Fire and Rescue International Newsletter

Fire fighter Adeeb Ismael died in a motorbike accident close to Citrusdal on Friday, 13 September 2024. Adeeb was with the Breede Valley Fire Department in Worcester in the Western Cape. The official statement read, “Adeeb Ismail: a son, nephew, cousin, friend – loved one. Also, a dedicated firefighter putting his life on the line to keep others safe. He will always be remembered as a fun-loving but steadfast colleague who took his work serious and put his heart and soul into it. With his infectious smile he made onlookers believe that being a firefighter was a breeze and easy to do. However, everybody knows just how difficult the life of a firefighter sometimes is.”

“During the recent flooding in the area, Adeeb was one of the men having to carry people to safety after rivers overflowed their banks and houses were flooded.”

“Adeeb also assisted with the rescue efforts at the site of the building collapse in George which left many people deceased.”

“Friends and colleagues describe him as somebody who was always ready to help in any way he could, no matter what and how.”

“He was an ardent biker and was equally passionate about the family business.”

“On behalf of the Municipal Manager, Executive Mayor, directors and staff of Breede Valley Municipality, we wish to express our shock and heartfelt sorrow with the family, relatives, and friends of Adeeb who sadly passed away this morning. May you receive comfort and healing with the loss of your loved one. Adeeb will be buried according to Muslim custom.”

Fire and Rescue International share our deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues. May he rest in Peace.

Source: Breede Valley Fire Department

Quote of the week
“Heroes don’t have the need to be known as heroes, they just do what heroes do because it is right and it must be done.” ~ Nelson Mandela

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Lee Raath-Brownie
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On 13 September 2024, the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department (ESD) held a firefighter passing-out parade and honoured some of its members who have recently retired. “This morning, I had the honour of welcoming 76 new firefighters to the Emergency Services Department (ESD) at the passing out parade event held at Lucas van den Berg Sport Field in Pretoria West. The ceremony also served to recognise eight retired ESD personnel members who have made valuable contributions to the City for up to 42 years”, said Ald Cilliers Brink, Executive Mayor of Tshwane.

A world-first collaborative trial will see cutting-edge technology used by NSW Ambulance as part of the rapid assessment and triage of stroke patients as they are transported to hospital. A revolutionary new brain scanner, the Medfield Diagnostics Strokefinder MD100 helmet, is currently being piloted by NSW Ambulance paramedics in the Hunter region, the first time the Strokefinder helmet technology is being utilised on the frontline and outside of hospital. Minister for Regional Health Ryan Park said this innovative trial could enable even faster stroke diagnosis and treatment, meaning more patients stand to benefit from timely stroke interventions in the vital ‘golden hour’.

On Tuesday, 27 August 2024, the Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) Fire and Rescue Services, in collaboration with the GRDM Skills Mecca programme, marked a historic milestone with the Occupational Firefighter Graduation Ceremony. This event was a significant achievement as GRDM became the first district municipality in South Africa to offer and complete this type of qualification. The prestigious event was attended by Chief Fire Officers from local municipalities within the district, Councillors, the GRDM Municipal Manager, Skills Mecca team, firefighters, officials, graduates and their families and training stakeholders.

On the night of 24 to 25 August 2024, a fire broke out in the basement of a four-story apartment building on Kraszewskiego Street in Poznań, Poland, the Polish State Fire Service reports. During the rescue operations, an explosion occurred, injuring 11 firefighters and 3 civilians, two of whom were passing by the building and one from the residential building itself. The firefighting efforts involved 100 firefighters and 30 rescue vehicles, including a specialised search and rescue team from Poznań and Łódź.

A few years ago, Johannesburg firefighter Nonhlanhla Gxamza and her colleague were busy loading a patient into an ambulance when a gunman wearing a balaclava suddenly materialised in the dark. He robbed them of their cell phones and wallets at gunpoint as the patient lay on the stretcher inside the ambulance, watching. Witnessing that was too much of a shock for the patient who then had a heart attack and died inside the ambulance. This is just one of the many challenges that Gxamza, age 38, has had to deal with in her 17-year career as a firefighter.

At least seven people, including three firefighters, have lost their lives as wildfires continue to cause evacuations and destruction to homes in Portugal. The fires, which have been worsened by extreme heat and dry conditions, are spreading across large areas of the country, leading to widespread evacuations and significant damage to homes and infrastructure. Firefighters are working to contain the fires but the ongoing high temperatures and winds are making the task increasingly difficult. Over 5 000 firefighters are working to control the fires. At least 12 firefighters have been injured, with two in serious condition.

In what can only be described as a heroic act, a firefighter from the Sol Plaatje Municipality Fire Department, Ryno Griesel, drew on his decades of training and experience to save a Kimberley resident from a house engulfed in flames. Griesel and his team responded to an emergency call about a fire at a house on Kekewich Drive, Monument Heights, on 27 August 2024. “The Kimberley Emergency Services received an urgent call at about 23h37 about a fire that had engulfed a house on Kekewich Drive. Within six minutes after the call, our team arrived at the scene. We found the front part of the house fully ablaze,” Griesel recounted.

