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National Fire News

Parlons Opelousas: Tradition of naming fire trucks continues in Louisiana

Did you know that for over a century the fire trucks in Opelousas had names? That used to be a custom in this town as well as many other towns and cities across the U.S. Let’s talk about that. Several days ago I received a message from Debbie Harmon Payne asking if I would know who the Opelousas fire truck “Sid” was named for.
- PUB DATE: 11/9/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Daily World

New York City first responders have high COVID-19 rates; public surfaces may hold clues to virus spread

Compared to the general public, New York City firefighters and emergency medical workers were 15 times more likely to be infected with the new coronavirus during the first wave of the pandemic, researchers reported on Thursday in ERJ Open Research. They studied nearly 10,800 firefighters and 3,500 emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Reuters

Florida fire rescue sharing stories of firefighters who have battled cancer

A Delray Beach firefighter is sharing his story of survival from cancer in an emotional post on Facebook. Throughout November, the agency is telling stories about firefighters who have battled cancer. They said it part of an effort to increase awareness of the disease and the importance of prevention for everyone.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WPTV NBC 5 West Palm Beach

Rutgers Awarded $1.5 Million FEMA Grant to Support Volunteer Firefighter Cancer Research and Prevention

The Rutgers School of Public Health received a $1.5 million Federal Emergency Management Agency grant to support cancer research for volunteer firefighters. The funding will enhance research already being done in collaboration with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey as part of the Cancer Assessment and Prevention Study.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Rutgers Today

Texas company transforming trucks into firefighting machines

For the past 24 years in Haskell, Texas, Steel Fire Apparatus has been transforming trucks into firefighting machines. “But we take it and add the bed, the tool boxes, the pump, the water,” Wes Steele, owner, said. But before they’re ready to fight brush fires, everything starts with Wes designing the truck on the computer based on a fire department’s needs.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KRBC-TV NBC 9 Abilene

4 Firefighters, Off-duty Police Officer Injured When Fire Truck Crashes into Bank in Massachusetts

Four firefighters and an off-duty Boston police officer were injured when a Boston Fire Department vehicle crashed into a bank less than a mile away from a fire scene early Thursday morning. The fire truck crashed into a Bank of America around 2:26 a.m. at the intersection of Talbot Avenue and Washington Street in Dorchester.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NECN-TV NBC 10 Boston

Remains of missing LAFD firefighter found in Mexico

The remains of Los Angeles firefighter Francisco “Frank” Aguilar, who went missing in Mexico in August, have been found after a monthslong investigation, officials announced Wednesday. The Baja California central state prosecutor said the badly burned body was found on Oct. 23 in a desolate field in Rosarito, according to Border Report, an online news source from KTLA parent company Nexstar.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTLA-TV WB 5 Los Angeles

Orthodox Jewish Community’s All-Women EMS Service in New York Finally Gets First Ambulance

Some call it controversial, others call it a life saver. In time for the onset of a second wave of the coronavirus, an all-women’s EMS service in Brooklyn is finally getting an ambulance after overcoming naysayers in the city who tried to prevent it from happening. As CBS2’s Lisa Rozner reported, 4-month-old Sarah Richter sleeps peacefully, even in the pouring rain.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCBS-TV CBS 2 New York

New Florida fire station includes special operations facility, built to withstand Category 4 hurricane winds

The new Fire Station 8 facility was built on a site that had a doublewide trailer as a temporary station. The new, permanent main station has 14 bunk rooms, a kitchen and dining area, offices, an exercise room, a day room with chairs and a TV, a gear locker room and four garage bays. For the firefighters of Station 8, it goes beyond just a place to come to work.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Business Observer

South Carolina firefighter one of ‘best female athletes in the world'

VIDEO: Heidi Charest of Lady’s Island had the slightest of leads in the finals of the Firefighting Combat Challenge World Championships in Irving, Texas, two weeks ago. Her focus turned to keeping that lead as she dragged a 175-pound mannequin across the finish line. “Just keep moving,” she told herself.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Island Packet - Metered Site

