Middle day for C-shift

Well, my last post was titled "Slow rainy day for C-shifts return" and apparently I should have said slow day for Engines 9 and 3 because EVERY OTHER piece of firefighting equipment in the City stayed busy working a 4 alarm fire. YES.. we stayed IN HOUSE while our brothers and sisters made a great stop on a 4 banger over in South West. Rhett has some excellent coverage and links over at VAFireNews.com and you can also check out Mikey Overacker's site for more pics here. A few comments here before I move on... 1.) How or why we remained in house I DON'T KNOW, but we did...^%*#&@^ C.A.D 2.)I didn't know we had a 4th alarm! I always though it went 1st, 2nd, 3rd and General. I suppose the use of mutual-aid (Roanoke County and Vinton) allowed for enough apparatus to fill a 4th? 3.)I was NOT on suicide watch nor did I pace holes in the office floor 4.) HELL OF A JOB to all the brothers and sisters who were able to make that stop. I know their job was easier knowing the Melrose Misfits were at the ready to catch anything else that may have came in.
Now, on to today's excitement. I mentioned Mikey Overacker above and it just so happens Mikey stopped by today for a visit. I have posted before about Retired Lt. Mike Overacker here . He has some really cool pics on his site, so take the time to browse around that site. Here's a pic of Mikey from his visit today.

I also mentioned Rhett above and guess who our fill in for the day is??? Yep the Ol "Banned Blogger" himself. Here's a shot of him in action...ok, not alot of action in this shot. I guess he needed the rest because even Lucky 13 made the fire!!

We started our morning with a "Crispy Critter" but NOT the kind your thinking of. ANOTHER squirrel fatality. I'm not sure but it's looking like a trend starting here. Remember our other suicidal furry friend? He took out an entire sub-station. Today's little kamikaze must have been a rookie because he only managed to take out.... well hell, he only took out himself


I'll give it to him though..he was one tough SOB! HE NEVER LET GO! The 2nd pic is exactly how we found him...well, after he burned himself out anyway. OOPS... **DISCLAIMER** No animals were harmed in the posting of this...oh wait I guess at least one was...hmmmmm... **DISCLAIMER** If the agonizing, horrible, smelling like burnt hair and flesh, death of this squirrel is offensive to you OR if you are a member of PETA, we APOLOGIZE and ask that you please visit these links for a more pleasurable blogging experience here or here. Guess the little fella should have came by the station this morning to read Larry's shirt.

I guess maybe I should have rubbed Larry's belly as well but as much as I enjoy his shirts, I found one that suits my mood this week a little better...

I'll wrap it up with a few shots of another visitor today. K.B. "Kenny" Walker dropped in for a visit. K.B. is now working "scerity" up at our local Meth Clinic. The good news is that they didn't give him a gun. The bad news is...well it is K.B. working at a Meth Clinic and by the way, you gotta see the uniform they gave him. He thinks the stripes on his collar means he's a Captain...well maybe if he was on Reno 911 but NOT here.


LOL...no kidding K.B. Enjoy retirement! That's all for tonight. We'll update if we miss any other fires tonight. Until then or Sunday, be safe and stay in house. Capt. Wines

Slow rainy day for C-shift's return

Today has been alot better than last day. Rainy and muggy but slow as far as runs go. The morning started out normal, waiting for Larry to come down from the locker room so we could see what his t-shirt slogan for the day would be. As expected, he didn't disappoint.

We checked the rig / equipment, made a few dozen egg sandwiches, completed our household chores and headed out for some quick grocery shopping before a little hydrant maintenance. After the normal store run, we stopped by our local produce stand for fresh veggies. Here's a shot of our local cantaloupe gals working their stand. The reason I included this pic is because you may be reading more on them in the future. She use to volunteer out in Clearbrook and loves to tell us stories about the "good ol days" out at County #7 ;-)

We found a break in weather to check in on our new station aka measure of progress. The walls are getting higher every day. We also learned that the color of brick has been chosen ... WHITE.



We swung by Lucky # 13 today to put a little "go juice" in our War Wagon and got to see and visit with "Big P" or Preston Fleitz (Rhett's family..Becky and Jade were with him as well). Anyway, I always enjoy talking with Big P about his endeavors / adventures. Today he was sporting a really cool shirt and said that if I promise to wash it afterwards, he'll let me borrow it (we wear the same size LOL).


Oh yea, I almost forgot. We have a "LOST AND FOUND" announcement. Now, I'm NOT saying these items belong to any member or particular shift here at #9. The last time we made mention in a post relating to height, some folks may have caught "feelings" and we wouldn't want that to happen again. We just want whomever is missing these items to know they have been located. If you've lost this set or some similar, just give us a call @ BR549.


