This Week in EMS: Calif. Explosion...September 11 Memorial Events...Women in EMS

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Fatal Blast Tears Through California Neighborhood

Fire crews flooded the ruins of burning homes with water early Friday after a massive explosion apparently triggered by a broken gas line sent flames roaring through a neighborhood near San Francisco, destroying more than 50 houses. There was one confirmed death and reports of several others.

House to Vote Again on Bill to Aid 9/11 Responders

The House is expected to reconsider a bill this month to provide up to $7.4 billion to workers sickened during cleanup of World Trade Center site after the Sept. 11 attacks, lawmakers from New York said Wednesday.

WTC Steel Column Installed at Ground Zero

Officials hoisted a 70-foot piece of World Trade Center steel at ground zero Tuesday and vowed to open the Sept. 11 memorial by next year, although they acknowledged that the ongoing construction at the site would limit where and how the public could visit.

Calif. Firefighters to Conduct 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb

Nearly 200 firefighters from throughout the Bay Area have registered for the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb, during which they will carry the names of fallen FDNY firefighters with them as they enter an Oracle building and climb the equivalent of 110 flights of stairs--the number of floors in the World Trade Center.

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EMS Life: When Johnny Met Rosie

Women in EMS Part 1: Can You Do the Job?

EMSResponder's new column by veteran paramedic Tracey Loscar focuses on the many challenges facing female EMS providers. Topics to be covered include work romances, childcare issues, uniform concerns and the EMS glass ceiling.

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The Corner Office: Practical Management for EMS Leaders

Getting Volunteers Through the Door

In 2009, Brentwood Legion Ambulance out of Long Island, NY, gained 37 new members and have retained 26 of them to date. Find out the secrets behind the agency's volunteer recruitment campaign that has succeeded despite a poor economy and rising call volumes.

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Social Media

Grand Rounds from the EMS Blogosphere: September 2010

EMSResponder.com online columnist Adam Thompson provides an entertaining roundup of some of the most popular EMS blogs. This month he features blogs that discuss spinal immobilization, challenging calls and capnography for paramedics.

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EMS Training Center

U.S. Medics Teach Life-Saving Skills to Iraqi First Responders

Iraqi police and ambulance personnel recently graduated from the first 135-hour EMT course in Salah ad-Din province. This EMT course is one example of how 3rd Infantry Division, Task Force Marne Soldiers are advising, training and assisting their Iraqi counterparts in Northern Iraq as part of stability operations missions. The overall desired effect is to have some of the Iraqi medics from the graduating EMT course come back and help teach the next one.

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EMS Podcasts

The EMS Squadcast: September 2010

The EMS Squadcast is a podcast series dedicated to discussions relevant to the world of EMS today. Join host Tim Perkins as he welcomes guests Jules Scadden and Tracey Loscar to this month's episode. Jules discusses a recent EMS-initiated movement designed to better familiarize members of Congress with EMS and EMS-related legislation, plus also reviews the presentations she will be giving at the upcoming EMS Expo in Dallas, TX, September 27-October 1. Tracey is the author of EMS Magazine's September issue cover report on the importance of death notifications and a new column on EMSResponder.com dedicated to women in EMS.

September 11, 2001: An Oral History

As a companion piece to the September 2010 EMS Magazine Life Support column, author Mike Rubin interviews Chief Terry Shaffer with the Shanksville (PA) Volunteer Fire Department, who responded to the United Airlines Flight 93 crash on September 11, 2001. Chief Shaffer recounts the dreadful events of that day in this oral history.