A Senate panel Tuesday approved a proposal that would set death benefits that would be paid if law-enforcement officers, firefighters, other first responders and military members are killed while on duty.
The proposal (SB 7098), sponsored by Sen. Ed Hooper, R-Clearwater, would carry out a constitutional amendment, known as Amendment 7, passed by voters in November. - PUB DATE: 4/18/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WINK News
VIDEO: Smokey Bear — a pop culture icon better known by some baby boomers as Smokey the Bear — is going digital in a big way for his 75th birthday in an effort to reach younger Americans with messages that go beyond "only you can prevent forest fires."
Now, in addition to being a burly, shirtless upright bear in a ranger hat, Smokey is an animated emoji that celebrities — including Stephen Colbert, Jeff Foxworthy and Al Roker — are speaking through. - PUB DATE: 4/18/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Detroit Free Press
Eddy County Fire Services could take over management and operations of the Loving Volunteer Fire Department.
The process could take up to two years, according to Eddy County Fire Services coordinator Joshua Mack.
"They have to clear up all their financials. We have to go through the State Fire Marshal's office. - PUB DATE: 4/18/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Carlsbad Current Argus Newspaper
A judge on Wednesday turned down a request from the city's fire union to halt a policy that directs firefighters to clean up blood and bodily fluids at accident and medical scenes.
The Detroit Fire Fighter Association filed suit last month asking for an injunction until an unfair labor practices complaint over the newly inked rules could be resolved. - PUB DATE: 4/18/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Detroit News
Whether it’s first responders fighting a wildfire or hikers getting lost in the wilderness, the loss of communication can be the difference between life and death.
“This will boost the signal on your cellphone. If you are backpacking or hiking out in the wilderness, normally there would be no signal. - PUB DATE: 4/18/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Pueblo Chieftain
The Florida House will reverse course and now hear a bill that would give firefighters cancer coverage, its leader said Tuesday, caving to days of public pressure and recent allegations that the bill had been deliberately held as payback after an ally’s contentious midterm election last year.
House Speaker José Oliva, who had previously said he objected to hearing the bill, said in a statement that the “environment has become too toxic to debate the true original disagreement. - PUB DATE: 4/17/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Miami Herald
City officials pitched a plan Monday (April 15) to change how promotions are doled out for New Orleans police and firefighters, placing less emphasis on formal test scores while creating a new selection group whose members are chosen by the city’s chief administrative office.
Critics, particularly among local union representatives, were quick to frame the proposed rule changes as a gateway for possible abuse, potentially allowing department heads to cherry-pick candidates rather than basing promotions on merit alone. - PUB DATE: 4/17/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NOLA.com
Mayor Sylvester Turner told the Houston fire union Monday he would provide it with financial data that leaders requested, a sign of progress at a critical point in negotiations between the mayor and union to phase in Proposition B raises for firefighters.
Officials from the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association have asked Turner to open the city’s books, allowing firefighters to verify that the mayor’s offer to phase in the pay raises over multiple years honors the terms of the charter amendment, which requires the city to pay firefighters the same as police of corresponding rank and seniority. - PUB DATE: 4/17/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Houston Chronicle
A number of factors have played a role in fire departments being unable to recruit as many volunteer firefighters as in past years, according to two local fire chiefs.
Caribou Fire Chief Scott Susi noted that throughout the last decade, he has seen a steady decrease in the number of volunteers that his department is able to recruit and retain for long periods of time. - PUB DATE: 4/17/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The County
Most people have heard about the “thin red line” and the “thin blue line,” but what about the thinest gold line in the middle? That thin gold line represents those who aren’t ever seen, but are mostly heard. That thin gold line stands for dispatchers, who act as “the golden glue that holds it all together” when it comes to receiving emergency calls and sending out first responders. - PUB DATE: 4/17/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Duncan Banner
Many onlookers pulled out their phones and snapped pictures as flames roared through the roof of the North End Pavilion on the Ocean Grove boardwalk Saturday.
But some were firefighters, and they posed for selfies or group photos - some as flames continued to shoot from the historic building that was recently refurbished after surviving Superstorm Sandy. - PUB DATE: 4/16/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NJ.com
Recently diagnosed with post-traumatic stress, Sacramento firefighter Joshua Katz isn’t ready to give up on what he calls a ‘dream job.’
He still loves his “fire family,” exciting workdays and having a job that lets him help others. He’d rather take time off to treat his post-traumatic stress with financial support from workers’ compensation than allow his injury to cause an early end to his career. - PUB DATE: 4/16/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Sacramento Bee
Almost eight years to the day after a three-alarm fire destroyed a landmark building on Brunswick’s Maine Street, firefighters for the town say the department is dangerously understaffed and has been for years.
As negotiations about the 2019-2020 town budget begin in earnest, Fire Chief Ken Brillant has proposed increasing his staff by one firefighter per shift — a total of four crew members, which would ensure eight firefighters on duty at all times for the town of approximately 20,000 people — as well as an enforcement inspector to oversee, among other responsibilities, multi-unit inspections. - PUB DATE: 4/16/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bangor Daily News - Metered Site
Women firefighters, particularly in North America, are less likely to have access to female-specific personal protective equipment and appropriate strength training and conditioning support, according to a new study.
In addition, women reported numerous counts of sexism on the job, and others talked about logistical issues such as sanitary conditions and toilet facilities, especially when tackling fires for several hours, researchers wrote in Women’s Health Issues. - PUB DATE: 4/16/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Post
A downtown Belleville apartment complex should be shut down because the owner has not installed a state-mandated fire alarm system and a fire in the complex would have a “catastrophic impact and high loss of life,” according to fire department inspection reports.
The reports, which allege multiple code violations, are attached to the city’s lawsuit filed against the owner of the Brede Towers Apartments at 104 N. - PUB DATE: 4/16/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Belleville News-Democrat
VIDEO: A bill that would increase protections for firefighters who develop cancer or other illnesses after their time on the job has cleared its last legislative hurdle.
The Montana Senate voted 40-10 Saturday to approve an amended version of Senate Bill 160, sponsored by Sen. Nate McConnell (D-Missoula). - PUB DATE: 4/15/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KPAX.com
A Dallas man who has made a habit of posing as a firefighter and even a doctor is accused of doing it again after authorities say he convinced Dallas firefighters to take him on a ride-along.
Dallas police are searching for Terrance King, 27, who is suspected of impersonating a public servant after he allegedly told firefighters that he was an EMT student, according to WFAA-TV (Channel 11). - PUB DATE: 4/15/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Dallas Morning News
PHOTOS: Above the thick, acrid smoke, booming explosions and flames, a drone safely whirred in the sky, transmitting video of the chaos to firefighters below.
The Western Wayne County Hazardous Materials Response Team assisted Pittsfield Township firefighters after propane, butane and acetylene tanks caught fire at Ann Arbor Welding Company in Pittsfield Township about 12:30 p. - PUB DATE: 4/15/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: MLive.com
The number of opioid overdoses in the county has decreased by nearly 25 percent, with overdose fatalities down by 37 percent, according to a report by the Anne Arundel County Department of Health and Anne Arundel County Police Department.
The county has had 234 total overdoses -- including 37 fatal overdoses so far this year, according to the report. - PUB DATE: 4/15/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Capital Gazette
The often frenetic pace of a hospital emergency room can be the opposite of the calm environment needed by people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Yet when families in Rockford and across Illinois call 911 for help with a loved one suffering from a psychotic, schizophrenic or depressive episode, there is only one place ambulances are allowed to transport the patient: the emergency room. - PUB DATE: 4/15/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Rockford Register Star
