The Friday Report
  January 20, 2023
MEMBER NEWS

The Texas Fire Chief’s Association (TFCA) is now accepting nominations for its Annual Awards to be held at the TFCA Executive Conference March 20-23 at the Waco Conference Center. To select the honorees, each department will have one vote for each of the following awards/achievements:

Fire Chief of the Year
Please include the name of the individual and a detailed description of the reasons for your nomination. Please also include any supporting documentation you wish to submit as well as the nominee's contact information and your contact information.

Lone Star Achievement
Please include the name of the individual or organization you are nominating, their contact information, a description of the achievement as well as any supporting documentation relevant to the nomination. Please also include your name and contact information.

Fire Safety
Please include the name of the individual or organization you are nominating, their contact information, a description of the program as well as any supporting documentation relevant to the nomination. Please also include your name and contact information.

Valor Award
Please include the nominee's name, contact information, a brief description of the incident as well as your name and contact information. Newspaper clippings and media submissions should be sent as additional attachments.

Please submit your nominations and supporting materials by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 3.

Click Here to Submit Nomination

Providing Protection for Those Who Protect Us
Casco Industries, Inc.®
Casco Industries, Inc. has been in business for over 72 years. Casco is a family-owned business and is in its third generation of ownership. Casco covers 8 States with 6 offices and warehouses, with two office locations in Texas with 18 salesmen and 6 service tech’s covering the State. Casco is the exclusive dealer for MSA SCBA, Globe manufacture, and many other Fire Service Products in most of the states it covers.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
 
The Texas Fire Chiefs Association Annual Conference is the signature event of the Texas Fire Chiefs Association and is one of the state’s largest gatherings of fire chiefs, fire service leaders, and decision-makers. The conference attracts hundreds of attendees from all regions of the state each year. Our attendees are fire chiefs, assistant fire chiefs, deputy chiefs, battalion chiefs, training officers, fire fighters, and city department executives who work together and get positive results.

Come meet and network with top leaders in the fire service, learn from those who are foremost in their divisions winning awards, guiding others, and join in the tough discussions. Build relationships that push through legislation and team up across borders to aid one another. Come witness and celebrate with those who have been called out and awarded valor and honor in the line of duty, and cheer for the one who has been nominated and will be name Fire Chief of the Year. You won’t want to miss it!

 
This high-energy program will address the hottest issues and challenges facing company officers in today’s Fire Service. This program addresses MANY topics such as Communication, Trust, Ethics, Diversity, Generational challenges, CISM, Accountability, and Social Media to name just a few.  

This is NOT a “Top-down” lecture on how to be a company officer. Recall the passion you owned when you entered the Fire Service? You will, when you rekindle the knowledge and experience you bring to the Company Officer rank. Are you a brand-new officer (or about to be), searching for a spark for preparedness? Are you a salty, experienced officer, who could use to have their passion reignited? This program is for all company officers and will enhance your "Love of The Game!”

Inspired by the Texas Fire Chief’s Annual Workshop, this gathering is designed specifically for the Second in Command. Attendees will tackle common challenges encountered in their position and will discuss innovations and strategies used in departments throughout Texas. Past history shows that these formal and informal conversations provide dynamic networking opportunities made possible by the diverse and talented professionals of the Texas Fire Service.

Class size is limited, so please make plans now to attend. This class is open to all fire service personnel who are considered Second in Command to their Head of Department. There are no prerequisites to attend this Workshop.

The Workshop will take place from Jan. 23-25 at the Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center, 177 Joe Routt Blvd. 

REGISTER TODAY | BOOK HOTEL ONLINE | LEARN MORE & BECOME A SPONSOR

The Palo Duro Wildfire Academy will take place Feb. 17-26 at the High Plains Retreat Center in Canyon, TX. All classes offered are NWCG approved PMS 901-1. The deadline to register is Feb. 3 and includes   includes lodging, breakfast, and lunch.

Pflugerville will be hosting the next Quality Improvement Through Accreditation class on April 4-6.  This course features three full days of instruction to help agencies prepare for accreditation under the 10th edition of the CFAI model. This is a pre-requisite for accreditation managers and peer assessors. A consortium meeting will likely be hosted the day before. Click the link below to register.

The Longview Fire Department in association with Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF, and our corporate sponsors will be hosting our annual Tank Car Safety Specialist Course in Longview, Texas. This course provides unique insights into tank car construction, fittings, behavior in derailments, and an integrated emergency management plan. This course is designed to give firefighters, environmental contractors, hazardous materials technicians, and other first responders the hands-on experience needed to safely respond and work in today’s complex world of hazmat rail emergencies.

The class will take place April 16-21, and the application deadline is March 30. The tuition is $850 and includes all meals and training materials.

Download the Flyer               Download the Registration Form

This year, the East Texas Interagency Wildfire and Incident Management Academy is ramping up to be bigger and better with additional enrollment and courses. The 2023 ETIWA will be held from 16-24 May 2023 at the Angelina College campus in Lufkin. Registration will open on Feb. 16 and will be conducted online at TFS.AcadisOnline.com. Please click the button below to learn more about the course offerings and tuition.

Martinez Architects, LP
Casco Industries, Inc.
INDUSTRY NEWS
SOURCE: Insurance Journal
“America is still burning,” says U.S. Fire Administrator Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell after more than 1 million structures caught fire and more than 7.5 million acres burned in wildfires last year.

