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Product reviews are in the works. I have about 10 of them to complete. The hold up is the new site. Look for it in a couple of weeks. If you want/need a product review, let me know and I will set it up!

Shoutouts

Web site: National Firefighters Endowment
Facebook page: safefirefighter. Check it out, like it, and join the discussion.

Quick Drills

You can view all of the weekly drills by FirefighterCloseCalls.com here. Try these two at the firehouse this week:

News and Opinion

National Firefighters Endowment. The NFE is giving away a bail out kit. You can enter the sweepstakes once per day. It ends Friday! The bail out kit was donated by JB Rescue, Inc. in North Ridgeville, Ohio. Click here to enter. Plus you get 5 entries for every friend who signs up through facebook!

Presenting Dave and I. Dave Statter and I will be presenting in Ohio in May. Dave is already thinking up dreamy names for him and I. Not to worry, I get it a lot. It just never works out for the other guy. They always seem to want to be the bad guy!…I quote

“Come see Superman & Lex Luthor together: Or maybe it’s more like Austin Powers & Dr. Evil. Dave Statter meets Rhett Fleitz. Somehow I ended up on the same bill with THE Fire Critic at the Ohio Fire & Emergency Services Foundation’s 2012 Leadership Conference. It is May 23 & 24 in Newark, Ohio. Lt. Steve Robertson from the Columbus Division of Fire will also be at the conference and may end up having to referee. Click here to sign up.”

Petaluma battalion chiefs appear in Chrysler Super Bowl commercial. Two Petaluma Fire Department battalion chiefs appeared in one of the acclaimed Super Bowl Sunday commercials. Phil Sutsos and Jack Schach appeared for about two seconds in Chrysler Group’s “It’s Halftime in America” narrated by Clint Eastwood.

Statter911.com - Must see video of a fast moving fire: See the firefighter starting to run in the picture to the right? There is good reason. Firefighters in Australia had just pulled up on a box truck fire only to see the location of the fire suddenly move to the other side of a busy four lane road. Don’t miss this video.

Backstep Firefighter So Much For That “It’s Not Vacant Until We Search” Ideology. Bill dissects a fire where a search occufred, a victim was missed, and a body was recovered during demolition.

IronFiremen.com (America’s Fire Captain) just wrapped up a 3 part post about our latest trip to New York City (Haw Dilly). Check them out here, here, and here.

FireRescue1.com:

Firefighter critical after Philly fire. Lt. Martin Melvin was in critical but stable condition Sunday night in burn unit at Temple University Hospital
Utah dad blows up house with sons inside. More than 2 years ago, man’s wife went mysteriously missing; man’s emails seemed to confirm that he planned deadly blast

MN8 Products is the leader in illuminating technology for firefighters. They also have a blog where you can keep up with their travels and new products! Check it out here

Firefighter’s Truck Stolen As He Battled Fort Gibson House Fire. A Green Country firefighter is fired up. The firefighter was the victim of a thief while he was out risking his safety on a house fire. When Virgil Walters got in his pickup and headed to the Ft. Gibson fire station for a house fire call, it was like most other calls he’s had during 16 years as a volunteer.

Check out these stories of rescues…Winston-Salem - Firefighters found a 3-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl unconscious at the house on 1809 Trellis Lane, off La Deara Crest Lane near 25th Street. INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Firefighters rescued a man from a house fire Monday afternoon in the 200 block of N. Glenwood in Independence, Mo.

This is firehouse antiqueing!

Posted by The Fire Critic on February 7, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Best of the Rest, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighting Operations, News, Rescues • Tagged: Backstep Firefighter Blog, Best of the Rest, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Dave Statter, Facebook, FDNY, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, House Fire, IronFiremen.com, National Firefighters Endowment, NFFF, Paramedic, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Willie Wines Jr.

Our latest trip to NYC…We had a blast.

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Willie Wines Jr. and I recently made our way up to New York City. We actually stayed in Hoboken, New Jersey. We were travelling and hanging out with Zach Green once again.

This time, we had several reasons for being in NYC. One specific reason was to drop off a couple of checks to Captain Liam Flaherty. Willie, Zach, and I headed up a fund raising campaign for the Rescue 2 MAYDAY fund which netted around $2300.

I wrote about our experience at Rescue 2 here. Willie and Zach followed up with posts about our NY trip:

I was a little under the weather on my trip and still not 100% when I got home. I rested and made it back to work in time. Among working on a brand new web site that will debut soon, I have been trying to catch up on email, house chores, and being a father and husband.

I am not going to write a real long post here. There are a couple of pictures I would like to share though.

The entire set of pictures can be viewed on The Fire Critic’s Facebook Page. Actually, the direct link for the photo album is here.There is so much more on that page than here including links to the stuff I write on the blog.

Here are just some of the highlights of the trip. We could have fun at an “Occupy” event…oh wait, we have done that as well. The plans for the year keep filling up. We have scheduled visits, or ones in the works, in North Carolina, Ohio, New Jersey, and South Dakota already. We also plan on being at FDIC, FRI, and Firehouse Expo…Harrisburg maybe as well. Speaking of travel, I will be in Nashville on the weekend of Feb. 17th if anyone wants to meet up!

: Willie standing with Captain Bob Farrell (ret. FDNY L31) of Fire Hooks Unlimited. More on that later as well.

: Willie and I standing outside Carlos' Bake Shop from the TV show Cake Boss.

: Willie and Zach. I think they were holding hands most of the night. The Statue of Liberty is behind them.

: My brother, Royce, and I with our new 10-House shirts standing in front of the memorial on the side of the firehouse next to Ground Zero.

: Willie and I posing with Firefighter James Sorokac. He works at The Rock and is featured in the oil painting behind us on the wall. More on the painting later.

: Here is my brother Royce chinning up!

: Here is Zach pulling up at The Rock, FDNY's training center.

: Willie and I met up with one of our readers. Christine is from the Joysey area stays in constant contact with us via the blog and social media. We met for a beer. Lord knows what she is doing hanging out with us sinners.

Posted by The Fire Critic on February 6, 2012 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, News • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, FDNY, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, IronFiremen.com, Rescue 2, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Willie Wines Jr.

South Bend Firefighter Demoted for Taking Cell Phone Video

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A South Bend Firefighter has been demoted for taking a video of a recent fire with his cell phone.

The report does not state whether or not the “impromptu video” took away from a task the firefighter was completing. When I teach/present on social media, I always remind the guys/gals that they are firefighters, not reporters. They should leave the reporting up to others. I am also a huge proponent of taking pictures of your crew when the job is done.

I wonder at what point this video was taken. Was it really worthy of demotion?

I would also love to see the Facebook Policy for South Bend.

ABC57:

“As far as the punishments, the union doesn’t dole those out, that is an administration thing. Our job is to make sure that it is fair and equitable from member to member,” Kottkamp.

Through documents obtained by ABC 57 News and through close sources with the fire department, that is not the case. Several firefighters have gone unpunished for violating the same Facebook policy, including an instance back in 2010, where a firefighter posted an internal email to his Facebook page, followed by snide remarks. Yet, no action was taking against him.

Back in September, South Bend’s Facebook policy was in the news:

The South Bend Fire Department was supposed to implement a new Facebook policy Today but the local firefighters’ union has stepped in voicing serious concerns over the new social networking policy.

The union says the new policy is violating the firefighters’ First Amendment right to Freedom of Speech. Read more

Posted by The Fire Critic on January 25, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighting Operations, News, Social Media, Videos • Tagged: cell phone camera, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, EMT, Facebook, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, IronFiremen.com, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Social Media in the Fire Service, South Bend Fire Department, South Bend Indiana, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Video: Apartment Fire in West El Paso from Multiple Angles. Firefighter Gets Assistance from Videographer

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Apparently a firefighter needed some assistance with directions for incoming units. He got answers from the guy holding the video camera. Nice teamwork!

KTSM.com:

According to George DeLaTorre, Spokesman for the El Paso Fire Department, a tenant was smoking outside on the balcony of a second-story apartment and did not put out the cigarette correctly. The cigarette fell onto empty cardboard boxes nearby and caught fire. The flames spread to surrounding units and resulted in heavy fire and smoke damage to three other units, and smoke damage to 4 others. The unit where the fire originated is a total loss.

Visit the Fastest Growing Firefighter Page on Facebook

on Facebook today: Rescue 2 MAYDAY Fund fund-raiser and “what gear to you wear”40+ responses?

Posted by The Fire Critic on January 23, 2012 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, News, Videos • Tagged: Apartment Fire, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, House Fire Video, IronFiremen.com, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Video, West El Paso, Willie Wines Jr.

Hilarious Video: Firefighter vs Police Officer vs Structure Fire

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Here is some humor for you…perfect timing since I have been posting serious stuff recently.

Enjoy… A funny skit about a police officer showing up first at a structure fire.

Warning: Language…and no offense intended towards America’s Finest. Just the Bravest having some fun…

Posted by The Fire Critic on January 17, 2012 • Filed under: Humor, News, Videos • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Firefighting Humor, Humor, IronFiremen.com, Police humor, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Best of the Rest – Reviews, Chevy Volt, Volunteers, Firehouse History, and @Ochocinco on Twitter

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Best of the Rest this week…

Reminder: if you want to be included in the “Best of the Rest” just let me know!

Check out this Facebook page: J5 Firelids…this one is new to me. However, if you are in the market to customize your helmet these guys offer custom inserts for your helmet. They offer handcrafted professional accessories created by a firefighter for firefighters since 2008.

