As many as seven C-27 transport planes could be converted into airtankers As many as seven large C-27 aircraft, military cargo and transport planes being phased out of the U.S. Air Force could find a new home fighting fires in San Diego County and other areas in the southwest. Earlier this year U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and John McCain, R-Ariz., began urging the Department of Defense to authorize the transfer of seven soon-to-be-retired C-27s from the military to the U.S. Forest Service. This week the San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted to send a letter to the Defense Department urging the same thing. “The Forest Service is in dire need of additional firefighting capabilities,” Supervisor Dianne Jacob said. “Rather than allow these planes to just sit idle, these aircraft can be retrofitted and made available for fighting fires in our region where the fire risk is always high.” Board Chairman Greg Cox said he met with Feinstein two weeks ago, when he was in Washington, D.C., with about 130 other members of a San Diego delegation, and first heard about the available C-27s. Each plane can carry a payload of 25,353 pounds which could translate to a fire retardant capacity of 2,000 to 2,500 gallons, Jacob said during a supervisors’ meeting on Oct. 8. “Ironically, I think most of these are probably newer aircraft than ones currently in use by the U.S. Forestry Service,” Cox said. “These could be a tremendous addition to our firefighting arsenal not just in San Diego County but in Southern California.” The Forest Service uses a number of different types of aircraft for fire duty, but according to recent news reports, its fleet has shrunk by 75 percent in the past decade. There are only 11 Forest Service air tankers in service today. Some are more than 40 years old. The state of California has its own air fleet separate from the federal side. Air tankers are planes fitted with tanks that carry large volumes of fire retardant to drop on a fire. According to the Forest Service’s website, air tankers don’t suppress fires, but they help firefighters on the ground by laying a line of retardant along the sides of a wildfire. The retardant temporarily cools the fire and slows it down giving firefighters extra time to construct a fireline to contain the blaze. A report prepared for the forest service earlier this year offers both praise and caution about using the C-27 for firefighting. “The C-27J aircraft design features are ideal for parachute operations, as well as low-level air tanker operations in diverse terrain,” said the report, prepared by Convergent Performance of Colorado Springs. However, it said retrofitting them to carry heavy loads of retardant could be costly because of their design. The report also said the C-27 would be the most expensive aircraft in the Forest Service fleet to operate. At last week’s meeting, Jacob said she has been told by Feinstein’s office that the aircraft could be available within a few moths for transport duty, but that it could take 18 months or longer to retrofit the planes for air tanker duty.  

Dan Madrzykowski fire protection engineer for the National Institute of Standards and Technology Dan Madrzykowski has spent a good portion of his time in government burning down buildings to study how fire behaves, resulting in radical changes in firefighting practices around the country that are saving lives and protecting property. “I burn things for a living,” said Madrzykowski, a fire protection engineer with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). “We burn a building, change one variable and do it again.” Working with fire departments across the country, Madrzykowski finds buildings that are scheduled for demolition and recreates previous fires in which fire-fighters were injured or lost their lives. He uses sophisticated research tools and fire-modeling software to analyze the blazes and then spreads the word to firefighters on what he has learned. “Dan has been able to use science to show that the traditional practices don’t always provide the best outcomes and, in some cases, they’re putting fire-fighters in harm’s way,” said Willie May, NIST’s associate director for laboratory programs. Madrzykowski and his team have improved everything from ventilation and fire-suppression tactics to the protective equipment fire-fighters wear. He has had a major impact on understanding and mitigating the dangerous problem of fire driven by wind, which occurs frequently on the upper floors of tall buildings. When winds blow through the open doors and windows of a burning building, they cause fires to grow and spread rapidly. Fire-fighters can open or close doors and use large fans to ventilate stairways and corridors, but if they don’t understand fire behavior, they can inadvertently create more hazardous situations for themselves, May said. Madrzykowski’s most significant research has been on how, when and where fire-fighters should ventilate a building, said Morgan J. Hurley, technical director at the Society of Fire Protection Engineers. “Doing it at the wrong place or time can actually exacerbate the situation.” In 2011, 70,090 firefighters were injured and 83 died in the line of duty, according to the National Fire Protection Association. During that same year, there were almost 1.4 million fires in the U.S., 3,005 deaths, 17,500 injuries and £7.3 billion in economic damage. The wind-driven fire research started when Madrzykowski was called to study the dynamics of a 1998 Brooklyn blaze that killed three fire-fighters on the top floor of a 10-story building. When wind blew through a corridor with open doors and windows, the firefighters were overwhelmed by the intense heat that traveled down the hallway. Armed with his research on the underlying physics of the inferno, Madrzykowski worked with fire departments in urban areas in five states, conducting fire tests in high-wind conditions. He had to overcome measurement challenges involving high temperatures, toxic gases and the potential for structural collapse. Thanks to his findings, fire departments now are trained to consider the impact of wind on structure fires and employ innovative tactics to use the wind to their advantage. Madrzykowski stressed that the fixes he recommends are inexpensive and quick. “I’m empowering the fire-fighters with information and introducing new techniques that don’t cost a lot of money to implement,” he said. “They can change tactics overnight.” “His science-based recommendations are critical for the fire service, where many fire-fighters do not have an understanding of fire dynamics,” said Anthony Hamins, the chief of NIST’s Fire Research Division. “He is leading a transformational change in fire service thinking.” Madrzykowski has helped spread the word about his research through publications, digital media, speaking engagements and curricula development. He also is the administrator of Fire.gov, a website dedicated to translating fire research results into easy-to-access research reviews. Site users can learn from reports and narrated videos about various experiments and simulations. The website was visited nearly 200,000 times in 2012. During the past few years, more than 400,000 people and organisations, including the National Fire Academy, have requested DVD’s containing training videos, research findings and data.  

