Blog archive Autumn 2008
Tour 16th - 19th November – Probationer Dan attempts cooking his first meal for the watch and we go out to two separate incidents of people falling into the canal and attend a fire in Salford…
We used the day shifts to carry out familiarisation visits at various sites around Manchester City Centre. This is partly due to the large number of visitors expected over the Christmas period in Manchester, so we like to be fully prepared. Visits have included the Hilton Hotel, MEN arena and Victoria Train Station.
On the second day shift I was driving the second fire engine and we turned out to a fire at Matthias Court in Salford. As we approached the building we could see smoke coming from the window of a 9th floor flat. Breathing Apparatus (BA) crews from our watch and Salford’s entered the building to locate and fight the fire whilst I stayed outside to assist Salford drivers with locating hydrants and pumping water into the building by means of the Dry riser system. This is a pipe system within large buildings that allows us to plug in our hose and deliver water to any floor of the building without having to carry large amounts of hose upstairs. The fire was caused by an extractor fan in the kitchen over heating.
We had very quiet night shifts compared to last tour. We had another visit from the Counter Terrorism Unit. This was just an update for those that missed the information last week due to fire calls. Crews from Gorton, Philips Park and Blackley joined us for this update.
It was probationer Dan's turn to cook for us on nights, after living at home with his parents for so long, cooking for 11 was going to be a daunting task. He chose what he thought would be an easy option of Lobbys / Stew / Scouse depending on your region. However for his first time he did a good job.
There were two turnouts of note for the first night. At 01.33 we had a call to reports of a woman who had fallen over a wall onto an embankment in Canal Street. On arrival crews found the girl had fallen a fair distance and was complaining of back pain and pins and needles in her legs. This was treated as very serious with the possibility of a broken back. Using ladders and lines we assisted the Ambulance crews to put her on a spine board and raise her to safety. She was detained in hospital for observation.
Following that at 04.31 we had another call to Canal Street and this time it was to a report of a very young male who had fallen into the canal. On arrival he had managed to get out of the water onto a ledge. We used ladders to walk him to safety. Clearly under the influence of alcohol or other substances getting him up the ladder was a fine art of negotiation by young Dan. He was taken to hospital via ambulance.
Tour 8th – 11th November – I drive a brand new fire engine, participate in the annual festival of remembrance and go to a large fire in commercial premises in Cheetham...
On Saturday 8th I got the opportunity to be the driver of our brand new fire engine which was delivered to Manchester Central yesterday. It is a volvo engine with the crew cab and equipment lockers being designed and built by Dennis. Every firefighter likes to receive a new fire engine and we spend an hour or so pawing over every detail, familiarising ourselves with any new layout or changes. I also took the appliance out on the road, to get experience of its handling and braking capabilities.
The day was spent with all crews visiting Albert Square and St Anne's Square in preparation for the Manchester Christmas Markets. We do this because of the logistics of a larger population visiting these areas than normal. We need to familiarise ourselves on access points for the fire engines and crews, possible fire refuge points and water supplies.
On Sunday I wasn't on duty. This is because I take part in the annual festival of remembrance for our fallen heroes in all wars and conflicts. Twelve of us from city centre stations march in the parade and pay our respects at the cenotaph. Before forming a guard of honour outside the town hall for the veterans and serving members of our armed forces. It is a poignant day and one that I feel privileged to be part of.
On Monday I was driving the first appliance and the evening started quietly. We had a familiarisation lecture on Piccadilly Railway Station and its adjacent office blocks, Piccadilly Place. We carried out appliance and equipment testing and cleaning.
At 2am we are called to reports of large amounts of smoke in the Blacklock Street/Derby Street area of Cheetham. On arrival we were faced with a large well developed fire in a single story commercial premise. Warren, our Watch Commander, realised the size of the task in hand and immediately made a request for assistance of five pumps (fire engines) and one hydraulic platform. My job was to pump water from my fire engine at high pressures to firefighters tackling the blaze from outside. Other pumps arrived and were either used for the same thing or to transfer more water to the fireground or provide manpower for the hoselines. This is the first time Haydn, has been on the hydraulic platform, since passing his course last week. His job is to spray large amounts of water from above into the building, hopefully, extinguishing any fire he can see. At the height of the fire there were eight fire engines and two HPs used plus a number of specialist appliances. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
On Tuesday I drove the Hydraulic Platform (HP) appliance with Rob H at my side. We had an informative lecture from the Police Counter Terrorism Unit. It was about the problems we may face as firefighters in the event of a terrorist attack. E.g. secondary devices, person borne devices, vehicular devices etc this was not and is not an attempt to scare anyone but as we all know the country is on severe alert for terrorism and it would be foolish of any of us to rule out the possibilities and so training and understanding is our first defence.
