Seriously...4 Campbellsville KY firefighters injured in ALS challenge

[Volznut]

I feel bad for them, I do. They were trying to do a good thing... but apparently there were no engineers present. I would have immediately told them it was not a good idea to get guys real close to high voltage power lines and dump massive amounts of water on them. Arcing is a real threat and that's what happened. 

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/21/us/firefighters-ice-bucket-challenge/index.html

[SmokeyJoe]

Yes I was surprised to see this story yesterday. I would have thought firemen would have had some knowledge of arcing. It is a bit elusive to a layperson as myself. I'll install a light, or fan but that's as far as I go with electricity.

[VOLMAN]

operator training....KNOW WHERE POWER LINES ARE.   

[volsboy]

I have mixed feelings about these non-profit money grabs. On the one hand, this is a terrible disease and needs to be cured. However, how long has it been since Lou Gehrig had the disease? With the technology available, don't you think we should have found a cure to this and cancer and Alzheimers by now. Sad to say, there is a lot of money to be made by the medical industry on  disease and illness. They make more money by keeping you on medicine and not curing you. Okay...rant over.

[LouisVOL]

Here is the sad truth.  ALS would not be profitable to the drug companies, therefore, there will be no concentrated research, there will be no cure, there will be no life extending medications.  Only about 30000 current afflicted, and only about 5-6000 new cases per year.  Cost of developing a cure/medications, likely in the billions.  The bottom line is that the bottom line determines whether many live, die, suffer.

I have mixed feelings about these non-profit money grabs. On the one hand, this is a terrible disease and needs to be cured. However, how long has it been since Lou Gehrig had the disease? With the technology available, don't you think we should have found a cure to this and cancer and Alzheimers by now. Sad to say, there is a lot of money to be made by the medical industry on  disease and illness. They make more money by keeping you on medicine and not curing you. Okay...rant over.

[BanditVol]

I have mixed feelings about these non-profit money grabs. On the one hand, this is a terrible disease and needs to be cured. However, how long has it been since Lou Gehrig had the disease? With the technology available, don't you think we should have found a cure to this and cancer and Alzheimers by now. Sad to say, there is a lot of money to be made by the medical industry on  disease and illness. They make more money by keeping you on medicine and not curing you. Okay...rant over.

I have a close friend with ALS.  In fact, he is an OU grad and I will be attending the game with him.  It's just not a big enough disease to attract the major pharma companies, unfortunately. 

The good thing is my buddy has the milder form of ALS, which Steven Hawking has had for about 40 years, and is still going strong.  So my buddy is probably going to live a fairly long live at least.

But he is very frustrated with the lack of research.  I think what the firemen were trying to do was wonderful. More should be done.

It is a far cry from when Jonas Salks deferred getting a patent on the cure for polio to help children. Polio up until the early 50s was one of the worst killers of young children and Salks solved that.  A rare exception to the way things usually go I guess.

[GreggO]

Eight (or so) years ago I worked a $1mil+ lawsuit case for 6-8 weeks over a 4mos period in Campbellsville. It's a small southern city that once was a textile town, but now Amazon is the largest employer. With the tax monies, the town and Campbell County have $$$$ to spend on an arial ladder fire truck like this. Tax money doesn't buy brains, though. I thoroughly enjoy small-town southern cites, so I had a great time on a very interesting case I was working for an insurance defense attorney. (If interested, you can keep reading).

The guy we were forced by the court to defend  (via a used car dealership who didn't even own the vehicle he, ahem, allegedly drove and wrecked) I met in the county jail over in Lebanon. He was in for going to his girlfriend's parent's home drunk to see her, cutting the front door down with a chainsaw and using it on her father who was protecting his home. One of the first things he said to me was, "Give me $30,000 and I'll say anything you want me to. I'm gonna need money when I get out of jail". His aunt was the passenger/plaintiff and I figured if I got the deal, she did as well. I eventually learned all phone conversations of the inmates were recorded. She netted less than $10k from the settlement.

