Our Condolences to Chief J. Michael Roberts of Millburn Fire Department on the passing of his Mother:

Mary M Roberts, 88

Gathering: Thursday, May 17, 2012 from 4-7pm
Jacob A. Holle Funeral Home
2122 Millburn Avenue
Maplewood, N.J.

Funeral: Friday, May 18, 2012 at 11:00am
Christ Church in Short Hills
66 Highland Avenue
Short Hills, N.J.

Internment is private.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to your favorite charity in her name...
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Firefighters discuss dangers of increased mutual aid responses during committee hearing

By Ray Smith | April 25th, 2012 - 1:24pm

JERSEY CITY – A dominant theme in today’s Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee hearing here is the growing reliance on mutual aid during routine fires, something the president of a major firefighter’s union called problematic.
The committee is hearing testimony on how budget cuts have affected public safety.
“We went from having a once in a year fire where we needed mutual aid, to incidents where we have a house fire or attic fire where we need automatic mutual aid,” said Bill Lavin, the president of the New Jersey Firefighter’s Mutual Benevolent Association.

Jersey City Fire Chief Darren Rivers also spoke of an incident in February when Hoboken and Jersey City both had major fires, and there were not enough firefighters to respond.

“When the city of Elizabeth responds to Hoboken for a fire, 11 miles away…when Montclair responds to Union City, there’s a problem,” Lavin said. “We have a serious problem.”

“We’re all so stripped down,” said Christopher Weiss, the deputy chief of the East Orange Fire Department. “We’re all relying on each other…now we’re getting to a point where I’ve had mutual aid come to a scene to assist with a search because we haven’t accounted for all the people in the building. That used to never happen.”

Troy Powell, a Montclair firefighter, said earlier this year his department was called to Hudson County, a trip of 38 minutes during a fire response. Powell quoted a state regulation that said it should take a fire company eight minutes to respond to a fire.

“Every department uses different size threads to attach to their hydrants,” Powell said, adding that the more municipalities rely on mutual aid, the more problems arise on the scene because of different operating procedures.

Ed Donnelly, a firefighter in Union, said the 2 percent property tax cap is “handcuffing municipalities” and causing firefighters to operate at “dangerously low manpower levels.”

“We have lost positions through attrition,” Donnelly said. “Municipal leaders are applauding the facts of no layoffs…but we’ve seen the mutual aid (system) misused and abused at alarming rates.”

Assemblyman Charles Mainor, (D-31), Jersey City, said he agrees with the firefighters in attendance that regionalization is not the only answer. Mainor used a financial example to echo his comments.

Before the North Hudson Regional Fire Department was formed, Union City paid $6 million for fire services. After the consolidation, Union City pays $18 million annually, Mainor said.

Many firefighters in attendance criticized the 2 percent budget cap on municipalities.
Michael Drewniak, a spokesperson for Gov. Chris Christie, issued a statement about the committee hearing.
“Municipalities and our cities have had to make tough decisions due to the economy and a decade of overspending that could no longer be sustained,” Drewniak said in a statement.

“That was the root of the problem, and Governor Christie has been a leader in addressing it by enacting reforms to save local governments millions of dollars annually, increase their efficiency and accountability and, indeed, to responsibly address public safety. More needs to be done, but the Legislature has refused to heed the calls of the Governor and mayors themselves to do more – like pass real reform of the civil service system and end sick pay abuse.”

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Newark Mayor Cory Booker: Race into home fire was a "come to Jesus moment"
April 13, 2012
by CBNews.com

(CBS News) Newark Mayor Cory Booker called it his "come to Jesus moment" when he ran into a burning building to save a neighbor's life.

Booker arrived home last night to discover his next-door neighbor's house on fire, and rescued a young woman trapped upstairs by carrying here through the flames, suffering second-degree burns in the process.

On "CBS This Morning" Booker and Newark Police Detective Alex Rodriguez described their terrifying ordeal.

The mayor's security team discovered the fire and pounded on the door to alert residents, when an elderly woman said that her daughter was trapped upstairs.

At first Rodriguez would not let Booker into the burning house. "He basically told me, 'This woman is going to die if we don't help her,' and what can I say to that?," Rodriguez said. "I let him go and without thinking twice, he just ran into the flames and rescued this young lady."

Booker said that as he jumped through the kitchen on the second floor, "I actually wasn't thinking. When I got there and couldn't find her in all the smoke, looked behind me and saw the kitchen really erupting with flames all over the ceiling, that's when I had very clear thoughts that I'm not going to get out of this place alive and got ... very religious.

"It is a very, very scary thing. And I'd like to say that I, at that point I was feeling so courageous, but honestly, it was terrifying, and to look back, you can see nothing but flames. Look in front of you see nothing but blackness.

"Thankfully she started yelling out to me and I was able to find her through all the smoke. At that point I grabbed her."

He admitted he was "not gentle" with her - "I just sort of threw her over my shoulder and dragged her through the kitchen."

The burning kitchen was the only way out: "I was hoping there was going to be a window on the front, It was on the second story, I thought we could potentially get out, but that's when I had a lot of clear thoughts about, 'How we're going to get out?'

"I couldn't see anything but the flames coming out of the kitchen and I really had this moment where I thought, 'Okay. I think I'm trapped. I think we can't get out,'" he said.

So Booker punched through the kitchen and the flames. "Detective Rodriguez grabbed her as well and we got down the stairs and we both just collapsed outside the building."

Booker suffered second-degree burns and smoke inhalation. The woman suffered second-degree burns on her back.

"I feel very blessed," Booker said. "As the fire director told us, anything could have happened. Those things ignite so quickly, [and he's] very lucky to have gotten out there."

The mayor said, "Yesterday, all my problems were really big to me. Today things feel a lot more clear," Booker said. "And I have a lot more respect for firefighters!

"As my chief staff and others were teasing me, I'm ill-equipped to do firefighter union negotiations - 'These guys, give them everything!'"

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Fire Is Class Offerings!!! Learn all about the program and how to pitch it to your local school system!!!

Thursday, May 24, 2012
Ocean County Fire & EMS Training Center
200 Volunteer Way
Waretown, NJ 08758

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Check Out this YouTube Video of Eldridge Hawkins Mayor of Orange Local 10!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hO1xyr6b4Ac&feature=email

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TO ALL NJ FMBA MEMBERS:

BANK INTEREST RATES ARE AT AN ALL TIME LOW FOR REFINANCING.
10, 15, 20 & 30 yr Fixed Mortgages / Adjustable Rate mortgages /
Gov't HARP Refinances at all time low rates ( Refinance with no Equity in your home ).
EXCLUSIVE MORTGAGE DISCOUNTS / IT IS TIME TO REFINANCE!!
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NEW NJPFRS RATE FOR PURCHASES ONLY:
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PFRS loan program is only available for purchases only / must be contributing member of the NJPFRS, Not retired( Refinance loans are Ineligible for this program )


CALL:
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Home Mortgage Consultant for the NJ FMBA
NMLS#406128
Tel (201) 825-1428 | Cell (201) 396-8688 | Fax (866) 617-0360

christine.tower@wellsfargo.com

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Listen to Bill Lavin's testimony at the Assembly Law and Public Safety hearing. Fast forward recording to 1 hour and 33 minutes in!!!!!

http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/archive_audio2.asp?KEY=ALP&SESSION=2012

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