fire Station Alarm No. 90 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 92 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 93 Lansing - at Pyramid Mall Alarm No. 99 Lansing - at 11 Highgate Circle Alarm No. 102 Lansing - at Triphammer Mall Alarm No. 104 Lansing - at Gaslight Village Apartments Alarm No. 106 Lansing - at 'Triphammer Small Mall Alarm No. 107 Lansing - at Lansing West Apartments Alarm No. 110 Lansing - at Route 13 Total Mutual Aid Received • 3 Mutual Aid to Ithaca 3 Mutuaf Aid to Dryden 1 Mutual Aid to Varna 1 Mutual Aid to Lansing 34 page 7 s General Alarms (days) (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) General Alarms (evenings) (4:00 p.m. to 12:00 mid) General Alarms (nights) (12:00 mid to 8:00 a.m.) TOTAL Incident Calls (days) (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) Incident Calls (evenings) (4:00 p.m. to 12:00 mid) Incident Calls (nights) (12:00 Mid to 8:00 a.m.) TOTAL MANPOWER REPONSE ALARMS 45 46 20 111 44 56 18 118 14EMBERSHIP Active Volunteer Firemen in the Department 36 Active Fire Police in the Department 14 TOTAL 50 MEMBER RESPONSE 651 950 301 1902 220 326 113 659 page 8 AVERAGE NUMBER RESPONSE . 14.5 20.6 15.5 5.0 5.8 6.2 page 9 6 7 29 14 5 6 6 1 7 21 13 5 2 23 3 7 1 EQUIPMENT USED AT ALARMS AND INCIDENTS Air masks 19 Indian back pump 3 FIRST AID EQUIPMENT Axes 2 Ladders 186 Air Way Brooms 10 Step ladder 6 Air splint Cascade System 1 Aerial ladder 5 B P cuff Crow bars 2 Mops and pails 2 Back board (long) Foam inductor 0 Pry bar 2 Bandages Extension cords 8 Pike Pole 7 Blankets Flares 54 Plastic 2 Blankets (disposable) Floodlights 14 Portable pump 5 Cold pac Generator (portable) 7 Squeegees 6 Cervical collar Handlights 92 Saws 7 First Aid kit Halligan tool 2 Shovels 8 Oxygen Hay hook 1 Smoke ejector 10 Resusciator Hose 3 in. 2350 ft. Sprinkler stops 1 Sand bags Hose 23 in. 1650 ft., Tarps 7 Stethescope Hose 1 -3/4 in. 50 £t. Tools 12 Stokes stretcher Hose A in. 1700 £t. Wet vacuum 7 Splint Hose Hard Suction 120 ft. Wrecking bar 1 Splint ladder Hose Booster line 19 £t. EXTINGUISHERS Hose clamps' 4 Dept. oimed CO2 60 lbs. Dry 55 lbs. Privately owned CO 0 Dr� 112 lbs. Water 5 gals. 6 7 29 14 5 6 6 1 7 21 13 5 2 23 3 7 1 PRESENT STATUS OF VEHICLES page 10 In addition to response to alarms, the trucks were driven many times for drills driver training, and road tests. The engines and trucks are regularly serviced and maintained by YX. John Patte, our mechanic and Resident Driver. Mr. Patte has done an excellent job this past year in keeping all equipment in service. Engine 202, a 1960 Ford, will be replaced this year with a new engine. Truck 241 is rusting badly in the cross beams under the body. Engine 201 has some problems with compartments rusting out which must be re- paired. Engine 203 also has some problems with rust in the comparments, and this is being repaired by company members. We are indebted to Lt. Edward Olmstead of the Ithaca Fire Dept. who is also Deputy County Fire Coordinator who assisted us in the annual pump tests of our three engines. All engines passed these tests except for some minor problems which have been corrected. FIRST LINE UNTIL RESERVE UNTIL Engine 201 (1968) 1000 G.P.M. pumper 1983 1988 Engine 202 (1960) 750 G.P.M. pumper Expired 1980 Engine 203 (1975) 1250 G.P.M. pumper 1990 1995 Truck 234 (1974) Ladder Truck 1989 1994 Squad Truck 241 (1969) 1980 DEPARTMENT VEHICLES ALARM INCIDENT MILES FUEL USED VEHICLE RESPONSES RESPONSES DRIVEN (gallons) Engine 201 43 0 765 304.5 Engine 202 6 2 492 181.8 Engine 203 100 19 881 292.5 (diesel) Truck 234 59 0 954 414 Truck 241 87 82 1074 211.8 In addition to response to alarms, the trucks were driven many times for drills driver training, and road tests. The engines and trucks are regularly serviced and maintained by YX. John Patte, our mechanic and Resident Driver. Mr. Patte has done an excellent job this past year in keeping all equipment in service. Engine 202, a 1960 Ford, will be replaced this year with a new engine. Truck 241 is rusting badly in the cross beams under the body. Engine 201 has some problems with compartments rusting out which must be re- paired. Engine 203 also has some problems with rust in the comparments, and this is being repaired by company members. We are indebted to Lt. Edward Olmstead of the Ithaca Fire Dept. who is also Deputy County Fire Coordinator who assisted us in