Massachusetts Fire Chief 2009

A MESSAGE FROM THE FCAM PRESIDENT BY CHIEF GER ARD A. DIO As president, I have the honor and privilege to pen the ﬁrst article of the new yearly magazine of the Fire Chiefs’ Association of Massachusetts. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your support. Our success is as a group and not as individuals. It is a collective effect that accomplishments are realized in this organization and not solely due to the efforts of a president who serves for only one year. The individual may be credited with the idea and for the initiation of the idea or plan, but it is only as a cohesive team that the idea comes to fruition or the goal is achieved. I hope as my year as President moves along I can help this organization with setting in motion some important initiatives. However, more importantly, I hope that I can do this with the help and the knowledge and talents of many of you within the association. Therefore, any of you who are presently debating whether or not to run for a position on the board I would encourage you to do so, since I both welcome and need your assistance in order to accomplish our goals. We do not always achieve our goals and objectives quickly as evidenced by the eight long years it took to get the “Forgotten Fire” on the Governor’s desk. Despite the long ﬁght, we as a team realized our goal and in doing so can all take pride in knowing that we have made a difference. With respect to legislative issues, we have a number of bills we will be reﬁ ling and ﬁlling for the ﬁrst time. Government Affairs Director Retired Chief Robert DiPoli will be talking more about these initiatives later in the magazine. Second Vice President Kevin Robinson will also be addressing the Chief Fire Ofﬁcer’s program and we will look forward to hearing more about these important matters. Later on in the magazine Statewide Mobilization Committee Chairman Chief Ed O’Brien will be updating you on issues under consideration by WE ARE PRESENTLY LOOKING AT THE EMAC his group. We are presently looking at the EMAC situSITUATION FOR MASSACHUSETTS FIRE SERVICE AND ation for Massachusetts Fire Service and how we as a HOW WE AS A STATE ORGANIZATION CAN state organization can help other states in the event of HELP OTHER STATES IN THE EVENT OF A LARGE a large scale disaster. We are looking at a deﬁned ﬁre SCALE DISASTER. resource package in the event we are requested to send ﬁre assets out of the state. The sub-committee under the Statewide Mobilization Committee will consist of Chief Roy Jones, Allen Philips from MEMA and myself. We will be looking for input from the body in the future regarding this subject matter so please voice your opinion to us when we ask. Recently, as a member of the IAFC, I had the privilege of going to Israel. It was an educational trip of a life time. The people of Israel have dealt with extenuating circumstances for a long time and have learned much from their experience. The group was briefed on many matters including the Mall Security, EMS, National Police, Bomb Squad, Fire Department Issues, Search and Rescue, suicide bombers and numerous other issues. Something that I realized during my trip was that the people of Israel succeed because they continuously work as a team. Not often did I hear the word “I” in the presentation of any of the guides we were privileged to have spoken with. Instead, one heard the word “we” and what is good for “our” country. Given the current crisis that the people of Israel ﬁnd themselves in, I am sure I speak for all of the members of the association in wishing them well in their endeavor for peace. In closing I wish you all success in the coming year and if the FCAM can be of assistance in any way please do not hesitate to let us know. This is your organization and we need to hear from you on how we can better serve you. ❚ M A SSA C HUSE TTS FIRE CHIEF 2009 | 9

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Massachusetts Fire Chief 2009

Massachusetts Fire Chief 2009 Contents A Message from the FCAM President Code of Ethics/Vision Statement Bonds of Service Legislative Report The Fire Chief for 2009 and Beyond Leading a Combination Fire Department Remember When Fighting for Code Change Leadership Matters Fire Risk Management - Fire Chiefs - Codes The Current Economy and its Effect on Fire Departments Statewide Fire Mobilization Plan Beware of the Truss Index of Advertisers

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