Can be repaired and sharpened again and again Cutters Edge has successfully developed a totally new cutting technology for Rotary Saws called the BULLET BLADE®. Unlike other carbide-tipped blades, the BULLET BLADE® uses Cutters Edge BULLET CHAIN® and is the only carbide blade that can be repaired and sharpened and used over and over again with the same blade core. The new long-life BULLET BLADE® cuts a wide variety of materials – from roofs and wood to vehicles, thick metal and even CMU, with low vibration and minimal spark generation. It is available in 30.5 cm, 35.6 cm and 40.6 cm sizes with an Arbor size to fit all brands of Rotary Saws. For more information on the new BULLET BLADE® contact Cutters Edge at: +1 (541) 524-9999 or visit: www.cuttersedge.com

At least 19 US firefighters have been killed At least 19 US firefighters have been killed battling a wildfire in central Arizona, local officials say. They died while fighting the blaze threatening the town of Yarnell, about 80 miles (130km) north-west of Phoenix. The fire was started by lightning on Friday and spread rapidly amid high heat, low humidity and strong winds. At least 200 homes were burned. Arizona and other parts of the western US – including California – had near-record temperatures over the weekend. It is the highest death toll for firefighters in a single incident since 9/11. US President Barack Obama said the firefighters were heroes who had "put themselves in harm’s way to protect the lives and property of fellow citizens". Arizona Senator John McCain said the families of the dead firefighters were in the thoughts and prayers of all Americans. "This devastating loss is a reminder of the grave risks our firefighters take every day on our behalf in Arizona and in communities across this nation. Their sacrifice will never be forgotten," he said in a statement. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said it could take "days or longer" to reveal how the deaths occurred. "This is as dark a day as I can remember," she said. "It has been confirmed that 19 wildland firefighters have lost their lives on the Yarnell Hill fire Arizona," the US Wildland Fire Aviation said in a statement. The firefighters were part of a specially trained "hotshot" unit who had battled other wildfires in New Mexico and Arizona in recent weeks, officials say. They were forced to deploy emergency tent-like structures meant to shield them from flames after becoming trapped and "something drastic" happened, said Dan Fraijo, fire chief in the nearby city of Prescott. "One of the last fail-safe methods a firefighter can do is literally to dig as much as they can down and cover themselves with a protective fire-resistant material, with the hope that the fire will burn over the top of them and they can survive it," he said. "Under certain conditions there’s usually only sometimes a 50% chance that they survive. It’s an extreme measure that’s taken under the absolute worst conditions." Two other members of the elite unit who suffered severe burns have been flown to a burn treatment centre in Phoenix. Dwight Devlin from the Arizona Sheriff’s Office told the BBC that the firefighters were carrying fire blankets but they were ineffective in this case. "Some were actually found with those blankets over them but unfortunately it appears the flames and the heat were too much," he said. Mr Devlin added that they were on their way on foot to an area where they had been directed to clear brush to prevent the spread of the fire. The tragedy is the worst in a wildfire since 1933, when at least 25 firemen died battling a fire in Griffith Park, Los Angeles. Some 200 firefighters are still battling the fast-moving wildfire, which has grown to 1,000 acres. Additional reinforcements have been called in. The blaze has forced the evacuation of local residents. An estimated 200 homes were destroyed in Yarnell, the Associated Press reported, almost half the properties in the town. In recent days, dozens of people across western US states have been treated for exhaustion and dehydration, as the heat wave continues. Temperatures in some areas were expected to reach 54C (130F), close to the world’s all-time high recorded 100 years ago in California’s Death Valley.

Airports in New Jersey and Florida Two recent new airport fire department exhaust removal system projects have been completed by the Air Vacuum Corporation. The new Atlantic City Airport in NJ and the new Southwest Florida International Airport in Ft. Myers, FL have installed the AIRVAC 911 exhaust removal system. The AIRVAC 911 system removes both the carcinogenic gasses and diesel particulates as airport personnel respond daily to incidents and high levels of activity. As a complete system, meeting the most stringent regulatory requirements, the AIRVAC 911 system is fully automatic, cutting response times and personnel involvement to a minimum. An additional benefit is the ability of the department to move apparatus types with various tailpipe sizes and configurations within the bays without incurring additional costs or disruptions to the effectiveness of the exhaust removal within the bays. Contact Airvac for a free proposal at ww.airvac911.com or 800-540-7264.

