[quote name='firemedic78' post='95182' date='Apr 7 2007, 02:33 ']Ok, I need help. I don't want to sound stupid or ask a stupid question, but I just don't know. Could some of you LAFD personell/Buffers please explain in detail what a task force is? What types of them they have, ect? I am assuming that it has something to do with an alarm assigment, but being from Iowa, and not knowing much about the LAFD, I have just been curious now for a while what these are. I have heard about the LAFD taks forces for a long time and just never asked anyone. Always felt stupid in asking such a lame question, but I guess I need to know. Also, does LACoFD do the same as far as these task forces? What are the alarm assignments there for both agencies for 1 alarmers, structure fires, vehicle fires, MVA's, ect. If someone knows of a web site that explains any of this, that would be great too...And again, I apologize for the dumb question, but I just need to know. Thanks.
Chris[/quote]
Okay firemedic here is at least part of your answer.
An LA City task force consists of One fully manned (4 man) Engine company,plus a Truck company that has another triple combination Engine assigned to it which is numbered as a 200 series Engine.The 200 Series Engine is not normally a fully manned Engine company(with the exception of Engine 209) but responds with the Truck as it's second piece.The Truck normally runs with 5 men on board while the 200 series Engine runs with one man (an Engineer) on board.Sometimes there are 4 men on the Truck and two men on the 200 series Engine but either way the Truck and it's 200 Series Engine run with a total of 6 men.All three vehicles together make a 10 man Task force.When the Truck runs by itself (with out the fully manned Engine) it's known as a Light Force as the 200 series Engine runs as part of the Truck Company.The LA City Fire Department has a total of 49 Aerial Ladder Trucks which are all 100 foot Tillered Aerial Ladders.Of the 49 Stations that run with the Aerial Trucks,46 of them them are Task Force Stations (as they run with both a fully manned Engine and the two piece Light Force),while two of the stations are Light Force stations as they don't have a fully manned Engine assigned to the station but only the Light Force is assigned there.The only Truck company station which is the exception to the rule
is Station 9 where the Truck 9 runs alone as an independent Truck company without it's 200 series Engine as a few years ago Engine 209 was made into a seperate fully manned Engine company due to the high amount of alarms in Station 9's district.Station 9 also runs with Engine 9 and was a Task Force station until Engine 209 became a separate fire company.
The LA City Fire Department has been running with Task Forces since 1965/66 which was the brain child of LA City Fire Chief Raymond Hill.Chief Hill had combined all of LA City's Truck company's with two piece Engine company's running out of the same fire stations into a Single three piece Task Force which in effect ran as one large Fire company and responded to structure fires together.Chief Hill came up with the idea during the "Watts Riots of 1965" when he had found that it was much easier and efficient to run Ladder companies with a Two (or some times three piece Engine company) as one Unit under one commander instead of two or three seperate fire companies.During the early years of the Task Force stations the First Piece Engine was called the Wagon and the second piece Engine was called the pump even though they were both triple combination pumpers.The Wagon ran with 5 men while the pump ran with an Engineer.The pump would sometimes lay a supply line to the wagon which would lay the initial attack line to the fire.The Truck could also take a line off of the Pump to supply a Ladder pipe or if they were needed to man an extra line.
From 1966 until 1978 the LA City Fire Department ran with 5 Heavy Duty Task Forces which consisted of One Two Piece Engine,one One Piece Engine and an Aerial Ladder Truck.The Wagon of the Heavy Duty Task Force consisted of either a 50 foot Snorkel or a Telesquirt device that was mounted on a conventional Engine company.The Heavy Duty Task Forces were located in the High Value areas of Downtown LA,Hollywood and West Lake.The Heavy Duty Task Forces were all down graded to regular Task Forces in 1978 after Proposition 13 was passed which had forced many California Fire Departments to cut back on manpower due to loss of real estate tax revenues.At approximately the same time the 4 50 foot Snorkels were taken off of the Wagons assigned to the Heavy Duty Task Forces.During the late 1970's and early 1980's the terms of "Wagons" and "Pumps" were eliminated and the former "Pumps" became the 200 series Engines and were assigned as the second piece to the Truck which then became known as the Light Force.
The reason why the 200 series Engine was assigned as the second piece of the Truck is that way the Truck could lay a line if necessary or they could even function as an Engine company in case the regular Engine assigned to Task Force station is unavailable or out on another alarm.That comes in very handy when there are are major brush fires or other major fires or Emergency's.
The LA City Fire Department has two types of structure fire responses.The first is a Category A which is generally speaking sent on a single family dwelling fire alarm and according to their policy they send "Not less then 4 fire companies" and "not less then one Truck" plus a Battalion Chief and an Ambulance.The second is a Category B which is generally dispatched for a multiple family dwelling, a commercial structure or an institutional structure or a public building and is "Not less the 6 fire companies" and "not less then two Trucks" plus a Battalion Chief and an Ambulance.On a working fire in both Category's the "nearest Paramedic" ambulance gets dispatched.
The LA City Fire Department doesn't have predesignated extra alarm fires such as first ,second and third alarms like most other Fire Departments have but instead the Commanding Officer on the scene has to ask for the specific amount and type of apparatus that he wants dispatched to the scene of the fire.For example if he wants 4 Engines and 3 Light Forces (Trucks) he has to specifically ask for them to be sent to the scene.
