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National Fire News

Ohio fire department demotes 9, removes one truck from service

The downsizing of government in the city of Youngstown began Thursday with cuts in the fire department. There will likely be more to come, one city official told us the police department and clerk of courts may be next. But Thursday the focus is on the fire department. "We all have to tighten our belt to be more fiscally responsible with the cities money," Youngstown Fire Chief Barry Finley said.
- PUB DATE: 10/5/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WYTV-TV 33 News

FirstNet Fleet of Dedicated Deployable Network Assets Now Available to Public Safety Subscribers Nationwide

Public safety agencies subscribing to FirstNet now have access to the full fleet of 72 dedicated deployable network assets. Stationed across the country, these assets can either be deployed for planned events or called upon in emergencies to help first responders stay connected and operate faster, safer and more effectively when lives are on the line.
- PUB DATE: 10/5/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: AllThingsFirstNet.com

Michigan town approves partial merger of fire, police departments

Hampton Township's fire and police departments are to merge into a public safety model, where firefighters and officers are crossed trained to do both jobs. The township's Board of Trustees on Monday, Oct. 1, approved the partial transition from two agencies into one, said Supervisor Terri Close. Six board members voted in favor of the proposal, while one voted against it.
- PUB DATE: 10/5/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: MLive

Nashville names city's first African-American fire chief

Nashville Mayor David Briley on Wednesday announced he's promoted William Swann to be new director chief of the Nashville Fire Department, becoming the first African-American to hold the leadership post. Swann, a 22-year veteran of the department who has served as interim fire chief for 11 months, replaces Ricky White, who retired as director chief in 2017 after serving in the job for just one year.
- PUB DATE: 10/4/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Nashville Tennessean

Kansas fire chief resigns after suspension, prompts additional resignations

The town of Clearwater is down several first responders after they turned in their resignation moments after their fire chief and EMS director quit. Tuesday morning the fire department and emergency services woke up to the news that Scott Cooper, its EMS director and fire chief was suspended. A city council meeting late Tuesday decided Cooper's fate, and it is not what many of those who serve for him expected.
- PUB DATE: 10/4/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KSN-TV NBC Wichita

NFFF to Honor Fallen at Annual Ceremony

The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) is preparing to honor 103 firefighters who have died in the line of duty during the organization's annual ceremony and is providing a wealth of resources to help you be a part of the remembrances. The official ceremony will be held on Sunday, Oct. 7, and pays tribute to the 80 firefighters who died while on duty in 2017 and 23 others who fell in previous years.
- PUB DATE: 10/4/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse

Washington state health department opens investigation into nine firefighters

The Washington State Department of Health is actively investigating nine members of the Bellingham Fire Department for their roles in the July 31 incident at Station 1 in which an intubation procedure was attempted on the body of a recently deceased patient. Health Department spokesperson Sharon Moysiuk said Wednesday in an email to The Bellingham Herald that the department “has nine active investigations concerning the fire/EMS intubation incident.
- PUB DATE: 10/4/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bellingham Herald

Texas Fire Union’s President Outlines City Hall Power Play in Leaked Recording

San Antonio firefighters union President Chris Steele told firefighters that his goal is to secure a labor contract and make Councilman Greg Brockhouse (D6) the next mayor of San Antonio, according to an audio recording shared Wednesday by the campaign to defeat three union-backed ballot propositions.
- PUB DATE: 10/4/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Rivard Report

Iowa city council listens to PSO complaints as another firefighter quits

Controversy about the Public Safety Officer program spilled into the Cedar Falls City Council meeting Monday. The discussion came as Jason Campbell — 2018 Firefighter of the Year — resigned, the fifth firefighter to do so in a month. Rural residents Darren Yoder and Andrea Southall spoke about the recent departures.
- PUB DATE: 10/3/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier

Video: Louisiana Firefighters Engulfed in Flames During Car Fire Fight

A frightening scene erupted in an area of Kenner and it was all caught on camera. John Panzavecchia sent WDSU video of a vehicle fire that was reported on West Loyola Drive. The video starts out with the SUV slowly being engulfed in flames from the passenger side. At one point, firefighters who were trying to extinguish the fire approached the SUV and then the flames suddenly engulfed them as well.
- PUB DATE: 10/3/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WDSU-TV NBC 6 New Orleans