the annual pump tests of our three engines. All engines passed these tests except for some minor problems which have been corrected. page 11 FIRST AID SQUAD 1979 was an important year for the First Aid Squad. During this period we were able to develop a reasonably effective vehicle for delivering emergency medical care to the Village residents and fire protection district. Early in 1979 we were operating with a one -man response. This soon proved to be unrealistic, and we implemented the two -man duty schedule in use at the present time. We have been fortunate to have the support of'the Village Board and the Fire Company to purchase sufficient pagers to equip all of our members. This has improved response and simplified scheduling. The pagers, along with the use of existing department portable radios, have greatly im- proved communications. During 1979 the squad responded to 68 calls for medical assistance. Twenty -five of our calls (36.7 %) were within the Village of Cayuga Heights. Twenty -seven calls, or 38.2 %, were outside the Village but within the fire protection district. The remaining sixteen calls were mutual aid requests from Lansing. Medical Emergency 28 41.17% Medical Emergency includes, but is not limited to, stomach pains, strokes, and other medical problems. Heart Related 8 10.29% Heart Related includes heart attacks, angina, and undiagnosed chest pain. Cardiac Arrest 7 10.29% Cardiac Arrest is when the heart has actually stopped. Accident 13 19.11% Accident.includes falls and injuries sustained around the home. Motor Vehicle Accident 12 17.64% Motor Vehicle Accidents probably are self - explanatory. Assaults 1 1.47% Assaults included one knifing at an area apartment complex. Of interest is the fact that almost 21% of our calls were for either heart related problems or cardiac arrests, both requiring immediate care. Also of interest is our relative success rate in the cardiac arrest category. Of the seven arrests that we responded to, three were con- sidered "saves ". A fourth was a delayed call. One of the most recent "saves" was the subject of an article and editorial in the "Ithaca Journal." page 12 The First Aid Squad treated 72 patients and spent a total of slightly more than 145 manhours providing this direct treatment. This does not include time spent on duty. A squad member who is on duty is expected to be no further from the fire protection district than he would be if he were at home. Weekday shifts run from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., and the week- end shifts run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and 8 p.m. to 8 a.m., so there is 24 -hour coverage. Daytime responses during the week are covered by squad members who work in or near the fire protection district. Each squad member is on duty an average of 133 shifts per week. In addition to the on -duty time spent each member of the squad has com- pleted a minimum of 40 -50 hours of required training and several have or will be completing an additional 100 hours. This does not include monthly First Aid Squad drills, meetings, and special training or the regular fire department drills and meetings. During the past year we were fortunate to have been able to improve our equipment inventory because of the support of the Village Board. New equipment purchases included a portable suction unit and a traction splint. page 13 TRAINING Training continues to be a major and integral pert of the life of each member of the Fire Department. Two regular drills are held each month attended by all firemen. In addition, many members attended and completed 15 different State and County fire schools. Also, many hours were devoted to training and work details Monday evenings and Saturdays. Each member who has qualified as a driver and pump operator continued their training by driving and operating the various fire trucks. As always, there were many hours of training not recorded such as individual training, road testing of the different trucks and engines, and the study of various books and fire magazines in our library. Assistant Chief Francis ifiller is in overall charge of our Training Program. Lt. Christian Boissonnas has assisted in training and is in charge of the maintenance of our Scott Air Pacs and the training of the firemen in the use and care of the pacs. Lt. Boissonnas was also responsible for improving and updating our