That's all for tonight. Stay safe, dry and in the house. Capt. Wines

Emotional roller coaster for C-shift

I wasn't sure if I was even going to mention this first topic or not. Then I remembered the intent of this blog. We wanted to share a little of "fire house" life with our readers. Now, alot of what you see and read here is firehouse pranks, practical joking etc. but you also get a small glimps of some of the incidents we run. When I say small, I mean small and you folks out there on the job know what I mean. In no way can a few pictures or short narritives begin to explain what we see or the emotions we feel when responding to these incidents. I once wrote in a much earlier post of how while on the job we have to see and do things that most people never even think about. Well, today was another one of those days and sadly, it involved Medic 101. We have been fortunate here at #9 to have a part-time medic unit staffed Mon-Sat from 9am-9pm (in addition to our Medic 9). We are also fortunate that our part-time staff is a great bunch of Medics and EMT's (both personally and professionally). Today, 101 was staffed with probably the 2 youngest part-timers we have. Neither one looks old enough to drive, much less be working here. These 2 are also really good kids. Quiet, polite, eager to help and learn, too young to shave or to have picked up any bad habbits yet..you know the type. Never the less, despite their innocence; they caught the call (along with E5, RS-1 and later E9). You hope you'll never have to, but if you stay in this profession long enough, odds are you'll catch one too. You never get use to it, but after you've been on the job a while, you learn ways to cope. The point I want to make here is how upset I am that it was these two that had to see it and that they had to see it so early in their careers. But more than that, I want to say how PROUD I am of the job these two young men did today. They handled themselves as professionals both during and after the incident and we are proud here at station #9 to have them with us. They know they have the support of each and every member here in our house and our thoughts and prayers go out to the family as well.
OK, with that little vent behind me, I'll move on to some happier news and events of the day.
It's Friday so, Wheezy was off to EMT-I school getting his learn on. With him learning and Tyrone off to the beach, we needed a body. Short staffed as always, they had to pull someone from the "South Side". Not just any ol station either, we got a body from THE BIG SHOW! Meet "Pookie" aka Rebecca Smith.

I don't think they feed her too well down at the Big Show... notice she's digging for groceries while still in the rig. We hadn't even made it home yet LOL. Just kidding Pookie, Thanks for hanging out with us today, you're welcome back anytime. Speaking of Tyrone being off to the beach and being the caring Captain that I am; I can't help but wonder what he's into. Playing and teaching Jackson and Noah how to build sand castles I hope but odds are he's showing them shark wrangling or something.

Capt. Bedwell from B-shift acquired us a new Officer's tool and A-shift took the time to mount it for us yesterday.... can't wait to try this baby out. I can't believe they would, but in an attempt to fret; my boys moved the tool to the bucket (where it will get used) and put some medical thing-a-ma-jig in it's place.


Needless to say, the tool is back in it's home! We stopped by to check on the Measure of Progress..aka our new station.

She's comming along pretty good. The Buckaroo stopped by for a vist and took the time to give Lt. Bugg a few pointers on wheeling the War Wagon.

Alex, our "full time part timer" brought in steaks today and DAMN were they good! That gave Coon the chance to break out what he brought us back from his most recent vacation... HELL IN A BOTTLE!



Now, all anyone has to do is read the label to know not to put this stuff on a perfectly cut and trimmed ribeye much less put it in your mouth. Well, anyone except for a Melrose Misfit that is...

Yea...they cried. We finished out the evening with a game or twenty of corn hole (we are Champions you know).


That about wraps it up for now. Hope tonight is quieter than the last. Everyone stay safe and keep em in the house. We're heading into a 4 day break! Captain Wines.

MIDDLE DAY FOR C-SHIFT

Well, we didn't get a true C-shift post up on Monday because we figured whoever has been making the fake ones for us would have posted on a day we actually worked. Anyway, nothing too exciting happened Monday anyhow. Today on the other hand has been somewhat busy or at least out of the norm. To begin with it has been much quieter around here. Tyrone is on vacation at the beach. I spoke with Jill and reminded her to pack the water wings before they left. She was a little confused saying that she wasn't sure if they made them small enough for Jackson or Noah. I then had to explain that I wasn't worried about the boys, I wanted her to pack em for Tyrone LOL. Him, water, shark fishing from the Pier..NOT good combinations. Let's also not forget his suit ... not sure how he swims in that thing at all! No, all kidding aside, have a safe and fun vacation Tyrone.. you've earned one. So, Tyrone's off and Coon banged out sick. That "strept a cock alofa fis" has been going around you know. That or he may have a touch of the sickle cell. You know... that stuff you get from licking food stamps (just kidding Coon..get well soon..we need ya). So both Medics are out and we need a fill-in. That plus Bugg was getting his learn on all day at the RTC taking ICS300. Now we need 2 bodies.. and the results...

Enter Capt. Clayton Martin and 1st Lt/Medic Sam Stump (on right). Both men from our neighboring station LUCKY #13. Now obviously Sambo had to ride the Medic so that left Clayton on the Engine. I offered him the Officer's seat but he refused. He actually thought if he rode backwards and we caught anything that he would / could beat me to the nozzle. Little did he know that even if he did (and he wouldn't have) that I would have pulled a 2nd line and had already told Opie NOT to charge Claytons LMAO! All kidding aside, thanks for filling in today Capt. Here's a pic of him backwards in the War Wagon.

