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FEMS…It is that Damn Funny!

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No disrespect to my DCFD brothers and sisters….but I had to…

What the hell is up with FEMS. Am I the only firefighter laughing my ASS off at that Chief up there. You know…the Chief of FEMS. WTF? Who the hell would name their department FEMS? Is this a sick joke? Maybe it was an early April Fools Joke?

FEMS must have plenty of money to just change everything to FEMS. The word FEMS almost sounds like a FEMSing cuss word.

FEMS…I am still FEMSing laughing. Seriously…I am chuckling right now. I am probably not the only one. FEMS.

It is that damn funny. FEMS

Is this a FEMSing case study on how to be hated by your whole FEMSing department in record FEMSing timing.

Does anyone love the new name FEMS? I would FEMSing love to hear from you! I am FEMSing serious!

Who has acronyms for this? I am sure there are some good ones out there!

Fire EMS…That is what it stands for right? Thats it? Just FEMS. We don’t need anything else? Wasn’t the name change to better describe WHO the DCFD is and what they do? Now it is just FEMS…We know it is Fire EMS, but we don’t know where.

OR

Am I the only one who relates the term FEMS to Feminine and Femanist.

Is it an all female department? The FEMS? I am pretty sure there are plenty of great firemen up there. Maybe the men feel left out.

Maybe we are only days away from a lawsuit stating the men feel left out and feel as though the name should be MASFEMS or FEMSMAS (is that an all female holiday?)

Is the headquarters called FEMDOM? Isn’t that a porn reference? Google it if you don’t believe me.

I could go on all night long…

Seriously, DCFD just wasn’t cutting it anymore? DCFD…I am not laughing at you, I feel for you. I certainly hope that someone has some sense to stop the nonsense!

Posted by on April 1, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Humor, News • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fire Blogs…Are they taking over Mainstream Fire Based Media?

5 comments

When you think of fire service media you might think of the magazines like Firehouse Magazine, Fire Engineering Magazine, Fire Rescue Magazine, Fire Chief Magazine, and some others. However, years ago these magazines created web sites which enabled them to get more information to their readers quicker. Readers could now follow breaking news without having to wait until the next publish date of the magazine.

Then came the blogs…typically bloggers are able to get information out quicker than these mainstream fire service web sites. It comes with a price though. I am not talking about a subscription, its just that bloggers work on their own. They don’t have a staff working behind the scenes gathering information. Blogging is all about the time, effort, and ability of the blogger. Probably the most important of which is time. I don’t know any fire bloggers who do it for a living.

In past years, as fire bloggers come and go, there have been some who have really taken it to the next level. Many of them have began giving the mainstream fire service web sites a run for their money. Day in and day out, these bloggers beat the mainstream fire service media to stories, incidents, LODD’s, and other news. The bloggers break the news first, and many do follow up stories on the topics.

Which is better? That all depends on what you are looking for. The mainstream fire service media will probably be more verified, but that comes at a cost of being hours later than the blogs. The blogs typically have the stories from multiple angles. Another huge aspect of blogging is that their aren’t any borders. The mainstream fire news media will likely post a majority on the U.S., whereas bloggers might post a story from wherever as long as they feel their is a need to tell the story.

Case and point:

Take a look at the coverage of a recent 5 Alarm fire in Philadelphia (yesterday).

Firehouse.com coverage included 1 video

Mainstream Fire Service Media Coverage

Firehouse.com’s coverage:

FH.com simply syndicated a story by the Philadelphia Inquirer which includes 1 video: Five-Alarmer Rips Through Philadelphia School.

FireEngineering.com’s coverage:

FireEngineering.com ran the story without any video/photo and followed it with a story on IAFF local 22′s thoughts on recent brownouts: Fire destroys West Philadelphia charter school and Letters: Another near fire catastrophe in South Philadelphia both of which were syndicated from The Philadelphia Daily News.

FireEngineering.com coverage didn't have any video or photos. They did cover IAFF Local 22's issues with brownouts in another story

None of the stories above give publishing times.

FirefighterNation.com:

FirefighterNation.com which is the web site for Fire Rescue Magazine is somewhat of a hybrid source. They post information and often link to bloggers articles on topics from FireEMSBlogs.com bloggers. They ran a story at 10:18am yesterday: 5-Alarm Fire Destroys Philadelphia Charter School.

