Indeed, the trigger for the initial riot appears to have been the fatal shooting by police of Mark Duggan, 29, a black North Londoner. Other police actions during the riots, including confrontations and unfounded searches, have been blamed for inciting further rioting. Attacks on police officers by rioters, and vice versa, were reported in all the affected areas. The riots lasted four days, covered many cities all around the country and have been labeled the worst unrest this generation has seen.

Despite the role of police in the riots, increased police presence appears to have been a major factor in ultimately stopping the unrest. On Tuesday, August 9, three days into the rioting, 16,000 police descended on London. Thousands more were deployed in Manchester, Birmingham and other hot spots. Curfews were in force. Prime Minister David Cameron warned the public that he had authorized the police to use water cannons to disperse the rioters.

This heavy police presence remained on the streets the following night, Wednesday, August 10. Courts remained open all night to process the high volume of riot-related arrests. That night, streets were calm.

The police had an additional ally: the weather. On August 10, it rained heavily all over the country. The rain drove would-be rioters indoors, literally dousing the fire. In contrast, the previous four days had been sunny and hot.

Throughout history, urban riots have tended to follow a similar pattern. The violence erupts during warm weather, usually very hot weather. Cooling temperatures see a cooling of the violence as well. Even if the weather remains good, the rioting tends to peter out in a matter of days, no matter what actions the government takes. That does not necessarily mean the issues that led to the rioting are resolved or that there will not be future riots.

British police have drawn criticism for taking no action during the first two days of the riots. Eyewitnesses reported that the police stood by and did nothing in many places where the violence was happening. When the police did take action, their actions, in at least some cases, were blamed for spurring further riots.

Cameron’s deployment of over 10,000 additional police officers three days into the riots represented a reversal of tactics. The Conservative government has portrayed the problem as simple criminality among the rioters and their stepped up law enforcement as the solution. It cannot be denied that arrests of the rioters left fewer to riot or that increased police presence, and increased likelihood of the police to take action, served as deterrents to at least some who would have taken part in the violence.

However, so many factors were involved in quelling the riots that we cannot definitively say which of them, if any, were the deciding factor. Did the police stop the largest riots this generation has known? Did the weather? Or did the riots simply die a natural death? These are questions that can be debated for centuries to come.

Passing the police fitness test is no easy task. Around 40% of candidates fail the test, so if you are going to succeed, it is essential to understand what the test involves and ensure that you are adequately prepared for it.

What Does the Test Involve?

Police fitness tests vary slightly between departments, but are generally based around a similar format. Usually, you will have to complete several different forms of exercise with little recovery time between stations. A typical test may require a 300-meter sprint, followed by a minimum number of pushups, chin-ups, chest presses and sit-ups, sometimes within a time limit. Most tests end with a 1.5 mile run within a time limit (often around nine minutes), but some substitute this for an obstacle course or dummy drag. You should contact the police department you intend to apply for, or visit its website, to find out the exact requirements that you will be working towards. Bear in mind that some police departments also have body weight requirements, which you may want to investigate before planning your exercise routine.

How to Prepare 

In order to pass the test, you will need to undertake an exercise routine which builds muscular strength, muscular endurance, stamina and anaerobic power. A suitable workout might involve 30 minutes of interval training, followed by a 30-minute total body workout aimed at improving strength and muscle endurance. The interval training might alternate two minutes of gentle jogging with two minutes of sprinting for 30 minutes. The total body workout might involve sets of weight-lifting, focusing on working your muscles to exhaustion.

You should aim to exercise three to four times a week. To enable your body to rebuild muscle effectively, it’s best to allow a recovery day between workouts, so aim to schedule your exercise sessions on non-consecutive days. It’s best to start preparing as far in advance as possible, but around three to six months of working out consistently should be enough for you to see substantial fitness gains.

How is Muscle Built?