The La County Fire Department does have predesignated extra alarms unlike the LA City Fire Department and you can find the specific Alarm assignments some where on the Official La County Fire Department website.
Firepost <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='
' /> <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> http://fire.lacounty.gov/SpecialOps/911R...trices.asp
The above http address will take you to the LA County Fire Website Page that will answer your questions on LA County Fire and Emergency responses.
Chris[/quote]
Okay firemedic here is at least part of your answer.
An LA City task force consists of One fully manned (4 man) Engine company,plus a Truck company that has another triple combination Engine assigned to it which is numbered as a 200 series Engine.The 200 Series Engine is not normally a fully manned Engine company(with the exception of Engine 209) but responds with the Truck as it's second piece.The Truck normally runs with 5 men on board while the 200 series Engine runs with one man (an Engineer) on board.Sometimes there are 4 men on the Truck and two men on the 200 series Engine but either way the Truck and it's 200 Series Engine run with a total of 6 men.All three vehicles together make a 10 man Task force.When the Truck runs by itself (with out the fully manned Engine) it's known as a Light Force as the 200 series Engine runs as part of the Truck Company.The LA City Fire Department has a total of 49 Aerial Ladder Trucks which are all 100 foot Tillered Aerial Ladders.Of the 49 Stations that run with the Aerial Trucks,46 of them them are Task Force Stations (as they run with both a fully manned Engine and the two piece Light Force),while two of the stations are Light Force stations as they don't have a fully manned Engine assigned to the station but only the Light Force is assigned there.The only Truck company station which is the exception to the rule
is Station 9 where the Truck 9 runs alone as an independent Truck company without it's 200 series Engine as a few years ago Engine 209 was made into a seperate fully manned Engine company due to the high amount of alarms in Station 9's district.Station 9 also runs with Engine 9 and was a Task Force station until Engine 209 became a separate fire company.
The LA City Fire Department has been running with Task Forces since 1965/66 which was the brain child of LA City Fire Chief Raymond Hill.Chief Hill had combined all of LA City's Truck company's with two piece Engine company's running out of the same fire stations into a Single three piece Task Force which in effect ran as one large Fire company and responded to structure fires together.Chief Hill came up with the idea during the "Watts Riots of 1965" when he had found that it was much easier and efficient to run Ladder companies with a Two (or some times three piece Engine company) as one Unit under one commander instead of two or three seperate fire companies.During the early years of the Task Force stations the First Piece Engine was called the Wagon and the second piece Engine was called the pump even though they were both triple combination pumpers.The Wagon ran with 5 men while the pump ran with an Engineer.The pump would sometimes lay a supply line to the wagon which would lay the initial attack line to the fire.The Truck could also take a line off of the Pump to supply a Ladder pipe or if they were needed to man an extra line.
From 1966 until 1978 the LA City Fire Department ran with 5 Heavy Duty Task Forces which consisted of One Two Piece Engine,one One Piece Engine and an Aerial Ladder Truck.The Wagon of the Heavy Duty Task Force consisted of either a 50 foot Snorkel or a Telesquirt device that was mounted on a conventional Engine company.The Heavy Duty Task Forces were located in the High Value areas of Downtown LA,Hollywood and West Lake.The Heavy Duty Task Forces were all down graded to regular Task Forces in 1978 after Proposition 13 was passed which had forced many California Fire Departments to cut back on manpower due to loss of real estate tax revenues.At approximately the same time the 4 50 foot Snorkels were taken off of the Wagons assigned to the Heavy Duty Task Forces.During the late 1970's and early 1980's the terms of "Wagons" and "Pumps" were eliminated and the former "Pumps" became the 200 series Engines and were assigned as the second piece to the Truck which then became known as the Light Force.
The reason why the 200 series Engine was assigned as the second piece of the Truck is that way the Truck could lay a line if necessary or they could even function as an Engine company in case the regular Engine assigned to Task Force station is unavailable or out on another alarm.That comes in very handy when there are are major brush fires or other major fires or Emergency's.
The LA City Fire Department has two types of structure fire responses.The first is a Category A which is generally speaking sent on a single family dwelling fire alarm and according to their policy they send "Not less then 4 fire companies" and "not less then one Truck" plus a Battalion Chief and an Ambulance.The second is a Category B which is generally dispatched for a multiple family dwelling, a commercial structure or an institutional structure or a public building and is "Not less the 6 fire companies" and "not less then two Trucks" plus a Battalion Chief and an Ambulance.On a working fire in both Category's the "nearest Paramedic" ambulance gets dispatched.
The LA City Fire Department doesn't have predesignated extra alarm fires such as first ,second and third alarms like most other Fire Departments have but instead the Commanding Officer on the scene has to ask for the specific amount and type of apparatus that he wants dispatched to the scene of the fire.For example if he wants 4 Engines and 3 Light Forces (Trucks) he has to specifically ask for them to be sent to the scene.
The La County Fire Department does have predesignated extra alarms unlike the LA City Fire Department and you can find the specific Alarm assignments some where on the Official La County Fire Department website.
Firepost <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='
' /> <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/drredengine.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> http://fire.lacounty.gov/SpecialOps/911R...trices.aspThe above http address will take you to the LA County Fire Website Page that will answer your questions on LA County Fire and Emergency responses.
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