BLM chopper battles wildfire north of Eagle Wednesday

The reason for the massive response is all too familiar as well–lives and property are endangered because people move into areas subject to wildfire and local politicos allow the development. GROWTHOPHOBES can complain forever, but it seems little changes and emergency crews are forced to respond as fire rages across the so-called “urban wilderness interface.”

At this writing it appears three homes are damaged or destroyed by a Wednesday fire believed to have been caused when lightning strikes dotted the landscape Wednesday morning north of Eagle. An estimated 2,500 acres which is currently targeted for residential development was scorched. One firefighter told the GUARDIAN, “It certainly wouldn’t be a pretty sight” if the area is developed as proposed.

At least 50 fire engines, 5 air tankers, and hundreds of firefighters from Boise, Eagle, Meridian, Star, BLM, etc. etc. are as the TV folks like to say, “On Scene!”

As a former editor at the trade journal “FIRE ENGINEERING,” the GUARDIAN is an old hand at covering fires and the fire service. Yellowstone’s Old Faithful firestorm was the worst. Over the years we find politicos put an unneeded burden on fire chiefs and firefighters alike when they increase the demands–and risks–all in the name of GROWTH. One issue which hampered emergency crews was also familiar: Police and Fire can’t communicate. The technology exists with the new radio communications system, but the players can’t seem to agree on who gets access to which frequencies.

On the bright side we saw one McMansion north of Beacon Light Rd. that survived a direct wildfire assault because the owners did the right things creating “defensible space.” From everything we observed and heard, the emergency responders did their jobs well battling the fire, traffic, and conducting evacuations.

Firewise planning saved this luxury home.

EDITOR NOTE–For all of you getting updates during the day about the fire from your favorite media outlet. It is a pretty sure bet most of it was funneled (not filtered) through the Boise PD/Boise FD spokeslady, Lynn Hightower. The GUARDIAN and all the rest of the media outlets got Lynn’s constant updates–sometimes as often as only 4 minutes apart. She provide important information to the media–and by extension the public–about the fire, damages, direction of travel, evacuation, etc. She also let the media folks know where they could get information at the scene without bothering commanders directing firefighters. At one point she even sent warnings to field reporters to avoid the path of the fire. From the GUARDIAN on behalf of all our colleagues we offer a hearty WELL DONE!

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ACHD Video Traffic Cam Control Center

ACHD Commish Sara Baker revealed the arrangement on her blog yesterday and noted several recent crimes and emergencies which involved police use of the system.

You too can view intersections, but unlike the coppers at dispatch, you can’t manipulate the camera view. An Ada County Sheriff’s spokesman told the GUARDIAN the department has had control of the traffic cameras “after hours” since mid-February.

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This Boise City fire union activity to support the County candidates is deeply rooted in the ongoing feud between firefighters and paramedics. They apparently don’t trust their brothers and sisters at Stations 3,8, or 10–or perhaps it is just that those stations house Ada EMS ambulances as well.

The message ended with the warning: “PS – lf you are in station 3, 8, or 10, please be careful with who sees this email. Thanks”

Chief Dennis Doan told the GUARDIAN city computers are not to be used for union activity and all messages on city computers are public record. However, when someone from outside sends messages TO city computers, it is hard to keep them out. The union message was SENT from a private account.

In another Bisterfeldt-Simmons campaign endorsement, we find it a bid odd that Councilor TJ Thomson encourages his followers to support Bisterfeldt’s bid for the Ada Commish job–which would elminate Vern from his current job as a colleague of Thomson on the City Council.

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By CHIEF MIKE MASTERSON, Boise PD

First, thank you for generating the discussion of this important issue with your readers. I’ve read some of the comments and responses you’ve received on “texting” and hope you would offer a common definition we can all operate under vs. one which is open for interpretation and causing varied responses from law enforcement agencies around the nation.
I think we can all agree cell phone texting is unacceptable and law enforcement should set the example for what we know is a dangerous and potentially deadly practice. These devices are far too small and distract even the best drivers from concentrating on the operation of their vehicles. (Boise Police will likely have a policy prohibiting cell phone texting within the next 30 days. The policy will impact the ranks of Lieutenant and above as those groups currently have text capability on their handheld devices while patrol officers and detectives do not) While it’s not ideal.. it is better than what 33 other STATES have on their books today)

Unfortunately, we must rely on other forms of “texting” to do our work. Our legislature recognizes that need by providing exemptions for first responders. Ideally, law police officers would possess the latest voice activated technology to remain hands free. We’ve made tremendous strides in creating programmed buttons on our mobile computers that cut down on keystrokes, i.e. texting, but we still have to enter license plates, state, to gain information for our safety and the public’s, too.