If you are looking for a decent example of how to build your community on facebook, check out MN8 Products Facebook Page. They are currently at over 11,000 fans! It is all about communication and building a buzz!

CharlotteObserver.com: Off-duty rookie firefighter alerts couple in burning home - As house fires go, the one early New Year’s Day wasn’t a doozy, but for rookie firefighter Henry Calle it was a big one. Calle, who is 24, had just finished his 24-hour shift at Station 31 on Ridge Road and was heading home with his car windows down. As he passed a small white-frame house on MallardCreek Road, he caught a whiff of smoke. Then out of the corner of his eye, he saw the smoke, pouring from the attic. Read more here

Chad Ochocinco got a reply from @FireCritic on Facebook. I am sure he cherished it and blogged about it!

Ochocinco offering condolences to the family and friends of Peabody FD's Firefighter James Rice.

Chad Ochocinco on Twitter – I have been sitting on this story waiting for the right time to bring it up. I thought it was kinda neat that Chad Ochocinco mentioned the Peabody LODD on Twitter. Ochocinco has over 3 million followers on twitter. It is great to see someone with his celebrity offering condolences for one of our fallen. Follow Ochocinco on Twitter @Ochocinco

Boron Extrication - GM Announces Safety Enhancements for Chevy Volt

TheTailboard.com – Written by Teague Kenny. Read an article on the DCFD..err FEMS…err DCFEMS, or whatever they didn’t agree on…Let’s Hear it for the D.C. FEMS!

Raising Ladders – Need more on DCFD/DCFEMS? This one is hilarious. RaisingLadders.com: Comment Cards

The Fire Critic Product Reviews: You might have seen my brand new helmet adorned with a custom shield from Box Alarm Leather. I am working on a product review for the shield now. Soon I will be wearing custom leather suspenders from Wolfpak LeatherWorks (only seen on Facebook, but a web site is in the works). I currently am wearing Overhaul Logo Nylon Suspenders from Black Helmet (review coming soon). There are so many great firefighter owned and operated companies out there. Be sure to hook up with Fire Critic on Facebook and let us know your favorites! I also have two book reviews coming soon. I just finished the books.

Brotherhood Instructors – Speaking of reviews, the Brotherhood Instructors offer a review of the Bam Bam Tool. Read about it here

Shortage of volunteer firefighters - WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WDTN) – They’re experts at putting out flames, but now they’re fighting something else. ”There is just not the interest there used to be out there,” says Washington Township Fire Chief William Gaul. Over the last decade Washington Township has seen a dip in volunteer firefighters. Continue reading

FireRescue1.com – The Domino Effect, a FireRescue1.com blog by Mark van der Feyst offers this one. Handicap firefighting: Water source issues - Whenever we respond to structure fire, having access to, securing water source is vital component of overall fireground operation

Firefighter Nation - Two Dead, One Critical after Philadelphia Apartment Fire

TurnOut Blog – TurnOutBlog.com is a new blog on the horizon by Eric Lamar. Read his latest about Firehouses: History versus Safety here

Quick Takes on STATter911.com – Dave Statter offers his usual rundown every Monday of his biggest stories from the week prior as well as some other goodies that don’t require a separate article. This is always a great stop every Monday to see what is going on in the World of Fire. Check out Quick Takes for January 9, 2012

FireGeezer – Do you need more fire news? Check out the News Ticker over at FireGeezer.com. Read it here

And finally, I will let you all be the critics! What issues do you see in the video below? It doesn’t matter what department it is…just take a look and discuss how things might have been done better. Is that a red (booster) line?

Posted by The Fire Critic on January 10, 2012 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Best of the Rest, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty, News, Videos • Tagged: Boron Extrication, Chad Ochocinco, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Dave Statter, Facebook, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, FireGeezer, Fireground Video, House Fire, House Fire Video, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty Death, LODD, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, TheTailboard.com, TurnOut Blog, TurnOutBlog.com, Twitter, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Video: Santa Claus Spotted Changing Air Bottles at Dickson City, PA House Fire

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You heard it right! Santa Claus was seen changing air bottles out at this house fire in Dickson City, PA on December 23rd. He hangs out a while watching over the firefighters as they hit hot spots on the fire.

Watch as at just :14 seconds in Santa Claus helps with the air bottle of another firefighter.

The fire occurred at 724 Carmalt Street right next door to two vacant lots where an explosion and fire occurred two years ago killing 2 people.

http://thetimes-tribune.com:

The blaze, which ripped through their 724 Carmalt St. residence, destroyed all the Christmas presents Ms. Branch bought for her 13-year-old daughter and more than likely killed their cat, Flicker, and parakeet, Birdie.

They escaped with only the clothes on their backs and Claudia’s bookbag.

“I have nothing for her now,” said Ms. Branch, who saw the fire flare in a computer room on the second floor. “It just happened so fast.”

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 24, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighting Operations, Fires, News, Videos • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Dickson City, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, House Fire, House Fire Video, IronFiremen.com, Pennsylvania, Rhett Fleitz, Santa Claus, Social Media, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Peabody, MA Firefighter James Rice Dies in The Line of Duty at Hancock Street Apartment Fire

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Earlier report on Fire Critic.com here

Officials have identified James Rice as the firefighter who died at a fire today in Peabody, Mass.

The fire went to 3 alarms at 5 Hancock Street in Peabody. Firefighters from Danvers, Salem and Lynnfield also responded to the fire to assist. The initial call came in around 1:30pm.

Firefighter James Rice leaves behind a wife and 3 children. Reports are varied on his age between 38 – 46 years old. He was an 11 year veteran of the Peabody Fire Department.

Many were circulating the news very early on twitter. They used the nickname “Jim” when referring to James. I am not sure that he went by Jim or not.

More updates on Fire Critic Facebook Page

News Links:

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 23, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty, Major Incidents, News, Videos • Tagged: 3 Alarm Fire, 5 Hancock Street, Apartment Fire, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Danvers Fire Department, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, Hancock Street, In the Line of Duty, IronFiremen.com, James Rice, Jim Rice, Line of Duty, Line of Duty Death, Lynnfield Fire Department, Massachusetts, Peabody, Peabody Fire Department, Rhett Fleitz, Salem Fire Department, Social Media, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Updated: One Firefighter Dies at Three Alarm Apartment Fire in Peabody, MA. 13 Left Homeless

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Update 16:49 hours:

According to multiple news sources including MyFOXBoston.com, a firefighter has died from injuries sustained at this fire. There is a news conference scheduled at 5pm.

MyFOXBoston.com:

PEABODY (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) – A firefighter was killed on Friday after battling a fire on Hancock Street in Peabody.

The firefighter was rushed to the hospital where he later died from his injuries.

16:36 hours:

A fire broke out at an apartment complex at 5 Hancock Street in Peabody, Mass. today leaving 13 homeless. The fire went to 3 alarms and apparently sent one firefighter to the hospital.

FirefighterCloseCalls.com reports other firefighters were injured as well.

The call came in around 1:30pm and the fire was out by 3:00pm.

Peabody firefighters were on scene with firefighters from Danvers, Salem and Lynnfield.

PeabodyPatch.com:

There has been no official word about the condition of the firefighter taken from the scene. There have been unconfirmed reports on social media about the firefighter, but Peabody Fire has not confirmed his condition. A 5 p.m. press conference is planned.

Photo from http://www.myfoxboston.com

Updates to follow

News:

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 23, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty, News, Videos • Tagged: 3 Alarm Fire, 5 Hancock Street, Apartment Fire, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Danvers Fire Department, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, Hancock Street, In the Line of Duty, IronFiremen.com, Line of Duty, Line of Duty Death, Lynnfield Fire Department, Massachusetts, Peabody, Peabody Fire Department, Rhett Fleitz, Salem Fire Department, Social Media, Video, Willie Wines Jr.

Video: 5 Alarm Fire in San Fancisco Western Addition. 60 People Displaced with Half of SF Firefighters Working

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A 5 alarm fire engulfed two buildings in San Francisco’s Western Addition. The buildings were residential apartments and displaced over 60 residents.

150 firefighters were on the call equaling about half of San Francisco’s firefighting force.

News links:

MercuryNews.com:

Heavy winds helped spread the fire until firefighters contained it by 2:26 p.m. Firefighters were initially pushed back by the intensity of the fire but managed to prevent it from spreading to other buildings in the neighborhood. A total of four buildings were damaged. Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said the fire began in the back of a three-unit Victorian building at 1502 Golden Gate and swiftly blew through the roof.

… The fire quickly spread to a 25-unit apartment building at 1015 Pierce.

MN8 Foxfire Illuminating and Reflective Tetrahedrons 40% off here while it lasts!

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 22, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, Major Incidents, News, Videos • Tagged: Apartment Fire, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Fireground Video, House Fire, IronFiremen.com, Rhett Fleitz, San Francisco Fire Department, Social Media, Video, Western Addition Fire, Willie Wines Jr.

Top Ten Christmas Gifts for Firefighters 2011

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The 2011 Christmas season is in full swing.

Willie Wines Jr. recently posted IronFiremen.com’s Top Ten Stocking Stuffers here. There are some great gift ideas on the list! While some of those items might have made it to this list, I decided not to duplicate in order to give you all some more options.

What a great start to buying for that significant firefighter in your life.

You can read the past years Top Ten Christmas Gifts lists:

This year will be no different. The best gifts for firefighters. Some of these are custom gifts and will require ordering…don’t worry they are worth the wait!

