What's in your bunkers?

[FireEMSPolice]

Just trying to get some ideas so I am better prepared, but what should I have in my bunker pants pockets?

I am a rookie volunteer firefighter. Went on a traffic accident the other day and was asked to cut the battery cables. I headed back to our rescue truck to get some cutters. The requesting firefighter seemed to get ticked and another firefighter reached in his pocket, got some cutters and cut the cables.

So, I just want to be better prepared. Right now I have some wedges and webbing. Anything else I should have?

 

[tsquale]

Medical gloves.

 

[MRFD715]

My bunker coat carries my structural gloves in one pocket, extrication and a couple pairs of medical gloves in the other. Radio pocket on my coat has a small hammer type tool and a couple of pens/pencils(I use a radio strap to carry my radio). Left side bunker pant pocket carries webbing, a short(12') chunk of rope with loops on the end, an extra pair of gloves, and door wedges. Right side bunker pant pocket has a tool organizer in it with pliers, 6-way screwdriver, small crescent wrench, (2) folding spanners, and a few other odds and ends.

What do I use the most? The pens/pencils, the pliers, and the screwdriver. I have honestly used everything I carry at one time or another, those three items seem to get the most use though.

 

[Jarred J.]

food water and ohh never mind wrong bunker...


we used to have a thread for this, you can search for the name and thread but it comes back as "error" i guess another thread bit the dust...


http://elightbars.org/forums/f24/police-department-fire-emergency-medical-services-what-do-you-carry-where-37144/

 

[MtnMan]

I've only been doing this for a few years and I'm still changing things up. At various times I've had some or all of the following:

Hood, structure gloves, rescue gloves, medical gloves, spare light, escape rope, webbing, door wedges, knife, Channellock cutters/rescue tool, vise grips, window punch, multi screwdriver, trauma shears.

Also thinking a 10 mm wrench for battery disconnects would be handy. My dept discourages chopping cables on non-rescue MVAs.

 

[Chris W]

In my opinion, and my opinion only, carry only what you might need to save yourself with maybe a couple convenience items. Keeping yourself alive is your priority, and weighing yourself down is not going to help. If it's not to save yourself, the extra minute to run back to the truck is not the end of the world.

 

[JazzDad]

Like Chris said.

There are stories out there (hard to sort the true from the well-intentioned warnings) of FFs falling into water, and with too much stuff in their pockets...

You can't always be carrying everything you might need.

 

[FireEMSPolice]

Thanks guys!

I never intended to carry a whole hardware store with me but just stuff to prepare myself (little tools and such) to make life easier. I thought I saw one of the guys with some sort of organizer for his bunker pants but wasnt sure

 

[NEB]

Just trying to get some ideas so I am better prepared, but what should I have in my bunker pants pockets?

I am a rookie volunteer firefighter. Went on a traffic accident the other day and was asked to cut the battery cables. I headed back to our rescue truck to get some cutters. The requesting firefighter seemed to get ticked and another firefighter reached in his pocket, got some cutters and cut the cables.

So, I just want to be better prepared. Right now I have some wedges and webbing. Anything else I should have?

Get one of those Channel lock cutters. A helmet light, and a light on your coat would be smart. I carry all those, a webbing and caribiner setup, a pair of fire gloves, pair of extrication gloves, a spare nomex, and usually a bottle of water in there too.

 

[J-Rock1944]

My set up is like this:

Radio pocket has small screwdriver, marker, multitool, and pencil.

Left jacket pocket has my work and medical gloves.

Right jacket pocket usually has my nomex hood, and a small wire cutter/plier combo.

Left leg pocket has my structural gloves and cable cutters.

Right leg has my self/buddy rescue webbing with a rescue-rated carbiner attached to it.

And I sometimes carry a small hatchet on my Air-pack belt depending on the nature of the call.

 

[EricTheNerd]

My bunkers:
Radio pocket: Pens, pencil.

Left jacket: Trauma shears, medical gloves, notepad, pen. (Sometimes safety glasses, too)

Right jacket: Sprinkler wedges, 2x Wedge-It door chock, multitool. Nomex if I'm not wearing it.

Left pants: Channellock cable cutters, extrication gloves, window punch.

Right pants: Webbing & rescue-rated carabiner, and a folding spanner wrench.

Inside coat: Glasses case with an old pair of glasses in case I lose a contact lens or break my current set.

 

[Sparky_911]

Jared hit the proverbial nail-on-the-head with looking at that other thread. Yes you should have items on you to GTFO of a bad spot in a fire, (webbing, rope, biner, etc.) but since more and more depts. run medicals more than fires these days, it's good to have some convenience items as well.

