Drastic change from last day

Today has been extremely pleasant compared to last day. Beautiful weather and everything at a good pace. Not too much to blog about thus far tonight but I'll see what I can pull together. First I wanted to follow up on something I posted last day. Talk about a class act, this evening I received a phone call from Greg Doss. If you read last day's post, you'll remember that Gregg had family here in the Roanoke Fire Dept. and is now working himself on the job in Franklin Tenn. I also mentioned that he is their Union President and wrote about him because of his offer to help with anything I may need while I was down in Nashville. Well, he read the post and thought enough to call up here to speak with me personally and thank me for the posting.... TO THANK ME! Hell, he was the one offering help. Anyway, we had a great conversation. He grew up around Vinton and even volunteered there in the old days with a lot of guys who are now on the job or recently retired from here. The Obenchains, Tommy Overstreet, Mike Armstrong, and Chris Trussler. He grew up visiting old station #6 ( Peanuts was assigned there )just as I did as a child and shared memories etc of all of the men we both remembered so fondly. Capt. Swanson, Lawrence Breeding, M.H. Poindexter and more. He also told me that he is also kin to Tommy Hogan (now retired.. Tommy is Greg's mother's brother). So anyway, the fact that he took the time to call was fantastic and it reminded me of one of the slogans on our stations 2009 St. Patty's shirt. The slogan is Gaelic and reads "Braithreachas Thar Gach Ni" meaning "Brotherhood above all else". Here's a pic of the shirt. you can also view both the front and back (without the slogans) here. I was browsing through Rhetts site over at VaFirenews.com and found what looks like is going to be a great gathering for Firefighters up in Richmond on the 26th of this month. The event is hosted by the Halligan Bar and Grill. Check out the link here . The good news is that it's close to us here in Roanoke. The bad news is that it is scheduled on the weekend of our 2nd annual Officer's seminar. Anyway, it looks like something I'd like to attend, check it out if you can. I also found a pretty cool pic over at Firegeezer . Check this out... Talk about a "Deck gun"...boy if we could get one of those!!! Read the related article here. We had a few visitors today as well. The Buckaroo brought my wife and oldest daughter by for a Popsicle. It's probably a bad idea to post a pic of one of my girls cause I know how firemen think. So, give her a break....here's the pic (left to right, wife Donna, the Buckaroo, and oldest daughter Randi-jo). We had another visitor but I don't think he had as good of a time as the Buckaroo or the girls. We posted once in the past about the rats around here. Oh the stories we could tell. Here's the past post and here's a shots of his cousin...RIP. I guess I should also add here that technically, neither of the two should be considered rats. These are more like little field mice compared to the rats we have. This one was even too small to grill and had not nearly enough hide to make it worth while to skin him. Guess we need to wait till they get their winter coats on LOL. I'll end for now with a short video. One of our part-timers was in the back of the bay this evening praying. I know he was praying because tomorrow is Sunday and all of the members here on C-shift know I don't like the boys sleeping in chairs (in plain view of the public) when we have 18 beds and 2 couches upstairs. Anyway, he was praying and two of our neighborhood kids found him.

Gonna wrap it up here..it's GAME DAY! Va. Tech is playing Alabama and we hope to catch a little of it. The entire day has been planned to end with the game. Even the meals. One of our favorite bars...errrrr cafe even delivered some GREAT hot wings. If you have never been to All Sports, you're missing not only a great time, but great food as well. OUTSTANDING ribs, wings, burgers, wraps you name it. Affordable and ice cold beer...ahhh I meant milk, tea or cool-aid. We hit the Salem location mostly but there's one on Grandon Rd in Roanoke as well. Check out the link here and stop in for a glass or twenty with us some day. That's it for now, stay safe and quiet tonight. GO HOKIES!!!
Capt. Wines

Time to beef up the ol armor

Well, this is North West but the ol slogan of running out of "the knife and gun club" wont exactly fit anymore. We run our share of shootings and stabbings, everything from 22 cal to AK's and AR's. Hell, they advertise em in stock just up the street (click the pic for a larger view and read the sign).

But today we had a first. A live grenade. WDBJ7 made a brief mention of it on the 6 o'clock news or check out their report of the incident here. Nothing too exciting really, no detonation and best of all, no injuries. The Engine was called to assist PD which ended up being of Cities finest along with the State Police Bomb Squad. Nearby businesses were evacuated and safety zones established. Then, the waiting game. Here's a pic of the scene

It's not often we get the State guys in our neck of the woods (it's usually the feds..ATF or DEA). They did have a cool rig and only needed a 40 acre field to turn it around.

We also called in our little hippie friends from the Green House or Hippie Hotel as we like to call it. Medic #3 came and sat with us for a while just in case.

Then we got to thinking... just in case?? What if this thing really goes off?? What Medic do we have again??? Oh yea, it's #3. Then we got realistic..better call in some professionals.