Here we go…

10. Ride Backwards Apparel

Ride Backwards is what it is all about. Apparel for the fit firefighter…or the one trying to get fit. If your firefighter is working towards being healthier or is already there, Ride Backwards gear is made for them. Let me be clear though…Ride Backwards isn’t just an apparel company, they are a community of like minded firefighters who train, exercise, and lead healthy lives. I can’t put my finger on exactly why I love this company, I have only met a couple of the people behind the company once. I just love following them on Facebook and keeping in touch with their fan base.

If you are trying to get fans on Facebook or build a community you should definitely be taking notes from them!

Check out their web site here. They have some great products!

9. Phenix Leather Helmet

I wish I could tell you mine fit great, but I haven’t received it yet. I have one on order, a gift from a friend (more on that later). Let me say that I have had one on my head and it felt awesome. I have had several leather helmets and as the times change, technology changes, regulations change the leather helmets have changed. Some of them have become very cumbersome. While I have not tested this helmet out, it felt very good to wear. One of the biggest things I liked about it is that it sits low on my head.

I cannot wait to have it in my hands! The picture to the right is mine in production.

Check out Phenix helmets online here.

8. Firefighter Calendar

Whether you are looking for a bunch of hot men or women firefighters we have you covered. You can view the hottest male firefighter calendars here and the hottest female firefighter calendars here. Most of these support a great cause and are organized by firefighters. Pick your poison and order a calendar for that special firefighter in your life. Better yet, order one for yourself too!

My personal favorite has to be the America’s Female Firefighters Calendar. Check out their site here and they are on Facebook as well.

7. Firefighter Apparel

I admit, some firefighting apparel is gaudy and over the top. If your firefighter is going to wear firefighting apparel they need to be wearing the right stuff. Trust me, there is plenty of stuff out their for different tastes.

I suggest you look at:

6. Leather Bunker Boots

Much like #1 on our list this year, too many firefighters are not provided leather bunker boots. It amazes me that departments waste their money on rubber boots. In my department, rubber boots merely take up space on the tops of our lockers. Although there are a few firefighters who still wear them because they don’t care about their feet enough to purchase leather boots on their own.

I cannot speak for all of the brands, but I will tell you that the Black Diamond X Boot, Black Diamond X2 Boot, and Lion Apparel Marshall boots (all links to product reviews) are great boots.

I also hear that the Globe leather boots and Haix leather boots are great boots.

You can buy the boots on TheFireStore.com

5. NFFF Merchandise

Supporting the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) is the right thing to do. They take care of our Fallen and their families. Purchasing, gifting, and wearing their merchandise supports their mission.

They have cups, mugs, challenge coins, picture frames, posters, books, stuffed animals, charms, and so much more!

Support the NFFF, they are supporting us!

Check them out online. Their store is here.

4. MN8 Foxfire Illuminating Gear

I have been a long time fan of the illuminating gear from MN8. I have done some product reviews on their stuff and use it on a regular basis. The thing about their products is that it isn’t another product, it is a better spin on a current product. Instead of simply having a helmet band, you can have one that illuminates. Instead of having grip tape on on a tool, you can have grip tape that illuminates. They also have epoxy grip that illuminates for tools. Soon, we they will be unveiling a brand new tetrahedron for firefighter use. I can’t say much more, but it is impressive.

Check out MN8 on Facebook as well. Another company creating a community around their products.

View their products on their web site. Purchase their products on TheFireStore.com.

3. Custom Leather Accessories

No not the Excessive Leather Accessories for Fire Fighters (ELAFFHQ.com), I am actually talking about custom leatherwork by firefighters for firefighters. Might I point you in the direction of Box Alarm Leather. They do everything from helmet shields to radio straps and can custom make just about anything. Check them out here.

There are plenty of other great custom leather companies as well:

2. Brotherhood Chips

You may not know it, but that special firefighter in your life is sure to read both FireCritic.com and IronFiremen.com.

They can now carry us with them wherever they go. Introducing the FireCritic/IronFiremen “Brotherhood Chip”. It is smaller and weighs less than the typical “challenge coin”, but serves the same purpose.

Challenge Coins are a long held tradition within the Military, Fire and Police Service. Now, your firefighter can have one from 2 of the Nation’s top Fire Service Bloggers!

We designed the chips with the words “Tradition”, “Honor”, “Pride”, “Respect” and “Brotherhood” on the edge. That is what we are about and is exactly what we are trying to spread.

Get more details and purchase yours by clicking HERE .

We got our chips made by TheChipSite.com. Check them out!

1. Personal Rescue Escape System

Too few firefighters have these!

I do not own and am not issued a commercially made personal rescue escape system, bailout bag, or whatever you might call it. I do have a pretty decent set up that I can use as a search line or rescue rope/webbing for victims or other firefighters as well as a bailout system for myself.

Here is the thing…every firefighter should own and carry some sort of setup. Whether it is a commercially made system or a made up system of caribeeners and rope/webbing they should have it.

If their department is like mine and doesn’t care about this need in our job, you can step in and get it for your firefighter.

TheFireStore.com offers several different setups. Check them out.

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 6, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, News, Top Ten Lists • Tagged: 2012 Firefighter Calendar, America's Female Firefighters Calendar, Axe Head, Black Diamond, Black Diamond Boots, Black Friday, Black Helmet Apparel, Box Alarm Leather, Brotherhood Chips, Cairns, Cairns New Yorker, Calendar, Camera, Christmas, Christmas Firehouse, Christmas gifts for firefighters, Colorado Firefighter Calendar, Cop Monopoly, Cyber Monday, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, EMS Gifts, EMS Monopoly, EMS Play, Facebook, Female Firefighters, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighter Apparel, Firefighter Calendar, Firefighter Calendars, Firefighter Christmas Gifts, Firefighter Gifts, Firefighter Monopoly, Firefighter Play, Firefighter Rescue Strap, Firefighter Rescue Tool, Firefighting, FireGeezer, FireGeezer Mug, FireGeezer Travel Mug, Fireman Calendar, Fireman's Chore, Firemans Chore Denim Jacket, Firemen Calendar, Gifts for Firefighters, Gifts for Firemen, Hot Firefighter Calendar, Hot Fireman Calendar, House Fire, IronFiremen.com, Law Enforcement Monopoly, Leather Fire Boots, Leather Fire Helmet, Ledger, MSA, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, New Zealand Firefighters Calendar, NFFF, NSW Firefighters Calendar, Phenix Leather Helmets, Police Gifts, Police Monopoly, Rak Wear, Rak Wear Firefighter Apparel, Rescue Strap, Rescue Tools, Rhett Fleitz, Ride Backwards, SAV-A-Jake, Save A Jake, Sexy Fireman Calendar, Shopping, Social Media, South Florida Firefighters Calendar, Thanksgiving, Top Ten Female Firefighter Calendars, Top Ten Firefighter Calendars, Top Ten Firefighter Christmas Gifts, Top Ten List, Toronto Firefighters Calendar, Willie Wines Jr.

Social Media in the Fire Service: Catch the Class in New Jersey Soon!

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I will be in New Jersey teaching about Social Media in the Fire Service at the end of the month. Willie Wines Jr. will be traveling with me, but he will only make it to the second class. He will be in New York City with Zach Green of MN8 Products (Foxfire) hanging out with some of the guys/gals from the FDNY. I will rendezvous with them in NYC in the evenings.

My goal with these classes are to make them as interactive as possible. I enjoy questions and helping others understand social media and what it can do for them and their companies, departments, organizations, and even personal networking!

There is still room in the classes if you want to attend.

To register:

Registration is through myNewJersey, the state’s website. The registration instructions are on page3 of the Fall 2011 Course Brochure. Here is a link to the brochure:

http://www.keanfiresafety.com/PDFs/Fall2011CourseBook.pdf

If you are from out of State, you might be able to skip the online registration. Contact me and I will put you in touch with them.

Here are the places and times I will be teaching. The actual name of the class is “Social Media: Fire Service’s Next Biggest Innovation”.

Rhett Fleitz teaching social media at FDIC 2011

Thursday, October 27, 2011 at 8am
Morris County Firefighter and Police Training Academy
500 West Hanover Ave
Parsippany, NJ 07950

And

Friday, October 28, 2011 at 8am
Burlington County Emergency Services Training Center
53 Academy Dr
Westampton (Mt Holly), NJ 08060

The class focuses on getting started as well as how to utilize social media. I will also be focusing on what not to do with social media and how to keep from making some mistakes others have made.

Willie and I will be making a cannonball run up and back, but might have some time to stop in to some Fire Departments if you want to meet up.

Posted by The Fire Critic on October 18, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Social Media, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Service, Fire Service Social Media, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, IronFiremen.com, Kean University, Policy on Social Media, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Social Media in the Fire Service, Social Media Policy, Social Media Policy for Firefighters, Social Media Training, Twitter, Willie Wines Jr.

Social Media and FireCritic.com…The Big Picture

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This article serves two purposes:

To help the readers understand what information is shared and where it is shared.
To help other bloggers learn how to engage, share, and grow their social media networks.

FireCritic.com is a hybrid blog and social experience. The blog doesn’t quite fit in to a specific category like many other blogs. Other blogs might be lumped into training, news, or personal categories yet the Fire Critic fits all of these. In addition, I pay close attention to my Fire Critic Facebook fan page and Twitter. A lot of the information from the blog is shared on Facebook and Twitter, but there is even more updates on the two than on the blog.