I am unaware of any police agency in the nation that prohibits officers from “running a 28 – 29″ on a license plate while driving on the highway, road, or streets. I consider that texting. Boise Police had admitted to occasionally performing these task while moving and I suspect all other police agencies do the same. That trooper traveling down the interstate, seeing a possible stolen vehicle, doesn’t pull over in the accident lane, losing sight of the vehicle, to “run” the license plate. The deputy of a rural two lane road doesn’t stop on the side of the road after spotting a suspicious vehicle, wait for the registration and wanted check to come back then turn around to find the vehicle. We do try and mitigate when we run checks by advising officers to perform their inquiries while at stop lights, etc. but there are times when we must perform the work while moving.

I think the discussion thread could be made more productive if: 1) your readers were operating from a standard definition of what police functions constitute “texting” and 2) readers understand the urgency of the work we do and offer constructive comments that assist us in improving our systems to create safer roads for all users. And, as some readers have pointed out, texting is a necessary part of the job which has been going on for decades with virtually no accident data to indicate police are the problem.

In a perfect world, we’d love to have the latest voice activated hands free technology to do our work, but in the absence of that expensive equipment, even if it existed today and we could afford it, we continue to balance the work we do with the safety of others in mind.

These are important issues on how we police our community which deserve discussion and input from the people we serve in a variety of sounding boards, meetings, etc. Thanks for providing one of those forums.

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Interestingly, we don’t see any exemptions for coppers and firefighters. The Fed transportation people, AAA, and just about everyone who has watched a car weaving slowly down the road agree that reading and writing on computers while driving is as dangerous as DUI.

It makes no sense to allow coppers–or anyone else–split their attention from driving to texting and today the NEW YORK TIMES ran a front page story about the dangers. Good to see how the world comes around to the GUARDIAN line of reasoning!

Here is a great quote from the TIMES story that spells out the reality:

“There’s no way you could do this without eventually running into something,” said Officer Shawn Chase, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol, as he demonstrated use of the Gateway computer in a cruiser. And yet, he said, he has tried it, and others have, too.
“The first time you almost rear-end something, you say, ‘Whoa, I better not do this,’ ” he said. “You learn quick.”

UPDATE 3/12/10–The GUARDIAN talked to Idaho State Police Lt. Brian Zimmerman about coppers texting and driving. He said ISP troopers generally use the computer after they are stopped–calls are not dispatched or updated via computer.

“Even with drunks, at least they are looking at the road. They don’t do a good job driving, but they are TRYING and not looking somewhere else,” said Zimmerman.

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She told the Associated Press that ATVs traditionally bring in more cash than “passive users”–like hikers, campers, and fishermen. Dune buggies are allowed on 11,000 acres of Federal land west of St. Anthony in Eastern Idaho.

Merrill has a good point about stimulating the local economy with ATVs. The GUARDIAN talked to some emergency responders in Freemont County who told us they sometimes dispatch 2 or 3 ambulances DAILY to the dunes in summer months. Seriously injured riders get frequent flyer miles aboard Life Flight helicopters due to the remote location and difficulty in transporting patients across the loose sand. Only one death was reported there last year, but we were told it was a , “slow year.”

Slow year or not, the Freemont County Sheriff has a permanent sub station at the dunes where full time deputies patrol the sand astride ATVs.

All this comes about in the wake of dwindling revenues and steep budget cuts in Idaho state government. Gov. Butch Otter is attempting to woo businesses to Idaho where he claims the tax climate is “business friendly.” The greenies from Oregon and California will be hard pressed to “sell” gas guzzling noisy ATVs to management and employees seeking solitude and peace in Idaho.

Butch and the lawmakers can expect a sandstorm of comments from people like the newly formed “Friends of Idaho State Parks.”

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Where we part ways with Doan and City officials is the recent agreement to provide fire service to the North Ada County District which includes Bogus Basin Road and Hidden Springs. Those residents previously applied for annexation into the North Ada district which offered a lower level of response and a much lower tax rate than that paid by Boise residents.

They got a sweet deal because the highly rated (by insurance underwriter standards) Boise FD responds to these rural areas under a new contract. Boise provides premium protection and bargain prices for those residents.