Control centre and IT network Honeywell announced today that it has completed upgrades to the business-critical control systems and IT network at the 42-acre Liverpool ONE shopping, residential and leisure complex – delivering significant commercial, operational and energy benefits as a result. Liverpool ONE is one of the largest retail developments in England and, since opening in 2008, has escalated Liverpool into one of the top five retail destinations in the UK. Based in the heart of the city, its 1.65 million square feet of retail and leisure space is anchored by two flagship department stores, with over 140 shops and additional facilities including a 14-screen cinema, 36-hole adventure golf centre, restaurants, cafés, bars, hotels, apartments and offices. Honeywell Building Solutions designed, installed and commissioned the major system upgrade within a stipulated six-month timescale. The upgrade included the deployment of a private hosted virtualisation solution across the server infrastructure. Virtualisation enables Liverpool ONE to obtain much higher productivity from fewer servers – reducing IT and associated energy costs, cutting carbon emissions by 190 tons per annum and freeing up valuable space that can be released for revenue-generating retail purposes. It also simplifies the management and maintenance of the system, minimises any potential lost revenue associated with downtime, outages and failures, and facilitates the speedy deployment of new applications. At the same time, HBS upgraded the building management and CCTV platforms to EBI R410 and DVM500 respectively. “The upgrades have reduced electrical and cooling requirements, which will cut Liverpool ONE’s CO2 emissions significantly,” says HBS National Account Manager John Leonard. “Combined with the savings made in IT capital expenditure, reduced maintenance requirement, enhanced system integrity and the value generated through the availability of additional space within the facility, this investment will deliver important ongoing benefits to Liverpool ONE.” The EBI upgrade enables the building operator to view and control building systems using a variety of compatible mobile devices, including Blackberry® and Apple iPhone®. This improves productivity and allows building operators to have more insight and control over their facility without being tethered to a desktop computer or console. DVM500 improves security system scalability and reliability while reducing costs by eliminating downtime due to a single point of failure, reducing bandwidth and storage requirements and supporting virtual server environments. Honeywell is providing EBI training to members of the Liverpool ONE team who work alongside the resident Honeywell engineers, to ensure the capabilities of the system can be fully exploited and enabling changes to be implemented easily as and when required. Honeywell’s Global Service Response Centre provides a 24/7 monitoring and support service to ensure the system’s integrity.

International Conrad Dietrich Magirus Award They are in action 365 days a year, on call 24 hours a day and always prepared to push themselves to the limit. Firefighters provide indispensable services worldwide, bravely confronting flames, rescuing accident victims and saving lives – sometimes risking their own health. Now for the first time there is a competition to reward the selfless dedication of firefighters all over the world: following its successful launch in Germany in 2012, IVECO MAGIRUS is now looking for the best international firefighting team. The winners can look forward to a once-in-a-lifetime trip to New York to visit probably the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), probably the most famous fire service in the world. The prize includes flights, accommodations and an exciting, action-packed programme for a team of ten. The winning team will be welcomed by their FDNY counterparts and given an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the largest city fire service in the world. The firefighters will be able to watch their colleagues at work, visit the training academy “The Rock” along with some of the Big Apple’s finest fire stations, complete with siren demonstrations and a chance to talk shop. The agenda also includes a tour of the world’s most advanced fireboat “Marine 1” and the highlights of New York City. Recognition for selfless service “Many firefighters see their work not as a profession but as a calling. They pay a high price for their commitment – countless hours of the day and night spent on duty, tough working conditions and high risk. Yet they don’t always get the recognition they deserve”, says Antonio Benedetti, Managing Director of the competition organizer IVECO MAGIRUS. And that is where the international Conrad Dietrich Magirus Award comes in. The competition is open to all fire services – whether voluntary, professional or company based – from 193 countries around the world. Teams can enter until 8 September 2013 at www.world-of-firefighters.com, providing details of an extraordinary feat since 30 September 2012. This could be a particularly risky or technically challenging operation, an unusually complex strategy or a noteworthy social contribution. A brief account should be submitted, summarising the course of events and tactics deployed. Photographs to illustrate the intervention should be included. Teams will be judged on the planning and execution of the missions and the performance of the firefighting team, irrespective of the equipment used. Finalists chosen by international jury Entries will be assessed and shortlisted by a high-calibre international jury of experts with an extensive knowledge of firefighting in various countries. The jury includes: Michel Bour, General Secretary of the international association of fire and rescue services CTIF, Mathias Seyfert, editor-in-chief of the Austrian Federal Fire Brigade Association’s official magazine Die Österreichische Feuerwehr, Carlo Zaglia, editor-in-chief of the French magazines Soldats du feu and Véhicules d’incendie, Ann-Marie Knegt, editor of the English trade magazine Local Authority Plant and Vehicles and deputy editor-in-chief of the magazine Fire and Rescue, and Tristan Reitz, head of sales for North and East Europe at IVECO MAGIRUS, the event organizer. After the jury has shortlisted entries, fire service fans worldwide can vote for their favourite in an online poll. Cast your vote at www.world-of-firefighters.com from September 23 to October 14, 2013. The top three teams will then be invited to the award ceremony in Germany on 22 November 2013. They will enjoy a spectacular night of festivities in Ulm, the headquarters of IVECO MAGIRUS Brandschutztechnik GmbH, including an overnight stay at the Maritim Hotel. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a51a9vdtyKg Dedicated to a firefighting pioneer The award is dedicated to Conrad Dietrich Magirus, one of the world’s greatest firefighters. Few people have influenced the history of modern firefighting as much as this pioneer, who founded one of Germany’s first voluntary fire services in Ulm in 1846 and went on to set up the company Magirus. With technological inventions, including the much acclaimed “Ulm ladder”, he revolutionised firefighting techniques well beyond the 19th century and contributed to an enormous improvement in fire and emergency services in Germany and throughout Europe. To this day, he remains a role model and inspiration for firefighters all over the world. About IVECO MAGIRUS The IVECO MAGIRUS Group develops and produces a globally unique range of vehicles and equipment for fire and emergency services. IVECO MAGIRUS ranks among the world’s largest and most technologically advanced providers in the industry, with an international sales and service network reflecting its client structure. The time-honoured MAGIRUS brand is the unrivalled global market leader for turntable ladders.

