Kansas City area fire apparatus

[MFD76]

[quote name='hadg317' post='308811' date='May 26 2009, 08:02 ']I was in Kansas City MO this weekend and had the chance to stop by Station 14. I wasn't there very long before they were out the door to a call and unfortuniately didn't get any pictures. I do have a couple of questions:



1. Why is the Battalion Chiefs Aide a Captain? Does the Captain fill a roll in the Command Staff at an incident or is this on the job training?



2. Are there only Captains or are there also Lieutenants in the Fire Dept.



3. Do the rescue companies run with 2 officers all the time?? If so do they do this so they can split the crew when they arrive at an incident and have an officer with each crew?



Thanks for clearing these questions up for me.



They guys out there were a good bunch and I would have loved to spend more time talking to them.[/quote]



Glad you had a good time. The KCFD guys are great, they are a extremly agressive fire department on the fire ground and the knowledge base is incrediable there. Drop me a line on the Fire Pics mail next time you are headed here it KC.



1. Forever the Chief's Driver-Aide was a FAO. The FAO was a second set of eyes and ears in the rear of the building or inside for the Chief or a command aide. In 1996 the city cut this postion and the Batt Chiefs had to drive themselves for three months. The Union and Fire Chief went to work to regain this postion. This was when safety was taking off in the fire service. So the Union presented a plan to the city that was rather genuis. They stated they need Safety Officers in each of the seven Batt districts called DSO District Safety Officers. The city agreed. The Union stated they need to have the ability to supervise or lead so they need to be a Captain. The city agreed. They also said they will drive the Chiefs so they arrive at the same time when command is estiblished. Now the first arriving Batt Chief takes command and his DSO serves the same role as the old FAO-Aide did support for command. The second arriving Batt. Chief and his DSO assume safety and work as a two person team or might be placed in charge of a division inside. This was the great switch routine seven FAO-Aides are now seven Captain-DSO-Aides no real cost savings for the city. Now DSO's will step up and be the Acting Chief when the Chief is gone but most Batt Chief try to rotate all of their Captains through the Acting Cheif role. So when the Chief is gone the CAR rides with two Captains one as DSO and one as Act Batt. Chief. The DSO always has to be a Captain by the policy book and contract.



2. KCFD has not had Lieutenants since the 1920's. At some point they went to all Captains. My only guess is the job discriptions are so close why not pay all supervisors the same and it keeps the same level rank all the time in the muilti company fire houses. Lieutenants are not big in the KC metro. It is funny only four career departments out of the forty or fifty in metro use Captain and Lieutenant. The rest reflect KCFD with all Captains. Also in the mutil comapany houses the senior captain on the pumper one of the three shifts is the house captain.



3. Rescues have One Captain and Two FAO's. In KCFD most of the time the FAO rides out as Act Capt. when the Captain is gone. So on the fireground the Captain, FAO, Fireman form one team and the 2nd FAO senior, Firemen, Firemen form the second team spliting the company. The Trucks work in the same way. 1st due truck Captain and Fireman form the Search team and the FAO and Fireman go to the roof and Vent. 2nd due Truck opens up walls and pulls celling for the pumper company.



Hope this helps, Stay safe, Rick