LOL...just kidding #3, you guys (AND GAL) do a great job. Well after a hour or so of deciding what to do (other than NOT letting the Firemen remove and dispose of it)the bomb guys loaded up the pesky little explosive devise and hauled it off to where ever they haul stuff like that off to. We took up and headed back for lunch and Air conditioning. Oh, I guess I should also mention that we had a mixed bag of members today. Wheezy was off once again getting his EMT-I learn on. Opie is somewhere in Dollywood starring at Dolly's....errrr...ummmmm well he's in Dollywood and Bugg banged out sick. So, that meant we got the "banned blogger" Rhett Fleitz backwards on the Engine until class was over and "quiet as a mouse" McDonald for 24 on the Medic. Here's our 2 fill-ins


We also had a "ride a-long" for a few hours tonight. Add him and Medic Unit 101 and that meant 8 people around the table for dinner. We were thinking about running up the street to steal a church pew (kinda felt like the Waltons) but then we figured out if we stole a pew it would have to come from a church (I don't think #3 has a pew). Now we are "Misfits" and we will pilfer just about anything we need (or want bad enough) but stealing from a church?? Don't worry, we didn't! That ain't how we roll. We made due with some rolly chairs from the office and sat down to a really nice meal.

After dinner and cleaning the kitchen, it was up to our theater room for Popsicles and a movie. "Last House on the Left" is worth the watch...it works out in the end! I'll leave ya with Larry's shirt from shift break. I don't know where he gets em but I love em.

That's it for now, keep em in house and be safe. Capt. Wines

Easy like Sunday morning

It's been a peaceful return for C-shift thus far. Opie is off on vacation and nobody else had class etc. this morning so no fill-ins or anything away from the norm. I didn't post our last day due to pure laziness. About the biggest excitement around here lately happened last day (8-11-09) when our Medics ran a GSW with the men from the 12th Street Express. The guys did an excellent job and had the pt in the trauma room 14 minutes following dispatch! He had good vitals and was even talking, despite being shot in the chest. We also had a past member of station #9 fill-in for 16hrs last day. Craig Champney, now of The Big Show fame, returned to his ol stomping grounds for a short ride. From what I understand, "Chappy" is the creator of the Big Show's blog but was very shy and uncooperative about letting us get a pic of him for ours (we always try to post pics of our visitors, guest and / or fill-ins). Well, we did manage to snap one of him helping me with some technicals issues concerning our blog.

Everyone here reported an enjoyable 4-day break (the weather was perfect for a change). Wheezy has been crying a little about his legs being sore. Apparently the Ol Kick-ball league had a full schedule this weekend. I mentioned in an earlier post that he was in a league and off to training camp. It seems he was picked up early in the draft and made it through all the cuts. He is now a proud player for the "Free Ballers"!! LMAO I am working on a picture of him in his little outfit, uniform or whatever you call what you wear while playing kickball. I did however find one of his team mates... hope wheezy looks better in his.

Don't worry... there will be alot more posting and pics on this kickball stuff so stay tuned. I got a cool gift from a friend this morning. I have posted several times in the past about my morning web site / blog visit routine. Firegeezer has always been on that list and his "digital day room" is one of the few sites I hit regularly. Well, today I received one of his famous coffee mugs. Now, I happen to know he enjoys seeing where his mugs end up so here's a few pics just for him. The geezer (or at least his mug) has now made it to the Captains desk of The Melrose Misfits and sat upon our War Wagon. Hope he enjoys the pics.



Speaking of sites I visit, because of the lack of a posting last day I didn't get to mention a post from the Fire Critic. If you folks aren't hitting this site regular, you need to. It's post like this one that make it even that much more enjoyable.
I'll wrap it up tonight with a pic of Larry's shirt from shift break

We'll update if anything exciting happens tonight, until then.. don't take no wooden nickles! Capt. Wines

C-shift sweating out our middle day

It's been a long hot middle day for the Melrose Misfits of C-shift. I'm not sure what today's temperature was but it was HOT. It's been steady running for the Medic, sitting on 9 while the Engine hangs on to 4. I had the pleasure of spending the last of 4 Sundays getting my "learn on" out at our regional training center. Now typically, I wouldn't be too happy about sitting in a classroom for 4 days but with Instructors like Battalion Chiefs Adkins and Manual, who could complain? Forget the endless chapters, the HOMEWORK, those color in all the dots sheets from DFP, the ENDLESS chapters,the HOMEWORK, reading assignments, 7 page papers in some kind of funny "format", the HOMEWORK, endless chapters, and lets not forget the 7 page essay and oh yea..HOMEWORK. With Teddy and Roger at the helm, it was actually not that bad. Here's a shot of Chief Adkins in action.

While I was gone (and due to Wheezy being off on vacation ... he's away at kick-ball training camp) we had a fill in from The Deuce (remember?? The Deuce because 1 is never enough...click here and scroll down). Anyway, we got one of C-shift's newest members FF/EMT Ward. They made a few EMS runs and then caught a vehicle fire. I had my camera with me this morning so they didn't get any pics but I understand Ward did a fine job. I guess the boys did miss me though because they had me a present when I got back. A little "Bling" is always good because it adds points to your street credit.


