…..Acting to Save

Planning to Protect... ...Acting to Save

September 2014 Volume 2, Issue 9

Inside this issue:

Fire & EMS

Run Report 1

EMS Bureau Report 2

Fire Prevention/

Public Safety Bureau 4

Operations Bureau 6

Training Bureau 7

In Their Own Words 8

WEST BEND FIRE DEPARTMENT

YEARS of SERVICE ~ September

LT. M. Heinen … 09/21/94

MPO D. Reisdorf..09/16/01

leased a report on active

shooters in the US. Since

2000 there have been 160

active shooter incidents in

this county. That is more

than 11 a year. That is why

on September 6th the West

Bend Fire Department and

the West Bend Police De-

partment participated in a

Mass Casualty Incident

We are Ready!

I think it is safe to say that

the world we are living in is

changing. From a firefight-

er’s perspective the events of

9/11 seemed to signify a new

era. We see a difference in

how fire departments and

emergency responders across

our country respond to inci-

dents and an increase in the

potential for terrorism. I do

not think that the City of

West Bend is situated at the

top of an international ter-

rorist group target list, BUT

the thing that is changing is

domestic terrorism. Unfor-

tunately domestic terrorism

can happen right here. We

don’t know when, where or

why it may happen but we

have to be prepared if it

does. The FBI recently re-

(MCI) to test our response.

A mass casualty would be

anytime there are more

patients than a service can

handle. For the West Bend

Fire Department that

could be 5 patients. We

only have 3 cross staffed

ambulances available at

Continued on page 3

Emergency Activities

Types of Calls Sep-14 Aug-14 Year to Date (2014) Year to Date (2013)

Fires 4 8 43 71 Emergency Medical Calls 210 253 2008 1804 Paramedic Intercepts 4 6 81 99 Interfacility Transports 44 47 423 326 Hazardous Conditions 4 4 45 60 Service Calls/Good Intent Calls 6 13 109 59 False Alarms/False Calls 12 18 160 143 Other/Special Incident Types 2 0 9 15

Totals 286 349 2878 2577

Town of Barton Calls 5 10 69 66 Town of West Bend Calls 9 15 101 100

WBFD Ambulance in line at the Sept. 6 MCI Drill

If an emergency oc-

curred in our community

would you be prepared?

Knowing what to do

during and after an

emergency is critical and

can make a difference

when seconds may

count. September was

National Preparedness

month which aims to

educate and empower

people to prepare for and

respond to all types of

emergencies including

natural and man-made

events. You should learn

about hazards most like-

ly to affect your commu-

nity and plan an appro-

priate response. In cer-

tain type of larger scale

events police, fire, and

kit with at least 3 days

supply of food and wa-

ter. Create a family

emergency plan so your

family knows how to

communicate in an

emergency, you may not

be together when an

event takes place and

should have plans for

making sure you are able

to contact and find one

another. Obtain a NO-

AA weather radio which

can provide you with an

important early warning

about severe weather

events.

Be a positive influence

on your community, let

your friends and family

Page 2

Emergency Medical Services Bureau Battalion Chief Todd Van Langen & Captain Tom Thrash

Page 2

September-National Preparedness Month

EMS personnel may not

be able to reach you

quickly. The most im-

portant step you can

take is to be able to take

care of yourself and

those in your care for at

least a short period of

time following the event.

The more people who are

prepared the quicker a

community can recover.

The benchmark for

emergency survival is to

be prepared to go at

least 3 days without

electricity, water service,

access to a food store, or

other local services.

Things to do to accom-

plish this goal are, pre-

pare a disaster supply

members know you are

prepared for an emer-

gency. Many people will

not prepare for an emer-

gency until they see oth-

ers doing so. We should

all take personal respon-

sibility to be prepared,

this will contribute to

the safety and security

of our community. If

you want to go a step

further in helping out

your neighbors and com-

munity check into any

opportunity to become

involved with your local

Red Cross or take train-

ing and become a mem-

ber of a Community

Emergency Response

Team (CERT).

Tornadoes

Winter Storms

Have a plan in place.

Have an emergency kit prepared.

Page 3

were working to secure the

building and look for any

other possible shooters.

Law Enforcement was also

communicating with the

fire department as to how

many possible patients

there were and the location

of those patients.

