Left edge of tabHelpful LinksRight edge of tab
Left edge of tabNews ArchivesRight edge of tab
Left edge of tabPBCFR Department NewsRight edge of tab

Browse News Articles

Page 1| Page 2| Page 3| Page 4| Page 5| Page 6| Page 7| Page 8|Page 9| Page 10| Page 11| Page 12

Special Operations Team Practices Tower RescueSpecial Operations Team Practices Tower Rescue
Story and Photos by Drew Reyburn. Posted on April 5th , 2006

Special Operations 31 B-shift recently did a training session on the radio tower at Station 21 on March 22nd, 2006. Crews were there for 6 hours practicing different rescue techniques for a victim on the radio tower.

Photos give only a hint as to what it was like training on the tower.

Propane LeakPropane Leak
Story and Photos by Joe Nelson. Posted on April 4th , 2006

Friday evening, March 17 (St Patrick's Day) units responded to a propane tank leaking at Okeeheelee Park at the BMX Track. The tank was leaking from a hole in the bottom that could not be safely patched so Special Operations 31 Crews along with Station 32 and Brush 34 performed a burn-off operation that took about two hours to complete. BMX participants waited outside the park during the procedure and were very happy to be let in for their first night competition with a new track.

Sorry, no hot dogs that night.

Large Animal (Horse) RescueLarge Animal (Horse) Rescue
Story and Photos by Drew Ray Reyburn. Posted on April 3rd , 2006

March 28th 2006 - The boys from Station 31 responded to assist Station 46 crew's with a horse rescue when Cy-Boy became stuck in a dried up pond. Special Operations crews used Brush 46 as a anchor point and a 9:1 hauling system which allowed for the sedated horse to be pulled out of the mud with little effort with no harm done to the horse.

Kid Sanctuary Clean UpKid Sanctuary Clean Up
Story and Photos by DC Curtis Rice. Posted on April 3rd , 2006

The customer service team would like to recognize crews from station 28 and other fire rescue employees for the outstanding service to the community. Lt. Springthorpe (Sta. 28-A), F.F./Paramedic Mike Delrossi (Sta. attatched 28-A), and Jim Bass coordinated the yard pick up and clearing for the Kid Sanctuary on March 10th. The Kid Sanctuary is a group home that assists in placing foster children. Members of the Customer Service Team paired up with crews from station 28 and other Fire Rescue personnel to give back to the Employees of the Kid Sanctuary who give so much of their time and effort in making sure the children are well taken care of. Along the fence line of the children's play area there were overgrown bushes and trees. We worked together to make the area safer for the children because of fears of tree limbs falling into the area or snakes or other critters possibly coming out of the brush.

We would like to thank those of you who consistently show up and rise to the occasion when it comes to "going the extra mile" Special thanks to Jim Bass, Kevin Shaw, Richard Kingston, Kenny Church, and Greg Thomas for their exemplary efforts on this project.

ATV Accident in St. 46's AreaATV Accident in St. 46's Area
Story and Photos by DC Curtis Rice. Posted on March 16th , 2006

On Saturday March 11th, station 46C was dispatched to a rollover traffic accident. the Trauma Hawk was put on standby. Upon arrival units found an ATV upside down with one occupant lying motionless next to the vehicle. A rapid assessment of the scene and the two patients by the crews found only minor injuries. Apparently, while turning the vehicle, it had rolled over.

Both occupants were assessed, treated and remained on scene.

Rush Hour Wreck Injures FourRush Hour Wreck Injures Four
Story and Photos by Lt. Mark Carr. Posted on March 9th , 2006

Rush hour traffic was snarled Wednesday morning, March 8th, as a Nissan SUV carrying four people rolled over near 7550 Okeechobee Blvd. in central Palm Beach County. As crews from Rescue-Engine 23 and Rescue 23 arrived, they found the four occupants laying on the grass adjacent to the wrecked vehicle with a large crowd of bystanders comforting them. Rescue-Engine 23's Lt. Andy Morzella established command and requested additional resources including Rescue 23-Bravo, Rescue 34, District Chief 3 and EMS Capt. 2 as well as a private ambulance. One victim was reportedly unrestrained in the vehicle and wasejected from the car during the wreck. That person was transported as a traumaalert to a trauma center while the other three victims, having worn their seatbelts, were transported by ambulance to closer hospitals.

PBCFR Personnel Attend Orlando Fire ConferencePBCFR Personnel Attend Orlando Fire Conference
Story and Photos by Driver/Operator Jon Ferguson. Posted on March 8th , 2006

Members of PBCFR attended the Orlando Fire Conference on Feb 23-25, 2006. Hands-on training was given on engine company operations, truck company operations, flashover/TIC training, mayday and extrication procedures. Over 200 firefighters from around Florida attended. On Sat 2/25, the pipes and drums from Tampa Area Firefighters, Orlando Firefighters and PBCFR played together for the first time ever in Downtown Orlando at the " Fire Up the Night" block party.

A great time was had by all.