When you put stress on your muscles by lifting a weight or exercising, you tear the muscle. Your body uses protein to repair that muscle, and if there is enough protein, the muscle will be rebuilt bigger than it was before.
To develop muscle quickly and how to gain muscle mass fast, you should therefore do two things: work your muscles to exhaustion, and ensure that your diet contains adequate amounts of protein. However, many experts argue that a diet which contains excessive amounts of protein can be harmful, putting you at increased risk of kidney problems and heart disease.

For maximum effect, you should aim to eat a high-protein snack within one hour of finishing a muscle-building workout. Following an aerobic workout, you should eat a snack rich in carbohydrates to replenish your energy. Opt for healthy choices such as whole grains, fruit and vegetables and lean meat or fish. For example, you could pack a turkey salad sandwich with your gym kit, or a high-protein yoghurt, a handful of nuts and a banana.

Last-Minute Preparation

In the week leading up to the test, you should be aiming to ensure that you are well-rested. In this time-scale, pushing yourself to further improve your physical condition is likely to be counterproductive, because any fitness gains at this stage will be minimal and exhaustion will have a detrimental effect on your performance. Cut back on the frequency and intensity of your workouts, and give yourself at least eight hours of sleep each night. Stay away from junk food and make sure you are well hydrated, especially on the day of the test.

]]> http://www.2010policefire.com/2011/07/07/how-to-pass-police-physical-fitness-testing/feed/ 0 http://www.2010policefire.com/2011/06/19/how-to-become-a-police-officer/ http://www.2010policefire.com/2011/06/19/how-to-become-a-police-officer/#comments Sun, 19 Jun 2011 22:49:01 +0000 admin http://www.2010policefire.com/?p=12 The dream of many men and women is to serve as a police officer. The field of law enforcement is a rewarding and challenging line of work that places officers in harm’s way on a regular basis as well as positioning them in critically important situations in which the lives of others, as well as their own, are at stake. Police work is also one of the most difficult professions to enter and requires a high level of commitment to achieve it.

The first step to becoming a police officer is to maintain a clean criminal record and a high standard of ethics in whatever endeavors you’ve pursued prior to entering law enforcement. Many otherwise excellent candidates for police work are disqualified on the basis of indiscretions committed long ago. Cleaning up the past by expunging an old criminal record may be the first requirement you face.

Most city, county, and state law enforcement agencies begin the employment process by offering potential officers a civil service test. Candidates are scored and placed on a hiring list on the basis of the test results. Taking as many civil service tests as possible is a good idea since scores can be improved with practice. Passing several tests is also recommended since the hiring lists may be valid for a year or two and candidates may not know their chances of being hired by a particular agency until long after the test.

Police agencies that don’t require a civil service test generally require that a resume and application for employment be completed. In the case of both those agencies requiring a civil service test and those who do not, when an opening occurs, the most promising candidates are contacted for an interview. Depending on the individual agency, a lie detector examination, physical conditioning test, drug screen, and a psychological exam will be required.

Many agencies require that a candidate have a college degree prior to applying, preferably in the field of law enforcement. An associate’s or bachelor’s degree provides an opportunity for interested applicants to prove their intellectual abilities as evidenced in possessing a college degree as well as their ability to pursue a goal and accomplish a task. These personal characteristics are important for police officers and police administrators want to hire those candidates who possess them.

Every state in the union and federal law enforcement agencies require that candidates pass a police academy. The academic and physical requirements are stringent and those with the tenacity and dedication to successfully complete the training are considered worthy of the honor of being a law enforcement officer. Candidates need to contact each agency they’re interested in to determine if that particular agency hires only those already possessing police certification or if the agency hires a candidate prior to sending him or her to the academy. How agencies approach this matter differs considerably from one agency to another, even in the same state and local geographical area. The only way to find out is to ask.

Prior to starting a police academy it’s important to get into good physical shape. Academies “wash out” a lot of candidates by requiring them to be in better condition than they’re willing to work to get into. Being able to run, do push-ups and other exercises, and maintain good aerobic health makes the academy experience much more enjoyable.

Becoming a police officer requires several steps. If you’re interested, it’s never too early to start the process. Pinning on the badge is a dream come true.

