Four years into his budding career as a firefighter, Glenn Ericksen was used to putting out routine fires in apartments, single-family homes and small businesses in Arlington Heights.
Then in the early morning hours of July 31, 1985, he and his co-workers at the firehouse got the call they'll never forget: A fire had broken out in the Horseman's Lounge at Arlington Park. - PUB DATE: 7/31/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Daily Herald - Metered Site
For over a month Tony winner Brian Stokes Mitchell serenaded the streets of Manhattan from the window of his Upper West Side apartment to honor frontline workers who were fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. The cause, meaningful to the 62-year-old as he was diagnosed with coronavirus in late March but has since recovered. - PUB DATE: 7/31/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WNYW-TV FOX 5 New York
More than a year and a half after the Camp Fire, the documentary Rebuilding Paradise is finally being released to the public on July 31. The documentary, directed by Academy Award-winner Ron Howard, depicts the 2018 fire and the rebuilding efforts of the Ridge through the eyes of those who lived it.
KRCR spoke with the former mayor of Paradise, Steve “Woody” Culleton, who is featured in the doc. - PUB DATE: 7/31/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KRCR-TV ABC 7 Redding
Callers to 911 in Houston will no longer be asked if they are experiencing COVID-like symptoms, changing a months-long practice to pass on the information to first responders. Firefighters are now told to treat every call as if the patient or home is COVID-positive.
Houston Fire Chief Sam Pena said the change is an admission of the widespread nature of the virus in the city and out of concern that callers were not always offering true information. - PUB DATE: 7/30/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTRK-TV ABC 14 Houston
Scientists at Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine have launched one of the first tracking tools that provides a daily snapshot into COVID-19 cases in rural communities across the country.
Using data from The New York Times and other sources, the COVID Urban Rural Explorer (CURE) focuses specifically on highlighting rural urban inequities in COVID trends by county and provides a daily report on rural areas experiencing spikes in COVID-19 cases. - PUB DATE: 7/30/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WSU.edu
PHOTOS: Four firefighters were injured after a fire broke out at a mobile home park in Quincy Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office, the fire started just before 1 p.m. in the 600 block of Main Street. The fire spread to three mobile homes and caught other buildings on fire, firefighters said. - PUB DATE: 7/30/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOVR-TV CBS 13 Sacramento
Police and fire officials are following leads in a string of fires believed to be arson, including one at the home of the Shelby Fire and Rescue chief.
Investigators believe at least six fires were set deliberately in multiple locations in west Shelby this month. On Thursday, Shelby firefighters responded to two fires believed to be connected to this string of recent arsons. - PUB DATE: 7/30/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Shelby Star
As the COVID-19 pandemic affects communities across the United States, it has also wreaked havoc on fundraising for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, according to the International Association of Fire Fighters.
For 66 years, IAFF members have been standing on sidewalks asking passers-by to fill a firefighter’s boot with dimes, quarters, dollar bills, and more. - PUB DATE: 7/30/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFMJ-TV NBC/CW 21 Youngstown
VIDEO: A bridge over Tempe Town Lake has caught on fire and partially collapsed after a train derailed.
Tempe Fire Department officials say the derailment happened around 6 a.m. on July 29 and involved a Union Pacific train. At least 90 firefighters are on the scene. One person is being treated of smoke inhalation, officials say. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KSAZ-TV FOX 10 Phoenix
World Trade Center (WTC) first responders are at risk for developing dementia, according to two studies led by Stony Brook University researchers and presented virtually at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on July 28, 2020. The studies included individuals with signs of cognitive impairment (CI) who show neuroradiological abnormalities and changes in their blood similar to that seen in Alzheimer’s disease patients and those with related dementias. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Technology Networks
Easy access to fire hydrants is a requirement of every city's building codes, but Reno Fire Department says depending on the location and type of fire, getting to fire hydrants can be extremely difficult.
Last week a south Reno apartment complex was engulfed in flames, destroying 14 of 21 buildings. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KRNV-DT NBC 4 Reno
Local fire department leaders are speaking out about the calls to increase mental health screenings for first responders following the overdose death of a Winter Park EMS captain. Winter Park fire Capt. A.J. Isaacs overdosed on painkillers, which were stolen from his own department.
“I know, without a doubt, there’s definitely PTSD within the fire service,” his widow, Heather Isaacs, said. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFTV ABC 9 News Orlando
Florida on Tuesday hit a new statewide record high for number of coronavirus deaths reported in a single day since the pandemic began — 186 residents. And while there are signs hospitalizations may be leveling off, the virus continues to upend life there and across the country.
Nearly half of all states are now part of the government's so-called "red zone" due to rising cases, including Missouri, North Dakota and Wisconsin. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CBS News
Several firefighters were overcome while battling a fire in New Jersey that spread to several homes.
Four homes were burned and two were destroyed when a fire started in a basement on Passaic Street around 2 p.m.
At least nine firefighters were hospitalized and needed assistance after suffering from heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WABC-TV ABC 7 New York
Firefighters in Hingham said they won’t comply with an order from the police and fire chiefs to take “thin blue line” flags off firetrucks, and have asked them to reconsider the decision.
Fire Chief Steve Murphy and Police Chief Glenn Olsson explained in a letter to personnel that the blue and black flags, which are black-and-white versions of the American flag with a single blue line in the center, will have to be removed from where they’ve flown atop Hingham fire trucks after a citizen complaint. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Patriot Ledger
When a large battery used to power a neighborhood in Surprise failed and began smoking last year, firefighters didn't have a response plan for how to deal with the problem, which contributed to an explosion that injured several first responders.
That is one of the conclusions of a report released on Monday about the April 2019 explosion at the McMicken Energy Storage facility near Grand Avenue and Deer Valley Road, owned by Arizona Public Service Co. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: AZ Central - Metered Site
COVID-19 is continuing to fill U.S. hospital beds.
As of July 20, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 was over 58,000, or about as high as it was in April, when hospitals in the New York City area were scouring the world for ventilators.
Surges in hospitalization rates are now showing up in every state in the South and Southwest other than New Mexico. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Think Advisor
For the last 18 years, family members of 9/11 loved ones have descended on Lower Manhattan in a tradition that is as comforting as it is familiar in its ritual.
The names of nearly 3,000 victims read aloud, often with personal messages that have changed over the almost two decades that have passed - heartfelt and sad. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Spectrum News NY1
A shared contract to hire firefighters jointly is in the works among six area municipalities that are struggling to find and retain firefighters.
If approved, the estimated $405,847 annual contract would staff two full-time, EMS-trained firefighters to serve the neighboring towns and villages of Walworth, Sharon and Darien around the clock. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Lake Geneva News
VIDEO: The Macomb County Prosecutor's Office announced Friday that a Fraser woman has been charged with setting a car on fire after video shows her apparently filling the SUV with gasoline and then lighting it, only to have it explode in her face.
Sydney Parham, 26, was arrested on arson charges after police said she set the car on fire on Wednesday. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJBK-TV FOX 2 Detroit