Another note on Clayton is that his 3rd son was also involved in a bone breaking accident this past weekend. That's 3 sons..all with broken bones. Alot of good news here though. The latest fracture was just a wrist and not too serious. The even better news is that Nick is not only out of NTICU, he came home yesterday. Best wishes and a speedy recovery to Beth, Clayton and all the little Martin boys.
Well, with Opie hauling 2 Captains around today he was pretty nervious but performed flawlessly. Several runs including a MVA with what looked like would be an extrication and ended up being a refusal. Check out the impingement into the passenger compartment and the bent up dash board.. decent mechanism of injury.



Not too much more to post on today. I'll add a pic of Larry's shirt from shift break this morning. I posted before on how they're worth waiting for in the mornings..always good for a laugh and I'll throw in one of Wheezy in his new hat (more on Wheezy and his draft into the National Kickball society in Friday's post...and yes I said KICK BALL..like in elem. school... and his team's name???the Free Ballers LMAO it'll be good).


I'll close with a note on Brother Kincer from Station #8. Barry was involved in a head on motorcycle accident yesterday. All in all, he's in good shape. A nasty compound fracture to the lower arm and alot of discomfort. He's at RMH and could use a call or visit. That's all for now..see ya later tonight if worthy or back on Friday. Peace out! Capt.

Busy day for C-Shift

We started the day with our usual check offs. Around 0900 we caught a small garage fire where we saved the vehicle inside with minor smoke damage. Later we jumped a call with E5 for a minor fender bender on 581, and gave some assistance as we extricated most of the occupants with a haligan and screw driver. After lunch we had a small bridge over 581 collapse. Just minor damage but we again assisted in some rescue ops and secured the area for safety. The day was pretty much over when we caught a 3 alarmer down the street. All in all, business as usual for us. Until next time take care, and be safe.

A-Shift: Franks vs. Hayes

OUT OF THEIR LEAGUE

I guess I should explain our last post. Paybacks are a &*%#$. Well, that's pretty self explanitory and the "it's gonna be a good day Tater" was because we were going to get to dish out a little "pay back" today. Now, to tie it all in; this will be a long story and I have several pics to go along with it, so sit back and follow closely...you'll love it! You see, we are all here together at station 9 for a reason. We are outcasts, rouges, the unwanted....MISFITS. The good news is that we fit well together. We work hard but play even harder and nobody messes with us without getting it back ten fold. Some of you may remember back when our beloved door bell (or "bing-bong") as we so affectionately call it was stolen from us. In turn, station 5's crow was kidnapped and held hostage for some time before making the ultimate sacrifice. Rhett followed the shananigans on his blog and you can catch up here here and here. The results??? See below

Now let me add here that the guys at #5 are no push overs. Seasoned men finely tuned in the art of firehouse practical jokes. They just picked the wrong house to play with. Now water under the bridge but a good leason of what happens when you mess with the Melrose Misfits. That brings us to a more recient event. It seems as though, after opening our house to some guest from a neighboring station, their little fingers became sticky. Yes STICKY. Apparently they wanted to sit in a real fire truck (ie: our War Wagon which does NOT have a ladder stuck on its top) and when they climbed up in her, decided to take, borrow or just plain STEAL one of our riding mascots. THE GAULL! Everyone knows we're GIVERS. If we have it and you need it, IT'S YOURS! All you have to do is ASK...don't STEAL it. Oh I'm sure they were laughing all the way back to their house...I can see em now hehehehe. Well, it didn't take us long to launch and end our investigation... by the way, THANKS Lt. Craft, I'll send you'r dime back next cycle. Yep, all indications led right to our little Hippie friends over at the "Green House". So I thought, they're young, maybe they just didn't know any better. Maybe they didn't realize they stole it from #9, maybe they thought they were somewhere else. So, I called. I spoke directly with both suspects and each replied "I don't know what you're talking about Capt..HeHeHe" GUILTY! I then told them, THIS IS YOU'R CHANCE, CONFESS OR PAY THE PRICE. They still had no idea what I was speaking of. And now, pics of our little buddy being brain washed on their blog! GAME ON! So, what could a band of peace loving, recycling, composting, tree hugging, cartoon watching HIPPIES possibly have that we could take? Hummmm.... look here Ahh but could it be done. HELL YES!

Meet our new little GHETTO TABLE. We got her to her new home and started testing her out. Had lunch on her, did a little reading, kicked our feets up on her, you know...all the normal table stuff.

I must admit though, we think it needs a little modification..I'm sure we can fix it. A little red paint here, cut some beer errrr cup holders there...


Now don't you little Hippies fret. We have already been taking good care of her. She's finally getting some of the fine NorthWest Culture she been craving. She's already getting to go places you loosers would never have taken her....





She's even had guest come out to visit

Aint she a BEAUT! How could you not love a new Ghetto Table? It's like Christmas in July. Do you think they even knew they were "out of their league"? What's even funnier is that IF we were to ever give it back, they wouldn't be able to come get her. They all drive little sub-compact electric cars or scooters LMAO. I can see her now tied atop one of their little hybrid cars, her mast upright and fiberglass canopy working like the chute on a super dragster. Out of their league .. HELL they're not even in the same game!

Capt. Wines