Battalion Chief Charles

Beistle was the WBFD

officer in charge for the

day of the drill. His role

was to take information

from law enforcement and

make decisions on how

many ambulances and peo-

ple would be needed to

handle the situation. His

main focus at the start was

to make sure it was safe for

EMS personnel to go to the

scene. WBPD did a great

job of securing the scene

and providing this infor-

mation. At that point EMS

personnel could enter the

scene to start triaging and

treating the injured.

By the time the event was

over there were 14 ambu-

lances used which trans-

ported 30 patients to 3

different hospitals. We

also used 7 different fire

department engine compa-

nies. There was a total of

16 different first responder

agencies from Washington

and Ozaukee counties that

participated in the event.

During the drill our de-

partment efficiently

worked to coordinate the

triage, treatment and

transportation of the 30

critically injured people in

just over 1 hour. This was

done in the midst of a very

chaotic scene with heavy

law enforcement presence.

We also worked very close-

ly with law enforcement to

track the hospitals where

each patient was taken so

that law enforcement could

later interview each pa-

tient as a witness.

Overall the training was a

great success. It provided

our department as well as

all the other departments

valuable information with

regards to our ability to

handle a mass casualty

situations. Everyone in-

volved was able to identify

several things that worked

well and also identify

things that needed to be

tweaked.

Captain Tom Thrash

Emergency Medical Services Bureau Battalion Chief Todd Van Langen & Captain Tom Thrash

Cont. from front page

any given time and have a

fourth ambulance that can

be staffed with off duty

firefighter/paramedics.

This drill was a chance for

WBFD to test our re-

sponse capability and our

plan to use additional

nearby resources.

The planning for this drill

started in January. A

group of people from vari-

ous departments through-

out the county worked

together last year for a

drill in Slinger. This same

group started working on

another drill in January.

The group approached the

West Bend Police Depart-

ment about doing a train-

ing at the old Barton

School. WBPD Capt. Tim

Dehring was contacted to

work with the group for to

plan a drill for September.

Capt. Dehring worked with

Chief Meuler to come up

with the idea to have it at

city hall. This was a win-

win for everyone involved.

It was a great chance for

City Hall employees to

receive some safety train-

ing and participate in the

drill, while being a loca-

tion that would work for a

drill of this magnitude.

The drill started on a Sat-

urday morning with city

hall employees at work.

They were simulating a

Friday in which there

would be Municipal Court.

The scenario was that a

citizen became angry in

court and began shooting.

In the scenario a West

Bend Police Officer took

the shooter down very

early in the drill. Once

the shooter was taken care

of the main focus for po-

lice officers was to evacu-

ate the building and have

city hall employees go to

their meeting place and

work on their accountabil-

ity. The West Bend Po-

lice then activated their

additional resources to

have more law enforce-

ment from around the

county respond to city

hall. During this time

West Bend Police Officers

Page 4

September Fire Inspections

Semi-Annual Annual Total Violations

Follow-up

Inspections

Compliance

Cards

Station #1 206 18 224 32 5 9

Station #2 34 4 38 5 0 1

Station #3 112 10 122 11 3 3

Bureau Captain 67 14 81 21 14 7

Totals 419 46 465 69 22 20

Count Permit Type Total Fees

2 Tent Permits $120.00

1 Sprinkler Install, 50-250 heads $245.00

2 Fire Alarm Installs, 1-50 devices $185.00

1 Permanent LP Tank Install $100.00

Total= Total Permit Fees for September $650.00

Emphasizing Public Health & Safety in the Community By Captain Tammy

In addition to being edu-cators of fire prevention practices this bureau also focuses on public safety. Along with the training bu-reau and all of our WBFD personnel we function as resources for information on the topics of healthy living, general safety and injury

prevention. other service calls. Opportu-nities to share this infor-mation can also occur when we are off duty doing things like coaching, volunteering, participating in recreational activities or during communi-

ty events.

We discuss things like

maintaining fitness and prac-ticing a healthy lifestyle, wearing protective equip-ment during recreational activities, managing existing health problems, taking medications properly, keep-ing homes free of hazards and avoiding unsafe behav-

iors.

We consider ourselves to be role models and we lead by example and educate so we can keep our citizens from finding themselves in emer-gency situations. We do this 7 days a week, while on-

duty and off.

September Permits and Fees

Fire Prevention & Public Safety Bureau Battalion Chief Chuck Beistle & Captain Tammy Lamberg

We interact with all pop-ulation groups within our community. This includes stu-dents, families, senior citi-zens, people employed with-in the city, church congrega-

tions and more.

