[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 85 (Thursday, June 23, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1318]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SUPPORTING FIREFIGHTER LIFE SAFETY SUMMIT INITIATIVES AND MISSION OF 
    NATIONAL FALLEN FIREFIGHTERS FOUNDATION AND UNITED STATES FIRE 
                             ADMINISTRATION

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. DARLENE HOOLEY

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 21, 2005

  Ms. HOOLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 180, which 
supports initiatives by the national fire services to reduce fire 
fighter fatalities and injuries.
  I want to congratulate the gentleman from Maryland, Mr. Hoyer, for 
introducing this important measure. Mr. Hoyer is a co-chair of the Fire 
Caucus and is a leading supporter of the fire services in Congress.
  This resolution calls attention to the need to take action to reduce 
fire fighter deaths and injuries. It explicitly endorses the call from 
the major fire service organizations for a stand down to promote fire 
fighter safety.
  The stand down would apply to every volunteer and career fire 
department in the Nation. It would require that each department suspend 
all non-emergency activities in order to concentrate on measures to 
raise awareness of safety issues and to institute steps to improve 
safety.
  A growing perception of the need to take corrective action to improve 
safety was the motivation for a major summit meeting of the fire 
service community in March 2004. The summit developed 16 fire fighter 
life safety initiatives, which are listed in the resolution before the 
House.
  Unfortunately, despite widespread dissemination and discussion of the 
initiatives, corrective action has been slow to develop, and the trend 
in loss of life in the fire services has not improved.
  The stand down constitutes an action to try to change the culture, 
which is widely believed to be the key factor in bringing about 
constructive change.
  The fire services perform a critical public safety role and all 
Americans respect the high level of devotion to duty and sacrifice that 
characterize fire service personnel. I applaud this resolution that 
seeks to reduce the loss of life and serious injury that too often 
occur to fire fighters during the performance of their hazardous 
duties.
  Mr. Speaker, I comment this resolution to my colleagues and ask for 
their support in its passage by the House.
  Since 1997, 29 Oregon firefighters have been listed in the Fallen 
Firefighter Memorial Database of the U.S. Fire Administration. They 
are:

       Sanit Arovitx, Richard Hernandez and Kip Krigbaum (Columbia 
     Helicopters, USDA Fire Service contractor);
       Randall E. Carpenter, Jeffrey E. Common and Robert Charles 
     Hanners (Coos Bay Fire and Rescue);
       Paul E. Gibson, David Kelly Hammer, Jeffery D. Hengel, 
     Jesse D. James, Richard Burt Moore, II, Leland Price, Jr., 
     Mark Robert Ransdell and Ricardo M. Ruiz (First Strike 
     Environmental, Roseburg, Oregon Department of Forestry 
     Contractor);
       Robert Chisholm (Gearhart Volunteer Fire Department);
       Jake Martindale, Zachary Zigich, Daniel Eric Rama, 
     Bartholomew Blake Bailey, and Retha Mae Shirley (Grayback 
     Forestry, Inc., USDA Forest Service Contractor);
       Larry A. Brown (Kingsley Field Fire Department, Klamath 
     Falls);
       John Robert Hazlett (Odell Fire District);
       David Craig Mackey (Oregon Department of Forestry, Western 
     Lane District);
       Lawrence J. Hoffman (Oregon Department of Forestry);
       Thomas Howard Kistler (Polk County Fire District #1);
       Gerald Meyers (Sumpter Fire Department);
       Randall Harmon (Superior Helicopter, LLC, Grants Pass);
       Richard Warren Black (Weyerhaeuser, Eugene Helicopter 
     Operation); and
       Tony B. Chapin (Willamina Fire Department).

                          ____________________