older Scott Pacs. Assistant Chief Miller and Lt. Boissonnas have done an excellent job with our Training Program this past year. Assistant Chief Robert Hults is in charge of our First Aid Squad and has in- structed a large number of our firemen in First Aid and C.P.R. The First Aid Squad members have spent many hours in Advanced Training and duty assignments. Assistant Chief Hults and members of the First Aid Squad are to be commended for their interest and dedication. Our department will continue to emphasize training. This past year we have used the Ithaca Fire Department Training Tower where actual fires are set and give our members training in all phases of fire attack. We are indebted to Chief Charles Weaver and Acting Chief Charles Tuckerman of the Ithaca Fire Department for the use of the training tower. We are indebted to Mir. John Miller, County Fire Coordinator, Deputy County Fire Coordinator, Edward M. Olmstead, and Instructor Theodore J. Szymanski for their fine assistance in conducting excellent Training Schools and assisting us with training matters. Each of the following Cayuga Heights Firemen attended the following listed schools. TRAINING (cont'd) FIRE CHIEFS SEMINAR— Binghamton N.Y. Christian Boissonnas David Bessel Lowell George Daniel Rogers William Thompson FIRE TACTICS WORKSHOP Michael Carver Lowell George FIRE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE Christian Boissonnas Michael Carver Lowell George Robert Hults ESSENTIALS OF FIREMANSHIP Lawrence Jackmin Raymond Stark Joseph Vanek AIRCRAFT FIRE AND RESCUE Richard Reithel EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNIQUES John Millier page 14 INITIAL FIRE ATTACK Christian Boissonnas Lowell George Johm Millier Raymond Stark William Thompson Joseph Vanek HANDLING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS Christian Boissonnas . Warren Buck Frederick Demaio Lowell George John Hunter Francis Miller John Millier Fleet Morse Steven Randolph Daniel Rogers Joseph Vanek Raymond Stark ACCIDENT VICTIM EXTRACTION Robert Hults FIRE GROUND TACTICS AND OPERATION* Christian Boissonnas David Bessel Lowell George John Millier Raymond Stark Joseph Vanek page 15 TRAINING (cont'd) SUBURBAN PROPANE TRAINING Christian Boissonnas Francis Miller Raymond Stark Joseph Vanek PUMP OPERATORS COURSE Richard Reithel NFPA 101 LIFE SAFETY COURSE Robert Hults EMERGENCY MEDICAL PROGRAM FIRST RESPONDER Christian Boissonnas Warren Buck John Millier Daniel Rogers William Thompson Charles Warren Mark Warycka Joseph Vanek FIRE PREVENTION Fire Prevention is an important consideration of every fire department. During this past year our members devoted many hours to this area. A large number of children, elementary school students, and adults visited the fire stati, L. They were shown the fire equipment, given fire prevention literature, heard talks on fire safety and were shown fire prevention films. Trucks were also taken to schools and fire equipment demonstrated. Tot Finder decals and fire prevention literature were also distributed to residents. We welcome individual and group visits so we may explain our equipment and encourage others to share our interest in fire prevention. page 16 VILLAGE FIRE INSPECTOR'S REPORT The Village Fire Prevention program continues to.show favorable results with few fire alarms during the year being reported in inspected properties. State of New York fire inspection reports were completed for the Cayuga Heights, Northeast, DeWitt Junior High, and BOCES schools with no major recommendations being reported. The results of commercial and multiple residence property fire inspections were also gratifying with property owners showing excellent coopera- tion concerning the elimination of recommended substandard conditions. Village resident interest in fire and smoke detectors continues with numerous requests having been received concerning the location and installation of these devices. Another area of vital importance to the fire department concerns hazards related to homeowner installation of wood burning stoves. While fire alarm frequency and loss experience relating to the use of faulty installation of fire places and wood burning stoves remains favorable, the fire department is concerned about alternate fuels for heating homes and encourages Village residents to contact the fire inspector whenever wood burning stoves are contemplated.