The firefighters, the EMTs, the law enforcement officers, all of those who protect the citizens of our communities, never know when, or if, they might be called upon to assist a friend or relative. It's in the back of their minds every time they are beckoned, but usually it doesn't happen. It may be a car accident, a fire, a rescue call or who knows what, but it can and does happen, especially in a small community. It always leaves you with an empty, sick feeling in the pit of your stomach. It leaves you with sadness. It leaves you wondering, "What if that had been my son or daughter?"

Our fire department has rehearsals (practices) on the first and third Thursdays of each month. The plan for our rehearsal last Thursday was to tour two buildings in order to familiarize the firefighters with the construction and layout that was used in each. The first building we toured was a wood frame condominium that is currently under construction along the Milwaukee River. The other building is a stone mill, also on the Milwaukee River, that was constructed over 100 years ago, and at this time, houses several businesses.

Roll call was at 7:00 pm, and after a few announcements we headed to the condo. The walk through/walk around at the condo lasted until about 7:45. We then walked about a block to the mill and started the tour there. Sometime between 8:15 and 8:30, our pagers sounded and we were alerted of a fire situation at a specific intersection. The intersection didn't register with me until we arrived on scene. The fire was in a building that is owned by, and houses the business of, a good friend of mine. During the attack, I discovered that one of my friend's sons had been burned. I called my friend via cell phone and he told me that he and his wife were in route to the hospital. Shortly thereafter, the fire was extinguished and it was time to return to the station.

Before we could leave the scene of the fire, however, our pagers sounded once again. This time there was a wire arcing and sparking on a pole out in the township. We arrived on scene and sure enough, just as reported, there was arcing and sparking on a pole. There was nothing we could do except wait andwatch until the power company arrived to fix the problem. After about two hours, we finally returned to the station.

I left the station at about midnight, and as I drove past my friend's business, I saw him standing on the corner with a woman that was filling out a report. He was also talking on his cell phone to his wife, who had remained at the hospital when he left. He handed the phone to me, and I talked with his wife while he finished his business with the report. His wife told me that their son has second degree burns on his arms and legs with the possibility of some third degree burns. Luckily, his face was not burned nor did he inhale any flames. He is going to have a long stay in the hospital and not be able to work for some months. Needless to say, he is in our thoughts and prayers.

You never know.....do you?

please reflect on the last one and tell me where it takes you in your minds eye (de ja vous).
26dec2k4 at 2:pmmy friend and classmate jeff grove's hotel burnt to the GROUND.
luckily ZERO injuries.jeff lost  his business and his home.
the next day i drove by and was so struck by what i saw that i parked my car in the middle of a cross street, jumped out to take this picture before the scene changed de ja vous
spell check please.

At first glance you will look at this picture and think "so what".  But I was part of something pretty special and very moving yesterday.    What I saw next gave me the chills.  Standing on the side of the road just me and my camera.  I see a lot of familiar faces.  Then I see  this and more familiar faces.   As they drive by I think "what an honor for two grandsons.  To get to drive their     Grandpa the former Fire Chief from years ago to his final resting place. (Then I went to a different location) As I watched the trucks coming toward the cemetary.  I thought of the service the fire fighters gave the night before at the funeral home.  They ran a last page for their Chief.  There wasn't a dry eye in the house.   The former Chiefs son has been the Chief for some years now.  As a special gift to him (the son).  The firemen suprised him with the trucks for his fathers funeral.  He had no clue, until he came out of the church after the service, that they had done this for him and his family.  Brotherhood is what it is all about. So as everyone watched his grandsons make that last turn  they knew how proud he is of his family.  He passed on the passion of firefighting to several family members.  Including his grandsons who took him on his   last ride.  In the truck he faught fire with when he was a young fireman.  Watching his family (related by blood and by the brotherhood of fire fighting) say good bye was an amazing feeling.  I was glad I got to be part of   this service.  I am glad to be part of this extended  family. I thank God for our   fire fighters.