Around 2am the first and second fire engines turned out to a Persons Reported (possibility of a person trapped in a fire) at India House in the City. This was a man who had fallen asleep whilst leaving his food cooking. He was rescued successfully and only suffered slight smoke inhalation. Whilst the crews were at this, Rob and I on the HP were called upon by Philips Park to assist with a large fire on Bradford Road Miles Platting. Three appliances were in attendance and fighting a severe fire in a ground floor textile warehouse. We set the HP up ready to fight the fire and protect surrounding buildings, should the fire break through the roof. The crews did a great job and we weren't needed in the end. On our way back to station we heard our two crews from Manchester Central turning out again. This time they went to a fire in Ardwick. Speaking to the crews on their return to station in the morning it was a fire involving a faulty sewing machine which had set some material on fire. The sprinkler system had done a great job of suppressing the fire but the building was heavily smoke logged and Breathing Apparatus teams had to enter to check the fire was safely out and hadn't spread to other areas.
A very satisfying and busy tour of duty for Green Watch Manchester Central.
5th November - Bonfire Night is busy with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service receiving over 900 calls...
This was not my usual shift, but due to the shear number of fire calls expected I was called in to work at Salford Fire Station as extra cover. Our Emergency Control Room took over 900 calls to fires in the night shift alone. The Control Staff had the job of prioritising every call, with obviously incidents involving people trapped in buildings or buildings being on fire being of the highest priority. Every incident called in is attended and with bonfires we attend to check that the fire is safe and being properly supervised. If it is then we allow the celebrations to continue but if we deem it unsafe then unfortunately we have to put the fire out.
We do come under attack at this time of year as a small minority of people just assume we are there to put the fire out. We do find missiles and fireworks coming in our direction. At the end of our shift we found the back of the fire engine completely covered in eggs! If only these silly people would just take time to talk to us then they might find we are not out to ruin their fun, we are just checking everyone is safe.
We had our first turnout at around 7pm this was only due to the day shift being on a roof fire and getting back late to the station. To give an idea how stretched the brigade was. We were based in Salford and that first turnout was to Chelsea Road, Newton Heath. We passed two empty fire stations on route and from there we went to a bonfire in Clayton before being sent to another bonfire in school grounds in Old Trafford.
From there we were sent to standby in Bury's area, but we had only been travelling for two minutes before getting a call to a bonfire in Alkrington near Blackley. From there we got sent to Smallbridge Rochdale but en route we were redirected by our Control to a 'Persons Reported' house fire at Boundary Street Rochdale. Bearing in mind that we were a crew from Salford our knowledge of Rochdale was sketchy to say the least but some great map reading by Andy and Jay and a bit of local knowledge from Gary, saw us being the first appliance in attendance in less than five minutes. Thankfully no one was in the house. The fire was behind the front door and in the hallway of the house. The cause was believed to be a criminal act so we requested our Fire Investigation Team to try to ascertain the exact cause. We were at this fire in excess of two hours and the whole time we could hear on the appliance radio, no let up in the number of fires being attended. Eventually we made it back to the station for the first time just after midnight. We were not unique - every fire station in Manchester (there are 41!) had exactly the same kind of night. As firefighters it's great to be busy, it's what we are paid for and it's what we expect, but alot of the calls were caused by people being idiotic with fire and fireworks despite the numerous warnings. They still insisted on playing with fireworks, getting some deranged pleasure from scaring and nearly killing people by putting fireworks through letterboxes or throwing aerosol cans onto bonfires. We would gladly attend every bonfire on bonfire night and never have to put one out, or never attend a house fire caused by fireworks. THINK before you act one day it could be you in the house or your little son or daughter that gets horrifically burned from a firework being thrown. It isn't clever.
31st October – 3rd November – We carry out road traffic collision training, home fire safety checks and attend a community event at Manchester Fort...
No ghosts and ghoulies to deal with today. We carried out road traffic collision (RTC) training. This is exactly as it sounds. Borough training officers visit the station and update us on the latest RTC procedures and equipment. We get the opportunity to practice various rescue techniques in the event that a casualty is trapped in the vehicle. This can be anything from a simple spanner undoing nuts and bolts to using the hydraulic cutting equipment to remove roofs and doors.
I take part in the annual Remembrance Day parade in Manchester City Centre so first thing on the 1st those taking part got together for a practice session. Following this we went to a priority home fire safety check after a firework attack. The occupant had had a firework put through their letter box in the night. Thankfully the only damage was scorch marks on the carpet but it could have been so much worse. The occupier was unsure whether it was a malicious attack by someone who didn't like him for some reason or just purely random but at least now he has two free smoke alarms which will alert him and his family to a similar attack or fire.
In the afternoon we were on our way to a community event at Manchester fort where we would be giving out, leaflets, flags, pens and pencils to the local community and offer our services for home fire safety checks when we were returned to station by our Control room. This was due to a bomb alert on Portland Street. A Fire Service Officer attended the incident and liaised with the Police whilst four appliances are put on standby at the nearest fire station. The suspect package was dealt with by the bomb squad which subsequently turned out to be a bag left unattended. Incidents of this nature cannot be taken lightly.