Some people don’t like the moniker “blog” and would rather use the name “web site”. It doesn’t matter to me. To fully understand what the Fire Critic is, you should follow along on Twitter and the Fire Critic Facebook fan page as well. Various readers engage the Fire Critic in different ways. Some twitter followers might not visit FireCritic.com, likewise some Facebook fans might not follow along on Twitter.

Work-flow of FireCritic.com:

Blog posts are automatically shared on Twitter (I use twitterfeed.com)
Blog posts are manually added to the Fire Critic Facebook fan page. This is not automatic so I can customize the update and control the time of publish on Facebook.
Fire Critic Facebook fan page updates are automatically shared on Twitter (through connecting Facebook to Twitter under page settings)

I also have a facebook fan page box on my sidebar of FireCritic.com

Since the Fire Critic Facebook fan page automatically updates to twitter, anytime I add photos, updates, or most anything else it posts to twitter without me having to do a thing. I used to use Networked Blogs App on Facebook, but I would rather do it manually to customize the text and thumbnail. I have found this to be more beneficial than the automatic update via Networked Blogs.

FireCritic.com the Blog

FireCritic.com is a fire service blog. Probably ranked within the top 10 fire service blogs in the U.S., the blog offers news, product reviews, humor, videos, training, and links to other great information on the web. Consider it controlled chaos, I write about whatever comes to mind, whatever stories are going on, and anything else I think up. Many other bloggers have shared information through FireCritic.com and I do not mind sharing information I find useful to my readers. Readers can comment on blog posts and I try to answer any and all questions as well as engage others on the site.

The Fire Critic Facebook Fan Page

The home of FireCritic.com on Facebook. I share the links to posts on FireCritic.com, engage readers about other news, stories, and information. If I have a story that has a lot of pictures, I will typically add a photo album on Facebook where they can view the complete set of pictures. Others are welcome to post on The Fire Critic Facebook fan page as well. I welcome the conversation and I am always looking for good stuff to read. Currently I have 1505 fans and I hope to increase that number every day!

Fire Critic on Twitter

This is where it can get fun, interesting, and weird. My Twitter @FireCritic account is fairly popular for being in such a small niche. As I said before, my posts on FireCritic.com and my status updates on my Facebook fan page are automatically fed to my Twitter account. Yeah, I know some people just don’t get twitter. I say it is a great tool in connecting with readers. Think of it as texting without having to give out your phone number. I add dozens of stories each day to my Twitter account 24/7 that you won’t see on FireCritic.com or the Fire Critic Facebook fan page. The sharing of information is ideal. Plus, you might be lucky and be following me during one of the few times I drink and tweet (happens a handful of times a year)…things get real interesting then! I monitor twitter off and on throughout the day. Currently I have 2044 followers on twitter. That number fluctuates through the day. Typically in a given week I will gain about 30 new followers and lose up to 10. Losing followers is normal because there are so many people who follow and unfollow just to try to get people to follow them without following back. The easiest way to get me to follow you is by retweeting on of my tweets, mentioning me, or asking me a question. I try to follow anyone who does any of the three of these. The reason is simple. I use Tweetdeck on my computer and they make it easy to follow others so I don’t have to actually log into Twitter to see who is following me.

Google +

I admit that I am a newbie to Google +. I have created a personal account, but I don’t think you can create business accounts yet. I am learning as I go. I think there will be value in Google +, there just isn’t enough for me to spend a lot of time on it yet.

Engaging others is what it is all about. I use other forms of social media too. The ones listed above are the ones I spend the most time on.

What works for you? How can I improve? Do you have any questions?

If you have any questions on how I set up any of the automatic feeds between twitter, facebook, or the blog let me know!

Now hurry up and connect with me on the Fire Critic Facebook fan page and Twitter if you haven’t already!

Posted by The Fire Critic on September 28, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Must Read, News, Social Media, Technology & Communications, technology-communications-ems-topics, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Facebook for Firefighters, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Department, FireCritic, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Google, Google Plus, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Twitter, Twitter for Firefighters

Introducing Firefighter Dan…Help Get this Worthy Cause off the Ground

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Your kids have seen Bob the Builder, Handy Manny, and Dora the Explorer. Have they seen Firefighter Dan? You can help make Firefighter Dan the next big thing.

Firefighter Dan was created by volunteer firefighter and educational animator Tim Saguinsin. He is looking to raise funds for Firefighter Dan’s Safety Tips through Kickstarter which is an online community funding platform. The community is based on offering rewards as incentives to give. Firefighter Dan is offering the usual fire paraphernalia postcards, stickers, patches, t-shirts and hats as well as the opportunity to become an animated character in one of the episodes and being listed as an executive producer.

The campaign has 17 days to go and is in need of additional backing. He is looking to his firefighting community to support his message. $1, $2, $5, whatever… the change in your pocket, the coins in between your couch cushions, whatever you can give would be helpful. Do you really need that 5th Mountain Dew? And then please spread the word about Firefighter Dan to your colleagues. With Kickstarter, if you don’ t reach your goal, you don’t get any of the funding. This endeavor is worth backing.

Here is the fundraising campaign on Kickstarter

Firefighter Dan Web site – YouTube - Vimeo – Facebook

Firefighter Dan is a link to fire departments and fire prevention for children. Everyone is creating a curriculum for fire safety and using cartoons to try sell it to kids. Firefighter Dan is looking to create a brand to engage children to be confident, active, and helpful members of our community in addition to being safe.

Take a minute to check these sites out. Then give some money for this worthy cause!

Posted by The Fire Critic on September 13, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Funding & Staffing, News, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: Animation, Cartoon, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Prevention, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighter Dan, Firefighting, Rhett Fleitz, Tim Saguinsin, Video

FRI Wrapup – A Great Time in Atlanta

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This is from my continued coverage of Fire Rescue International last week. You can read more posts related to FRI 2011 here.

By now you should have figured out that I had a blast at Fire Rescue International 2011. Willie Wines Jr. and Jeff Harkey enjoyed the trip with me this year and we accomplished a lot. We got to hang out with a ton of people, some new friends, and some we have known for a while. We had a lot of laughs, had some time to reflect, and were able to continue telling people about Daily911Deals.com.

FRI was a success. Each conference we travel to has been a better and better time than the last. Each one offering its own new adventure. This time was no different.

Willie and I started out the trip with a visit to my sister, Valicia’s, house in Atlanta. I hadn’t seen her in almost a year. It was only the second time since I had seen my nephew Sebastian. What a cute little guy! Willie and I took my sister, her husband Carlos, and Sebastian out to the Front Page News restaurant.

After spending the evening with them we settled in early because we would be up early for the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb in the morning.

Our team at FRI. Cheryl Horvath, Martha Ellis, Rhett Fleitz, Mark Nugent, Chris Riley, Willie Wines Jr., and Matt Tobia. Sorry for any spelling mistakes.

Wednesday morning began early. We go to the Westin Peachtree Plaza early for the stair climb. We saw some familiar faces from the NFFF at the climb including Victor Stagnaro, Cathy Hedricks, and Billy Hinton. We ended up climbing with Matt Tobia and other Chiefs from across the Nation. Willie and I were surprised by the number of firefighters climbing in gear. We were impressed with the turnout, but figured that the majority would be travelling and not bring their gear. We were wrong. There were many local firefighters climbing and it was great to see so many in gear.

You can read my account of the climb here and Willie’s account here.

Dinner with the crew from MN8 Products and Fire Rescue TV

Willie and I are doing our 3rd climb this weekend in Greenbelt, MD. The climb will be in the 28 story Maryland Trade Center. I will be climbing with Willie Wines Jr., Willie Wines Sr., Thomas Warshaw, and Bill Carey. We look forward to the event on September 11, 2011. This will be a fitting tribute for the 10th anniversary.

On Wednesday, we also went out and enjoyed dinner with the A-shift crew at station #63 in John’s Creek. Great dinner, great comradarie, great times. Thanks to the entire crew: Captain Akins, Lt. Eddie Lee, FAO Phil Pirkle, FAO Kevin Castleberry, Sgt Tom Johnson, FF Jost Cater, FF Brandon Kingrey, and FF Grant Eckard.

On Thursday, Willie and I headed over to Atlanta Firehouse #11 to check out Motorola’s $1 million donation to the NFFF and for Atlanta FD’s announcement of 100% participation in the Seat Belt Pledge.

Friday and Saturday kinda all ran together. We did enjoy a great meal at a Mexican joint courtesy of Zach Green from MN8 Products. We were there with his crew and the crew from Fire Rescue TV including Martin Grube and Mariah Leavitt.

During the expo, Jeff and I made our rounds and spoke with numerous businesses who are excieted about Daily911Deals. Look for some of those deals coming up. I also met up with two women I know via the internet. My face is not as recognizable as Willie’s, but some people have hear my name before…ok, actually more people know me as the Fire Critic, but it doesn’t hurt having an uncommon name. I was speaking with these two women for about 10 minutes before I handed them my card and they instantly realized who I was.

Me with the ladies of Industrial Fire Journal. Beth Lee Kershner on the left and Kelly Francis on the right. Follow them on twitter @thefiregirls

Willie, Jeff, and I also helped stow away the better angels exhibit. Read about that here.

Willie getting frisky with Rhett

Saturday night was a memorable one. Willie wrote about it in a post titled “FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR RHETT FLEITZ AND JEFF HARKEY“. Let me just say that his account was not exactly 100% truthful. He was right on point with the account of Jeff Harkey though. Jeff led us down a path that Willie and I had not been in before. Where he started stretching the truth was about how Willie felt about being in that establishment. First of all, Willie signed up for drag night. He will be escorted by some great looking men. He will be right at home.

