The Prairie Township Fire Protection District is still seeking a solution to improve service and response times. While voters in both districts last year shot down consolidation with the Lake Lotawana Fire Protection District due to a difference in property tax rates, Prairie Township Fire Chief Bill Large said consolidation is still Plan A, with Plan B being Prairie Township tackling putting a fire station on Wyatt Road in southern Blue Springs on its own.
- PUB DATE: 4/10/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Examiner

VIDEO: Firefighters have a tough job, and Valley drivers don't make it any easier. Capt. Nick Gonzalez of the Peoria Fire-Medical Department said firefighters are continually having to avoid motorists who don't pull over when they see or hear an emergency vehicle. When you see flashing lights or hear a siren, you're supposed to slow down and pull (safely) to the right -- as far as you can -- and wait until the fire truck, ambulance or police car passes.
- PUB DATE: 4/10/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KASW-CW6 & KTVK-3TV (azfamily.com)

Over howls of protest from Rhode Island’s municipal leaders, the House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a two-bill package mandating that cities and towns pay overtime to firefighters who average more than 42 hours in a workweek, as opposed to the 53-hour-a-week federal O.T. threshold. The largely party-line vote was 62-9 in a state that regularly tops the national charts in its cost of firefighting services, and it followed days of protests by mayors and town managers across the state, including Warwick Mayor Joseph J.
- PUB DATE: 4/10/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Providence Journal - Metered Site

Three retired FDNY firefighters suffering from 9/11 illnesses died within 48 hours this week as the number of those succumbing to lethal toxins at Ground Zero continues to swell, officials and 9/11 survivor advocates said Saturday. Retired FDNY Lt. Timothy O’Neill died on April 2 and Firefighter Kevin Lennon died on April 4 from 9/11-related cancers — nearly 18 years after responding to the terror attacks.
- PUB DATE: 4/9/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Daily News

VIDEO: The Firefighter Health and Safety Bill passed another hurdle Monday afternoon. Senate Bill 160 passed the third reading in the House with a vote of 89 to nine. Great Falls International Association of Fire Fighters Local Eight President Dave Van Son said they are very excited. “This is the furthest it has ever made,” Van Son said.
- PUB DATE: 4/9/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KRTV.com

Few interest groups have been more generous to Rhode Island lawmakers than the firefighters’ lobby, which is pushing controversial overtime legislation up for a House vote on Tuesday, in a state that regularly tops the national charts on the cost of fire protection. Since 2007, the R.I. State Association of Firefighters has logged more than $290,413 on political spending, with most of that money going to help state lawmakers win reelection and ward off challengers.
- PUB DATE: 4/9/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Providence Journal - Metered Site

VIDEO: A firefighter in Pennsylvania recently honored his father in a big way and his family, friends and hometown were there to support him every step of the way. On Sunday, Ryan Robeson participated in the sixth annual Scranton Half-Marathon, running 13 miles in full firefighting gear. The gear -- the jacket, pants, boots, helmet -- weighed nearly 50 pounds.
- PUB DATE: 4/9/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC News

Lawsuits, locked doors and a police presence disrupted what was hoped to be a smooth transition in Julian as the county’s last volunteer fire department officially became a professional force. On Monday morning, the county legally took control of the 87-square-mile Julian-Cuyamaca Fire Protection District even as legal challenges mount and ill will simmers in the tourist-friendly mountain community in northeast San Diego County.
- PUB DATE: 4/9/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: San Diego Union Tribune - Metered Site

VIDEO: Three people are dead and three firefighters were hurt after a crash involving a Phoenix fire truck Sunday morning. The crash occurred around 9:15 a.m. at 29th Avenue and Bethany Home Road. Phoenix police said two adults and a 3-month-old child were killed in the crash between a Phoenix Fire Department truck and a pickup truck.
- PUB DATE: 4/8/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC15 News

Butler County mental health professionals have started countywide crisis intervention training to help first responers handle situations involving suspects with mental illness. Last summer the local chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness marshalled a group of police, mental health experts and others in an effort to bring Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training to Butler County.
- PUB DATE: 4/8/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Hamilton Journal-News

A memo released last month by the county career firefighters union shows negotiations between the union and county executive over pay, benefits and other issues have stalled. Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner (D) and the union last met on March 7, and tried to work out a deal multiple times, according to the memo.
- PUB DATE: 4/8/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Frederick News-Post

Eight years ago, the results of a study validated what many business and county leaders already believed to be true: Consolidating the 13 fire departments in Volusia into one large operation could save taxpayers millions and provide a higher level of service in the long run. Government-minded leaders with the Halifax Civic League were so encouraged by what the study showed they hoped a change was soon on the horizon.
- PUB DATE: 4/8/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Daytona Beach News-Journal

The city and San Antonio’s firefighters union have agreed to continue contract negotiations with assistance from a mediator, avoiding arbitration for now. The two sides will meet April 17 and April 18 with former Texas Supreme Court Justice Deborah Hankinson, who presided over court-ordered mediation between the two sides in 2017.
- PUB DATE: 4/8/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: San Antonio Express-News

Colorado Springs voters overwhelmingly denied collective bargaining privileges for firefighters in Tuesday's election, maintaining the city's long-standing anti-union sentiment, preliminary results show. Issue 1, the ballot's single question, lost by 26,634 to 57,904 votes, City Clerk Sarah Johnson said.
- PUB DATE: 4/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Colorado Springs Gazette

The city has sent pink slips to 68 Houston Fire Department cadets, the first documented layoffs resulting from Mayor Sylvester Turner’s plan to implement Proposition B. The trainees will remain employed through June 7, according to a copy of the layoff notice sent to cadets. “The City of Houston has experienced a sizeable budget shortfall due to the implementation of Prop B,” the layoff notices read, referring to the charter admendent passed by voters last November.
- PUB DATE: 4/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Houston Chronicle

Sonoma County’s newest fire district is making its debut Thursday, combining four agencies into one large district circling Santa Rosa, and spanning from Windsor to the Napa County line. The Sonoma County Fire District, run by Chief Mark Heine, becomes the county’s second largest in territory and population and the second busiest, behind Santa Rosa Fire in both cases.
- PUB DATE: 4/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Santa Rosa Press Democrat

A Denver firefighter suspected of surreptitiously recording images of a female colleague has left the department and the alleged incident is being investigated by police. The firefighter suspected of invading his co-worker’s privacy was placed on leave when the allegations came to light, pending an internal investigation, but he retired the following day, said Capt.
- PUB DATE: 4/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Denver Post

When there’s no one else to help, firefighters are the people who answer the call. “Water’s pouring into your basement, water’s pouring out of your ceiling, something’s smoky, something’s on fire, you saw a spark, you don’t know what to do, they call us,” said firefighter John Callahan. “We’re not only firefighters.
- PUB DATE: 4/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: MassLive

VIDEO: Twenty-three people — including 19 firefighters — suffered non-life threatening injuries after a fire tore through an apartment building in Brooklyn, the FDNY said. The six-alarm fire broke out on the top floor of a six-story building at the corner of 44th Street and Seventh Avenue in Sunset Park on Wednesday afternoon, according to the department.
- PUB DATE: 4/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NBC New York

VIDEO: The Jefferson Parish fireman who almost lost his life battling a condo fire in Metairie two months ago visited his fellow firefighters in his unit for the first time Monday. For many days, it was unclear if fireman Danny Zeigler was going to make it past his injuries. He fell through the roof of the third floor of a burning Old Metairie condominium building in February.
- PUB DATE: 4/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WWL-TV.com