In partnership with the Council for Health Service Accreditation of Southern Africa, once again the Africa Health Congress will present the Quality Management and Patient Safety Conference next month. This is the 12th year that the Congress will host this important conference based on quality management. Africa Health, the leading healthcare event in Africa, will be held from 22 to 24 October 2024 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, South Africa. The annual Africa Health Congress is the continent’s largest gathering of healthcare professionals.

In the spirit of Women’s month we want to celebrate phenomenal women who are either students or Alumni at the Emergency Medical Care and Rescue: Durban University of Technology. “Today we are shining a spotlight on one of our current students who is never satisfied with mediocrity Conny Kwaso. She has grown in leaps in bounds in both her career and as a mentor. In 2022, she was featured on the Thubapelo Mosadi Let’s Talk Magazine. In the same year, she won a Women Paramedic Support Group Achievers Award. In 2023 she won the Women Paramedic Support Group bachelor of Health Sciences Student Award.”

The 2024 Electra Mining Exhibition and Conference was held on 2 to 6 September at the Expo Centre (NASREC) in Johannesburg. The 2024 event attracted over 39 000 trade visitors and featured more than 950 exhibitors across five days. Since 1972, Electra Mining Africa has been the ultimate platform for businesses in mining, electrical, automation, manufacturing, power, and transport to connect and grow. As the largest trade show in Southern Africa and one of the top three mining exhibitions globally, Electra Mining Africa continues to deliver results. FRI visited to share some photos of fire-related exhibits.

Electra Mining Africa 2026 will take place on 7 to 11 September 2026 at the same venue.

Source: The Montgomery Group

This week’s featured Fire and Rescue International magazine article is: What can you do if you suspect that illegal wildfires are occurring in your area? Written by Rob Erasmus, Enviro Wildfire Services (FRI Vol 2 no 9). We will be sharing more technical/research/tactical articles from Fire and Rescue International magazine on a weekly basis with our readers to assist in technology transfer. This will hopefully create an increased awareness, providing you with hands-on advice and guidance. All our magazines are available free of charge in PDF format on our website and online at ISSUU. We also provide all technical articles as a free download in our article archive on our website.

Horry County Fire Rescue celebrated a new addition to its emergency service infrastructure in May 2024 during a grand opening ceremony for the new Station 4 in Forestbrook. The new station at 120 Burcale Road cost $5.35 million to build and took about two years to finish. The new Station Four is located in the Forestbrook community on Burcales Road, just down the road from their old location.

The fire department in Oak Island, North Carolina, is one of the few in the nation using drone technology to help rescue swimmers who get stranded in the Atlantic Ocean. The drones are equipped with infrared to spot distressed swimmers, and emergency responders can communicate instructions through a speaker. Manuel Bojorquez has more.

Source: CBS Evening News

Stuck in a rut? Not seeing progress? Stop making these workout mistakes and get fit for duty. In this episode, Aaron covers the biggest mistakes firefighters are making during, before and after their workouts.

Source: Fire Rescue Fitness (FRF)

Source: Scott Shields

This collection of fire engine, appliance, turntable & support vehicle photos comprise fire-related vehicles from the 1900s through to the 1980s, including various ex-military and wartime (AFS) fire appliances. Well-known manufacturers of fire engines such as Dennis, Leyland, Carmichael, Bedford, Commer and AEC rub shoulders here with less-frequently-encountered examples from the likes of Land Rover, Unimog, Jaguar and GMC. Old airfields can be good hunting ground for older fire engines and support vehicles, and a number of them have been included in this set of images. If you’ve ever served in the fire services and remember riding in, or driving, any of the vehicles shown, perhaps the Green Goddess or one of the Dennis-based appliances, please add a note and say hello in the comments section.

Source: Old Classic Car

Staying fit and ready is part of the job. It can be done at work, at home, at the gym, by yourself or with others. Staying sharp and ready to respond is a team effort. The greatest firefighter in the world is useless without a good chauffer to get them there, charge the line, somebody to force the door, set up the ladders, do the primary, ventilate, command the incident, dispatch to resources and treat and transport the injured. We are only as good as our weakest link. To make a sure our weakest link is strong enough to keep the chain together it is imperative to act like a team, live like a team and train like a team. We will always have superstars, and they are great to have around, as long as they take the time to help somebody who is struggling, and teach them how best to do what they are best at. A fire company is not static; its parts change, get tired, retire, forget and even lose interest if allowed to isolate. So keep an eye on each other, make sure everybody has a part and contributes every ounce of whatever it is they bring to the table. We are in this together. It’s the only way. This goes for us retired geezers too. No sense doing the hard work for decades only to go to seed in retirement.

Source: Rescuing Providence