Night shifts this tour were very quiet which was surprising as usually the weekend before bonfire night is busy especially when the weather is good. We had a debrief about an incident we went to a few weeks ago where a man fell into the canal on Dale Street and unfortunately died. Incident debriefs give us the opportunity to learn from the incident by highlighting any areas that we feel went well or could be improved.
We had one incident in Ardwick which involved both appliances from Manchester Central and one from Gorton. We were called to a 'persons reported' incident where there was believed to be people trapped in a building near fire. On arrival we found that the occupant was out of the building and the fire was confined to some bedding and an extinguisher was used to put it out and a positive pressure fan to clear the building of smoke.
7th - 26th October - We attend a fire at an empty house, visit a school for the Learn Not To Burn quiz and carry out a training exercise in an underground tunnel...
Sunday 26th October
Only just on shift and we get a call to reports of smoke at an empty house in Garforth Avenue, Ancoats, on the way we can see smoke in the area. On arrival the front of the building is clearly well alight, flames were coming out of the ground and first floor windows. Two teams using hoses initially tackle the fire from the outside, whilst another team attempts to get in around the back. Although we are not attempting to save people or personal possessions there are occupied properties either side of the one on fire so we need to try and stop the fire spreading to them. Once the fire is under control, breathing apparatus teams go in to damp down areas that cannot be hit with water from outside and also check that the fire hasn't gone into the roof void. Once the house was deemed safe, and the fire extinguished, the probationer from Philips Park got the opportunity to wear a breathing apparatus set and enter the building to experience real smoke and heat conditions.
Tour 23rd - 26th October
Day shifts
The final lessons of Learn Not to Burn are delivered to year 5 pupils. They will now work on what they have learned from us with their teachers. In December our Community Fire Safety (CFS) department will visit each school in our area to carry out a quiz which works on the Who wants to be a Millionaire, 'ask the audience' principle with every pupil getting a handset and they will press a button that corresponds to their answer. A computer logs all the answer and collates a final score, which is then compared to all the other schools to find this year's winning school.
Night shifts
Saturday, was a fairly quiet evening, however we did attend another malicious fire alarm call. We had previously attended the same premises last Saturday, so now an investigation will be undertaken.
Tour 14th - 17th October
I have been driving the hydraulic platform today with Rob as the cage operator. The morning started with simple ladder work with Dan and practising hauling equipment up in the air safely using lines (ropes) and knots. The second part of the morning saw me and Rob attend St Malachy's RC Primary School to deliver lecture three of the Learn Not to Burn quiz. Today's subject was the triangle of combustion, the three elements required to cause fire: heat, fuel and oxygen and how to fight the fire e.g. removing the heat by cooling with water. The engine crews carried out a breathing apparatus exercise in an underground tunnel, to simulate how we would rescue a worker falling unconscious due to toxic fumes.
In the afternoon the crews carried out Home Fire Risk Assessments whilst Rob and I attended various premises, schools, post offices and flats to deliver literature and talk about firework safety.
Saturday 17th October
An extremely busy night, we had at least eight turnouts throughout the night, but all incidents were for fire alarms, and half of those were malicious. This appears to be a usual occurrence at weekends. For some reason a person gets thrown out of a pub or club and decides that they are going to ruin the night for everyone else by activating a break glass alarm. This means that the venue has to evacuate until we arrive and check the whole premises. It is illegal to make malicious calls and if we have a problem in the same premises we can request the CCTV footage to be passed to the police and a prosecution will be very likely. We cannot be in two places at once, imagine if it's your family that are in desperate need of help and we are checking out a malicious call.
Friday 16th October - Night Shift
Detached again, this time I went to Stretford. We started off with a lecture on chemical and biological attacks; this gave us information on anything unusual happening at an incident that would arouse suspicion that something more sinister was involved. We then carried out the night work routine, this is basically cleaning and maintaining the fire engines and all associated equipment, to make sure it is in perfect working order.
At around 4am we responded to reports of a house fire in Eccles. On arrival we found a bedroom on fire; thankfully we managed to contain the fire to the bed and bedding which was totally destroyed. The room was also severely damaged by smoke. First aid was given to a lady who had a severe cut to her head, although we are not sure how this happened.
Tour 7th - 11th October
Day shifts and time to deliver the first of four Learn not To Burn lectures to year 5 pupils at St Malachy's RC Primary School. I gave the first lesson with help from Dan. This was on Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, how the county is split into borough commands, how many fire engines and firefighters there are to deal with the numerous calls and what qualities we look for when recruiting new firefighters. We try to make it as interactive as possible and the children especially love the opportunity to dress in fire gear and have a look around the fire engine.
Night duties where fairly quiet for incidents. On Friday night I was detached to Stockport fire station; it's a great opportunity to work with other firefighters. We had training on trauma care and I took the opportunity to study for my promotion exams. The only call of the night was a malicious activation of break glass call point in a night club in the town centre.
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