Report by The Bushfire Co-operative Research Council map It’s a rather foreboding outlook. The map used by all fire-fighting agencies to show ”above normal” bushfire risk covers a vast swathe of NSW from Queensland to Victoria. Unlike last year, it encompasses an extensive area of more densely populated coastal regions – including Sydney. The Bushfire Co-operative Research Council map and associated report says, in NSW, above average rainfall for much of the preceding three years is likely to continue the trend of heavy grass fuel loads to the west of the Great Dividing Range, the tablelands and the upper Hunter. Over much of the forested areas of NSW, below average rainfall since July has resulted in a drying trend in forest fuels. Gary Morgan, chief executive of the Bushfire CRC, said: ”One thing people still need to understand is normal still means fires in Australia because every year we have fires right across every state and territory. ”The aim of this is not to frighten people but to have people and agencies informed so that when fires do occur they are ready.” NSW is yet to reach mid-spring and already there have been seven days of total fire bans. Thursday brought 60 fires across the state with a total fire ban in 15 out of 21 fire regions and the fire risk designated ”extreme”. Temperatures on Sunday are expected to hit 34 degrees in Sydney. The response to the fires when they start is ultimately in the hands of Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons. It will be him you see talking to TV cameras in front of blackened country. He will mobilise staff and volunteers and give approval for the use of waterbombing aircraft. The commissioner told Fairfax Media there had been a big shift down in predicted rainfall by the Bureau of Meteorology for the next three months in what was an already ”very dry landscape”. The dry start has affected the amount of preventative burning to reduce fuel levels that can be conducted without the risk of fires getting out of control. ”In the last five years to six years, we have gone from an average completion rate of hazard reduction from about 50 per cent or less to about 80 per cent of the annual program … but there is still more that needs to be done,” Commissioner Fitzsimmons said. ”We have got a better fleet profile than ever before, we have got technological advancements that are assisting firefighters and of course we have got the men and women on the ground that are better trained and better equipped than ever before, and numbers have grown in the past 12 months from 70,000 to 72,00 volunteers,” he said. ”We are expecting some pretty bad weather again on Sunday … in the Hunter, central coast and likely to include Sydney. We are certainly looking at this stage of probably severe fire danger ratings.”  

Increases product availability and customer support globally  Elkhart Brass, a global leader in innovative firefighting and fire protection equipment, has partnered with Fire Rescue Safety Australia (FRSA), an emergency management solutions specialist, to increase accessibility of its product portfolio while enhancing customer support for the fire suppression industry throughout Australia and New Zealand . “Elkhart Brass is committed to offering quality products and customer service domestically and globally to ensure every market has the tools necessary to keep their communities safe,” said Tomas Saavedra, vice president of international sales at Elkhart Brass. “By collaborating with FRSA, together, we can offer comprehensive solutions tailored to meet every customer’s needs.” FRSA, headquartered in Perth, Australia, has six locations throughout Australia that offers a full scope of services including consulting, needs assessment, designing of tailored solutions and product implementation to combat any demanding situation. In addition, their team of specialists is available around the clock to exceed customer needs. “Our customers trust us to provide them quality products and solutions to keep them safe while out in the field,” said Keith Gillespie, agency product manager at FRSA. “We don’t take that trust for granted and that’s why FRSA only partners with global leaders that share that same commitment. Elkhart Brass is one of those partners we trust.”

