Great video! I think a Day in the Life of a Fire Investigator would be really interesting. The behind the scenes of what goes on after a fire would be fun to follow.
Love the green command post light integrated into the lightbar. The last time I saw that was back in the 1980’s 1 quad in our department had a green Federal fireball stuck in the cab somewhere. It got used maybe once every 2-3 years or so.
I’m so excited to see the department moving too Whelen lighting products. They are the brightest and most functional lights out today. Eric love love love your videos and this department.
2:04 - Exactly this problem they talk about is the reason why the fire departement in my country still has a "message runner" in the complement of a platoon. Nowadays they are the driver of the platoon leader, so the leader can pay attention to the radio traffic and use the board, and then on-scene they are free for special tasks like exploring a water source, evacuating adjacent buildings or establishing a CCP until the first medic unit shows up. The "message runner" also helps a LOT on bigger scenes with radio traffic as you usually seperate sectors into their own frequencies and talking to dispatch is on yet another channel, so the "message runner" usually becomes the comms officer, while the platoon leader is more focussed on the command process and decision making. The usual make-up of our platoons mostly follows the 3-5 command span, so there are: 4 firefighters each on 2 engines or trucks (usually both are enging/truck combinations as are standard in europe) 2 firefighters on an aerial device 1 message runner and 1 leader on a command vehicle = 1 platoon And then with 2 or more platoons one additional officer (equivalent to your district chief) is dispatched with his own message runner/driver, plus "Med One" if there is are 5 or more possible/expected victims.
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO It's very modular, which is very useful when scaling up on larger incidents. For example you could integrate a heavy rescue platoon instead of a "normal" firefighting platoon and still work with the 3-5 command span, because for the incident commander a platoon is always just one guy (to talk to). It also makes divisions quite intuitive, because the command structure is already in blocks. For the incident commander it's as easy as saying "platoon 1 and 5 are under the command of district 5, fire attack and primary search. platoon 2 and 12 are under the command of district 1, water supply and Recup, all medical is under the command of Medic One" and that's the plan for the next hour or so...
In SMFR the Safety officer and BC are pretty much the same as the BC and assistant, or "message runner" as you called him in Germany. As far as I understand the roles are reversed though. Usually in SMFR the BC stays in the vehicle while the Safety Officer is out and about, while in Germany the assistant stays in the vehicle while the BC is out. What has always been mindblowing to me is the amount of units directly attached to the commanding chief and the resulting radio traffic in the US. For instance on greater alarm fires there is usually constant chatter on the frequency including conversations like "Ladder 111 Bucket, Command", which would be unthinkable in Europe.
Fantastic video, especially cool how the BC reiterates the the mission and the safety steps that are in place from the rookies all the way to the BC and DC
Was in Denver today, Arapahoe mostly as I took my dad to the VA center for a biopsy. Funily enough ended with a transfer to denver as I was returning so. I saw your people hard at work on the freeway during the ride home.
In the bigger cities around here, the BattC/DutyC has a driver; so they can plan otw. I live in a smaller town where that's not viable; but I know a couple of the chiefs don't always assume command, but say they're supporting the existing IC.
West Douglas is on VHF? Didn't know that.. That voice message thing I thought was stupid at first, but after hearing it... I was, COOL.... Your right, I wondered about that black box. Good idea. Clean Cab.... Thank you Chief and Eric... Great job as always...
West Douglas works on both VHF and 800, It depends on where the call is located. If there is a call occurring in Jarre Canyon (The main canyon in West Douglas’ district) then they’ll use VHF if there is no signal.
@South Metro Fire Rescue Centennial, Colorado 2:35 Hey Eric, I was just wonder what truck that was on the far right of the screen. At first I thought it might have been the training tiller. But I’m thinking otherwise because of the Tower 45 patch in the side.
Has the department considered BC Aides? Similiar to what FDNY runs with their chiefs? Really helps the Chief focus on the assignment without having to worry about driving and watching the MDT at the same time...
I notice that the City of Denton as well as the Carrollton Fire Department have acquired crash attenuating trucks for MVA calls to block lanes instead of using fire engines or trucks, are there any plans for SMFR to acquire one?