We opened the barber shop after dinner with Lt. Bugg wielding the shears again. Just like with Tyrone ( here and here )Things didn't look so good for Coon in the beginning...you be the judge

The good news is that it turned out ok. I was checking out my regular web sites / blogs this evening and found some really good smack. Anyone who knows me knows I'm sort of a FDNY buff. Well, firefighterspot has some GREAT vintage photos of the FDNY in action. Here's the direct link to the post, scroll to the bottom of the pic, look right and click view all images or just click here. I also found this really cool T-shirt over at the Happy Medic Again, scroll towards the bottom of the page and look at the right side bar.

You can purchase this shirt here
Well, that's enough for tonight, it's back to the hay fields again tomorrow. I have the Buckaroo in farm training as well as FD training. I'll end with a few shots from yesterday of the little fella helping out and doing what he seems to do best...EATING LOL




Stay in the house, if not remember to keep your members hydrated and cool. Get that gear off of em a soon as possible. BE SAFE! Capt. Wines

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

Feels like Monday

Another beautiful day and C-shift is pulling the tour. I feel like I've been here for a week already today. Mondays have a few additional checks etc that need to be performed in the mornings but it's really not that big of a deal. Got all the trucks washed up, hit the grocery store and caught a few runs. Donnie Foutz is our other messenger truck driver (we have 2 who alternate, him and Jimmy "Jimbo" Jennings) and just like Jimbo, Donnie always takes the time to sit down and spread the good word. Jimmy retired from our Department in 2004 and Donnie worked for the Vinton Fire Dept. so both are an excellent fit for the job. Here's a shot from Donnie's visit today.After we all downed 4 or 5 of Wheezy's "gut bomb" hot dogs with chili, we loaded up and headed out for a little training (..YES station #3, we train EVERYDAY). Our training location today has one of those "good news / bad news" stories. The bad news is that it is a closed down retirement home. It didn't have the best reputation, nor was it anywhere near the cleanest place to go BUT, it was the spot I had chosen to put my dad once he retired from the Fire Dept. You see, it is right across the street from a convenience store. Dad could have walked the short distance across the street to buy his supply of Old Milwaukee. The residents also sat on the front porch every day in a very nice glider. By joining them, he would have had a front row seat for watching Engine and Ladder 2 run up and down Williamson Rd. Not to mention also having a nice shady spot for consuming the above mentioned purchase. And, the big bonus was the fact that I had budgeted in to supply him with a full carton of camel cigarettes and 1 brown paper bag per week. You see, dad didn't smoke but, there was one very nice lady who lived there. I figure she was rich because she wore a full length fur coat every day of the year (summer time included). Well, it was rumored that this nice lady traded .... well she traded "stuff" for cigarettes. So you see, dad would have had it made. Close to cold beer, near fire trucks, a working glider / rocking chair in a shaded area and ... the woman in the fur coat for ... well you get the picture. Anyway, they shut it down and now dad just stays on the golf course. The good news to the location is that they shut it down and it is an awesome site for training. We actually used the buildings during the last recruit school. I'm not sure if Lt. Bags or Chief Adkins acquired the location but, we continue to have access to it and it has worked out great. Room for tons of drills...flat roof, peaked roof, searches, single story, 2 story, numerous windows and doors etc. Here's a shot of some vent training.
For all the readers on the job, you may be wondering why an Engine Company has a saw. Well, we do carry a K12 on our War Wagon but we usually keep the abrasive blade on. We encounter a lot of security bars etc in our first due and having the saw with us saves some time vs. waiting on the ladder truck. We changed blades and did some venting just to get some time on the saw and, here in the City, it's not uncommon for an Engine to be assigned "truck work" and vise versa. Anyhow, later on, we caught another "cooker"! I mean it was "that" close to getting away from Wheezy. Had the inferno not been in a 55 gal. drum, I'm scared to think what may have happened.
After extinguishing this inferno, we headed back to the house to begin dinner. Once again, Wheezy pulled though... BBQ chicken, mac salad and baked beans.

What can I say? The boy was raised right and he has a good Captain! Now, if you think the yard bird looks good (and it was) check out what was for desert. Home made banana ice cream! Yep, that's how we roll here at the rock. Nothing like a friendly game of corn hole and some home made ice cream to wind the day down.

There was a little "picking" going on this evening as well. I have always told the boys that "I can tolerate a lot of things BUT, fretting is not one of them". I guess I'll bend that rule a little tonight. "Someone" stopped by for a visit to make sure I seen his new shirt and said he sure hopes it wont make the blog (hint hint). It seems as though there is another station to station friendly rivalry going on.

And to wind things up here, I was issued new gear tonight. YEP, brand new, shinny and clean. I'll add here that all the brothers on the turn out gear committee did a fantastic job of looking out for our safety when specking this gear. Morning Pride won the bid and in my opinion, theres not a better set of gear on the market. JJ Price and Randolph Smiff from down at the "Big Show" handle all the gear for C-shift and they too go above and beyond to take care of the men. Here's the pic, get a good look ...you know what new gear means.

I look like a ROOKIE all clean and pretty. Don't take no wooden nickels, keep em in the house and STAY SAFE tonight. We're back on Wednesday.