Through the graciousness of the Sudlersville VFC, Kent Island Volunteers were able to take advantage of a house scheduled for demolition to conduct some good hands on training.  This was the 1st of four scheduled training sessions which will culminate into the final training which will include live fire and  incorporate all aspects of fireground operations. 

In last night’s training, Tower #1 with a crew of six (6) volunteers drilled on Truck Company Operations under the direction of Captain Finck and FF/ EMS Lt. Mowbray.  In an effort to make the training as realistic as possible, the house was charged with theatrical smoke, then a rescue dummy was placed inside the home.  In a simulated arrival at a reported house fire with persons trapped, the crew leader assigned his crew and they went to work.  Ladders were thrown to all sides of the home while interior crews searched, quickly located the “victim” and removed it from the home. 

In the second scenario, the story line was very similar, but this time the crew used lessons learned from the first scenario and was much more efficient and effective in their operations.  No two emergencies are the same.  It is imperative for firefighters to quickly adapt to the situation which they are faced with, make rapid decisions which are safe and effective.  This drill helped to develop those critical thinking skills in our young volunteers.

After the completion of the two scenarios, two man crews mounted the bucket on the tower and guided it to the roof level. At the steep roof, a roof ladder was positioned and each firefighter exited the bucket onto the roof in simulated roof ventilation skill development.  This operation not only built confidence in operating at heights, but also provided the firefighters the opportunity to operate the bucket and practice positioning.

Throughout the operation firefighter safety was stressed in balance with the need to operate in dangerous and potentially life threatening conditions and yet provides the service needed on behalf of the citizen.

 Volunteers participating in the drill under the direction of Capt. Bobby Finck and FF/EMS Lt. Francis Mowbray were:  Cadet Mills Yslas, FF Michael McCartney, FF Ryan Gardner, FF Brody Bennett, FF Kirby Schulz and FF Scott Boardman.

The next drill is scheduled for Tuesday, May 8th.

Cadet members held their training drill tonight... Tonight the Cadets learned how to pull and repack attack lines on the Engine Company.  After twelve times pulling an re-packing the 200' lines, they were getting pretty good at it. 

This was a good learning experience for the Cadets.  Not only did they learn how to pull the attack lines and re-pack them, but they also learned the tricks of being able to advance lines around objects, and still have enough hose left to make an attack and advance a hoseline.

Cadets with KIVFD are teenagers between the ages of 14 and 16 years of age.  The Cadet Program prepares the teenagers for becoming a full member at the age of 16 and also gives them the knowledge, skills and abilities to be ready to move into the Maryland Fire-Rescue Institute Firefighter I or Emergency Medical Technician.

TICKETS FOR THE 2012 CASH BASH ARE SOLD OUT!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR FANTASTIC SUPPORT... SEE YOU AT THE BASH

Top Prize is $10,000!

DATE: April 21st & 22nd
TIME: 10 AM - 4 PM
LOCATION:  Kent Island VFD, 1610 Main St., Chester, Md.

Questions? Call 410-643-6288 for information!
 

The Kent Island Volunteer Fire Department Kids Toy Bingo held on Friday April 20th was a big success. 

Thanks for coming out and supporting the Kent Island Volunteer Fire Dept.  Everyone had a really good time, and there were a lot of lucky winners of some fun toys.

Check back here for the next big event! 

 

Saturday, March 24th  was the seventh year for the Kent Island Volunteer Fire Department’s Wine Pairing to raise funds for the station in Chester.  Great food paired with a perfect complimentary wine was the order of the evening..

Committee Chair, Francis Roudiez is worked hard with fellow department and committee members and the restaurants and caterers from The Narrows, Rusticos Restaurant, Café Sado, Rams Head Shore House, Love Point Deli, It’s the Pits, Peace of Cake, and of course, Fisherman’s Inn and Fisherman’s Crab Deck were superburb in their preparations.  Everything from sushi to pit beef, shrimp and crab bruschetta to spinach salad with goat cheese, figs and nuts were surved.  And oh the pastries from Peace of Cake, WoW what good eats.

The Silent Auction was a great success.  A trip to Belize, a day on the bay boat ride, a Raven’s area rug, opening day tickets to the Orioles, were just some of the great prizes.   Paula’s Fine Jewelry donated an item of jewelry and local artist Raymond Matheu donated a 12x18 pop art poster.

Sponsors of the event included. Bank Presidents Tommy Rhodes with Queenstown Bank of Maryland and Win Trice of CNB, both of whom stepped up again this year to sponsor the event. Bayside Physical Therapy sponsored the wine glasses again this year and the first 200 through the door benefited from that sponsorship.

Your Volunteers sincerely appreciate the support you provide to our department, without you, we could never accomplish the great service we do for the community.  You're the best!

The citizens of our community never cease to amaze us...

On Saturday, KI VFD held it's 3rd Annual Cornhole Tournament at the fire station.  CONGRATULATIONS to the Big Winners: 1st place Dicky Booze & Steve Calloway 2nd place Craig Morris & Tony Jewell 3rd place Tom Sullivan & Chris Jackson Yet again, the community came out, had a fantastic time and supported their Volunteer Fire Department.  It was a great way to start the St. Patrick's Day Celebration.  Over a dozen dedicated volunteers were on hand to help to setup, tear down and run the tournament.  A huge Thanks to Anne Gardner, husband David, Kelly Balderson, Scherry Schlotterbeck, the Chef Scott Ruth and all of the other members of the Fund Raising Committee for the hard work to make this a big success...

And, as hard as it is to believe on such a beautiful day, at the same time the Cornhole Tournament was going on, another 35-40 Volunteers from Kent Island and neighboring departments were in training in another part of the fire station.  This training was provided by the Maryland Fire-Rescue Institute.   Some were in Hazardous Materials Technician learning how to manage chemical emergencies, and others were learning basic auto extrication with hand tools in the Firefighter II Course.  