The “guys” wouldn’t stop buying him drinks and before Jeff and I knew it Willie was sucking face with 5 other guys. We told him we didn’t take any photos. We did, but you can’t see them yet. Willie still has to make several trips to Atlanta to go shopping with the only 3 females who were at the restaurant. When we left, Willie had them chanting BROKEBACK, BROKEBACK, BROKEBACK. They still think he was in the movie. Everyone kept asking us if we knew of any other “alternative lifestyle men” other than Willie. We told him he was the only one we knew and that he had won a night out with us two handsome and happily married straight men. Willie couldn’t get enough of it!

On Sunday, we headed home. Although we still had plenty to do. We had two stops before getting home. We stopped by Charlotte FD Station #1 and met up with Captain Blake Redden and 911 Dispatcher Jeff Williams. Jeff sat us down and showed us the dispatch center which is located inside Station #1. This station was huge. The dispatch center seemed to be top of the line. Jeff had some great stories for us about the recent earthquake, how they do business, and some war stories about some of the busier times inside the center. Blake showed us around the station and answered all of our questions. Thanks for the tour guys!

I still can’t get over the fact that you guys don’t use crosslays!

L-R Charlotte Fire Captain Blake Redden, Ironfiremen.com's Captain Wines, Charlotte Dispatch Supervisor Jeff Williams and The Fire Critic Rhett Fleitz

After Charlotte, we stopped by Davidson County Fire Station #1 and got to chat with several of the firefighters there. We got a tour of the station and their apparatus. The fire station is combination volunteer/paid part-time. Ryan Monteith, Julia, and Bill Shick showed us around. Willie and I always have a great time visiting other stations.

Ryan Monteith, The Fire Critic Rhett Fleitz, Captain Wines of Ironfiremen.com and Bill Shick

Also read “LOOKING BACK ON ATLANTA” by Willie Wines Jr. on his recap of Atlanta.

Posted by The Fire Critic on September 6, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Humor, News • Tagged: Atlanta, Beth Lee Kershner, Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, Facebook, Fire, Fire Blogs, Fire Critic, Fire Rescue International, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, FRI2011, Humor, Industrial Fire Journal, IronFiremen.com, Kelly Francis, Mariah Leavitt, Martin Grube, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Willie Wines Jr., Zach Green

5-Point Breakaway Safety Vest 50% off. Only $9.99 on Daily911Deals.com

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Tomorrow morning, the 50% Off Bundle Pack of Sample AFG Successful Narratives from Firehouse Grants deal ends. Remember they extended the AFG grant application deadline by a week!

Yesterday, Daily911Deals started a brand new deal: $9.99 For an $19.99 5-Point Breakaway Safety Vest at Reality Workwear.

If you have not checked this site out you are missing out. You can register if you want and sign up to receive email notifications when new deals are available.

Daily911Deals Web Site - Facebook - Twitter

They also launched their “Refer a Friend” affiliate marketing.

Anyone can share and earn. If you have a web site or blog you might be able to earn more!

Daily911Deals is paying $5 credit just for putting their code on your site. In addition, you will earn $5 credit every time someone clicks on your ad to Daily911Deals and purchases for the first time.

Full details and instructions for the Refer a Friend affiliate marketing is here.

Posted by The Fire Critic on September 1, 2011 • Filed under: Daily911Deals, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News • Tagged: Daily 911 Deals, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire Critic, Fire Department, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Law Enforcement, Paramedic, Police, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Twitter

Fire, EMS, and Police Bloggers are Becoming Spokespersons for Products and Services

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Every time I turn around there is a new company setting up shop in the Fire, EMS, and Police markets. These new and typically smaller businesses are doing their research. They are investing the time to create a social media rich marketing plan.

Larger businesses are doing the same, although this is probably in part because the marketing firms they are hiring use social media as much as they can. The firms see the value in it.

Willie Wines Jr. recently helped out in the MN8 Products booth at Firehouse Expo. Not only was he a huge draw, he blogged about it and was even seen kissing some babies!

Whether it is a small business with a small budget or a larger business with a large budget, they are basically doing the same thing… in theory.

Utilizing Facebook to connect with your customers is a vital marketing task that usually takes a skillful eye and many hours to stay on top of. Twitter is similar, however the reach is not as wide. That reach doesn’t matter though…you cannot pass up the opportunity to connect with a customer.

Bloggers are a key point in this connection. Why? That is simple…we have followers. Tribes, if you will. Most bloggers are connected to other bloggers and the whole social media thing is [BAM] connecting thousands of people!

Many bloggers are very connected with social media. Even so, many socially connected firefighters, EMT’s, and even some police officers who don’t blog in the beginning end up creating a blog in the end.

So what about this spokespersons claim I made in the title of this article?

Here is the thing…Fire,EMS, and Police don’t really have many ”Celebrities”. Outside of the Editor in Chiefs of our trade magazines or the women and men who teach at almost every event there aren’t many ultra-recognizable names in our fields. For the Firefighters you might think Bobby Halton, Tim Sendelbach, Billy Goldfeder, Rick Lasky, Alan Brunacini, for a couple of examples. Even then, my view is skewed because I write about some of these guys, have followed them for years, and recognize someone who knows what they are talking about when I see it. Those guys have put in decades of time teaching, creating, writing, and spreading the word of what they know. They have been there and done that. I know it, you know it, everyone SHOULD know it.

Again, what about the spokespersons claim in the title?

Companies want to spread the word of their products and services. They want to make it as affordable and effective as possible. Sure, having a picture of a big name celebrity firefighter holding the newest innovative product on a banner can have a positive effect on the product and company. But what is the reach? What is the cost?

Similarily compare print advertising to online advertising.

Does that person post about the product on their blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc.? What is their reach? What is their cost?

This is where bloggers come in. Fire, EMS, and other Public Safety bloggers have reach that most companies do not realize. Thousands of loyal readers, thousands of facebook friends, thousands of facebook fan page “likes”, thousands of twitter followers. Each of those mediums feed to more and more people. A single blogger could have a reach of more than 10,000 people.

When I think of spokesperson, I don’t mean on television spots. I mean creating a working relationship between companies and bloggers.

Think of Zoll’s collaberation with Chronicles of EMS (ChroniclesofEMS.com). Justin Schorr, Mark Glencorse, Ted Setla and many more could be seen at the Zoll booth at conventions. I saw first hand how having these “celebrities” on hand really drew in a crowd. It seemed a lot more effective than just having the sales persons walking around in the booth all day. It gave people another reason to stop in and say hello. Hell, I did it.

Another example is Willie Wines Jr. (IronFiremen.com) being in the MN8 Products booth at Firehouse Expo. Willie will also be at the MN8 booth at Fire Rescue International. People come up to him all day long to meet him.

How does it work?

It is really this simple…Willie blogs about where he is going to be (advertising the company and/or product) and when people get to the conference they seek him out.

Sure, having busty tall blond booth babes works very well too. But that typically just gets guys to stop and stare for a little while. Having a personality that many people know prior to the show in your booth can be an even bigger draw. Plus, what do those booth babes know about your product? You probably gave them a 5 minute crash course on your product and expect them to be experts. Once they leave the show they aren’t going to write about the fun they had, the people they met, publish pictures from your booth, or any of that.

But it doesn’t have to be at exhibit halls only.

Product reviews, advertising on blogs, and simply communicating with bloggers are other ways to engage bloggers and make use of their social networks.

It is about connecting, networking, and working together.

More about this in the future!

As for bloggers, here are two steps you can do to increasing your branding and making it a little more personal…

Make sure your readers know who you are. Include a picture of yourself on your blog. Do you really want to be known as an avatar? Quit hiding behind your banner and logo.
Don’t shy away from who you are. If people want to know who it is being the blog let them know. After all, if you are writing about something shouldn’t you stand behind it.

Fire Critic Note:

If you have not “liked” Daily911Deals on facebook yet you are about to miss out. Head over to the facebook page and “like” us, then subscribe. The deals are starting soon! That is why I haven’t been writing much on FireCritic.com. Once we are live, I will be back to my normal posting!

Posted by The Fire Critic on August 8, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Social Media • Tagged: Chronicles of EMS, Daily911Deals, Daily911Deals.com, EMS, Facebook, Fire Critic, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Foxfire, Justin Schorr, Mark Glencorse, Mn8 Products, Offensive Attack, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Ted Setla, Twitter, Willie Wines Jr., Zoll

IronFiremen.com is Giving Away a Pair of Black Diamond X2 Boots

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Willie Wines Jr. is giving away a brand new pair of Black Diamond X2 boots over at IronFiremen.com.

His rules are simple…To enter, all you have to do is submit a picture of you in front of your rig to him via email or post it on his Facebook Fan Page.

He has had an excellent start to the contest. Firefighters from across the Nation have submitted pictures. He has heard from some as far away as Spain, but no pics from their yet.

All the entries will be put in a hat and the winner will be pulled (and captured on video) by a special guest.

Full rules are here

Posted by The Fire Critic on March 31, 2011 • Filed under: Contests, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News • Tagged: Black Diamond Boots, Contest, Facebook, Fire Critic, FireCritic.com, IronFiremen.com, Rhett Fleitz, Willie Wines Jr.

FDIC is a Success for this Guy!

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Today, I presented my class at FDIC “Social Media: The Fire Service’s Next Big Innovation”. All in all, I was very pleased with the class and I think that everyone was able to walk away with a little knowledge.

Don’t get me wrong, I had/have a lot to learn (in so many ways!). The 1 hour and 45 minute crash course on social media brought up numerous questions and I found it to be very telling of where the fire service is in breaking through to the power of social media.