Basic Pay

The national base pay for firefighters averages around $47,000 per year, with the bottom of the scale falling around $23,000 and the top around $75,000. Pay varies significantly by state. Some top paying states for firefighters include New Jersey, California, Washington and New York. These states average between $60,000 and $70,000 per year.

Firefighter pay also varies by city. Not surprisingly, larger cities land at the top of the list of highest paying areas for firemen. Metropolitan areas like Los Angeles, Washington DC and Chicago are among the highest paying areas for firefighters.

Benefits

When considering firefighter pay, you must also look at what benefits firefighters receive on top of their base pay. Firefighting is a hazardous job and the base pay may not seem like enough in some cases, but other benefits must be considered when examining how much money firemen make.

Firefighters typically receive health and dental insurance, vacation and sick pay, and a pension plan for most firefighters. These important benefits can add up to a lot and mean that the base salary is actually worth much more for most firefighters.

How to make extra money

There are several ways to make extra money as a firefighter. Many firefighters work overtime, especially during special circumstances like wildfires or other emergencies. Fireman must be paid overtime for these extra hours, and overtime can add up to quite a bit of extra money.

This career also offers several opportunities for advancement that mean more pay. In order to advance in this career, firefighters must prove themselves through experience and receive positive reviews. Additional training on techniques and new equipment is also necessary. Firefighters must also pass both written and hands on examinations to advance to higher levels. Some possible levels firemen can advance to are Lieutenant and Captain, among others. The highest possible level is Chief; it can be difficult to advance to the highest levels.

Besides showing good performance and completing training in new techniques regularly, those with a goal in mind of advancing to Chief should consider obtaining an Associates or a Bachelor’s degree. Many departments now require a degree for the highest positions.

The Bottom Line

If you are wondering, ‘how much money do fireman make?’, it is possible that you are considering a career in this important, challenging and hopefully rewarding career. Firefighting is a necessary job for public safety; so the need for firemen will always be there, making the job outlook pretty good for this job.

Highly sought after benefits like good health coverage and a pension mean that these positions can be highly sought after and competitive. It might take some time and effort to land a job, and once you have a job it is important to do well and keep up with training in order to stay competitive and advance.

Firefighters are paid fairly well and receive attractive benefits, but the most important reason to become a firefighter is the desire to do an important job and have a huge impact on public safety. Firefighters risk their lives for the safety of others, and no amount of pay is worth that unless you truly want to do it and feel that it is the best job for you.

Many factors contribute in the onset of this calamity and many of them are manmadeNatural fires also take place; these disasters are contributed by the interplay of the elements—the wind and the fire.

On a brighter aspect, fires do inspire humankind to strive harder. Some of the greatest cities at present rose after the ravage of fires. Here are some of the greatest fires in history:

The Great Fire of Rome

In 64 AD a great fire broke and swept through 10 out of 14 states of Rome. Though unfounded, rumors have pointed out Nero as its instigator; accordingly, this was done to give way to the construction of his grand palace—the Domus Aurea.

The Four Great Fires in Constantinople

The Orthodox citadel of the East fell into the hands of the Crusaders after the ravage of the four great fires in its capital, Constantinople. This turn of events, though a great source of shame from the West, ended the schism between the two Christian sects.

Moscow Fire

This catastrophic event led to the uprising of the displaced mob against the newly-crowned Tsar, Ivan the Terrible and his family. The 80,000 homeless people blamed the Tsar’s grandmother for using witchcraft to start the fire and stoned some of his relatives to death.

The Great Fire of London

The 1660s blaze in the British capital started from a bakery. Due to an inordinate urban sprawl of wooden houses, the flames quickly spread out to the rest of the city smoldering down 90% of the homes and left 70,000 destitute. Consequently, England faced a tremendous economic and social breakdown at this time.

Furisode Fire

This calamity in the 1660s annihilated 70% of Japan’s former capital, Edo. The conflagration spread through houses that were built primarily on wood and paper and the fire-brigade at that time is not equipped and skilled to resist it.