Chief Dennis Doan informs us he has another agreement with the State Transportation Dept. to respond at the rate of $153 per hour for an engine and crew of three firefighters along a 13 mile stretch of I-84 east of Boise. Previously the department was responding without compensation.

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By ANDY KIMBRELL

So, Wednesday morning I got up, made breakfast for the grand kids and sent them off to school, took the garbage and recycling bins out to the curb, made my breakfast (omelet with ham and swiss cheese), fed the dog, and parked in front of the TV to eat and watch the pilot episode of ‘Saving Grace’(I had rented the first season DVDs
the day before).

The show had finished and the credits were rolling when I got a sharp pain in the middle of my back. I went to my room and got the high density foam roll that the physical therapist had given me after my last back surgery – laying on it usually takes care of my back twinges. While I was in the back part of the house, I grabbed my daily ration of pills and took them – there was starting to be a hint of indigestion and I hadn’t yet had my daily dose of prilosec. Went back to the front room – by that time a sharp stabbing pain in the middle of my chest had joined the party. I laid down on the foam roll and a couple of vertebrae popped, but not the joint where the pain seemed to be. The chest pain changed from a point source stabbing pain to a burning pain that spread over 6 inch circle. There was also a sensation of pressure, like I needed to belch. I got up and sat in my chair and tried to belch – no luck.

I sat there for a few minutes and though about my boss who had apparently suffered a myocardial infarction at lunch one day He came back to the office, stayed at his desk until 1600, got in his car and started to drive home. He made it 2 or 3 miles,
pulled off the freeway at an off ramp, turned off into the weeds and fell over dead. There was a nurse in the following car who wondered why he was driving off the road, saw him slump over and stopped to help. She said he was dead when she got to him,
all attempts by her, the ambulance crew and the ER to resuscitate him were futile. I thought about that and decided that this was no time to try to live up to the “tough old bird” label once given me by the neurosurgeon who fixed my back.

I told my son to hand me the phone and that I thought I might be having a heart attack. I called 911, answered “ambulance” to the police, fire, or ambulance query. She asked for the reason – told her that I thought I was having a heart attack. She asked for the address which I gave, and explained that it was the second house north of the intersection on the east side. She asked for symptoms, which by now included sweating and feeling weak. She asked about medications, then told me to bring them
to the ambulance which was on the way. So I went to the bathroom and got the bottles. As I was going back to the front room, I thought about our front porch and steps – decided that getting a gurney through there and around the corner would be
awkward, so I went out on the steps to meet them. When they got to the intersection they turned the right direction, but were going very slow and didn’t look too sure of where to go next, so I walked out to the curb and waved at them. I told the
operator that the ambulance had arrived and gave the phone back to my son. The ambulance crew didn’t seem like they really believed me, but invited me into the ambulance, took my shirt off and put the electrodes on me for an EKG. I heard the
printer on the machine run for a few seconds, then one of the techs on the radio to the ER said that the strip was transmitted. A few seconds later he leaned over my shoulder and said “Well Mr K***, it looks like you were right – you are having a heart attack. We are going to do some stuff right quick and then we will transport you.” He continued asking about meds I had taken, gave me some aspirin to chew up, sprayed some nitroglycerin under my tongue, started an IV and gave me a shot of something – he told me what but I don’t remember – explaining that it was a synthetic something or other for the pain. He started oxygen, put a belt over me and we rolled for the hospital.

At the ER things were kind of confusing, but I answered all the same questions again – I didn’t really care, the good stuff was starting to kick in. I heard them talk about “getting to the cath lab” but having to wait a few minutes until it was ready
- my daughter later told me that it was less than 5 minutes from in the door to moving to the cath lab. Total elapsed time from onset of symptoms to the cath lab was probably 35 minutes max. Fifteen minutes to decide to call, 5 minutes for the ambulance to arrive, 10 minutes in the ambulance for treatment and transport, 5 minutes in ER.

In the cath lab, they moved me onto the treatment table (which the guy supervising the move called “the popsicle stick” because it was so narrow). He cautioned me to lie still so I wouldn’t fall off. I got an injection (which hurt like hell) in the right groin area, and I could feel something happening there. People were talking, but I didn’t pay much attention, the good stuff was really working and I mostly wanted to sleep. I drifted in and out, and every few minutes someone kept asking me about my pain level. One time he included the information that “You put us through a work out there -you went into a really nasty rhythm”. At one point he told me that they were going to give me something to help them find the blockage which would make me feel warm all over, and probably make me feel like I had wet my pants, not to worry, it only felt that way. A few seconds later it felt like I was sliding into a tub of very warm water – the warmth just washed over me.