Awesome video! I love south metros command vehicles. Off topic question: is brush 14 still in service?or was it moved elsewhere to accommodate medic 14?
Any updates on the new tiller ? How many new velocity PUC pumper's on order ? Is it 5 ? and you know who's getting them ? Any new medics on order and any new fire stations ?
The new tiller will be delivered in 2024, there aren't any production photos of it yet. 4 Pierce Velocity PUC's are on order, station assignments to be determined in 2024. There are 5 more Ford E/AEV Medic units on order with delivery expected in 2024. No new fire stations are planned for the immediate future, but we know some will be needed in the years to come.
Kind of wondering why you chose the F-150 vs chevy or dodge? Why not run a F-250/350 (2500/3500). Years ago my ems service switched from F-350 to a F-150 and come to find out it was underpowered for what we had in the bed. We had to swap springs and shocks to keep it from squatting. After that issue we went to a Chevy 3500HD and problems were solved. I bet if the bean counters appoved the superduty we asked for we wouldnt of put $10k in parts to get it right.
Hi. I am one of your blind viewers. Can you please tell me where the voice is that dispatches south metro fire units to a call it sounds automated where is it from? Thank you
Yes, they are pre-programmed with local, state and federal interoperability channels and can be re-programed at an incident anywhere in the U.S., including BLM frequencies.
Where can I find the accountability board Bat 1 is using? My department is going through some upgrades and this is something we desperately need to upgrade
There isn't much to my new one, but a few people have asked for a Fleet Friday on it, so I will probably make one soon. Information Services is using the former PIO F-150 to transport I.T. infrastructure to our facilities and service equipment.
Normal daily dispatching operations are done 100% automated, but the actual personnel will air dispatch information if there's a technical problem with the computer system. In this video a Safety Officer is pretending to be dispatch on a training ops channel.
The old BC1 F-150 looks very similar, just an older model year and longer bed www.southmetro.photography/Stations-Units/Station-16-Douglas-County/Station-16-Current-Photos/i-DSWL5r9/A
Beautiful new piece of apparatus. Definitely worth the wait and travels, seeing the other departments. Id recommend checking a couple out in Illinois, they have departments that specialize in different areas, and Illinois has the most nuclear power plants in the world too, so there would be a lot to learn about how they prepare for nuclear incidents.
Well Eric does have his own channel now where he goes around the country so it probably had something to do with it ruclips.net/video/haQ48L45iD4/видео.htmlsi=u8yHnY8y8X9-sO8n
@eriksand9262 guess I missed that part, our department also does things a little different since EMS is separate from the fire department so on a fire IC has a fire TAC, Medical TAC and Fire dispatch to listen to, and our response matrix is different so they need more room
The biggest reason is probably the weather here in Colorado. Battalion Chief's would be forced to stand outside in blizzards, damaging hail storms or 40-50 mph winds on Red Flag days. It also makes the incident commander too accessible to bystanders who may distract their focus while not even realizing it.
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO thanks, it’s always interesting to learn about how departments do things differently because it’s what they need/ it’s what they found works
can I give you a suggestion if Highland ranch does get hit by another tornado I live stream tornadoes, Hurricanes, and winter weather on RUclips I would like to help with weather and forecasting in Colorado.
The slide out tray was ordered from a third party company, I'm not sure which one but I'll ask Fleet. The topper is made by A.R.E. and customized by SMFR Fleet.
@@thatonekid407 Anything red and blue close together will look purple. Sounds like someone just doesn't know how to setup a car either programing or light placement.