And in the middle of it all, the on duty ambulance crew had the opportunity to most likely save a possible heart attack victim...  Kudos to the crew for a great job.

Remember, your Volunteer Fire Department is your friends, neighbors and relatives who care about the island and work hard everyday to provide emergency services to you... all while you are working hard to provide the firefighters the tools to do the job.  It's a winning combination.  Thank You

The Kent Island VFD Life Safety Division recently hosted Kent Island Cub Scout Pack #495 at Station #1 where the scouts learned about Safety and Firefighting from Life Safety Officer Dave Reid and his daughter, FF Chelsea Reid. 

The scouts learned about the equipment firefighters use to protect themselves from the heat and toxic gases.  In addition, the group was trained in home safety in the departments Safety Trailer which uses safe smoke to teach the children how its safer at the floor, and how a heated door means there could be fire on the other side.

While we pride ourselves on our ability to respond to emergencies in our community, teaching Safety and preventing the need for our services is much more beneficial.

Thanks to Dave and Chelsea for their dedication and commitment to the Life Safety Program.

Photos by Elena Butler... Thank You

THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS WERE ELECTED TO LEAD THE KENT ISLAND VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT FOR 2012. 

CONGRATULATIONS! WE LOOK FORWARD TO ANOTHER VERY SUCCESSFUL YEAR.

ADMINISTRATIVE:

       President:  Jody Schulz

       Vice President:  Don Lewis

       Board of Directors:  Dave Reid, "Pops" Gellert and Grace Gardner

       SECRETARY: ANNIE GARDNER

OPERATIONS:

       Chief:  Buddy Thomas

       1st Asst. Chief:  Tracy Schulz

        2nd Asst. Chief:  Paul Schlotterbeck

        EMS Asst. Chief:  Jeff Reiss

        Suppression Captain:  Bobby Finck

        EMS Captain: Steve Andrews

        EMS Lieutenant:  Francis "Mo" Mowbray

CONGRATULATIONS to ROBBIE DALZIEL and CHRIS FARRELL who have successfully completed the Firefighter I training class.

The objective of the Firefighter I course is to provide students with the knowledge and skills to safely and effectively perform basic firefighting operations as part of a firefighting team.

Robbie and Chris have been trained to understand and apply principles of fire behavior; building construction; water distribution systems; fixed fire protection systems; ventilation; hose streams; fire prevention; and inspections, ladders, and rescue techniques.

Major topics covered in the course are the fire department organization, communications, incident command system, ropes and knots, fire behavior, safety, fire prevention, personal protective equipment, fire extinguishers, respiratory protection, ventilation, hose lines, forcible entry, search and rescue procedures, and ladder and sprinkler systems.  

Numerous Kent Island Volunteer Fire Dept. Members and Cadets travelled to the Easton Airport Tuesday, Dec. 13th for a familiarization on Maryland State Police Medevac, Trooper #6.

A special Thanks to Sgt. Chad Gainey for providing an excellent tour and familiarization with the medevac helicopter.   Medevac operations are an important part of emergency services operations and a critical link in our joint lifesaving mission.

THE HISTORY OF THE AVIATION COMMAND…

http://www.mspaviation.org/

The Maryland State Police Aviation Command was established in 1961 to provide airborne law enforcement and aerial search and rescue support for the Maryland State Police and allied law enforcement agencies in Maryland and its neighbors. Since then our missions have included routine traffic patrol, monitoring of special events, surveillance of criminal activity, tracking of escapees and suspects, and searches for missing children. Advances in technology have allowed us to enhance our capabilities throughout the use of Forward Looking Infrared (the "FLIR") and the 30,000,000 candle power Nite Sun search light on State Police Helicopters. These tools allow helicopter crews to see deep into the night to locate hiding criminals or lost children and direct ground units to their location. The helicopter provides a panoramic platform for the police commander to evaluate an event, allowing for a more efficient operation. During a vehicle pursuit, ground units may reduce their speed and the suspect vehicle can be observed from above with the pursuit terminating until safer conditions prevail. This helps shelter citizens from the fleeing vehicle. You can't outrun a helicopter.

On March 19, 1970 our role was expanded and the world of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was changed forever. On that day, we were the first civilian agency to transport a critically injured trauma patient by helicopter. Never before had this been done in a non-military setting.

The driving force behind this expansion into the area of medical evacuation (medevac) was Dr. R Adams Cowley. Dr. Cowley, the founder of Shock Trauma in Baltimore, believed that medevac transportation of critically injured patients to Shock Trauma would save lives. He was right. Since the early 1970's, Shock Trauma and the Maryland State Police have earned a worldwide reputation as the leaders in trauma care.

Today the Aviation Command performs five separate mission profiles using the same aircraft and crew: medevac, aerial law enforcement, search and rescue, homeland security, and disaster assessment.

What began with one helicopter to cover the entire state has grown to include Helicopter Sections, Maintenance Operations , Support Operations and Administration . Since 1970, the helicopter sections of the Aviation Command have completed over 180,000 missions and have transported over 120,000 patients.

The Aviation Command also operates a Fixed Wing Section with two fixed wing aircraft. The twin engine airplane is used primarily to extradite prisoners who are wanted by the State of Maryland. The smaller single engine airplane is used for selected law enforcement missions (such as speed enforcement, surveillance and crime scene photography) at a significant cost saving compared to a helicopter.

The Aviation Command is the only flight program in Maryland that performs medevac, aerial law enforcement, search and rescue, homeland security, and disaster assessment.

We hope to continue to improve the services we provide well into the new millennium.