Teaser: Dubai, UAE Website: http://tangentlink.com/event/aircraft-rescue-fire-fighting/

SOLAS RIBs feature an inboard diesel engine with water jet propulsion Willard Marine, a 56-year-old builder of composite and aluminum boats, has recently taken orders to build rescue boats for the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS), U.S. Military Sealift Command (MSC) and Maersk Lines Ltd. The Willard Marine rescue boats meet all U.S. Coast Guard requirements under the international Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) treaty. AMHS has ordered two 670 rescue boats for the M/V Columbia, which is being refitted with new safety equipment. The boats are being supplied through Vigor Industrial Shipyard in Portland, Ore. Willard Marine has supplied similar SOLAS rescue boats for AMHS ferries under a fleetwide refurbishment program. MSC has just taken delivery of four 670 SOLAS boats for USNS John Lenthall and USNS Tippecanoe, and Willard Marine is in the process of delivering five boats to Maersk Lines Ltd, for MSC ships managed by Maersk. The 6.7m SOLAS RIBs feature an inboard diesel engine with water jet propulsion, stainless steel four-point lift pads for single point sling pickup, and a full-height transom with stainless steel transom cap and two towing bollards. “Willard Marine is one of the leading suppliers of SOLAS-compliant rescue boats for the maritime and offshore industry,” said Ulrich Gottschling, President of Willard Marine. “Our boats, ranging from 4.9 to 6.7m, are designed and built to meet the international SOLAS specifications. We bring more than five decades of experience in the construction of high-quality boats demanding applications, and all of us at Willard Marine take special pride in the role our boats play in saving lives at sea.” www.willardmarine.com

Equipment to protect community from future structural damage Peachland Fire and Rescue Service, located in the Province of British Columbia, Canada, acquired a new state of the art piece of equipment that could help protect the community from structural damage in the event of a future wildfire. The equipment, known as a Wildfire Automated Suppression and Protection (WASP) system was delivered to an enthusiastic Peachland Fire Department on August 28th of this year. "This system is really state of the art fire-fighting for structural protection and we’re happy Peachland chose Wasp to provide them with this addition to their wildland fire-fighting equipment," WASP Technical Director, Darrel Pyke, said. The system includes a trailer containing over 1500" of hose and sprinklers paired with cell phone and satellite technology that allows the equipment to be operated remotely and offsite. If there is a fire, the unit can be deployed to the location and then left behind without fire personnel to attend to it. From a cell phone or laptop anywhere in the world the fire department can operate the system, programming it to turn on or off as needed. The WASP is powered by a powerful battery, so it can be deployed in the field for up to 10 days without the battery requiring charging. "The offsite operations make WASP units very safe for fire-fighters, keeping them out of harm’s way while protecting very large areas from wildfire" says Randy Cowling, President of Wasp Manufacturing Ltd., the suppliers of the Wasp line of sprinkler protection products. The system has timing programs that allow the sprinklers to be turned on and off as needed to preserve water. The WASP system can be hooked up to a standard water supply, such as a fire hydrant, but if there isn’t one available it can also be used with a water pump that drafts water out of another source such as a swimming pool, creek or pond. "The main advantage is we don’t have to tie up our fire-fighters to sit there and maintain the sprinkler system," says Peachland Fire Chief, Dennis Craig. "We can go in, set it up and walk away. We can turn it on remotely so we don’t have to turn it on hours before the fire shows up. We can wait until the fire is just about there and then turn it on at our leisure and not have to send somebody to go back in and turn it on and waste water." "It’s bigger than being just a sprinkler protection unit. We have future plans to make it a true structural protection trailer where we’re going to add a portable pump inside and a 1,500 gallon bladder for water so when we go to fight a wild land fire we can take this trailer and not tie up one of our pieces of apparatus. It will have extra forestry hose, extra nozzles, all of our forestry equipment in there, so we can take the trailer and dump it off in an area and not tie up a truck," Craig said. Pyke got the idea for the unit during his 17-year career working as a fire-fighter and logger. The company introduced a full sized Wasp in Alberta four years ago, and since then, it has been used with success fighting fires in that province. A full sized WASP unit performs a similar function to the smaller one purchased by the Peachland Fire Department, but has a water storage tank along with a diesel generator and electric pumps, while the smaller WASP operates directly from a fire hydrant and runs from an onboard battery power supply. www.waspwildfire.com