I hope one day a firefighter never has to say the words when we have trouble with those radios we switch to these. A department near me right now switched to P25 several years back and they have parts of their district where their portable radio do not work. They have to be on a truck radio. Yes everybody talks about how we can switch to this channel or that but it is going to kill somebody if we let this stuff go on. We have to stop letting companies like Motorola push on us what they can make the most profit from and sell us something that works EVERY time. Sorry for the rant but being inside when things happen like you lose water and no way to talk to somebody on a radio is not a fun place to be
Sufficient P25 coverage is often a challenge for many public safety organizations. South Metro went to P25 in the early 2000's and thankfully, the repeater infrastructure continues to improve as the community has grown. There are multiple repeater sites including a robust simulcast system in our district, so busy signals are rare. In-building radio amplification is required in large commercial buildings, which also helps. Buildings with poor radio reception have caution notes in the CAD system and alarm responses include a Battalion Chief, that way interior crews can operate on simplex and the BC can still communicate with dispatch and other companies. No radio system is perfect, but the Consolidated Communications Network of Colorado does a great job keeping us all talking.
I love SMFR however a few things I'd like to see in the future: 1. Moving to a more sustainable/ green/environmentally friendly department 2. Electric vehicles 3. Future and current buildings upgraded to meet at least the lowest level of LEED (though the highest level even if not technically certified would be wonderful).
Great video! I think a Day in the Life of a Fire Investigator would be really interesting. The behind the scenes of what goes on after a fire would be fun to follow.
Love the green command post light integrated into the lightbar. The last time I saw that was back in the 1980’s 1 quad in our department had a green Federal fireball stuck in the cab somewhere. It got used maybe once every 2-3 years or so.
I’m so excited to see the department moving too Whelen lighting products. They are the brightest and most functional lights out today. Eric love love love your videos and this department.
That Freedom IV on Tower 45 is fantastic!
What a strange thing to get excited about
I always think im just going to watch his videos for just 5 minutes, and without fail I watch til the end every time.
2:04 - Exactly this problem they talk about is the reason why the fire departement in my country still has a "message runner" in the complement of a platoon. Nowadays they are the driver of the platoon leader, so the leader can pay attention to the radio traffic and use the board, and then on-scene they are free for special tasks like exploring a water source, evacuating adjacent buildings or establishing a CCP until the first medic unit shows up. The "message runner" also helps a LOT on bigger scenes with radio traffic as you usually seperate sectors into their own frequencies and talking to dispatch is on yet another channel, so the "message runner" usually becomes the comms officer, while the platoon leader is more focussed on the command process and decision making.
The usual make-up of our platoons mostly follows the 3-5 command span, so there are:
4 firefighters each on 2 engines or trucks (usually both are enging/truck combinations as are standard in europe)
2 firefighters on an aerial device
1 message runner and 1 leader on a command vehicle
= 1 platoon
And then with 2 or more platoons one additional officer (equivalent to your district chief) is dispatched with his own message runner/driver, plus "Med One" if there is are 5 or more possible/expected victims.
Sounds like a very well organized system, thanks for sharing!
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO It's very modular, which is very useful when scaling up on larger incidents. For example you could integrate a heavy rescue platoon instead of a "normal" firefighting platoon and still work with the 3-5 command span, because for the incident commander a platoon is always just one guy (to talk to).
It also makes divisions quite intuitive, because the command structure is already in blocks. For the incident commander it's as easy as saying "platoon 1 and 5 are under the command of district 5, fire attack and primary search. platoon 2 and 12 are under the command of district 1, water supply and Recup, all medical is under the command of Medic One" and that's the plan for the next hour or so...
In SMFR the Safety officer and BC are pretty much the same as the BC and assistant, or "message runner" as you called him in Germany. As far as I understand the roles are reversed though. Usually in SMFR the BC stays in the vehicle while the Safety Officer is out and about, while in Germany the assistant stays in the vehicle while the BC is out.
What has always been mindblowing to me is the amount of units directly attached to the commanding chief and the resulting radio traffic in the US.
For instance on greater alarm fires there is usually constant chatter on the frequency including conversations like "Ladder 111 Bucket, Command", which would be unthinkable in Europe.
You do a consistently excellent job with these videos!
Thank you very much!
south metro fire recuse
Fantastic video, especially cool how the BC reiterates the the mission and the safety steps that are in place from the rookies all the way to the BC and DC
We all know darn well these videos are getting closer and closer to perfection
Nice layout on the rig. Love the clean cab gear cabinet.
Very sharp rig, for the battalion chief looks great
Nice and the battalions look clean! The switch from Soundoff to Whelen I found interesting.
