Illinois Firefighter Dies After Responding - Firehouse.com In The Line Of Duty

Illinois Firefighter Dies After Responding - Firehouse.com In The Line Of Duty:

"Illinois firefighter POC Lt. Scott Mumm died Monday after responding to a fire call earlier that day. Mumm was 34 years old, and a 13 year veteran of the Mendota Fire Department. Mumm returned home around 8:15 p.m. from a fire call where his assignment was assisting with filling water tenders. He had gone to bed with intentions of reporting for work at his full-time job at midnight. When his wife tried to wake him, he did not respond. ALS efforts by members of the Mendota Fire Department and Mendota Community Hospital were unsuccessful."

Michigan Assistant Chief Collapses and Dies - Firehouse.com In The Line Of Duty

Michigan Assistant Chief Collapses and Dies - Firehouse.com In The Line Of Duty:

"The Charlevoix Township Fire Department in Charlevoix, Mich. is mourning the death of their assistant fire chief. Ralph Cross, 73, collapsed and died as he and other department members handed out fire prevention and education literature at a local K-Mart. It happened Saturday, Oct. 27 at 3 p.m. His is believed to have died of a heart attack."

A Look Back At Lavender Forest

Here are a few photos of Lavender Forest's Miniature Railroad operated by Doug and Betty Patterson. Betty sold the property this year. There were a lot of good memories for all of us.

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So this is what happens after the retiree stag when the Famous Simian has had a little bit too much beer.. Now you know why they never allowed tourists direct contact with the animals on the Serengeti Plain. I feel that Mongo should now only be allowed at social functions where alcohol is served if he has a chaperone.

The next thing we'll know, if this isn't corrected, is that Mongo will be imitating the "Party Boy" from "Jackass; The Movie"!

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A Few Retiree Limericks

Ahhh...now let's all sit back and listen to a few limericks of our retirees by our resident Limerick Fairy (Don't even think about making a comment!)

There once was a retiree named Loma Who was built like a light named Noma The peanut butter was spread Without the pleasure of any bread Poor Bill almost went into a coma		Tom Lebert was a fine Liberal He considered himself an electoral As he sat down to vote He voted on a municipal note And considered himself quite mayoral
A fine fellow retiree named Dann Was classified as a fine fire man He jumped on the hose Fell flat on his nose Now poor Dann is considered a stunt man		A new retired fellow named Greg Noticed one day he had a bowed leg He said in a mutter My heart’s in a flutter Pass the pencils: I need to beg
A retiree by the name of Tim Opted out of a trip to the gym Consuming beans to lose extra pounds And surprised by new vibrant sounds Tim’s wind can now play a hymn		There once was a gal named Karen Who loved the sound of the siren She hailed from the Isle of P.I Was an expert at the art of Private Eye Now she is tracking a Heron
A retiree by the name of Martin Gathered all of his stuff in a carton Working fire prevention he said Caused him so much darned dread That on the floor he would be startin’		An old retiree named Al Was sure he was everyone’s pal He retired as Assistant Chief But caused so much unnecessary grief That poor Al was put out to corral
The retiree by the name of Ron Would often take naps on his lawn Decided to give his technique a whirl He nicknamed it the Trofin Curl Challenge was chairs and try to stay on		An old retiree named Stroud Everyone knew he was rather proud He watched so much TV It was plain for everyone to see That he resided in somewhat of a cloud (Hey .. they're not always classics! You try and make up a limerick!!!)
There once was a retiree named Arpan To Headquarters apparatus floor he ran Trying to catch the descending door His judgment was rather poor Jim’s broken leg was never the plan		There once was a retiree named Vernes Who over the years had a few burns He’d itch and he’d scratch Sat at the hall waiting for a dispatch And discovered the law of diminishing returns

Gary Heikkinen's New Television Show

When asked about his new career, Chef Heikkinen shrugs his shoulders and replied, "I don't know how this happened actually. I always knew that my cooking skills were destined for greatness and here I am on The Food Channel on cable television. Being from the Lapland area didn't hurt either. I have a whole repertoire of Scandinavian delights that I can share with my new audience. Folks have never actually had such tantalizing Lapland dishes such as Braised Elk Hocks or Sauteed Penguin Flipper Au Jus."

When asked about his newest recipe he gloats about his recent concoction Hot Sauce Supreme. "It's a family secret that even my own son, Mike, doesn't know the recipe's contents.", claimed the little furry chef.