Fire Bloggers Coverage

In order of publish times

Firegeezer was the first with coverage including a photo and video

Firegeezer.com:

FireGeezer.com actually posted a story: 5 Alarms in Philly on January 9th at 11:59 am including 1 photo and 1 video.

CommandSafety:

CommandSafety.com was also on top of the coverage on January 9th at 1:07pm with multiple photos and links to videos and more coverage: Five Alarm School Fire, Philadelphia

FireCritic.com:

FireCritic.com posted a story on two 5 Alarm fires in Philadelphia: Video: Philadelphia Firefighters Battle Two 5 Alarm Fires in Two Days at 7:03 pm Monday. The story included 1 photo, 1 video, and the live dispatch from the fire. It also included 1 photo, 3 videos, and plenty of links to IAFF Local 22′s issues with brownouts.

The Fire Critic had the story along with a photo and video and another 5 alarm fire in Philly and links to Local 22's issues with the brownouts.

STATter911.com:

STATter911.com did an article on the Philly fires as well: Raw video & fireground audio: Two 5-alarm fires in Philly in two days. This includes a video and the live dispatch of the school fire and more coverage on the other 5 alarm apartment fire.

Bloggers vs. Mainstream Fire Service Media

In the end, we don’t have all of the publish times of the stories. However, FE.com, FH.com, and FFNation.com don’t work on the weekend. In this case, we know that at least FireGeezer does!

What about the coverage… It is obvious that the bloggers do a little more research, pull from more sources, and offer more insight and angles to the story.

I don’t know about you, but if I didn’t have time to read 10 web sites I know the ones I would read over others!

Maybe these bloggers are quickly becoming the mainstream fire service media!

That is just one example. You wouldn’t believe some of the stories FireGeezer finds…nor would you believe the angles that Dave Statter finds. Plus the bloggers do a pretty darn good job of keeping their twitter and facebook readers in tune with updates on stories.

Posted by on January 11, 2011 • Filed under: Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, News, Videos, Website Critique • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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

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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 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: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Monday Morning Shoutout – STATter911.com

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This weeks Monday Morning Shoutout goes to Dave Statter’s STATter911.com. His site has been up and running for quite a while, and is easily one of the most visited “fire blogs” out there.

Dave recently retired after working as a reporter in the DC Metro area. He now spends his time as a consultant…most notably the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

Even though he has retired, his site hasn’t changed all that much. I can only guess that he doesn’t have all the news stories at his finger tips…but I am sure he is still connected!

Posted by on August 16, 2010 • Filed under: Monday Morning Shoutout, News • Tagged: , , , , , ,

Controlling The Fire Service Media…Bloggers Keep The News Flowing!

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Firehouse.com, FireEngineering.com, FireRescue1.com, FirefighterNation.com, and many other web sites are great places to get your news and opinion. Some of them have magazines in print which have been around much longer. Print magazines are great for news and information, but cannot compete with the more instant ability to publish online.

Fire and/or EMS service blogs can be another form of online news site. Maybe not all blogs publish news all the time, but most do from time to time.

Probably the epitome of fire service news blogs are STATTer911.com or FireGeezer.com, although any other blogs cover news events from around the world.

The news doesn’t have to be breaking news either. Many bloggers are great writers and offer free original content on their sites. Take Chris Naum’s CompanyOfficer.com and CommandSafety.com, Mick Mayer’s FirehouseZen.com, or Art Goodrich’s ChiefReason.com. They all offer top notch writing and insight.

Naturally, the larger media companies created blogs. Firehouse.com and FireEngineering.com offer blogs from some of their contributing editors. FireRescue1 and FirefighterNation took a little bit different route.

FireRescue1.com came up with the Kitchen Table; a conglomerate of bloggers which for the most part offers syndicated material from the authors own blog hosted elsewhere.

FirefighterNation.com is a hybrid site. Part message board, part news site, part blog network, part social network site. They offer blogs for any member who wants to publish in the format. In addition, FireEMSBlogs.com was loosely created out of the site.

What I have found most interesting is how many bloggers will break news stories, write articles, or other information that soon after you will see in the mainstream fire service media.

Sure, it is given that if a news story breaks that the mainstream fire service media is going to cover it. However, what is ironic is the other stuff. Articles written on various topics are obviously read and then soon after you will see another article on the topic in one of the larger media outlets.

I have about 5 examples from the last month…including stuff heard over podcasting later to be revealed in an article elsewhere.