I went into the class with the thought that if I can learn what the attendees want/need to know I will be better suited for teaching the class in the future. I found that while I spoke about the basics of the utilization of social media, some of the questions were for the more advanced. That is ok….however, in reviewing the evaluations on the class I found that some thought it was too basic and others thought it was not basic enough. Hopefully the majority found it useful!

Rhett Fleitz Teaching Social Media for the Fire Service at FDIC 2011

Thanks to Captain Willie Wines Jr. for stopping in to snap a photo for me!

I must say, those evaluations are very helpful, no matter what is said. I appreciate all of the attendees who filled one out. I even got gigged for looking at my phone. Apparently it came off as me checking messages. In all actuallity, I was merely checking the time since I don’t wear a watch. I learned a lesson though and perception is everything.

It would have been great to walk into the class knowing exactly what everyone wanted and needed to know, but we have to start somewhere. Social media is such a complex interactive and every changing technology. I thought it was important to offer the groundwork to build a foundation for social media. It appeared as though that is what people were looking for.

The lesson I learned is that 1 hour and 45 minutes simply is not enough time to properly teach social media. Not that it was a revelation, but we gave it a go!

Next month, I will be teaching a similar class in the 5-8 hour time frame. I think that will be plenty of time to delve into social media and even assist the attendees with starting out on their own and making it work for them.

Whether you were able to attend the class or not, I am always available for questions and assisting others in getting started! We have a long road before social media is widely accepted in the fire service. Until then, we can learn from those who make it work!

FDIC videotaped the class. I do not know if it will be available to anyone to see or if they will just be using the video for other purposes. I will let you know if it becomes available.

If you are interested in the .pdf file of my presentation please let me know. I will have it available in some form or fashion soon enough.

Thanks to all those who attended. It was my honor and I enjoyed it tremendously. As always, whenever I teach…I learned a lot!

Feel free to connect with me. I am always available to answer questions and help out if possible!

Rhett Fleitz
FireFleitz@gmail.com
FireCritic@FireCritic.com
Twitter: @FireCritic
Facebook Profile
Facebook Fan Page

Posted by The Fire Critic on March 25, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Blog Tips, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News • Tagged: Facebook, FDIC, Fire, Fire Critic, Fire Department, Fire Department Instructors Conference, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, Firefighting, Rhett Fleitz, Social Media, Social Media in the Fire Service, Twitter

Product Review – Lion Technical Footwear Marshall 14″ Pull-on Fire Boots

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Lion Technical Footwear recently sent me a pair of their Marshall 14″ pull-on firefighting boots for a product review. I received the boots promptly and was very pleased with the look and feel of them. The first thing I typically look at on new boots are the toe cap and the straps. I know there are more important factors that differentiate a good boot from a great boot, but that is what I look at first.

My boots after 3 months. It feels like you are wearing slippers when you have them on!

The toe caps: Vibram® nitrile-rubber toe area covering provides full toe area scuff protection. They look good and they have kept up with the day to day wear and tear.

The boot straps: The straps are sewn INTO the boot and not ONTO the boot. Hopefully this will give them some extra strength for those of you who hang your boots on a hook. As for guys like me who merely use them to carry the boots from one spot to another they should work just fine. The straps are actually made of 1″ Nomex® webbing.

First Impression: I wore these boots around the station for a couple hours before putting them in my turnout pants just to break them in a little bit. They were a little snug because of the extra padding/insulation but they quickly conformed to my foot!

These boots are built for comfort!

Lion Web Site – Facebook - Twitter - Youtube

These boots are comfortable. Think slippers kind of comfortable. They have extra padding/insulation inside and they are just comfortable as can be. I have actually been wearing them for 3 months now and I must say I am thoroughly pleased. I do wonder if what seems like “extra” insulation will be hot in the summer months, but I have yet to pull my feet out of them with dripping wet socks. Sure, I have worked in them and have gotten all sweaty…which means these boots must be able to breathe pretty well. I assure you this…while wearing them during the cold months, my feet never got cold!

The sewn in 1" Nomex Webbing Straps

The heal has a special Lock-Fit Ankle Support System™ which provides anatomical ankle padding that ensures the foot is securely positioned within the boot. The sole is built with a Lenzi® puncture-resistant midsole. This is a very important part of the boot since we rarely get to see where or what we are going to step on. After all, fire boots are all about protecting your feet!

So far after 3 months…Lion is right with their tagline “Comfort That Won’t Quit”

Two drawbacks to these boots…both minor I think.

Made in Canada...a lot better than made elsewhere but nothing beats "Made in the USA"!

They are made in Canada. I consider Canada almost as good as made in America and certainly better than made in China or Indonesia…but I still love seeing that “Made in the USA” on the tag.
The extra padding means that the boots run a little big. This doesn’t mean that you should order them any different than your normal size shoe. It does mean that the overall size of the boot is a bit larger by external measurements than other boots.

The Lion Technical Footwear Marshall 14″ Pull-on boots retail for $299.99 (pricing as found on TheFireStore.com)

Bonus for Female Firefighters - The Marshall 14″ Pull-on and Commander 12” Zip-Lace Design come in Women’s sizing!

Who would have thought that men’s and women’s feet were different?

Lion Technical Footwear Marshall 14" Pull-on Design

Here are some other key points about the boots:

Marshall 14″ pull-on design product flyer - Commander 12″ zip-lace design product flyer

CROSSTECH® fabric membrane.
Cambrelle® lining —300 gram polyfelt insulation.
Slip-resistant, breathable micro-fiber technology protective heel strip enhances foot stability and minimizes wear on Cambrelle® fabric lining.
Lenzi® puncture-resistant midsole.
Wide fitting toe cap with rubber lip tested to withstand an impact up to 92.2 foot pounds meets NFPA, CSA and ASTM standards.
Goodyear® storm welt construction provides maximum durability and enables easy repairs.
Lock-Fit Ankle Support System™ provides anatomical ankle padding that ensures the foot is securely positioned within the boot.
Removable shock-absorbing foam footbed is anti-odor, anti-fungal and breathable.
Double ridged ladder shank reduces painful arch compression.
Vibram® Fire & Ice™ sole offers durability and superior traction at both temperature extremes.
Large 1” rugged Nomex® webbing boot straps with reinforced stitching ensure easy donning and doffing.
Thermoplastic heel counter individually molded to every size for custom fit.
Leather bound, padded collar trim for better all-around fit with no chafing.
Vibram® nitrile-rubber toe area covering provides full toe area scuff protection.
Silver 3M™ Scotchlite™ Reflective Material provides added visibility.

Proudly wearing my Lion Technical Footwear Marshall 14" Pull-ons

About Lion Technical Footwear:

A comfortable boot is essential to safety on the fireground because when your feet hurt, you can lose mobility and stamina. Made with top-grade U.S. fire-resistant leather, LION Technical Footwear brings superior working comfort, flexibility, safety and durability — run after run. The back of a LION Technical Footwear boot is designed to match the anatomical shape of your heel and the molded ankle guard provides a comfortable, athletic fit. The Lenzi® puncture-resistant midsole offers 30% greater coverage area than a stainless steel sole and the breathable CROSSTECH® fabric ensures better comfort. The patented Lock-Fit Ankle Support System™ grabs the ankle and foot to improve surefootedness and reduce the risk of slips, trips and falls.

Here is a short video about Lion boots. Check out more videos on their youtube channel here!

The Fire Critic offers product reviews. Please visit this page for details on how to get your product reviewed and what our policy is on reviews.

Posted by The Fire Critic on March 12, 2011 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, News, Product Reviews, Technology & Communications, technology-communications-ems-topics, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics, Videos • Tagged: ASTM, Boot Review, Cambrelle, Comfort, Crosstech, CSA, Facebook, Fire Boot Review, Fire Boots, Fire Critic, Fire Department Boots, Fire Review, Fire Service Product Review, Fire Service Review, FireBoot Review, FireCritic.com, firefighter boots, Firefighter Review, Firefighting Boots, Firefighting Review, Goodyear, Lenzi, Lion, Lion Boots, Lion Footwear, Lion Technical Footwear, Lock-fit ankle support system, Marshall 14" Pull-on boots, National Fire Protective Association, NFPA, Nomex, Product Review, Product Reviews, Pull on Fire Boots, Review, Rhett Fleitz, Scotchlite, Twitter, Vibram, Video, youtube

Gearing up for FDIC…The Fire Critic Offers Social Media Training

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I will be teaching a class on Social Media for the Fire Service at FDIC this year. I am excited for my first teaching engagement in a venue as large as FDIC…does it get any bigger? I have many friends teaching at FDIC as well. I will write about their classes in the near future.

The class is titled “Social Media: The Fire Service’s Next Big Innovation”

Thursday, March 24, 2011
1:30 PM-3:15 PM
Room 134-135

Here is the teaser:

Social Media: The Fire Service’s Next Big Innovation
Lieutenant Rhett Fleitz, Roanoke (VA) Fire-EMS Department
Learn the “in’s and out’s” of social media for the fire service. Many questions about these media (blogs, twitter, facebook, MySpace, YouTube, skype, podcasting, text messaging, and so on) will be answered. Learn to be proactive by developing a social media standard operating procedure. Become acquainted with some of the ways departments are using these media for recruitment, retention, informing journalists and citizens, and publishing news. The benefits and potential consequences for personal use of these media by employees are also discussed. ALL LEVELS

Although that teaser only scratches the surface of the information I will share!