Was in Denver today, Arapahoe mostly as I took my dad to the VA center for a biopsy. Funily enough ended with a transfer to denver as I was returning so. I saw your people hard at work on the freeway during the ride home.
Thanks Eric that was really Cool 😎 Thanks also to the BC 👍 for sharing his truck and explaining everything on his truck 👍.
Great video. Very well done and informative
Thank you!
I’m super happy to live in Centennial, Colorado just 5 minutes away from a South Metro Fire Rescue firehouse
In the bigger cities around here, the BattC/DutyC has a driver; so they can plan otw. I live in a smaller town where that's not viable; but I know a couple of the chiefs don't always assume command, but say they're supporting the existing IC.
Take care of u all , Bros ! Cheers from a french E.M.T / Toulouse ! 😁🐾🐾❣️
West Douglas is on VHF? Didn't know that.. That voice message thing I thought was stupid at first, but after hearing it... I was, COOL.... Your right, I wondered about that black box. Good idea. Clean Cab.... Thank you Chief and Eric... Great job as always...
West Douglas works on both VHF and 800, It depends on where the call is located. If there is a call occurring in Jarre Canyon (The main canyon in West Douglas’ district) then they’ll use VHF if there is no signal.
South Metro ❤ Littleton Colorado
@South Metro Fire Rescue Centennial, Colorado 2:35 Hey Eric, I was just wonder what truck that was on the far right of the screen. At first I thought it might have been the training tiller. But I’m thinking otherwise because of the Tower 45 patch in the side.
Another cracking video from yourself eric love them all keep up the good all the way from lancashire uk ian 👍
Good video! Great to see the behind the scenes of incident command. Great looking truck, hope it serves you guys well!
I knew Eric would be involved on this one. :) It is really nice to see a full exercise. Great job.
Thank you!
@South Metro Fire Rescue Centennial, Colorado who is Matt Page in the dispatches?
I love the comedian he mentioned at the end and that bit hes talking about
Hannibal Burress - ruclips.net/video/kSiwoKCiy-s/видео.htmlsi=dxJ6zUP00i0zUTdW
Well worth the wait. An excellent look at the new rig, and great insight into the role and equipment of the Chief. Best wishes from Australia 🇦🇺.
Nice all weather Vehicle!!
Great job guys
Has the department considered BC Aides? Similiar to what FDNY runs with their chiefs? Really helps the Chief focus on the assignment without having to worry about driving and watching the MDT at the same time...
Awesome truck! Who built this one?
SMFR Fleet did all of the up-fitting on this F150
E.O.W Chief 31 Auburn,Wa…Miss you Dad
Fleet Friday on the training tiller?
I love the new battalion chief great work 👍👍👍👍
Thanks for driving Ford!
Blue card radio traffic sounded great!
Nice Rig! Great People! Stay safe.
I notice that the City of Denton as well as the Carrollton Fire Department have acquired crash attenuating trucks for MVA calls to block lanes instead of using fire engines or trucks, are there any plans for SMFR to acquire one?
Yes sir a Fleet Friday lol I thought it was a real call lol 😂
Awesome video! I love south metros command vehicles.
Off topic question: is brush 14 still in service?or was it moved elsewhere to accommodate medic 14?
Thank you!
Brush 14 is now called Brush 15, stationed with Engine 15, at Station 37.
😂🎉😢😮😮😅😊😊 2:49 ❤
Did the medics series end
We will likely have more episodes of Fire Medics in the future.
Any updates on the new tiller ? How many new velocity PUC pumper's on order ? Is it 5 ? and you know who's getting them ? Any new medics on order and any new fire stations ?
The new tiller will be delivered in 2024, there aren't any production photos of it yet. 4 Pierce Velocity PUC's are on order, station assignments to be determined in 2024. There are 5 more Ford E/AEV Medic units on order with delivery expected in 2024. No new fire stations are planned for the immediate future, but we know some will be needed in the years to come.
Eric, can you do fleet Friday on a pneumatic EV?
