I almost missed a huge milestone yesterday. RoanokeFirefighters.blogspot.com went live on March 16, 2005. Yesterday marked the 4 year anniversary of the occasion. Although the site has been moved to RoanokeFire.com it is still the same thing. The “Roanoke Fire Blog” has seen numerous changes in the past year, but for the first 3 years it was basically the same look.

Some of you like the new look, others would rather the original look. The format we are using today offers a lot of customization as opposed to the original though.

With the exception of the Roanoke Fire EMS Department Homepage, Local1132.org,  and Mike Overacker’s RoanokeFirefighters.com, RoanokeFire.com was the first opprotunity to offer who we are and what we do on a regular basis. RoanokeFire.com has been updated more than the other three since day one. Given that Mikes site is more of the “cream of the crop” for fireground and other images, and this site is for more of the scratch photographers like myself.

Comments will more than likely see a change in the future to the old way in an effort to see if commenting has been reformed. I have followed some of the new blogs and noticed that some require login (although you could still maintain anonymity) and some do not offer comments at all. The argument has been brought up of a few bad apples spoiling the bunch, and that is very true.

Why allow comments? Well that is a very good question. The truth is that this site was created for everyone (i.e. firefighters, outside readers, citizens). I believe that anyone should be able to leave feedback. The feedback has been very entertaining, enlightening, and usually can offer more commentary than I can give justice in my posts. The problem is the nasty comments that aren’t necessary. Some of these comments are what cause the big stir in the end. The interesting thing is that some comments which people found offensive were made by people who complained about it in the end. It is a very tangled web, and one that I will not give full disclosure to.

What can we look for with the future of the website? Honestly, I am not real sure. The new site has been online for a short while and I am enjoying the ease of updating and uploading. We will have to see how the site takes on the new look. I am thinking of looking back at some of the fires covered over the years.

With the advent of some of the other blogs, some would think that it is competition. Not really though, I have never really written quite like the other blogs read. They offer a dimension that I rarely hit on and I think that they are enjoyable and entertaining. I think that they certainly build camaraderie among the various stations and even some competition. It is neat to be able to look into the various firehouses and see what goes on day to day. I enjoy checking out each site each day to see if there is a new post and read what it is about. The sites can be viewed by clicking on the links to the right.

I hope you have enjoyed the past 4 years and the many more to come.