Who should attend? Anyone interested in social media, blogging, and branding their department online. Administrators who want to learn about social media, get examples of social media policies, as well as firefighters who want to brand their companies and departments. There will be information for all levels!

I am still working on the presentation. Since social media changes every day and new ideas, tools, and applications are created every day this is an ongoing project.

If you have a social media policy you would like to share or think your Fire Department excels in the use of social media please contact me. I am always looking for examples to share.

I will also be at the Fire Rescue Magazine booth 4244 set up with Firefighter Netcast. John and I will be recording live netcasts while we are there similarly to last year!

I don’t know what else I will get into while at FDIC, but I am certain that we will have fun! Willie Wines Jr. (IronFiremen.com) will be travelling with me once again!

John and I had a blast with FDIC last year. The event was the first major show for Firefighter Netcast. Since then, we have recorded almost 100 shows. We don’t have a solid schedule yet, but we are expecting to record some podcasts for Tiger Schmittendorf, Chris Naum, Doug Cline, Billy Hayes, Dave Statter for FireHero Radio, and much more.

Below are some of the shows we recorded at FDIC 2010:

Chief Ron Siarnicki- National Fallen Firefighters Foundation – This special NetCast was taped live on Friday, April 23, from the floor at FDIC 2010 in Indianapolis. Firefighter NetCast is very excited to have a chance to present Chief Ron Siarnicki to our audience.
EMS Two Dot Oh – On Friday, April 23, Firefighter NetCast had a visit from a couple of leaders in the concept of EMS 2.0. Justin Schorr is an urban firefighter/paramedic in San Francisco and hosts The Happy Medic. Accompanying Justin is Chris Kaiser, a rural firefighter/paramedic in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin.
Firefighter Storytime! Chief Tom Merrill, Snyder (NY) Fire Dept. – From the floor of FDIC 2010 on Saturday, April 24, our final NetCast from the exhibit floor featured two special guests from Erie County, New York. We began our series “Firefighter Storytellers” with author, presenter, instructor, emergency manager and leader in the emergency services community Tiger Schmittendorf.
From Blue Shirt to Bugle – The Most Difficult Transition in Your Career - This show featuring Billy Goldfeder and Ray Gayk was originally aired as a live netcast from the exhibit floor of FDIC. John and Rhett enjoy discussion about what to do and what not to do when you get promoted. This is great training for you or your company. Listen in at the firehouse!
Challenges on the Modern Fireground – We were eager to turn over one of our shows to the fine folks from FireRescue Magazine, who graciously hosted Firefighter NetCast at their booth along with Firefighter Nation at FDIC. Without their assistance, our live programming from the exhibit hall would not have been possible.
Changes in Building Construction and Fire Behavior – John and Rhett are joined with Chris Naum to discuss Changes in Building Construction and Fire Behavior. Chris is a a fire service leader in the field of building construction and fire behavior. Chris addresses the need to re-visit these core subject areas to bring us up to speed with the many changes facing us today.
Distribution of Photos and Videos Taken by Firefighters at Work – John and Rhett discuss legal issues surrounding photographs and videos taken while on duty with Fred Simon. Some of the information will astound you about who owns the material!

I will also be teaching the same class at Kean University in New Jersey (dates below):

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 - Somerset County Emergency Services Training Academy
402 Roycefield Rd Hillsborough, NJ 08844

Thursday, April 21, 2011 - Middlesex County Fire Academy
1001 Fire Academy Dr Sayreville, NJ 08872

These will be more in depth 5+ hour classes on social media in the fire service. For more information check out KeanFireSafety.com. However, I don’t believe the classes are posted yet.

Posted by The Fire Critic on February 16, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Technology & Communications, technology-communications-ems-topics, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: Billy Goldfeder, Billy Hayes, Captain Willie Wines Jr., Chris Kaiser, Chris Naum, Christopher Naum, Chronicles of EMS, Dave Statter, Doug Cline, Everyone Goes Home, Facebook, FDIC, Fire Critic, Fire Daily, Fire Department Instructors Conference, Fire Rescue Magazine, Fire Service, FireCritic.com, FireDaily.com, Firefighter Netcast, Firefighter Podcast, FirefighterNetcast.com, Firefighting, FireHero Radio, Fred Simon, IronFiremen.com, John Mitchell, Justin Schorr, Kean University, National Fallen Firefighter Foundation, NetCast, Podcast, Ray Gayk, Rhett Fleitz, Ron Siarnicki, Run to the Curb, Social Media, Social Media Training, Tiger Schmittendorf, Willie Wines Jr.

LODD – Firefighter Jarrett Eleam of the Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company Dies After Training

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Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company Firefighter Jarrett Eleam, 26, passed away Wednesday. He fell ill during training with his fire company on Monday night.

Eleam, who graduated from Erie County’s Firefighter I Boot Camp class this past summer, died at Mercy hospital in Buffalo.

Jarrett is a graduate of Duquesne University and member of Delta Sigma Pi Fraternity

His arrangements are being planned.

More coverage:

The Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company is located centrally in the Town of Hamburg, just south of Buffalo, New York. As one of nine fire companies serving the 49 square miles of the Town of Hamburg, the Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company boasts a central location and high call volume.

FC Note: This LODD has not been ruled a LODD by the USFA at the time of this posting

Posted by The Fire Critic on January 13, 2011 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty, News • Tagged: Big Tree VFC, Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company, Buffalo, EMS, Erie County, Erie County Fire Blotter, Facebook, Fire Critic, FireCritic.com, Firefighter, FirefighterCloseCalls.com, Firefighting, Hamburg, In the Line of Duty, Jarrett Eleam, Line of Duty, Line of Duty Death, LODD, New York, Rhett Fleitz, Tiger Schmittendorf, Training, Training Death, Training LODD

Beloit Fire Audio Remix…You thought it was funny the first time!

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The other day, I posted a video of a house fire in Beloit, Wisconsin (watch the original here). The video is not that great, but the audio is hilarious!

I then said it would be hilarious if someone did a remix of the audio/video because I knew it would be funny.

Well, someone came through with it. Who you might ask? ELAFF is who. Who is ELAFF? Thats easy… it is Excessive Leather Accessories for Firefighters.

ELAFF is a Dedicated to leather firefighting accessories, and the firefighters with a fondness for wearing them…sometimes in excess.
(You know who you are.)

ELAFF is a facebook fan page that often posts links to interesting firefighting articles and videos.

The purpose of ELAFF:

To support our firefighting brethren who choose to wear so much leather crap that it often slows and hinders their ability to quickly enter the apparatus, let alone function efficiently on the fireground.

Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/ExcessiveLeatherAccessoriesforFirefighters

Posted by The Fire Critic on December 14, 2010 • Filed under: Fires, Humor, News, Videos • Tagged: Beloit, Beloit Fire Department, ELAFF, Excessive Leather Accessories for Firefighters, Facebook, Fire Critic, FireCritic.com, Funny Video, House Fire, Humor, Remix, Wisconsin

LEO: The Fire Within Product Review and Their Model Search is ON!

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LEO: The Fire Within is casual apparel for today’s firefighter. They rolled out their first shirt at FDIC this year.

From LEOFireShop.com:

Why LEO? Look up the qualities of a Leo, the 5th symbol of the Zodiac – honesty, loyalty, self-sacrifice, courage, will, independence and fire. Sound familiar? Not only do these qualities perfectly embody today’s firefighters, but they also embody the fire within – that special quality that every firefighter has – whether you are 5 years or 30 in service.

Honestly, when I heard the name I initially thought that LEO stood for Law Enforcement Officer…luckily I was wrong!

***LEOFireShop.com -* *Twitter @LEOfireshop – Facebook Fan Page***

The original LEO design that was rolled out at FDIC 2010

You can actually check out prototypes for their next designs here as well.

LEO contacted me about doing a product review. I told them my size and they sent a shirt. They currently have two designs. They sent me the black “The Fire Within” shirt they rolled out at FDIC. The newest design is on a white shirt. LEO actually let survey participants choose the second design that rolled out after FDIC.

LEO plans on rolling out 2 more designs next year

I asked for large and I was very pleased to find out that their idea of a large was the same as mine!

Sizing includes: Adult M-L-XL ($19.99) and Youth 8-10-12 ($14.99)
You can get both designs for $34.99 (adult) or $24.99 (youth). Purchase shirts here

My first impression of the shirt was that it was very comfortable! The shirt is 100% cotton and preshrunk by Gildan (softstyle) and made in Honduras (keep reading though). If you know anything about me, I like my shirts made in the U.S.A.

Before I got around to doing this review, I was sent additional information including:

Based on customer feedback our shirts are now being printed on American Apparel t-shirts. 1st design shirts are still not on American Apparel t-shirts but will be in the near future.

Imagine that I would find a bunch of babes wearing the LEO: The Fire Within T-shirts. This is from their facebook page.

The shirt design is done well and not gaudy. I have a lot of firefighting shirts from over the years, but not too many designer type firefighter shirts like this one. Other than the print on the front, the shirt offers a small logo on the right hand arm. The design includes light gray, dark gray, and red as the colors for the design. Not too much….just right!

I must say that I am very pleased with my LEO: The Fire Within shirt! Other than being made in Honduras, I couldn’t really find anything to pick apart. The sizing, fit, and feel of the shirt was very nice and I plan on wearing the shirt more in the future.

However, if I were one of the LARGER firefighters I might find issue with the fact that LEO does not offer XXL or XXXL. I know some guys who would never fit into a XL!

This is a great idea for Christmas!