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIOwhen is next day in the life/fire medics coming out
Liked and shared 👍🏻
Very nice truck, Be safe guys
@SouthMetroFireRescuePio will we see Connor in a future Pio vlog
Kind of wondering why you chose the F-150 vs chevy or dodge? Why not run a F-250/350 (2500/3500). Years ago my ems service switched from F-350 to a F-150 and come to find out it was underpowered for what we had in the bed. We had to swap springs and shocks to keep it from squatting. After that issue we went to a Chevy 3500HD and problems were solved. I bet if the bean counters appoved the superduty we asked for we wouldnt of put $10k in parts to get it right.
Hi. I am one of your blind viewers. Can you please tell me where the voice is that dispatches south metro fire units to a call it sounds automated where is it from? Thank you
Does south metro use the rumbler sirens i notice when your recording responses most people dont pull over
The newer F-150's are equipped with rumbler sirens, but motorists yielding to emergency vehicles remains a challenge even with those.
Does those VHF radios also make it where you guys can also talk to Bureau of Land Management on wildland fire incidents?
Yes, they are pre-programmed with local, state and federal interoperability channels and can be re-programed at an incident anywhere in the U.S., including BLM frequencies.
What command board and flip chart is that at 1:02 ?
It's this one... tacticalworksheet.com/
Who manufactured the gear storage compartment in the back seat? Thanks!
The gear storage compartment was designed and fabricated by South Metro Fire Rescue Fleet Bureau.
Thank you for the response!
Nice rig. I have a question: is snow cat 46 really sold?
Yes, the Hagglunds (Snowcat 46) is gone. There's a new Lenco MedCat on order for delivery in 2024 that will help with snow responses.
Thanks!
Where can I find the accountability board Bat 1 is using? My department is going through some upgrades and this is something we desperately need to upgrade
Here is a link to their website idlhtechnology.com/tactical-worksheet
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO thank you!
Are you gonna so a new fleet friday of your ride since you got a new one Eric?- also who drives your old buggy now??
What’s Eric driving nowadays?
@@thatonekid407 a white expedition unmarked
An old chiefs buggy from the upper brass
There isn't much to my new one, but a few people have asked for a Fleet Friday on it, so I will probably make one soon. Information Services is using the former PIO F-150 to transport I.T. infrastructure to our facilities and service equipment.
It's a 2020 Ford Expedition formerly assigned to Deputy Chief 3.
Thank you Kim Connor Eric and Lauren I miss you my friends your friends In Springfield Missouri Kyle
I suddenly want to work for south metro FD
May we shamelessly direct you to our employment opportunities landing page? www.southmetro.org/601/Careers
Question, does south metro alternate between using the automatic dispatch and a actual person or just the automatic radio?
Normal daily dispatching operations are done 100% automated, but the actual personnel will air dispatch information if there's a technical problem with the computer system. In this video a Safety Officer is pretending to be dispatch on a training ops channel.
What brand name are those VHF radios ?
Bendix King. (BK Radio.)
what did the old battalion 1 rig look like?
The old BC1 F-150 looks very similar, just an older model year and longer bed www.southmetro.photography/Stations-Units/Station-16-Douglas-County/Station-16-Current-Photos/i-DSWL5r9/A
Beautiful new piece of apparatus. Definitely worth the wait and travels, seeing the other departments. Id recommend checking a couple out in Illinois, they have departments that specialize in different areas, and Illinois has the most nuclear power plants in the world too, so there would be a lot to learn about how they prepare for nuclear incidents.
Thanks for watching and for your suggestion.
whelen core system, nice!
I love the battalion chief ❤❤❤ truck
APX8000's or APX6000's for portables?
SMFR is using the APX8000XE
Why do we have to wait so long
Well Eric does have his own channel now where he goes around the country so it probably had something to do with it ruclips.net/video/haQ48L45iD4/видео.htmlsi=u8yHnY8y8X9-sO8n
Because they are busy with fires and Eric has his own channel to now
Dude this was 2 days ago ?
@@policeperillis2419He sounds like a cry baby.