your personal AIS beacon… The latest product to hit the shelves in the McMurdo range distributed by Crewsaver. The Smartfind S20 SRS (Survival Recovery System) has been specifically designed as a personal AIS search and rescue locating device to quickly and efficiently locate and retrieve a missing crew member. It is compatible with existing AIS enabled chart plotters and onboard navigation systems providing a reliable and cost effective solution for crew safety. ‘The Smartfind S20 is a vital piece of kit for anyone who plans to venture offshore. Small, compact and easy to attach to most life jackets, it’s your saving device in an emergency situation.’- Greg O’Brien, Sales and Marketing Manager at Crewsaver. How Smartfind S20 works • S20 is activated in an emergency crew recovery situation. • An alert message is transmitted to all AIS receivers and AIS enabled chart plotters within a 4 mile radius (typical). • An AIS SART alert icon (picture below) marks the survivor’s location. • Precise target survivor information including GPS position becomes viable when the chart plotter cursor is positioned over the icon. • Provides exact location, distance and bearing to locate person(s) in need of assistance. Don’t miss this essential product at your local retailer. Full brochure can be downloaded online… Smartfind S20.

Proposed cuts to London’s fire service will go ahead Proposed cuts to London’s fire service will go ahead, as long as they do not compromise safety, the mayor has said. Boris Johnson made the assertion during Mayor’s Question Time at which dozens of firefighters objected to the plans. London Fire Brigade (LFB) wants to close 12 stations, cut 18 fire engines and 520 jobs to save £29m in two years. During the meeting Mr Johnson said he was listening to the public’s concerns but the physical presence of stations was not his main consideration. ‘Reckless and wrong’ Mr Johnson told the audience that as long as fire deaths continued to fall in the capital the planned cuts would go ahead. More than 20 public meetings have so far been held over the proposals, which the LFB said would not affect response times but which the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) described as "reckless and wrong". During the meeting, Jeanette Arnold, Labour Assembly member, claimed fire response times would improve close to Mr Johnson’s home, but worsen in poorer parts of Islington. She said: "Why are you a winner but the rest of my constituents losers?" The mayor replied it was "disgraceful" and "below the belt" to suggest he was biased. ‘Cost lives’ The FBU, which protested outside City Hall before the meeting, said the changes would "jeopardise public safety". Ian Leahair, from the union, said: "They [the cuts] would lead to an increase in response times for millions of Londoners…and would inevitably cost lives. "The mayor should abandon his plans immediately, and let London’s firefighters get on with the business of providing the world-class fire service that the capital deserves." The meeting was adjourned after firefighters disrupted the proceedings by chanting "no ifs, not buts, no fire service cuts." A three-month public consultation into the plans ended on Monday and will be reported on at a future meeting.