I'm on a rescue squad so we do mostly extrications/tech rescue, medicals, SAR, car/field fire mutual aid more than structure stuff. That said we are issued 2 sets of gear, but a lot of this could apply to your situation.

Extrication suit (when dressed out): Left shoulder pocket has window punch and rescue hammer w/belt cutter. Right chest has an old Gerber 600 multi plier. Radio on left front pocket. Extrication gloves and nomex on strap hanging at the waist. Streamlight Polypro yellow in rubber band thingy on the helmet. Streamlight Scorpion X in a pocket somewhere. Several pairs of nitrile exam gloves in a film can/old scrip bottle in a waist pocket.

Bunker gear: Structural gloves in the left pant leg. Can of exam gloves. If need I grab anything off the suit I need last minute.

 

[JazzDad]

... in a pocket somewhere. ...

 

[FireEMSPolice]

Get one of those Channel lock cutters. A helmet light, and a light on your coat would be smart. I carry all those, a webbing and caribiner setup, a pair of fire gloves, pair of extrication gloves, a spare nomex, and usually a bottle of water in there too.

I wanted to mount a light on my helmet also but my helmet has goggles, not a visor. Is there a link to an appropriate mount? Its a Cairns 1010. An older helmet I had, the light attached to the knobs that held the visor in place.

 

[StEaLtH2]

I wanted to mount a light on my helmet also but my helmet has goggles, not a visor. Is there a link to an appropriate mount? Its a Cairns 1010. An older helmet I had, the light attached to the knobs that held the visor in place.

Now I've had many a helmet light over the years, and always somehow I've broken the mount system, think mounts made to hold a light in place like a mini mag light, for the last four years or so I've been running the Vantage and have had zero problems as the mount is built into the light. It's a bit costly, and I wish it used AA batts instead of the 123's, but for theamount of light it throws, the ease of on/off, and the durability, it's hard to beat.
http://www.thefirestore.com/mobile/...eamlight-Vantage-C4-LED-Helmet-Mounted-Light/

 

[MRFD715]

Now I've had many a helmet light over the years, and always somehow I've broken the mount system, think mounts made to hold a light in place like a mini mag light, for the last four years or so I've been running the Vantage and have had zero problems as the mount is built into the light. It's a bit costly, and I wish it used AA batts instead of the 123's, but for theamount of light it throws, the ease of on/off, and the durability, it's hard to beat.
http://www.thefirestore.com/mobile/...eamlight-Vantage-C4-LED-Helmet-Mounted-Light/

+1 on the Vantage, absolutely love mine. There are also a couple of guys I know that use the Blackjack flashlight mount with some different lights and they seem to like them. I'll stick with my Vantage though.

 

[FireEMSPolice]

All the Blackjack mounts seem to be for bigger flashlights. I dont want a big hoking flashlight on my head.

 

[NEB]

I wanted to mount a light on my helmet also but my helmet has goggles, not a visor. Is there a link to an appropriate mount? Its a Cairns 1010. An older helmet I had, the light attached to the knobs that held the visor in place.

Can't help you there since I have flip up safety glasses that slide in and out in front of my forehead. I have a Streamlight weapon light that has the helmet mount on it, and have had really good luck with it so far.

 

[Doyle257]

I spent 9 years on with one of the Busiest(fires) Volunteer fire companies in Western NY. Now im on with one of the slowest.

You need to carry the minimal. My setup is 20ft rope, 2 Carabiners, and a aluminum figure 8 decender in the right leg pocket, Glowsticks, windowpunch, and Klein Cable cutters in the left leg pocket
Extrication gloves in the right jacket pocket, Medical gloves and a shove knife in the left jacket pocket, Pocket Knife/seatbelt cutter, Pen, Skoal in the Radio Pocket, and safety glasses, Gummy Bears in the inside pocket. Fire gloves hang on the jacket, and the hood goes inside the helmet.

As for a helmet light, on my Training Officer Helmet(Only wear when instructing) I have a Streamlight 4AA in a metal bracket I got from The FireStore, on my regular helmet, I have a Streamlight Vantage, that comes with it's own bracket. The Vantage is a Far superior light to the 4AA

 

[SafetyLighting]

Left Leg, As previously mentioned, definitely this:

https://www.channellock.com/87-Rescue-Tool.aspx

I carry it in a tool pouch, left leg, with a small adjustable wrench and ZT JB2 shroud cutter and Sav-A-Jake webbing with biner.

Right leg - Structural gloves and a wedge.

Anything you might need in a structure should be in your bunker pants, because once you have that pack on, you may not be able to get into your coat pockets.

I use NightStick flashlights and have been really happy with them.

 

[Dave F]

http://elightbars.org/forums/threads/pd-fire-ems-what-do-you-carry-where.34038/