FIRE ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENTS
EDITORIAL 6
VOLUNTEERS CORNER 8
A hose is a hose—or is it?
TRAINING NOTEBOOK 10
Winterizing apparatus cooling systems
DISPATCHES 18
Boston University provides PASS devices WV recognizes firefighter efforts
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 16
COURSES/COMING EVENTS 54
APPARATUS DELIVERIES 55
CLASSIFIEDS 56
EQUIPMENT DIGEST 57
MANUFACTURERS’ LITERATURE 58 COMPANY NEWS 58
READER SERVICE CARDS 59
FEATURES
RESCUE TECHNIQUES
TWO MINUTES TO LIVE 20
Two minutes to live is all one has once an aircraft is enveloped in a flammable liquid fire. After the skill of the pilot, the effectiveness of the aircraft’s technology, and the best navigational aids have failed, the survival of the passengers is left to the ability of the air crash firefighting and rescue operation. BY GEORGE COWAN
MOVING WATER 36
For a safe and effective water rescue, we should know as close as possible just how fast a current is really moving. Putting a diver in water running at more than two knots without special training and well-planned tactics could be a major mistake. BY WALT HENDRICK
SPECIAL RISK FIRES
FIRE—A TERRORIST WEAPON 26
The MOVE confrontation that occurred in the City of Philadelphia, PA, in May 1985 is presented here as an analysis of a terrorist attack. And since domestic terrorism always holds the risk of fire, we, as firefighters, will find ourselves brought into the crisis management of a municipality’s dealings with the threat of a terrorist attack—which is by no means limited to Philadelphia and the Middle East, BY SHELLY KING and CHARLES G. KING
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
NITRIC ACID 40
This month’s chemical data notebook entry will focus on nitric acid, a powerful oxidizer as well as a corrosive. BY FRANK L. FIRE
FIRE REPORTS
BACKDRAFT 50
As this incident illustrates, there is nothing ordinary or predictable in firefighting. There is always the omnipresent exception lurking around some corner, an exception that threatens every firefighter with bodily injury and death. BY JOHN E. BOWEN