Launch of the New NMAS Takes Mutual Aid Net to the Next Level

The National Mutual Aid System (NMAS) partnership today announced the launch of the new NMAS, an emergency resource management system where all users can access cutting-edge technology to request, geospatially locate and strategically deploy response resources. The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), Juvare, and Esri have been working since the fall of 2017 to build NMAS to serve state and local governments throughout the U.
- PUB DATE: 10/3/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: International Association of Fire Chiefs

Fire Department Senior Staff Make Up Half of Highest-Paid Employees in California's Capital City

Of the 50 highest-paid city of Sacramento employees, more than half work for the Fire Department. All made more than $200,000 in 2017 and in some cases, $300,000. City Manager Howard Chan tops the list at $332,000 in salary, retirement and health benefits according to the California State Controller's website.
- PUB DATE: 10/3/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Capital Public Radio

Video: Nevada fire crew frees 3 little bears trapped inside trash bin

Firefighters in Reno helped free a few furry scavengers that had found themselves trapped in a difficult situation in the middle of the night. Late Saturday, crew members of the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, Station 39 said they were awoken by the crashing sound of their garbage dumpster outside being tipped over.
- PUB DATE: 10/3/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTVU-TV

Maine city settles lawsuit with fire officials who said city retaliated against them

Westbrook has settled a lawsuit filed by its fire chief and deputy fire chief that alleged the city retaliated against them after they complained about a volunteer firefighter who had been hired as a city fire inspector. The city agreed to pay Fire Chief Andrew Turcotte and Deputy Chief Stephen Sloan $25,000 for their legal fees and other expenses associated with the suit.
- PUB DATE: 10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Portland Press Herald

Detroit council members question new fire codes amid union outcry

Members of City Council are questioning whether a controversial new policy that treats some city fire runs as lower priority is warranted amid concerns over its rocky implementation. Detroit Fire Commissioner Eric Jones led a presentation Monday on the policy he put in place in August that has emergency dispatchers coding runs as emergent and non-emergent, a classification that now deploys crews to some scenes without lights and sirens.
- PUB DATE: 10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Detroit News

Indiana city council probe into EMS fund misuse seeks emails, letters from administration

The City Council’s investigative body is moving forward with its own probe into the misuse of $8.2 million in emergency public safety dollars to cover payroll and other expenses. The probe, in part, seeks to determine which employees at city hall were aware of the misuse, according to Councilwoman LaVetta Sparks-Wade, who originally made a request last month to the mayor’s office for financial records and correspondence related to Fund 224.
- PUB DATE: 10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Northwest Indiana Times (nwitimes.com)

Florida fire captain testifies: 'I felt rejected and dejected'

A Jacksonville fire captain testified Monday in federal court about what he calls discrimination and retaliation by his fellow firefighters. "I felt rejected and dejected," Capt. Eric Mitchell testified before a jury. Mitchell filed a lawsuit against Division Chief Gail Loput, Fire Chief Kurt Wilson and the city of Jacksonville.
- PUB DATE: 10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJXT-TV CBS 4 Jacksonville

More Arizona firefighters, paramedics get body armor

One year after the mass shooting in Las Vegas hit home the dangers faced by first-responders, Mesa leaders voted to spend $262,000 to equip firefighters and medical teams with body armor. The protection already is available in Chandler, Scottsdale and Tempe, and will be in place in Gilbert this year.
- PUB DATE: 10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com & KPNX-TV NBC 12 Phoenix

Texas fire union president reprimanded for fake uniform

San Antonio fire union President Chris Steele has been reprimanded for overseeing a political news conference while wearing a fake uniform that was nearly identical to its official San Antonio Fire Department counterpart. On Sept. 20, Steele held a rally and news conference at the headquarters of the Bexar County Democratic Party, where he announced that the organization had endorsed the three proposed charter amendments the union had placed on the Nov.
- PUB DATE: 10/1/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: San Antonio Express-News

Ohio fire chief sues city for $1 million

Bucyrus Fire Chief Jay Keller has sued the city for $1 million in damages that he believes were accrued while he was on paid leave last year. The lawsuit was filed Friday afternoon in the United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio, Cleveland Division, by Keller's attorney, Adam Stone. "We have no further comments," Stone said after telling the Telegraph-Forum that the city would be served notice of the lawsuit via certified mail.
- PUB DATE: 10/1/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Mansfield News Journal

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