Another time as I woke up I felt 3 brisk pushes on my chest and wondered why. The business end of what I assumed was some sort of x-ray machine kept moving around in front of my face, sometimes bumping into the oxygen mask. I remember the mask
(respirator?) trying to breathe shallower and faster than I wanted to, and someone said something about the mask that I didn’t quite understand, and a hand loosened the mask and tilted it sideways so that I could breathe at my own pace. Every once
in a while it felt like a needle poked into the inside of my right thigh which was very painful. Once I remember jumping and yelling “OW!” To which one of those voices said , “He said OW”, like that was somehow very amazing. I still haven’t figured out
what was causing that, because it was in a different area from where the procedure was happening, but I remember the doc saying, “Mr K***, we will put some more numbing in place before we continue”. Next time I was asked about pain level, I
realized that although my back still hurt, the pain in my chest was almost gone. What hurt the most right then was my left shoulder (I had rotator cuff surgery there in mid December). I told them my shoulder hurt and someone propped my arm up so it was more comfortable.

Pretty soon, I was moved back onto a gurney and wheeled away. In the elevator, one nurse was telling someone “and they shocked him 10 times! You should have seen how his arms flew up (I got one eye open at this point and saw her straighten her arms and raise them in front of her, then spread them and drop them back down – looked like she was doing a back stroke in the pool) and then flop down off the table – no wonder he complained about his shoulder hurting.” She also told several people that
I had said “What is this dizziness that I’m feeling?” I don’t remember saying it, and never stayed awake long enough to get the whole context of the situation, but she seemed to think it was quite funny, and I do remember hearing her tell it at least 3 times. And I remember thinking “hey, maybe this will be the new Sleep Talking Man thing.”

After I got to the CCU, the doctor came in to talk to me. About all that I remember was him telling me that they had performed CPR on me for “quite a while” and that I would probably be very sore from it. And that they had aspirated the clot that caused the problem and placed 2 stents and I should be just fine. My wife and daughter said they were told that I had “arrested” twice while in the cath lab.

I spent the rest of Wednesday and all of Thursday in the CCU. I was very tired and slept most of the time. Friday I was moved to the telemetry ward where I was wired to a small brick that I carried in the pocket of my gown instead being of hard wired into the equipment pedestal in the room. Which was nice because I could go for walks around the ward. The nice young nurse out at the desk even showed me which screen was my monitor.

Saturday evening I got to come home. Sunday morning we went to church, and Sunday evening we went to a benefit concert that we had tickets for. Monday I went to physical therapy and grocery shopping. Today I mostly slept in and watched TV -
think I over did it Sunday and Monday. I can take a deep breath again, but my chest still hurts if I push down with may hands when getting up from a chair. The slight  burns from the electrodes have faded away, and the rash from the adhesive on the chest electrode is mostly gone.

Pain wise, this was barely in my top 3. For out and out pain, the gall bladder attack and the time part of a disk broke off and wedged against my spinal cord both rate a lot higher in the “Ow” category.

For once in my life, I believe that I can serve as a good example instead of an example of what not to do. Learn the symptoms, pay attention to what your body is telling you, and if you think it might be your heart, call for medical assistance – now, not later! If I had waited 10 or 15 minutes longer to call, I would probably be dead now. With a timely call for help, I was attending a concert 5 days later.

All in all, I think I’m doing great and I’m glad to be alive!

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Last year two gals in the DMV office took a fall for skimming funds and now a third one is charged according to the DAILY PAPER.

This one handled finances for the Sheriff’s mounted posse–a search and rescue group. The DAILY says they are not officially affiliated with the sheriff, but when you use the name and star as well as have the County Commish’s secretary handling the cash, that is pretty official.

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And based on what we hear from at least one candidate for VP of the union, he would like to see the union exercise its political muscle in a more traditional “labor management” role and have that voice heard. In his pitch for office, he notes the union has a “labor friendly” administration at city hall and the ambulance issue has been a union “top priority” that needs to be put to rest once and for all.

Ada County EMS and Boise FD have been meeting to hammer out agreements with regard to WHO is in charge at medical calls. The ordinance on the recent Boise city council consent agenda was the same one we saw last August which gave the fire chief command of medical, fire, rescue, and hazardous material calls.

The language of that ordinance and the new contract which gives Boise FD authority of the vast majority of the geographic area of Ada County signals to us a strong argument on behalf of the BFD to run the whole enchilada.

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