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Misfits Fire Training, Richmond, VA (2026)

10/20/2023

🚪Folgers Entry🚪

Here you see a common item seen in every firehouse in the US used to assist our community. When you are trying to jimmy a door with a jamb in the way - inward swinging doors - you need a pliable tool to push in the throw. Shove knives are often too rigid, so we use hard plastic. We used to commonly use plastics from packaging or fake credit cards from the mail, but they were only good for a few uses. A cut piece of your coffee can from the station will serve as a wonderful replacement. I carry a sliver in my pocket as recommended by a senior firefighter back in the day. I use it often and it’s a major talking point when teaching “what’s in your pocket” to our rookies or to other departments.

09/14/2023

The “V”
When positioning the aerial for potential rescues, most aerial operators understand you position in a fashion that gives you the most scrub area. One thing operators may not consider is the position of the tip at any potential location in that scrub area. The “V” is what we describe as the space between the tip and the objective. When your objective is inline with your turntable, there is little to no “V.” However, as you begin to deviate from this inline position, you will begin to create a gap between the tip of the aerial and your objective. This is detrimental in the event of an aerial rescue. Consider how difficult it may be for you to exit through a window over the aerials beam, then imagine bringing an unconscious body across it.
Decreasing the “V” is the goal when you know your objective, but this will only likely come to play when you have people preparing to jump or if the area of the fire is obvious and fairly confined. Couple that with the competition for space for your apparatus on the fire ground and you will very possibly not find yourself with the perfect position when seconds count. As an aerial operator, understand the “V” and position your apparatus accordingly.
Below, you will see some demonstrations of the “V.” In the first picture you’ll see perfect postion where the beams are inline with the objective and you can get on and off the ladder directly from the rungs. In the subsequent pictures you will see how the degree of the “V” expands and you will have a harder time using the rungs. As an aerial operator, you should recognize as this “V” expands and begin to lower your aerial below the sill to get the beams flush with the sill. This will keep you from having to cross the “V” with a victim which will be difficult to impossible!
Side note, on studying this concept with our crews, we really learned how crucial the specs of you aerial’s lights are. We lose over a foot of space with our lights as we open the “V.” This will be detrimental in our department if we have to make a grab over the beam. .

08/25/2023

Two guys very obviously broke into a building on a main road and the cops never came - typical city police department.

01/30/2023

More uncertainty with 🚪s
Last week we posted the first image here as a poll. Do you think this door will be hard or easy? The consensus was about 50/50. We didn’t get the opportunity to force it, but we’re very confident this would be difficult, but you would never know until you start.

Our crew calls this a Trident door, but we don’t mean this literally. Tridents are external locks with multipoint of locks, and also would have visible features on the outer face of the door. This is constructed more like a vault door with interior pins and only one visible feature. So from the size up, you wouldn’t know how difficult this door would be until you’re forcing it.

This issue is amplified by the hallway, which will force your to work only within the frame of the door and door. No cheater bars allowed!

So what are our options? Plan A: Conventional forcible entry. These doors can be forced conventionally but they are obviously very difficult that way. Plan B: Knock the k**b off and try to manipulate the lock from the inside. Plan C: if the conditions allow use a gas powered rotary saw, and if the conditions don’t allow and you have it, try battery powered. Plan D: another entrance somewhere else.

01/24/2023

We are a month out from the 2023 VA Fire Chief’s Conference. Purchase a ticket directly from Keith or Damian, or through Venmo. Leave your phone number in the Venmo comment (it’s private) and we will send you a picture of your ticket via text message. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Old Dominion Burn Foundation. Anyone who is not a firefighter or doesn’t need a hook is welcome to purchase a ticket and we will ship the hook to your closest firehouse as a donation.

10/07/2022

🚨Equipment Failure🚨

This week while conducting rapid intervention drills with our department’s recruit academy, the male end of a MSA ExtendAire II (buddy breather) system broke off in the female end of a system attached to a students air pack. Has anyone else seen a failure like this?

The reality of this failure was actually not as bad as anticipated. The pressure of the system blew out the middle piece of this coupling (original construction in picture 3) and the system did not leak at all. This is a good thing in the even this we’re to happen in the real world.

10/07/2022

🚨Equipment Failure🚨

This week while conducting rapid intervention drills with our department’s recruit academy, the male end of a MSA ExtendAire II (buddy breather) system broke off in the female end of a system attached to a students air pack. Has anyone else seen a failure like this?

The reality of this failure was actually not as bad as anticipated. The pressure of the system blew out the middle piece of this coupling (original construction in picture 3) and the system did not leak at all. This is a good thing in the even this we’re to happen in the real world.

10/06/2022

Uncertainty with Commercial 🚪s

When you talk about commercial doors you really have to remember door size up. Walking up to this door I noticed no carriage bolts, no k**bs, no external locking mechanisms, no shackle guards. Odd. What bank has a rear door with no locks. Come to find out it was secured with angle iron and 10 screws from top to bottom and was not an entry or egress point at all. This is a great example as to why when we work our way up and down the door when we find unanticipated resistance.

Overcoming a door like this isn’t difficult when you remember principles to all doors. GAP SET FORCE 👊

Setting the tool was the real key for this door. Remember when setting your adz on a outward swinging door, the key is to keep the forks in contact with the door as you drive to the jamb. If not you will drive your adz into a rear seam door and make more problems for yourself. If you shear the seam on this one, you would have caught hell trying to pop each screw from the thin metal.

09/29/2022

🔥”Every Out” Drill 🔥

One drill we were taught when we got in to the RIT game is what we call “Everyone Out.” After teaching what many call the Columbus drill, we send everyone in class below a hole in the floor and make them get out with only their bodies and the items in their pockets. This is a culmination of many skills and concepts, but more importantly it builds crew morale and trust.

From firefighters to chiefs, everyone should take part in RIT drills. We had a great group of seasoned folks ranging from 5mo firefighters to 20+ year BCs today. Best part of the day? While working WITH his crew, a BC screaming “don’t lose it boys!” They got 8 people through this small hole in the floor with only what was in their pockets and their will power. Wish we could all be so lucky to have that kind of leadership.

Give “Everyone out” a try with your crew sometime. Build your people’s skills. Build your people’s confidence. Build your people’s trust.

09/28/2022

“Rig to door. Door to floor. Floor to fire.” 🚒🚪🔥

Today we had the honor to take a group of COs and shift supervisors through a back to basics class on . We broke the whole day into the phrase above. Good engine companies, no matter where they are, operate on this principle: get a line to the door, get that door open, and effectively mange the hose line inside of the structure. Great firefighters master the skills around these three concepts.

Get out there and pull a line tomorrow. Scrutinize every detail of the stretch. Challenge yourself to get better!

05/03/2022

Had a great weekend at the Rockingham Regional School with an aggressive group of firefighters training on rapid intervention in an acquired structure. You can’t beat the realistic training that comes from real 🏠.

Misfits Fire Training

10/20/2023

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08/25/2023

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01/24/2023

10/07/2022

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05/03/2022

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