When questioned about his cooking "career" Rudy said, "Well, when I used to cook in the fire halls at the turn of the century the guys used to rave about my finesse in the kitchen. They just couldn't handle all the wonderful flavors at once so they used to get up collectively from the dinner table and rush to the washroom and actually push each other out of the way to get in. They would return a few minutes later with a contented look on their faces and claimed that they were so full they couldn't eat another bite after I offered them a second helping of the meal. I'm still quite confused as to the large amounts of Pepto Bismal that were consumed while I was on duty. Very strange coincidence indeed."

When prompted further regarding his new television show Rudy answered, "Well, I have a sample of video that you can use to demonstrate a short section of my show. It's the episode about the Hot Sauce we were discussing earlier. I'm calling the show 'Recapturing The Flavor'", Rudy Reported.

At the conclusion of the interview Rudy declared, "I'm actually thinking of inviting guest cooks on my show in the future. My first guest I hope will be Willoughby Woods. He is an excellent chef and some think his skills were even far better than mine. He basically perfected his art here in Canada when he was on the lam from the U.S authorities during the Viet Nam war. That's how he got the moniker 'Draftdodger'", Rudy laughed. "As for myself, I was a member of the Navy and taught the other sailors how to march on the deck of the ship. We didn't go for long treks and I taught them how to walk in circles very quickly. As a result of that training I still find myself walking in circles even to this very day!"

When last seen the "Chef" was on the phone while rubbing his antlers against the wall in his new kitchen. As I left the room I heard Rudy say, "Hello, Santa?"

Below is the sample video of Rudy's television show.

Another "Old Guy" Retires (Maybe)

Hey, who knows... Maybe even Bill "Grandmother" Ferguson will retire this year with the rest of the folks in the previous post. Hummm... What stories do I remember about Bill??? ...... let me think... Oh yessssssss.... any of you that work with Bill can ask him about the time he was "hiding" on the bed of the ladder at # 4 Station way back in the '70's.

WFD Retirees of 2007

Happy Retirement go out to the following folks:

James "accident waiting" Arpan
Karen "PEI Rocks" Morrison
Tim "Help ME" Berthiaume
Al "Big Al" Reaume
Dan "WOMD" Dancey
Greg "I wanna be a DC" Reitzel
Dave "Norbert Nostalgia" Stroud
Tom "Ex Snorkel Driver" Lebert
Al "I hate Fire Prevention" Martin
Don "Whaaat?" Vernes
Bill "I love Peanut Butter" Loma
Ron "Been Trofed yet?" Trofin

You're about to discover the world's best kept secret .. enjoy yourselves and the best of luck to all of you. : )

Contest Details

OK... the winner of the contest from the previous post will have the chance to spend a glorious week at B.R's "Upscale Motel".
Just imagine the pampering you will receive... breakfast in bed, whirlpool jacuzzi.. (Kinda).. and lots of more amenities.

Top 10 Challenges of Vehicle Rescue

Event Registration (EVENT: 95655):

"The Top 10 Challenges of Vehicle Rescue Today Event Date: October 17,2007 02:00 PM EDT Ron Moore Ron Moore is a Battalion Chief with the McKinney, TX, Fire Department and is the author of “The University of Extrication,” published on Firehouse.com and in Firehouse Magazine. This webcast will list the challenges that crews need to consider and takes lessons from where we've been, where we are now and what challenges lie ahead. The program is packed with lots of tips for those who do rippin' and tearin'. "

The Blog Hits Over 20,000 - Let's Have a Contest!

Thanks to all of you .... The Blog has had over 20,000 hits since its inception in January 2006... To celebrate we're having a contest. The best suggestion on how we should celebrate wins!
Details in the next post.
Ok, kids... send in those suggestions right away.... contest closes midnight Oct. 31!

(Hey, that's the day that I retired : )

Firefighters hesitating to risk lives - U.S. Life - MSNBC.com

Firefighters hesitating to risk lives - U.S. Life - MSNBC.com:

"SALT LAKE CITY - Fueled by drought and development, wildfires in the West are getting bigger and more aggressive, creating conditions so dangerous that fire bosses are increasingly reluctant to risk lives saving houses — particularly if the owners have done nothing to protect their property. From Southern California to Montana, seven firefighters have died this year battling blazes that have destroyed more than 400 houses — a dramatic increase from last year."

Stuff in Space

Ok... how do I approach this one... : ) This has nothing to do with firefighting per se...but, hey.... couldn't we configure something like this for those long "all nighters"? Especially in the middle of a cold February night.... who knows.. Maybe # 5 station can work on this project when they're finished with their "car project" (see post below)

Thanks to Art Caza for this one : )