It may be a common assumption that more firefighters die as a result of fires, but heart attacks are the killer of more than 50 percent of the firefighters who die every year in the line of duty.
In Richmond, the city commission has acknowledged the importance of the health and fitness of firefighters with an ordinance that passed first reading Oct. 10.
The National Fire Prevention Agency (NFPA) updates guidelines for physical fitness standards every couple of years, said Richmond Fire Chief Gerald Tatum. The last revisions came in 2002.
The new guidelines call for more on-scene medical support, a fire department physician who is in charge of administering all physicals for candidates and employees, scheduling of annual physical fitness and agility testing.
Other revisions require that all specialized tests including prostate examinations, rectal examinations, stool blood testing, pap smears, breast examinations and mammograms be done by the firefighter’s private physician, unless the fire department physician determines that there is a line of duty injury or fitness issue that may call for one of these tests. If so, the city is responsible for the cost of the procedure(s).
Paula Maionchi, a physician at the Instant Care Center on the Eastern Bypass, will serve as the fire department’s regular physician.
Providing additional on-scene medical support is another new guideline that is the responsibility of Tatum.
“When you’re on the scene of an incident, you must have medical staff there,” he said. “We have EMTs who work here and any time we have a structure fire or a rescue, we have the Madison County EMS stand by for us also.”
Another effort to protect the health of firefighters also includes fitness opportunities for Richmond’s law enforcement officers.
The City Commission has allotted $16,000 in their 2006-07 fiscal year budget to purchase equipment for the facility that is to be located at the Fire Department Training Center on Four Mile Road. The new equipment for the gym should arrive in about 10 weeks, Tatum said.
The need for the city’s own facility stemmed from several areas, one being the cost of private gym memberships for all police officers and firefighters. The other is the fact that several firefighters have been forced to take leave of absences for failing their annual physical.
The gym will be available to all firefighters and police officers 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Todd Platner will be the fitness trainer for the firefighters who are required to use the facility to workout, and Shawn Moore of the Richmond Police Department will help train police officers.
“They will be able to set up a program for each person and come back in 30 to 45 days to evaluate the individual’s process,” Tatum said.
The ordinance must be passed a second time for it to be considered the law.
Ronica Shannon can be reached at rshannon@richmondregister.com or 623-1669, Ext. 234.
Local News
In new light
Health, fitness for firefighters
- Local News
-
-
‘She wasn’t just a teacher’ : Lambert retires after 43 years at Berea
Scroll to the bottom of the story to read "Love for Lambert: Berea graduates share memories of their teacher," as well as a list of other Berea retirees this year.
Writer’s Note: Brenda Lambert is the reason I write articles today (Class of 2000).
Years ago, a little blonde-haired girl from Rockcastle County gathered her friends to “play school” in a 10-by-10 foot playhouse her father built.
Even at 12 years old, Brenda Lambert knew she wanted to be a teacher one day.
“I always felt like an old person trapped in a young person's body,” said Lambert, who is retiring after 43 years of service to Berea Community School. -
Special Olympics return for 18th year at EKU
Next weekend, the Special Olympics Kentucky State Summer Games return to Eastern Kentucky University campus. This is the 18th consecutive year EKU has hosted the event.
The games will be Friday through June 2. About 1,300 athletes will compete this year. -
Assault charges reduced, dismissed by grand jury
Two men arrested in connection with serious assaults had their charges reduced, and in one case dismissed, by a Madison grand jury.
Jerry Wayne Edington, 34, of Berea Road, was charged Jan. 19 with second-degree assault after an altercation at the Blue Moon bar on East Irvine Street, according to a Richmond police report. -
Dump of the Day
The Dump of the Day is a recurring series the newspaper publishes to highlight illegal trash piles and push local governments to cite perpetrators and get illegal dumps cleaned up. See Page A7 in Sunday's paper to read a copy of the city’s ordinance related to trash pickup.
-
Paradise Cove open through Labor Day
Opening day of Paradise Cove Family Aquatic Center coincided with a spike in temperatures Friday which reached 90 degrees. The facility, located in Richmond’s Lake Reba Park, will be open through Sept. 3. Regular hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday.
-
Dump of the Day
An old mattress, a car seat and other debris sit Friday afternoon on North Street between Fourth and Fifth Streets where it was first spotted Thursday. The “Dump of the Day” is a recurring series the Richmond Register publishes to highlight illegal trash piles and push local governments to cite perpetrators and get illegal dumps cleaned up. See Sunday’s Richmond Register to read a copy of the city’s ordinance related to trash pickup.
-
Undefeated academic team brings pride to Madison Middle School
Madison Middle School 6th and 7th grade academic teams have been undefeated for the last two years.
The 8th grade team also has done well, having some students qualify to compete at the state level. -
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
-
Man is indicted on additional sex charge involving teen in 1998
A man already accused of sex abuse in November 2011 has been indicted on a charge of first-degree rape involving a child in 1998.
Charles W. Peyton, 63, of East Irvine Street, was indicted Wednesday by a Madison grand jury. He used “forcible compulsion” to have sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old girl between March 1 and May 1 in 1998, according to the indictment. -
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
Officers responded to a call in the 1000 block of Scaffold Cane Road about a man trying to break into a home, according to a release from BPD Public Information Officer Jake Reed. - More Local News Headlines
-
UN Blames Syrian Forces for Shelling Houla
Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