Two-Carrier Fire Drill Trains Sailors to Avoid Problems Found in Early Moments of Bonhomme Richard Ship Fire

When USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) caught fire at the pier over the summer, sailors from across the waterfront rushed to the scene, some in damage control teams from their own ships and some showing up as individuals who wanted to help. Though the five-day firefighting effort became very organized, the first minutes were confusing: it was a Sunday morning, when most of the Bonhomme Richard crew and leadership weren’t around, and disparate people who knew how to fight fires but hadn’t trained on how to fold in together in an organized way rushed to the scene.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: USNI News

VIDEO: Flames engulf home in Pennsylvania county

Crews battled massive flames at a home in Schuylkill County. Fire ripped through the home in the 1100 block of West Center Street in West Mahanoy Township just after 10:30 p.m. Monday. Emergency officials said it was a single family home, but no one was hurt. Crews were at the scene for several hours battling the flames.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFMZ-TV 69 Allentown

Sounding the alarm: Florida program promotes mental wellness for first responders

Firefighters love their job, but it comes with hazards that not only threaten their physical safety, but also their emotional and mental well-being. Responding to hundreds of emergency related calls each year exposes firefighters and other first responders to a tremendous amount of trauma, from deadly car accidents and house fires to medical calls.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Tallahassee Democrat

50 charts showing the scale of COVID-19

Over 44 million people have contracted the novel coronavirus as of Oct. 28, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. About 1.2 million have died. As this pandemic rages across the globe and irrevocably changes more and more lives, its impact becomes increasingly difficult to visualize: 1.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Stacker

Michigan: The Story of Rochester's Noon Whistle

Nobody who lives or works in the vicinity of downtown Rochester needs a watch to know when it’s lunchtime. Six days a week, at high noon, the blast of the fire department’s siren marks the midday hour. However, the daily sounding of the noon whistle has nothing to do with signaling a meal break and everything to do with a devastating fire that nearly destroyed an iconic Main Street business.
- PUB DATE: 11/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Rochester Media

The Story of Rochester's Noon Whistle

Nobody who lives or works in the vicinity of downtown Rochester needs a watch to know when it’s lunchtime. Six days a week, at high noon, the blast of the fire department’s siren marks the midday hour. However, the daily sounding of the noon whistle has nothing to do with signaling a meal break and everything to do with a devastating fire that nearly destroyed an iconic Main Street business.
- PUB DATE: 11/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Rochester Media

San Francisco Firefighter Critically Injured in Freak Accident

A San Francisco firefighter was in critical condition Monday after hitting his head while at the scene of a high-rise fire, the fire department said. The injury happened after firefighters responded to a fire at 55 Spear St., San Francisco Fire Department Lt. Jonathan Baxter said. "As this incident was resolving, a Muni bus from SFMTA was driving through the incident operational area.
- PUB DATE: 11/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KNTV NBC 11 San Jose

Tennessee gas station a total loss, no injuries after fire at Seymour Speedway Market

VIDEO: A Seymour gas station is a total loss after it went up in flames Monday afternoon. Seymour Volunteer Fire Department Chief John Linsenbigler says crews were called to the scene at the Seymour Speedway Market on Highway 411 just before 12:45 p.m. Linsenbigler says everyone inside made it out of the business, and no injuries were reported.
- PUB DATE: 11/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WATE-TV ABC 6 Knoxville

Fire departments dissatisfied with an Ohio county's 911 system amid new levy

Four minutes, 57 seconds. Five minutes, 13 seconds. Sixteen minutes, 30 seconds. They add up to minutes and seconds. But when that time is spent on a 911 call during an emergency, it's not as inconsequential. "If somebody is down there having a heart attack, minutes count. Seconds count," New Lexington Fire Chief Jim Fain said.
- PUB DATE: 11/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Zanesville Times Recorder

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