40 hour Leadership Class40 hour Leadership Class
Story by Staff Captain Houston Park, photo by Captain Lenny Collins. Posted on March 6th , 2006

Retired Battalion Chief Mike Kemp and District Chief James Schaffner served as role models and instructors in the 40 hour Leadership class that ended on March 3. The future leaders and officers of Palm Beach County Fire Rescue discussed many pertinent topics as well as presenting their required typed research papers.

The next class is scheduled for May 2006.

Students Attend Toxmedic ClassStudents Attend Toxmedic Class
Story and Photos by Staff Captain Houston Park. Posted on February 28th , 2006

HAZMAT team and Rescue Captains finish up their 4th module on TOXMEDIC. Four, four -hour classes were delivered over the past few months on Special Operations Paramedical procedures. Students participated in lecture, and hands on application of the use and administration of antidotes for the contaminated patient. Joe Nelson developed and delivered the training. We intend on delivering additional classes with some frequency. Joe has also developed additional modules that we will also deliver over the coming year.

The students were required to assess the patients and then select the appropriate treatment to include working in PPE that would be comparable to the environment.

Extrication Training - February 2006Extrication Training - February 2006
Story by Staff Captain Houston Park, photo by Captain Lenny Collins. Posted on February 22nd , 2006

The Training and Safety Division is currently providing extrication training for all personnel and will be a continuing class until most, if not all, employees complete it. The class is being conducted at a salvage yard off Benoist Farms Rd and is the same location where our extrication teams have practiced. Channel 12 shot video footage of one of the classes and ran it multiple times for us. The important thing is for the public to know our training is on going and that we do our best to stay proficient in the art of disassembling vehicles. A statement was also made to put people at ease about how we will handle accidents involving hybrid cars.

The instructors currently teaching the class include: Azzaro, Vince, Cinilia, Dominic, Ellis, Mike, Ferguson, Jon, Manriquez, Federico, Sauicki, Kevin, Tugby, Robert, Turner,Aron and Williams, Charles P.

Simply "InVinceable" Vince MerriweatherSimply "InVinceable" Vince Merriweather
Story and photos by Lt. Douglas McGlynn. Posted on February 28th , 2006

The Customer Service Team would like to recognize Carol Lentz and Judy Gonzales of our dispatch center for their vision and development of a new charity based product designed to raise money for local spinal cord research. It's amazing that this simple idea transformed a product that supports our brother firefighter Vince Merriweather in a way that is nothing less than inspirational! Thanks to Chief Keily, our fire rescue family has been kept up to speed on the status of Vince's remarkable road to recovery and how the power of Vince's strong personality has helped others adapt to recovery within his unit. Carol Lentz, of Palm Beach County Fire Rescue Dispatch has been a huge "behind the scenes" shoulder to lean and a constant supporter of Vince.

It's not unusual for Carol to make anonymous contributions out of her own pocket and she doesn't hesitate to step up to the plate when there is work to be done for a fellow fire rescue member that needs a helping hand. That's why it's not surprising that Carol approached Judy Gonzales about creating a new product that would inspire Vince to "fight strong" through his rehabilitation since the auto accident that left him without the use of his arms and legs. Carol came up with the red fire bracelet inspired by Lance Armstrong's yellow "LiveStrong" bracelet. If you think about the obstacles and odds that Vince has overcome when faced with this seriousness of his spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed, many have simply said, "it's just unbelievable,... but of course we're talking about Vince." Judy loved the idea and immediately coined the phrase, "InVinceable" and thought it would be great to have that displayed on the bracelet. The two began contacting people and making phone calls to place the idea into action, but they did not intend on selling any bracelets or deploying any marketing ideas. They simply wanted Vince to know how much support he had from his close friends, family members and nursing staff who were the original targeted recipients of the bracelets. The bracelets were to be given out for free to those that were close to him and the girls would absorb the costs out of pocket.

Many people were interested in donating money in Vince's name to get one of the highly anticipated "InVinceable" bracelets so a decision was made to sell them at $5.00 each and the funds would be donated to a local charity that supported spinal cord injury research and development. Vince would be able to select the charity of his choosing but he wasn't too crazy about all of the attention at first. After hearing all of the details, he was very pleased to hear that he would be contributing to the aid of helping others with the money that is raised and Vince has embraced the idea of the bracelet and the support that Dispatch represented for us all. Vince may be proud to be a part of The Palm Beach County Fire Rescue Family because of people like Chief Keily, Jen J., Carol, Tracy and Judy alike,......but not nearly as proud as we are to have Vince put our own lives into perspective and teach us all what it means to be a part of this great brother and sisterhood we call The Fire Service! The first 500 bracelets sold out almost immediately and the next 1000 bracelets should be here any day now. Please contact any of the above mentioned names to secure your name on the waiting list to get your "InVinceable" bracelet today!

jjohnson@co.palm-beach.fl.us
jgonzales@co.palm-beach.fl.us
clentz@co.palm-beach.fl.us
moore@co.palm-beach.fl.us

Page 1| Page 2| Page 3| Page 4| Page 5| Page 6| Page 7| Page 8|Page 9| Page 10| Page 11| Page 12


All articles ©2006, all rights reserved. If you would like to reproduce or reprint any articles or images, in whole or part, please contact the Public Informations Officer.