When we share infor-mation on health and safety it can be done as formal presentations or it can also be done informally when “Teachable moments” pre-sent themselves. These mo-ments can occur during medi-cal calls, or while doing things like home smoke alarm installations or during

Page 5

OCCUPANCY TYPE ACTIVITY NOTES

Industrial Violation follow-up Addressed issues regarding apparatus access

Retail Violation follow-up Addressed issues regarding chronic egress violations

Retail Violation follow-up Addressed issues with insufficient electrical service and overloaded circuits

Residential Violation Follow-up Addressed issues with fire alarm being out of service

New Construction Plan Review Reviewed fire protection requirements and access roadways

Building renovation Plan Review Reviewed requirement for upgrades to electrical and alarm system

Multi-use building Consult Met with contractor and established time line for required sprinkler work

Assembly Consult Met with building manager and discussed monitoring company problems

Manufacturing Acceptance testing Hydrostatic test following sprinkler system alterations

Assembly Acceptance testing Pneumatic test of pre-action system and hydrostatic test of wet sprinkler

Business Acceptance testing Alarm device testing of renovated building

Fire Prevention & Public Safety Bureau Battalion Chief Chuck Beistle & Captain Tammy Lamberg

Halloween Safety Guidelines By Captain Tammy Lamberg

work very well in place of

candles.

All children and young teens should be super-vised by an adult while trick-or-treating. Teens may be tempted to get involved in “pranks” or risky activity if they are

unaccompanied.

Be sure that decora-tions do not block exits or effect egress. This is es-pecially important in homes or assembly occu-pancies where groups of people may gather for

Halloween parties.

Dried flowers, cornstalks,

also use a flashlight to illuminate their path as they make their way through the neighbor-

hood.

Avoid using candles with decorations or inside jack-o-lanterns. Small battery operated lights

As we are entering the Fall season one of our most popular holidays is approaching. Halloween is a fun and exciting time for everyone. Make the festivities safe for all with

a few easy precautions.

To avoid tripping make sure costumes do not have long, trailing fabric. Also if costumes include a mask make sure that the eye holes are large enough so that vi-

sion is not obscured.

Trick-or-treaters should carry flashlights or glow sticks to make them visible to motorists. They should

hay bales and crepe pa-per are popular decora-tions for Halloween. These items are very flammable and should be kept away from open flames, light

bulbs or any heat source.

Follow these guide-lines to keep all of our monsters and goblins safe

this Halloween.

Plan Reviews, System Acceptances, Consultations and Site Investigations for September

West Bend Fire Station #1 Gets a Make-Over

Fire Department Operations Bureau Battalion Chief John Spartz & Captain Jon Coutts

Fire departments have always

been noted for having clean

trucks ready to go at a mo-

ment’s notice. They also live

in their stations and try to

maintain them to high stand-

ards by performing mainte-

nance to their

buildings when

they are not re-

sponding to calls.

September found

WBFD and city

Park and Recrea-

tion crews paint-

ing, gardening and

landscaping as part

of a low cost plan

to update Station

#1. Landscaping

around the main

entrance on 8th Avenue was

originally planted in the 1960s

when the building was the

Police and Fire Department.

The exterior had become over-

grown and unmanageable

while the front lobby and halls

required updating.

Station #1’s exterior update

began with fire department

members taking over the

Beautification Committee

flower garden along Washing-

ton Street. Previously, the

Beautification Committee was

responsible for the garden

but was looking for a group

to assume the lot’s mainte-

nance. Fire department

members were not part of

the original maintenance

plan when the lot was plant-

ed but decided to take on the

extra responsibility. They

cleaned out the weeds and

worked to reclaim the over-

grown plot.

City Park and Recreation

crews were used to remove

the bushes and landscaping

that had been planted when

the building was built in

1967. Even though they

were maintained throughout

the years, they had grown to

the point of taking over the

front of the building. Park

and Rec crews used heavy

equipment to remove the

vegetation and stone beds.

They also removed the side-

walk that went between 8th

Avenue and the front en-

trance. This eliminates crews

from having to shovel and

keep the little used walk

open during the winter and

moves the access to the sta-

tion from the parking lot.

Grass was planted where all

of the shrubs were removed.

Removing all of the shrubs

makes the building more

inviting to guests and visi-

tors by opening up the front

entrance.

Work on the interior began

with firefighters removing a

paneling from a wall in the

front

en-

trance.