This Is A House Burning In Topeka Kansas. The Local Fire Department Lit These Houses As A Training Event For New Cadets. I Learned About This On My Scanner, I Do Not Normally Chase Calls But This One I Couldnt Resist. Check With Your Attourney Before Chasing Calls.  
See More At My Site. www.SLHARVEY.com

Since the Milwaukee River runs through the heart of our village, we have to be prepared for the unforeseen problems that can occur. Whether a boat or canoe capsizing, a snowmobile going through the ice or simply someone falling into the river, our firefighters and rescue personnel have to be ready at all times.

With this in mind, our fire department practices several times a year at the river. Here is one of our practices that turned into a rescue (of a sort).
Cold Water Rescue Practice on the Milwaukee River

Thanks for looking. I hope you enjoy!

How can something that we pray for, something that we all need, something that is the most important ingredient of life itself be a demon?

(Let me preface this by apologizing for the poor quality of some of the pictures in this post. When one has one hand on an umbrella and the other on the camera...well we've all been there, and I hope you understand.)

It all started on Thursday, August 18, 2005. I rolled out of bed full of excitement, knowing that I was going to see one of my motivators. You see, it was the day that the
Wisconsin Alliance for Fire Safety (WAFS) calls Media Day. WAFS has a week long camp for 8 to 17 year old kids that have been burned. (Other than this one picture, I will show no more of the burns since some are quite startling. I hope you understand.) They invite kids from all over Wisconsin, the Michigan Upper Peninsula and eastern Minnesota to the camp. This is where they discover that, "Hey, I'm not the only one like this!" They enjoy each other and enjoy the camp.

I left Grafton, and when I got to Milwaukee  the demon started and then followed me all the way to Camp Timber-Lee where the camp is held. What had always been a bright sunny day in years past, turned out to be a cloudy, dreary, rainy  morning. The clowns tried their best to keep up the spirits of the campers and visitors. The firefighters that usually cook outside, had to retreat to cover this year.

There are between 25 and 30 fire departments that actively participate in this worthy event. At 10:30 AM, about 50 pieces of fire appartus would typically start to roll into the camp, after which all the kids, counselors and medical people get on for a short ride with red lights, sirens and air horns blasting. Due to the rain this year, there were no rides. Only the lonely parade into the damp camp that started at 11:30. This legion of firefighter/bikers waited to meet the fire engines and lead them in. One of them had this reallycool bike. Since the camp is located in  Troy Center , they lead the parade in one of their lime yellow engines. Of course if there are 50 pieces of apparatus, there are trucks of  this color,  this color,  this color,  this color and even this color. There was even this unusual unusual truck with its cool tracks.

While we waited for lunch, I took note of the  list of contributors to the event. There was amagician entertaining everyone. Of course Sparky was there, as well as counselors and little guys fascinated by the big ladder truck. And WHOA!!! Can this be our very own AnyMooseHero signing autographs???

Unfortunately, as luck would have it...at lunch time, here comes the blue.

And that's the story of how what we need can become the temporary demon.

If you don't mind, I'd like to submit one last front door and living room window as well as one lastgarage door.

You see, we were busy this morning. A house was purchased by someone that wanted to build a different house on this particular lot. We were invited over. Here are the goings on as they occurred. As usual, we prayed for strength and someone to watch over us. We started promptly at  nine O'clock. It wasn't long before someone yelled "She's cookin' now!" Just in case things got out of hand, we had plenty of water, which is our strength against fire. We had the usual cast of gawkers that stopped by to watch the hot stuff. We always maintain our  source of strength and realize that there is strength in numbers. It did take a little strength and determination to get all the pieces in place, but with all the strength and determination we were able to muster, the job was complete atten O'clock.

Just some odds and ends that you might enjoy.

The thumbnail, Are those big eyes watching us? and Escuse me, are those your shoes? are somewhat inspired by inkslinger. It's good to have you back, 'slinger. Hang in there!

KayN said she had never seen a fire engine in any color other than RED. For those of you that are not in the know, the RED you see on fire engines is actually the primer coat. Here then is an engine with the final coat for KayN. (Take that jeffrey!)

Now for a magic trick......Now you see it ......Now you don't.