Big Blowup in 1910

This is one of the most extensive wildfires in history which coursed through Washington, Idaho and Montana. Due to the extremely dry weather that wilted down vegetation, little hot cinders from locomotives easily escalated into an inferno. Some towns were burned to the ground or were completely deserted because of this.

Halifax Explosion

The collision between the explosives-loaded SS Mont Blanc and SS Imo resulted into over 9000 casualties and the obliteration of the commercial structures in Halifax. So great was the explosion that a tsunami was created afterwards. Hence, this is considered as “world’s largest man-made accidental explosion”.

The Changsa Fire

Also known as the Wenxi Fire, this is dubbed as the largest city-wide blaze in the history of China. The military leader, Chiang Kai Sek passed the idea of intentionally burning down the metropolitan to prevent Japanese invasion. The devastation that incurred this Chinese conurbation was akin to that of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The Dresden Bombing 

Still remaining as one of the most controversial among the Allied Air Raids, this German city was fiercely attacked during the eventful days of February 1945. Bodies of the dead piled all over as explosion after explosion followed; and planes of the RAAF were relentlessly dropping down bombs. The death toll rose up to more than 22,000.

Atomic Bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki

When atomic bombs “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” were dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it wiped off structures within 1.6km radius from the Shima Surgical Clinic where it detonated directly. About 80,000 or 60% residents were eradicated immediately, 30% from falling debris while the other 10% from other reasons.

This act of is military act is then by far one of the most debated topics in History and Ethics. Many historians now argue the necessity of such action. Was it really an act of Necessary Evil?

What Fire Insurance Covers

Why is this type of insurance such a good investment? The answer to this question can be seen in what it can do for the homeowners in the event that they suffer a devastating loss of their houses due to fire.

Under a homeowner’s insurance policy, the house and the contents may be covered if they are damaged in a fire, but these policies may have restrictions. In order to fill any gaps that may be present in a homeowner’s policy, people can purchase extra coverage for damages caused by fire. Depending on the company, these extra coverages may include:

• Money for a hotel, food and emergency items such as clothes while the house is being repaired or rebuilt,
• Anything within the home that couldn’t be covered by the homeowner’s insurance policy,
• Pays to have the house repaired or rebuilt after fires that started within the home as well as outside.

How Did the Fire Start?

A fire can begin all kinds of ways, and the fire insurance policy will cover the damages that occur for several of these reasons that fires begin. In a standard policy, damages covered under a fire insurance policy may have been started by:

• Lightning,
• Riots,
• Explosions,
• Smoke,
• Earthquakes,
• Storms,
• Wind,
• Water damage and
• Fire.

Coverage Limits

When people purchase fire insurance, they may decide how much they would like to receive if they ever lose their houses in a fire. When setting the limits of their coverage, people are thinking of how much their premiums will cost them every year, but this isn’t the place to economize. Homeowners will need to have as much coverage as they can possibly afford.

Actual Value (AV)

When homeowners choose to purchase coverage for the actual value of their homes, they will have lower premiums, but they will not receive sufficient funds to rebuild the house as it was before the fire. The actual value is how much the property is worth minus the years of depreciation. If the homeowners need to rebuild their homes, they will receive far less than they will need to do this if they have chosen the actual value.

Replacement Value

When people choose the replacement value, they will have higher premiums to pay every year. But in the event that their houses burn down, they will receive the amount of money required to rebuild the house as it was before the fire.

Property Covered under the Policy

The main dwelling, the house, will be covered under the insurance policy. If there are other structures, such as a barn on the property that also catches fire, the policy will replace or repair this structure, also. The contents within the house, appliances, furniture, clothing and all personal items if they have been itemized in the inventory under the policy will be covered if they are destroyed due to a fire.

People’s homeowner’s insurance policies aren’t always enough to cover all the instances when their houses are damaged by fire. In order to make sure that they are covered under most circumstances, people have the option of purchasing fire insurance. It’s completely out of people’s control when a fire begins, especially if it starts outside of the home. Purchasing fire insurance protects them when these unfortunate, unexpected events happen and they have no ability to stop them.