There's a pro golfer from Campbellsville University; his name escapes me. I mention this not defend the firemen, but to give insight on the community where this happened. It's an hour west and a half hour north of Somerset. Four hours from Knoxville driving with some speed. One liquor store and a Holiday Inn Express. I'd live there if it wasn't in Kentucky and flat.


G

[BanditVol]

 

It's an hour west and a half hour north of Somerset. Four hours from Knoxville driving with some speed. One liquor store and a Holiday Inn Express. I'd live there if it wasn't in Kentucky and flat.

An hour and a half north of Somerset.  Oh yeah, I know where that is.  

[GreggO]

An hour and a half north of Somerset.  Oh yeah, I know where that is.  

Read it again, closely.

G

[BanditVol]

Read it again, closely.

G

Right.  An hour west and a half hour north.  Which is West by Northwest, if you will.

Does not matter.  Comment remains the same. 

[BanditVol]

Speaking of that area, I knew a guy from "Middles bura" in college.  Middlesborough is a border town, and he had adopted Tennessee over Kentucky.  Which was great....but he was a real whiny sort.  I played QB for our dorm flag football team one time when the starter was not available, and just to give me shizzle he made up a cheer that included a line about my male member being dysfunctional and thus I had to "use a banana".  LOL.  In the spirit of things, I left some graffiti for him in the dorm rec room and I called him a bad name (I said he was an ugly w___ of a cheerleader  ).   So all of a sudden a day later there is a pounding on my door, and he...I mean the guy is about 20 years old, right?  He is literally in tears and claims he might throw himself out the dorm window.  Wow!  What a drama queen.  And I thought we were just kidding around, right?  I ended up having to apologize just to end the drama.  LOL! 

Ever since then, I have wondered about the denizens of that region.  Based on your story and "Justified", which is filmed not so far away, I think the population of that area might just be a bit off!   

(I hope the individual in question does not post to this board, lol).

[GreggO]

Right.  An hour west and a half hour north.  Which is West by Northwest, if you will.

Does not matter.  Comment remains the same.  

I can be more precise: for some, it would be easier to go to Crossille and go north into Kentucky off 40 exit 317. When you get to the State Trooper's barracks in KY, you're on the right highway. Or you can google it.

It's a small town that has money to buy equipment, but might not have yet figured out they need training, which was my point.  Should have made that a lot more clear.


G           

[Creek Walker]

I can be more precise: for some, it would be easier to go to Crossille and go north into Kentucky off 40 exit 317. When you get to the State Trooper's barracks in KY, you're on the right highway. Or you can google it.

It's a small town that has money to buy equipment, but might not have yet figured out they need training, which was my point.  Should have made that a lot more clear.


G           

Going to Crossville and then north is a waste of time. Go up 75 to the 141 exit and then across to US 27 and up. Better yet, go on up to Williamsburg before exiting...but that doesn't allow you to buy food, beverages and otherwise spend your hard-earned money in beautiful (and friendly) Oneida, Tennessee. 

[GreggO]

Going to Crossville and then north is a waste of time. Go up 75 to the 141 exit and then across to US 27 and up. Better yet, go on up to Williamsburg before exiting...but that doesn't allow you to buy food, beverages and otherwise spend your hard-earned money in beautiful (and friendly) Oneida, Tennessee.  

You get it! But, why go?                

I just like smalltown America a lot. Odd folk make me happy. I'm always thinking, that was hiarious. What's next? I'm serious, I could live in a town like this. Cheap entertainment. Remeber Hooterville?


G

[BanditVol]

I can be more precise: for some, it would be easier to go to Crossille and go north into Kentucky off 40 exit 317. When you get to the State Trooper's barracks in KY, you're on the right highway. Or you can google it.

It's a small town that has money to buy equipment, but might not have yet figured out they need training, which was my point.  Should have made that a lot more clear.


G           

Yeah, I get it.  My point was that you used Somerset as a waypoint.  I don't think too many people know where Somerset is either, not without googling.