LEO is Currently Looking for Models!

Here is my submission to being a model for LEO...Imagine that...The Fire Critic a model! What is this world coming to?

You heard me right! LEO is currently doing a model search. They do not require six pack abs (which means I have a chance!). Read more here

We are looking for firefighters to model LEO clothing for the upcoming website – no six-pack necessary. We are not looking for career models, just people with the LEO spirit and confidence to take photos wearing LEO gear.

We are looking for four people to be the face of LEO for our inaugural kickoff year.

Winners will receive:

1 year of bragging rights as the face of LEO
Free access to the latest LEO gear
A sweet cash prize*

If you’re ready to answer the call, submit your name, contact info and a picture of yourself (HINT: if you have a LEO shirt take a picture wearing it!) to LEO (at) Leofireshop.com.

The Fire Critic offers product reviews. Please visit this page for details on how to get your product reviewed and what our policy is on reviews.

Posted by The Fire Critic on November 8, 2010 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Must Read, News, Product Reviews • Tagged: Apparel, Christmas gifts for firefighters, Design, Facebook, FDIC, Fire Critic, Fire Department Instructor Conference, FireCritic.com, Firefighter Apparel, Firefighter Babes, Firefighter Christmas Gifts, Firefighter Design, Firefighter Designs, Firefighter Gear, Firefighter Shirts, Firefighter T-Shirts, Firefighting shirts, Gifts, LEO, LEO Fire Shop, LEO The Fire Within, Model Search, Product Review, Product Reviews, Rhett Fleitz, Shirts, T-Shirts, The Fire Critic, The Fire Within, Twitter

Getting your Blog To Work For You, Making the Most of it, Creating a Network, and Gaining Readers

6 comments

It has been a while since I have posted a “Blog Tip” (previous ones on monetizing your blog) on Fire Critic. After speaking with other bloggers and hearing that some of them are reaching for readers and trying to comprehend the best ways of increasing readership I felt I would offer some tips.

These tips can be useful for any bloggers, although some of the tips might be catered to the crowd on the FireEMSBlogs.com network. I have been blogging in some form or another for the past 6 years. I have not learned it all, and I realize that best practices can be altered, discovered, or modified daily.

I will follow up with many more “blog tips” in the future. This is a beginner “blog tip” to get new bloggers rolling and some extra tips for others who are looking for that extra boost.

This article will focus on spreading the word to a larger audience and when, how, and why to write articles.

Writing articles

Be original!

Focus on your audience. Hopefully you have defined your audience. Obviously I have not!
Write at the frequency of your choice. Don’t make it a chore. The Happy Medic has said before that if he sits down and has to think real hard about what to write about he gets up and does something else. This is a good practice. Don’t force it.
Write about your readers…not yourself. Unless you blog in the format like IronFiremen.com, you should write about your readers. Most of them don’t want to hear about you. You can add your thoughts, but don’t make your blog all about you…nobody cares.
Create conversation. You want comments? Ask a question.
Write about controversial subjects. Not everyone is a STATter911.com or FireGeezer. However, you can still write about controversial subjects. Be sure to be clear if you are offering your opinion. Even if you merely write about a subject, whatever you write will be read as your opinion. I often write about stuff without offering my opinion until after the comments begin.
Follow up with your articles. If the commentary leads to more conversation you can write another post about the new information. Likewise, if you are writing about a news story be sure to follow up on any future news on that story.
Pictures and Videos - readers love watching videos and seeing pictures.
Limit your words – Many blog gurus have put a limit of words in a single post. I am not quite that strict on this. However, use as few words as you need to get your point across. Most readers scan the content, they go back and read verbatim if they see something that captures their attention.
Give Credit - if you use a photo or quote another blog be sure to give them credit and link to their content.
Share what you read after you write it….read on!

Sharing, Networking, and Social Media

There are numerous social mediums out there. Facebook and twitter are probably the most worthwhile.

Facebook – Fire Critic Facebook Fan Page

Facebook Fan Page - Create a facebook fan page for your blog! Utilize this fan page to connect with your fans. Facebook is the busiest site on the internet. People spend hours on facebook every day.
Networked Blogs – Networked blogs is an application on facebook that parses your rss feed from your blog to your facebook fan page. You can also post your articles directly from networked blogs to twitter. I don’t recommend this though, you are better off with twitterfeed…read on.
Follow the comments on Facebook. Be sure to follow your blog posts as they appear on facebook. The comments can take off before you know it and they don’t translate to comments on your blog (yet).
Make your Fan Page Known. Be sure everyone knows about your facebook fan page! Make the link easy to find and blog about your fan page!
Facebook Share and Facebook Like – install these plugins on your blog to make it easy for readers to share/like your articles on facebook.

Twitter - Follow @FireCritic

Twitter Username – Make your twitter username easy to remember for others and short! Twitter constrains you to 140 characters. You don’t want half of that to be your blog name if your blog has a long title. Chris Kaiser (Life Under the Lights) uses CKEMTP for everything. The branding of his username makes certain cohesion for people seeing his username on social media sites. He has created a brand others remember.
Syndicate on Twitter – Use TwitterFeed.com to syndicate your content from your blog to your twitter account. That way everyone gets your content as soon as you post it. Twitterfeed can also be used to send your content to facebook, but I recommend using networked blogs for that.
Tweetmeme – install the tweetmeme plugin on your blog. This plugin offers your readers the ability to share your article on twitter easily.
Start Conversation – use twitter to create conversation about topics. Engage other users.
Follow other Twitter users – Follow other twitter users you are interested in. Don’t autofollow. I don’t do it and I think it is cheap. I follow the people I want to follow.
Retweet - Retweet others tweets that interest you. If you do it, they might return the favor. It is a cycle that people create by sharing others thoughts, and links.
Use hashtags – If you are a Fire Service blogger, use hashtags like #Fire and #Firefighter and #Firefighting. If you are EMS, use #EMS, #EMT, #Medic, and #Paramedic. They help! Some people follow hashtags to see what the latest news is on that topic!

Tricking out your blog

Ah, the age old question of what plugins, widgets, and other stuff you should add to your blog.

Social Media links - Be sure to have icons with links to your facebook fan page, twitter account, email, rss feed, and maybe more like firefighter nation account and jems connect account.
Tweetmeme, facebook share, and facebook like - make it easy for others to spread the word about your articles.
Related posts – using a related posts plugin in the bottom of all of your articles can provide more clicks to stories you have written in the past.
Copy other blogs - Don’t copy the content. If you see something you like, ask the blogger what it is and where you can get it!
Statistics – I recommend the very easy and free statcounter along with google analytics for following your stats!
All in One SEO – Search for this on WordPress Plugins and maximize the Search Engine Optimization of your blog easily.

Increasing Traffic

Link to other blogs – If you see an article that someone else wrote link to it. Write a small paragraph about it and offer the link. They will appreciate it and might do the same for you if they see something they like on your blog.
Syndication - Syndicate your blog on twitter, rss through feedburner, facebook, Firefighter Nation, Jems Connect, and other sites that will provide trackbacks and clicks to your content.
Tags and Categories – Especially on FireEMSBlogs.com, but also very useful elsewhere. Take the extra minute to tag your articles appropriately (look at all the tags on this article). Likewise, utilize categories to properly place your articles in respective groupings. You would be amazed at how much traffic you can get from tags/categories being properly used.

Again, this is a list of things to do for the beginner blogger as well as some extras for those who are looking for an extra boost.

Check back in the future for more tips!

What do you have to add?

What works for you?

What doesn’t work?

Posted by The Fire Critic on October 29, 2010 • Filed under: Blog Tips, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Technology & Communications, technology-communications-ems-topics, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: Blog, Blog Etiquette, Blog Syndication, Blog Tips, Blogging, CKEMTP, Clicks, Controversy, Conversation, Dave Statter, EMS, Etiquette, Facebook, Fire, Firefighter, FireGeezer, Google Analytics, Increasing Blog Traffic, Life Under the Lights Blog, Networking, Search Engine Optimization, SEO, Sharing, Social Media, Statcounter, STATter911, Syndication, The Happy Medic, trackbacks, Tricking out your blog, Tweetmeme, Twitter, Writing Articles

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Introducing Firefighter Dan…Help Get this Worthy Cause off the Ground

Here is the fundraising campaign on Kickstarter

Firefighter Dan Web site – YouTube - Vimeo – Facebook

IronFiremen.com is Giving Away a Pair of Black Diamond X2 Boots

Full rules are here

Product Review – Lion Technical Footwear Marshall 14″ Pull-on Fire Boots

These boots are built for comfort!

Lion Web Site – Facebook - Twitter - Youtube

Bonus for Female Firefighters - The Marshall 14″ Pull-on and Commander 12” Zip-Lace Design come in Women’s sizing!

LODD – Firefighter Jarrett Eleam of the Big Tree Volunteer Fire Company Dies After Training

Beloit Fire Audio Remix…You thought it was funny the first time!

LEO: The Fire Within Product Review and Their Model Search is ON!

***LEOFireShop.com -* *Twitter @LEOfireshop – Facebook Fan Page***

LEO plans on rolling out 2 more designs next year

LEO is Currently Looking for Models!

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These boots are built for comfort!

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Bonus for Female Firefighters - The Marshall 14″ Pull-on and Commander 12” Zip-Lace Design come in Women’s sizing!

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LEO plans on rolling out 2 more designs next year

LEO is Currently Looking for Models!

Writing articles

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***LEOFireShop.com -* *Twitter @LEOfireshop – Facebook Fan Page***