I think you owe us a little more explanation on this statement. If a HS crew is assigned to pull 10,000’ of hose, what are they going to do? Refuse to do it? Can you give an example?
Second, why do you think CF captains are weak? What do you propose to do about it?
Well. The site had a good run but here we are just like before…
Why are you saying most FC-B’s are weak? Are you speaking from experience or judging from afar because there are good blisters and weak blisters. See I can judge from afar too
Could not of said it better myself…you can tell when things slow down…
No need to explain, Anyone with experience knows what I’m talking about.
Actually @Blister I/we have no idea what your talking about
So let’s real this in as a group of Firefighters, not side choosing Nellie’s.
Crews, engines, strike teams, helicopters and the " little" air tankers(s-2’s which used to be ALL WE had) …all do what they are asked. Safety asside, if an IHC is asked to grid or pick up hose…you propose they say no?I defer. (There is fire in alot of states other than Cali!)so who picks up that hose? And for the live of blue sky… DON’T say type 2 crews!
As @2ndLine1stWord stated quit with the rhetoric and bs and inexperience.
Bring solutions not a skinny finger to stick in between ribs while hiding behind a moniker or screen name. Save that for face book.
This site has roots, emotions and intent to do good for the masses. This proding does good for anyone.
My fellas CAN be bad a**. But… An IHC can do the same things. Sometimes better. But then again…there’s things calfire crews may do better as well.
I remember on the Rim fire, scouting , hiking banging line etc. Working on div “x?”,looking across the Stanislaus river cayon, but new a piece of line HAD TO BE COMPETED on div “w?” that noone could see. A firing group was heading toward it. Group decision with the captains and we opted to " make It happen"
I scouted in front and ran into a scout from the other direction. From an IHC. we compared notes made a plan( as incident was rapidly still expanding) , along with the noted " how the heck did you guys get up that" comment from the IHC scout.
The IHC was firing, the fellas we’re banging line and beating themselves up because they could see the story unfold ( firing group litteraly a few miles away) The improvements at Appletown (? ) That we prepped would be lost. The fellas banged litteraly a mile of line across the north fork and out of the main fork if the Stanislaus…,.
We met face to face with the R3 IHC at the actual paper cabin( paper cabin ridge)
They were not used to nor did the R3 IHC have any stigma about calfire crews.
There were brief exchanges…and the IHC “handed” off burn show to us. In their words, we banged it…we burn it… years later Black Mesa is a name that comes to mind still.
Another invisible line crossed the sane shift…I met with a Calfire agency Charlie STL. Small talk bof where we came from etc (apple something or other housing area,don’t remember the name). That STL ( battalion chief,) took it upon himself to bump our busses and STL truck for us. If I remember correctly it took them 4 or 6 hour to bump our rides around so we only had a mile or two too hike out at the end of our shift . Not by request but because of respect and a common goal. Looking out for each other.
Point being, a CREW handed off to another CREW out of respect. Same green pants talking to a walking banana( nomex) , but the stigma some keep in R-5 is embarrassing ( both sides of the fence,) and counterproductive ,including the post I’m referring too. *Note" FCB" refers to Fire Captain range B or crew captains for Calfire. I proudly carry this title and choose to educate those "weak Captain B’s’ and show then the correct path!
So let’s get over the rhetoric and find a solution
FYI. This thread is about crews being cut… Not how to undermine everything they have worked for!
Some really great discussions and alot of information that I had forgotten in the 15 years I have been retired. However my point here was not to have a green vs yellow discussion but to possibly start a good dialogue about; Point One, geeting the job done with folks that want to do it, (not saying the folke out there don’t want to but some of the inmate crews lack some quality drive and due to changing incarceration laws these folks are a little diffrent than they were 15 years ago) Point Two, getting folks that are wanting to become US citizens a pathway to that goal. Point Three, putting firefighters with training into the system where these teams can do the work dozers can’t do, and Fourth, there needs to be alot more prescription burns making the forests more sustainable and less destructive when there are fires a year round job. Yes the contractors have a great deal going but take that same money and develope this system into a great gateway to citizenship for the Brothers south of the border.
If almost all of our contract counties have FF handcrews, why can’t we do it as well?
Coming from LG and working both on State fires and FS fires both as ENGB to STL and Line EMT I will say you have both good and bad crew from both agencies as well as privite but I have seen IHC’s crew help put in hose as well as drag it out, I’ve been on handlines with both types of crews that a billy goat would have a hard time climbing, and I give each and everyone of those good crews hands down the up most respect because there put in hard days of work and a lot of time watch as the fire just blows through it and they just go out ahead and start all over again. I don’t care if you wear FS green or CF yellow/orange you all have a job to do and you do it and I am getting tired of the bashing that’s keeps popping up on these threads both here as well as the old site about green vs red. This thread started out as a good bit of information and now has turned into who can bash who.
343…2600…So why don’t we give this a break for a Day and honor those who served and perished, and those who perished…this can wait till tomorrow Folks…and go to Baldy’s 9-11 thread…