The Gallet F1 XF is based on a brand new, modernised design In 1985, Gallet launched the original F1 Helmet System, being the first manufacturer to introduce a Jet style, full coverage structural fire helmet and revolutionising fire-fighter head protection. Since then, this iconic product has been selected and used by more than 1.7 million fire-fighters in more than 80 countries. For the past 28 years, Gallet, which was acquired by MSA in 2002, has refined the F1 Helmet design through innovation and expertise, offering several successful generations of market-leading Helmets to fire-fighters around the world. Today more than ever, MSA strengthens this commitment to the fire service by releasing the Gallet F1 XF, a new fire helmet developed for fire-fighters with fire-fighters. Benefiting from MSA’s unique expertise, the Gallet F1 XF is based on a brand new, modernised design and is approved according to EN443:2008 for fire-fighting in buildings and other structures. In addition, its face shield and ocular visor meet the EN14458 approvals. The Gallet F1 XF fire helmet is readily available in all continents to meet the toughest requirements of fire-fighters from around the globe. New and enhanced features include : Stylish, high temperature resistant shell, available in 2 sizes for a perfect fit for all user’s profiles High temperature resistant face shield (clear or metal coated) with an extended coverage and field of vision Robust and user friendly head size adjustment system Padded, adjustable chinstrap with quick release buckle Adjustable mask connection system for use with a helmet-mounted breathing apparatus face piece Modular construction enabling quick, easy care and maintenance Extended impact liner providing side impact protection, with an Aramide reinforcement for higher resistance to penetration in hot environments Truly integrated, ATEX approved lighting module for proximity lighting Eye protection visor with ergonomic, dual adjustment system Flame resistant, ergonomic padded headband available in two materials (Leather or Nomex) Selection of helmet-mounted headsets for enhanced communication capabilities through long range PMR radios Interchangeable front plate, enabling helmet customisation through badges or direct logo printing by tampography. www.MSAsafety.com  

Solberg will warrant purchasers of re-healing foam concentrates The Solberg Company, the world’s foremost innovator of fire-fighting foam concentrates and systems hardware, has introduced an environmental warranty for re-healing foam concentrates, the company’s innovative high performance fluorine-free firefighting foam. Solberg will warrant to purchasers of re-healing foam concentrate, that for twenty (20) years after the purchase, whether as part of a foam/water fire protection system or as foam concentrate only, the use of re-healing foam will not be restricted in any way due to the presence of any organohalogens, whether in surfactants, polymers, or any other form. The environmental warranty also includes the provision that Solberg re-healing foam concentrate will not be banned by any governmental entity or regulatory body for any of the following environmental issues: ·         No Governmental restrictions related to the presence of fluorine ·         No persistence in the environment ·         No bioaccumulation ·         No PFOS or PFOA ·         No biodegradation into PFOS or PFOA Should environmental regulations enacted after the purchase of Solberg re-healing foam require removal of the re-healing foam concentrate from the market for one of these environmental issues, Solberg will replace the re-healing foam concentrate with a new foam concentrate that meets such newly enacted environmental regulations. Re-healing foam concentrates are intended for use on Class B hydrocarbon and polar solvent fuel fires. Concentrates available include RF1 (1%), RF3 (3%), RF6 (6%) and RF3x6% ATC formulations. RE-HEALING foam concentrates can be used to prevent re-ignition of a liquid spill and control hazardous vapours. On Class A fuels, re-healing foam will improvement extinguishment in deep-seated fires. About Solberg: Solberg is an Amerex Corporation company with a European heritage. The company is a global one-stop resource for firefighting foam concentrates and custom-designed foam suppression systems hardware and accessories. Solberg offers environmentally sustainable fluorosurfactant and fluoropolymer-free foam concentrate products, an innovation in Class B fire-fighting foam and traditional firefighting foam concentrates. Solberg’s people and processes are committed to quality, service and safety along with environmental responsibility. This philosophy enables the company to flourish while delivering innovations and value. www.solbergfoam.com