SOURCE: U.S. Fire Administration
The USFA is calling firefighters to join the National Firefighter Registry to help researchers better understand how their work affects cancer risk and how to lower this risk.

TEXAS STATE NEWS
SOURCE: Everything Lubbock
With shortages across the U.S., fire departments sometimes need to get creative when it comes to obtaining necessary equipment. The West Carlisle Volunteer Fire Department is currently building their own grass fire truck, expected to hold 1300 gallons of water.

SOURCE: My RVG
“Whenever you see a volunteer firefighter they are dedicated; they’ve got a big heart. You gotta have a heart because you care about people, you care about your community and you want to help them out,” says Geronimo Sheldon after serving 42 years as a volunteer firefighter.

SOURCE: NBCDFW
After a 500 day battle with COVID-19, EMT firefighter Joseph Solecki is back on the front lines with the Irving Fire Department.

iPlanTables
Emergicon , LLC.
TML NEWS
Click the button below to download a report detailing every bill filed in the state legislature that TFCA is tracking.

This update covers the following:
  •  88th Texas Legislature Begins
  •  Comptroller Releases Biennial Revenue Estimate
  •  TML Seeking Applicants for New Broadband Advisory Committee
  •  Senate Committees Issues Interim Reports
  •  City-Related Bills Filed

Sounding the Alarm on Low Tire Pressure
Bellacorp, Inc.®
Fire Engines responding to calls expose tires to multiple hazards of glass, metal shards, screws and other tire puncturing road debris. Bellacorp, Inc. sells and supports commercial grade tire monitoring systems for fire trucks and big rigs. Full time/real time electronic monitoring from the cab ensures redundant safety checks for tires. Low pressure alarms alert personnel to sudden tire deflation in the field.
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TEEX NEWS
  
The 14th Annual TEEX Leadership Development Symposium was held this week at the Frisco Embassy Suites Hotel & Convention Center with nearly 1,300 registered attendees, six keynote speakers, two “Command Chat “speakers, and ­­­27 breakout session speakers. The two-and-a-half-day symposium offered numerous sessions on a wide array of leadership topics such as “Strategies for Transitioning from the Backseat to the Right-Front Seat,” “How to Help Women Succeed in the Fire Service,” “Mental Health Wellness,” “Fusion Centers,” “Succession Planning,” “How to be the Mentor You Wish You Had,” and so much more. The symposium is offered at no cost to Texas first responders.

Fire Officer I

The NFPA 1021 Fire Officer I course is designed for the first-line company officer/supervisor and satisfies the requirements of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1021 Standard for Fire Officer Professional Qualifications, Chapter 4 “Fire Officer I.” It is designed around classroom lectures and group exercises to improve your abilities to manage a single fire company. This includes responsibilities such as the development of an Incident Action Plan (IAP), personnel management and mentoring, and community relations.

Dates and Locations:

Fire Officer II

The NFPA 1021 Fire Officer II course is designed to meet the needs of the mid-level officer/supervisor and satisfies the requirements of National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1021, Standard for Fire Officer Professional Qualifications, Chapter 5 “Fire Officer II.” It is designed around classroom lectures and group interactive exercises to improve your abilities to manage multiple fire companies, including responsibilities such as strategic planning and operations, personnel development, and organizational communications.

Dates and Locations:

Fire Officer III

The NFPA 1021 Fire Officer III course is designed to meet the needs of fire executive management and satisfies the requirements of National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1021, Standard for Fire Officer Professional Qualifications, Chapter 6 “Fire Officer III.” It is designed around classroom lectures and group interactive exercises to improve your abilities to manage a fire service organization, with an emphasis on community/government relations, as well as model planning, budgeting, human resources, trends and support organizations, and emergency service delivery. This course includes a written project that requires you to develop a strategic plan.

Dates and Locations:

 

On Duty Health
Komatsu Architecture
FIRE LAW BLOG
  
In this episode of Fire Law Roundup, hosts Brad and Curt discuss a decision by the Supreme Court of Washington that the public duty doctrine only applies to statutorily created duties, not common law duties; a decision by the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court that has held a fire captain cannot recover for injuries he sustained that he claims were due to the incompetence of a probationary firefighter; the termination of a Denver Fire for offensive comments that over time earned him the nickname of the Racist-Rover; the filing of First Degree Murder charges against two Illinois EMTs in the positional asphyxia death of a patient they transported; and a suit filed by a volunteer firefighter in New York claiming that she was raped in the firehouse by two ranking officers.

HONORING OUR CRAFT

January is Firefighter Cancer Awareness Month. Firefighters are exposed to more carcinogens than any other profession. Members of the fire service have a 9% higher risk of developing cancer and a 14% greater risk of dying from cancer than the general public. This includes:
               
                1.3x greater risk of brain cancer
                1.5x greater risk of blood cancer
                1.4x greater risk of skin cancer
                1.3x greater risk of prostate cancer
                2.02x greater risk of testicular cancer
 
Grey Matters to Firefighters is a non-profit that raises funds for cancer research. Join us for a fundraising party on Jan. 24 at Kendra Scott Southlake Town Square, 324 Grand Ave E in Southlake, Texas. We’ll have sips, sweets, and jewelry just in time for Valentine’s Day, and 100% of the contributions will go towards cancer research at UTSW Medical Center cancer center. 
 
If you are unable to attend in person, you can order online Jan. 24-25 with code GIVEBACK-DBWJO at https://www.kendrascott.com/