It just goes to show that bloggers matter and are doing a great job! Keep up the great work…

Posted by on July 7, 2010 • Filed under: News • Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

FireGroundVideo.com is up and running again!

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FireGroundVideo.com is going strong and better than ever! I created the web site a while back as a sub-site of FireCritic.com. The reason I started it was because I started posting a lot of videos on FC and realized that maybe there was a need for another site. I was kinda right and kinda wrong.

The truth is that web sites are time consuming. I tried my best at updating FGV in a timely manner but realized I just didn’t have the time.

Now it does it for me. That’s right, FireGroundVideo.com is updated every hour with a fireground video. The science is not exact and occasionally I have to go back and delete a “Alice Cooper House on Fire” video.

The great news for me is that it is automated. Not to many people would admit that, but I am an honest person. It pulls firefighting videos from Youtube automatically.

I am not competing with the likes of Firefighter Spot, STATter911, or TheBravestOnline.com (where you will see some of the best and latest videos). I am merely syndicating videos that you might not have seen.

The site is updated every hour and it features a random array of new and old video. Check it out!

We have a facebook page and update on twitter as well. The links are in the sidebar!

Posted by on June 29, 2010 • Filed under: News, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , ,

So here I am at work and What should I see? Plus comments on the Fatal Seattle Fire

11 comments

I am working today. We had an eventful morning running about 5 calls in about 4 hours. Mostly the usual and a pickup truck on fire on the interstate. Needless to say that people CANNOT drive!

After lunch and a little bit of training I was trying to tie up some loose ends and I took a step into the watch room. I nearly lost my lunch when I walked in and found one of our Firefighter/Medics reading…..

Yes… You got it right. There he was reading STATter 911. You know, the fire service news blog run by the recently unemployed retired Dave Statter.What the hell am I chump change? Actually, this guy is a class act and keeps up on the fire service news pretty well!

It is hard to admit, but I am glad he was reading it. He filled me in on a fatal fire in Seattle that took the lives of 5 people.

People are pointing to response times. I must say that 5 minutes from the first call to the first engine being on scene is acceptable.

The firefighters were unable to get the engine into pump gear after several attempts.

What got my attention was this excerpt from the Seattle times article on the fire:

Asked Sunday why firefighters from Engine 18 didn’t then try to enter the burning unit to try to rescue the victims, Dean said crews are not allowed to enter burning buildings until water is being poured on a blaze.

“Having flames and fire on the first floor, they cannot proceed onto the second floor until they have got that fire out,” Dean said. “If you don’t put that fire out, you will have that fire follow you and burn you and your hose and remove your escape route also.” Read the entire article

I am certain that the firefighters on scene are beating themselves up. Equipment failures are going to happen. At times like these those failures CAN prove to be fatal. However, there may not be any way of knowing if any other actions would have had a better outcome.

As I have always said, the public will NEVER understand what we do.

Read the article on STATter911 here. It includes video, photos, and articles on the fire.

Posted by on June 14, 2010 • Filed under: News • Tagged: , , , , , ,

Monday Morning Shoutout – DCFD.com

1 comment

This weeks Monday Morning Shoutout goes to DCFD.com. The site is all about fires/firefighting in the District of Columbia. It is run by Administrator – John Mullen, Webmaster – Justin Baer, Contributor – Vito Maggiolo, Photographer – Elliot Goodman, and Graphic Design- Kevin Copley.

The site is updated all the time with great photos from Vito, Elliot, and others. If you keep up with STATter911 you will see their work on the site regularly.

It is amazing how much press that a handful of guys can give a department…Keep up the great work!

dcfd

Posted by on January 4, 2010 • Filed under: Monday Morning Shoutout, News • Tagged: , , , , ,

Have you Seen This?

3 comments

Ok, this is a link to other stories on other websites. The title is actually inspired by my first little ditty….

TheHouseWatch.com offers a great video of the Buffalo Fire Department. If this video and audio track doesn’t grab your attention go slam your $%# in the door! The video is expertly done! The House Watch also has some of the greatest tactic/strategy posts on the web today!

The FireGeezer is doing what he does best….showing everyone else how branding is paramount. He offers the latest mug shot of Bobby Halton showing off his Geezer Mug! Plenty more news abounds including this post by Mike Ward!

