There was a little bit of excitement in the 5300 block of Ludington Ave today. It seems that a fire broke out at the rear of the building on the left. I hope they have insurance.

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Comment by Willy on March 18, 2017 at 9:49pm

I never considered boots reinforced with steel or other material that could be a conduit for current or metal that is present at the fire scene that could cut into a boot. I bet you have a lot of interesting stories about being a fire fighter.

Comment by XLFD on March 17, 2017 at 10:07pm

Amazingly, crocodile dentists lose out to lumberjacks and commercial fishermen when it comes to most dangerous occupations.  I don't know what the medical professionals said at the time, but Rasmussen's boots likely did help save him.  It is widely thought that rubber boots worn by firefighters will protect them 100% if they step into some electrified water or other surface, but the boots are not pure rubber.  Most have carbon black (which is conductive) in the rubber to harden it, perhaps conductive metals also like steel. 

I had my share of things falling on my feet while in the department, and appreciate the extra support despite the additional conductivity. 

Besides, even if you had a totally non-conductive boot you may be surprised to learn that if you're offensively going into a building on fire that it's not uncommon to step on electrically conductive things like nails, screws, hot metal wires and filings etc. that pierce the bottom of your boots and stick to them.  I remember using pliers to remove these unwanted tagalongs after fires several times.

Comment by AQUAMAN on March 17, 2017 at 10:05pm

Aka, Motyka Metalworks Co., strangely closed just a few years back now. Knew some of the owners kids and had friends that worked there. Used to make a mini-bike too back in 70's.

Comment by Willy on March 17, 2017 at 3:51pm

Talk about being unlucky. Rasmussen could have been killed. I don't understand how he was electrocuted since he should have been wearing rubber boots. Unless his boots were filled with water. I hope the fire dept. received additional training on the hazards surrounding electrical equipment when battling a fire. Dangerous profession. Much more than police officers. The exception being the profession pictured below.

Comment by XLFD on March 16, 2017 at 7:12pm

Does anybody recall the fire at GLC back in 2001?  I do, it was one of my first fires when I was on the LFD, perhaps the first involved fire at a business.  It was also memorable because one of the PM firefighters, Ed Rasmussen, got one heck of an electrical shock.  The fire was more towards the front that time.

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