Texas Fire Chief - Spring/Summer 2008 - (Page 30)

©www.istockphoto.com/Branko Miokovic Who Are Those Guys? Chief Randy Parr, Tomball Fire Department CHIEF RANDY PARR SERVES AS THE STATE ADVOCATE FOR FIRE CORPS There are currently 79 registered Fire Corps programs in Texas. Fire departments, including some large career departments, are beneﬁting directly from the assistance of Fire Corps volunteers in their communities. To learn more about the program nationally, visit http://www.ﬁrecorps.org/ . ho are those guys? We have been getting telephone calls inquiring about the two or three senior gentlemen wearing Tomball Fire Department apparel and asking business owners and managers to be allowed to examine commercial establishments in the City of Tomball. These gentlemen are not members of the Apple Dumpling Gang or other marauding intruders casing businesses with evil on their agendas. Let’s first speak to “who those guys are not.” These gentlemen are not inspecting for violations the City’s Fire and Life Safety Code. They have no authority to issue citations or make recommendations concerning fire safety in the occupancy. They are not there to be an inconvenience or hindrance to your business operations. So, who are those guys? George Smith, Kline Irvine, and Calvin Fast are participants in the local extension of a national program called Fire Corp. The program matches up the unmet needs of the local fire department with members of the community that have time, talent and a desire to assist their community’s fire department. In this case, the Tomball Fire Department has a project that, due to staffing time limits, we were not able to start, let alone complete. W The project involved creating a fire pre-incident plan for each commercial establishment in Tomball. The pre-incident plan includes a site plan, floor plan, location of all utility cut off switches and valves, analysis of building construction, location of closest two fire hydrants, roof load, presence and location of hazardous materials, and other information to assist firefighters responding to an emergency incident at the building. This information is invaluable to the Incident Commander making decisions to commit personnel safely when fighting a fire in the building. This information also benefits business owners as it allows our firefighters to perform their tasks more efficiently and effectively. The Tomball Fire Department sincerely appreciates the cooperation of the community’s business managers and owners in assisting us in the process of creating these pre-incident plans. The gentlemen involved in the process should be making contact with the manager or the owner prior to beginning their survey. The owner’s representative may accompany the gentlemen to alleviate any concerns or questions caused by their presence. If you have any questions regarding this program or any other Tomball Fire Department program, please do not hesitate to contact Fire Chief Randy Parr or Fire Marshal Joe Jasso at 281-351-7101. TEXAS FIRE CHIEF Spring/Summer 2008 30 http://www.firecorps.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Texas Fire Chief - Spring/Summer 2008

Texas Fire Chief - Spring/Summer 2008 Contents Executive Director’s Report Region Realignment Map Above and Beyond 2007 Conference Highlights ‘Service Above Self’ Texas Commission Implements Southwest Fire Rescue Conference Program Membership Application Who Are Those Guys? Alarms for the Hearing Impaired Recent Calls Index to Advertisers

Texas Fire Chief - Spring/Summer 2008

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