Don’t we all wish we had the connections that Dave Statter has! Dave serves up the latest on the snafu in DC with comments from Dennis Rubin here. Dave is great at what he does…a reporter! His following on his blog is top notch with lovers and haters!!! You gotta take the good with the bad…check the comments on most posts you will see what I mean!

Ok, The Happy Medic pointed to it and so did another blog (I lost which one though). This is the original post on Rogue Medic and this is the follow up by A Day in the Life of an Ambulance Driver. Read it and understand what the Rogue Medic is trying to say….according to the Happy Medic and all that we need Reform in the EMS Profession!

FireDaily.com is a new site, but in a recent post he promises that he has something new on the horizon. Keep up with his blog he has a lot to offer!

The Fire Critic is a little sad because FireFighterHourly.com has more facebook fans than him! Try to keep in touch on Facebook with FireFighterHourly.com’s Facebook Page and FireCritic.com’s Facebook Page. Although in my defense, I am a little newer to this thing than Jay is.

Finally, I have great news! The Fire Critic is working on a collaboration with two other individuals. I will have more news in just a couple of days. To be honest, I am working on it with the business I run and not actually the Fire Critic. However it still counts. Look for more information soon!

Posted by on October 12, 2009 • Filed under: News • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,

Is being Chief Really Worth it?

11 comments

Dave Statter reported on the latest saga in the DCFD. It centers around council blaming the hydrnat problems on their Chief, Dennis Rubin. The Chief thinks that he isn’t getting enough credit for making headway in the laundry list of issues plaguing the department.

The whole hydrant issue came to the forefront after a mansion burned because there wasn’t enough water on the hydrants. You can read the entire report here. Be sure to read the comments at the link.

My question is this: Is being the Chief really worth it?

Posted by on September 27, 2009 • Filed under: News • Tagged: , , ,

Saturday Hotshot – Explosive Car Fire

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This weeks Saturday Hotshot is courtesy of a STATter911 who found it on LiveLeak. Supposedly from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Watch how close the guy is walking near it when it explodes.

Posted by on September 19, 2009 • Filed under: News, Saturday Hotshot, Videos • Tagged: , , , , ,

Saturday Hotshot – Cowan Mill Fire

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This weeks Saturday Hotshot is a video rather than an image. I make the rules, I can change them anytime I want! Actually, I never said it had to be an image. For decent coverage of the fire with all the links you want to reports, video, and photos check out Statter911.com here.

A massive 19th century mill burst into flames Wednesday afternoon in Lewiston, Maine. There is a partial collapse at 1:14 in the video above. Police are looking for teenagers who may be behind the fire. Embers started fires in other buildings.

Posted by on July 18, 2009 • Filed under: News, Saturday Hotshot • Tagged: , , , , , ,

Rolling Brownouts, Firehouse Roulette, Firehouse Closures, Layoffs…

2 comments

Call it what you will, but I call it poor management.

The three highest priorities in any jurisdiction should be:

  • Public Safety
  • Education
  • Refuse Collection

Those are in no particular order. Those are the necessities. PERIOD. Over the last 5 or so years..maybe longer, firefighters and EMT’s have seen their budgets cut, hacked, and brought down to an all time low.

I don’t care where you are or who you work for, your City/County/Locality should not be cutting the operational funds of any fire and/or EMS department without completely cutting other programs. When I say “CUTTING”, I mean completely gone like they never existed before. Things like economic development, risk management, transportation, technology, fleet management, social services, homeless assistance, general services, planning, neighborhood services, parks and recreation. These departments should be decreased to a skeleton crew and or merged with another department. Other programs should have been deleted way before we got to this point.

Below are stories about Station Closures, Brownouts, Layoffs, and such from the past month to today. Today is important because it is the first day of many jurisdictions fiscal years.

And yet some firefighters have agreed to make up for budget shortfalls out of their own pocket! And to think that there are some assholes out there who just don’t get it. The Administrations, Fire Chiefs, City Councils, County Supervisors, Aldermen,etc. will never understand that we mean business and we are in the business to save lives! We don’t stand up for what we believe in just to hear ourselves talk. Check out these ALL-AMERICANS.

These are just some  examples of closures, brownouts, and layoffs as well as some departments who have given up even more to prove the point that we CANNOT afford anymore cuts for our safety and that of our citizens. Feel free to chime in if you have another City, Link, Story related!

Posted by on July 2, 2009 • Filed under: News • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,