Paint

was pur-

chased

and wall

colors

were

updat-

ed. The

depart-

ment

has an

extensive collection of arti-

facts and fire memorabilia

that was used to decorate the

walls. A new addition to the

front lobby is a picture wall

of the current department

members. The display is

topped by a wood carving of

the Department logo created

by the West Bend High

Schools wood working class.

The project remains a “Work

in Progress.” Plans are being

worked on to update the

landscaping with easy to

maintain shrubbery and pos-

sibly moving the Depart-

ment’s Firefighter Memorial

into the area. Interior dis-

plays and artifacts will be

added as items are found.

Page 6

Fire crews were called to 132

South 6th Avenue on Mon-

day, September 15 for a re-

port of smoke coming from

an upstairs apartment.

Neighbors were alerted to

the fire by smoke detectors

that had activated. Police

officers arriving on scene

reported heavy smoke in the

upstairs apartment. Re-

sponders began searching in

zero visibility for the fire

and found a small fire in the

kitchen which was quickly

extinguished. The upper

apartment was unoccupied

at the time of the fire and a

small business occupied the

lower level. The apartment

was habitable but the busi-

ness was open the next day.

An investigation revealed

the occupant had placed

belongings on the stove

while moving in and

bumped a switch. The acti-

vated element heated a box

which began to burn causing

the fire to spread to the rest

of the kitchen.

Fire Crews Make Quick Stop on Apartment Fire

Station #1 Front Lobby after painting and decorating was completed by on-duty crews.

Park and Recreation equipment removing shrubs from the administration area of Fire Station #1

Amazing Race: The West

Bend Fire Department again

participated as a sponsor in

the 2014 Amazing Race orga-

nized by the Sunrise Rotary.

This was the second year for

this event. The Grand Prize is

$2000.00 for the winners.

Planning for this event starts

several months in advance.

The idea is to come up with

challenges where either physi-

cal strength or “brain power”

is needed. Our first event was

a combination of both. We

had our aerial ladder spraying

water down from approxi-

mately 50 feet in the air. The

idea was to fill a 5 gallon

bucket with water only using

a child’s plastic fire helmet.

Some went under the cold

stream and caught it that

way, but others scooped up

the water from the parking

lot that was flowing to the

drain. Those who went to

the drain, were able to cut

their time down by 2

minutes or more. The other

challenges that they had to

do was hold a role of 1 ¾

inch hose above their head

for 2 minutes, 50 quality

push-ups, hoist a role of 2 ½

inch hose from lower lot to

the upper lot, and carry a

long board with 2 lengths of

3 inch hose taped to it.

We received many compli-

ments about how fun and

well thought out our chal-

lenges were. Thanks to all of

the shift firefighters who

helped prepare the separate

stations for the day of the

event. Many thanks to the

off-duty firefighters and

their families who volun-

teered at this event, without

them this event would not

have been possible. Congrat-

ulations to WBFD firefight-

ers Steve Inhof, Steve Stock-

hausen, Kyle Demler, and

Sean Williams for winning

the 2014 Amazing Race this

year.

Fire Instruction & Training Bureau Battalion Chief Chuck Beistle & Captain Tom Thrash

Page 7

325 N 8th Ave.

West Bend, WI 53095

262.335.5054

www.ci.west-bend.wi.us

The back page of our newsletter features a note or card that we have received from our customers….the

people we serve. Whether it is during an ambulance call, fire call, or a public education assignment, the

members of the West Bend Fire Department are always dedicated to making their contact with area resi-

dents a positive experience.

In Their Own Words…...

WEST BEND FIRE DEPARTMENT

Planning to Protect… ...Acting to Save

Personnel Spotlight: MPO Steve Inhof Our featured Fire-

fighter for September

is MPO Steve Inhof.

Steve started his ca-

reer at the Pewaukee

Fire Department be-

fore starting for West

Bend in June of 2000.

Steve and his wife

Debbie have 3 sons,

Josh, Nathan and

Caleb.

Steve was certified as

a Paramedic in 2009

and was promoted to

Motor Pump Operator

in January of 2013.

While not at work

Steve spends a lot of

time with his young-

est son Caleb. Caleb

was born with Cere-

bral Palsy. For the

last 5 years Steve has

been running in differ-

ent races with Caleb.

He has participated

with Caleb in one Tri-

athlon, 10 half mara-

thons and too many

5K and 10K events to

count.

Not only is Steve ex-

cellent at being an

MPO and Paramedic

he also does an out-

standing job of being

a father and role mod-

el to his 3 sons. Well

Done!!