Lmfaoooo stop crying 😂😂😂😂
so what's the theory behind having battalion running the scene for the front seat rather then having a pullout command board in the back
@eriksand9262 guess I missed that part, our department also does things a little different since EMS is separate from the fire department so on a fire IC has a fire TAC, Medical TAC and Fire dispatch to listen to, and our response matrix is different so they need more room
The biggest reason is probably the weather here in Colorado. Battalion Chief's would be forced to stand outside in blizzards, damaging hail storms or 40-50 mph winds on Red Flag days. It also makes the incident commander too accessible to bystanders who may distract their focus while not even realizing it.
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO thanks, it’s always interesting to learn about how departments do things differently because it’s what they need/ it’s what they found works
@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIOlike how y’all do radio traffic is reversed for us, y’all do To-From where we do From-To
can I give you a suggestion if Highland ranch does get hit by another tornado I live stream tornadoes, Hurricanes, and winter weather on RUclips I would like to help with weather and forecasting in Colorado.
Thanks for your suggestion! Tornadoes in South Metro's District are pretty rare, 2 in the last 15-years.
❤❤❤❤😮😮😮
Alexa, South Metro Fire Rescue
I got my battalion chieFs rolling bed stuck 😅
I received that alert on my scanner
Take a shot every time he says rig
was the slide out bed tray custom fabricated? what about the bed topper?
The slide out tray was ordered from a third party company, I'm not sure which one but I'll ask Fleet. The topper is made by A.R.E. and customized by SMFR Fleet.
The bed slide is made by slidemaster@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO
😊
Bring back Fire Medics!
And you wonder why your car reg is 500 bucks.
What's the intro song?
"Shut Up and Take My Money" by Dominik Schwarzer
Is it really necessary to spend so much on a vehicle for someone who just rides around and does nothing?
robindunn27 Cal fire helicopter polit 🚁👁️👁️📝🇺🇲🎧🎤🎙️🎧
is it just me or is the audio low on this segment because i am sorry to say i had to turn on close caption and i turn my computer and video sound up
FLEET FRIDAY BATTALION CHIFE 1
Whelen's lightbar > Soundoff lightbar
real
@@HendersonFirePhotography my sheriff’s office is switching to sound off and they look terrible. The red/blue looks so purple
@@thatonekid407 dang, yeah I'm really not a fan of Soundoff
It's like comparing apples tbh. SoundOff does just fine, just like Whelen.
@@thatonekid407 Anything red and blue close together will look purple. Sounds like someone just doesn't know how to setup a car either programing or light placement.
I hope one day a firefighter never has to say the words when we have trouble with those radios we switch to these. A department near me right now switched to P25 several years back and they have parts of their district where their portable radio do not work. They have to be on a truck radio. Yes everybody talks about how we can switch to this channel or that but it is going to kill somebody if we let this stuff go on. We have to stop letting companies like Motorola push on us what they can make the most profit from and sell us something that works EVERY time. Sorry for the rant but being inside when things happen like you lose water and no way to talk to somebody on a radio is not a fun place to be
Sufficient P25 coverage is often a challenge for many public safety organizations. South Metro went to P25 in the early 2000's and thankfully, the repeater infrastructure continues to improve as the community has grown. There are multiple repeater sites including a robust simulcast system in our district, so busy signals are rare. In-building radio amplification is required in large commercial buildings, which also helps. Buildings with poor radio reception have caution notes in the CAD system and alarm responses include a Battalion Chief, that way interior crews can operate on simplex and the BC can still communicate with dispatch and other companies. No radio system is perfect, but the Consolidated Communications Network of Colorado does a great job keeping us all talking.
Not a pick up truck D A
I love SMFR however a few things I'd like to see in the future:
1. Moving to a more sustainable/ green/environmentally friendly department
2. Electric vehicles
3. Future and current buildings upgraded to meet at least the lowest level of LEED (though the highest level even if not technically certified would be wonderful).
New ladder 45 🤫
?
The aerial in this video is Tower 45's 2017 Pierce Velocity.
What’s the new tower at 2:30?@@SouthMetroFireRescuePIO
the new training Tiller for training personnel on for when Tiller-34 arrives in 2024@@floridafireshots
OMG two minutes
Ugg