Austin fire Chief Rhoda Mae Kerr responded to the censure she received Thursday night from the city’s firefighter union by saying her department’s employees have been “seriously misinformed.”
In a statement, Kerr said Bob Nicks, the president of the Austin chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters, embarked on a “one-sided misleading personal vendetta” that has damaged conversations about how to keep firefighters healthy and safe. - PUB DATE: 8/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: austin statesman
At its annual membership meeting in Albuquerque, July 19-21, the principal membership of the National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM) elected, by unanimous acclamation, four State Fire Marshals to serve two year terms on the Association's Board, announced NASFM President H. "Butch" Browning, Louisiana State Fire Marshal. - PUB DATE: 8/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: fire engineering
The Fire Department has both fewer firefighters and fewer administrators, with six upper-command positions vacant, including the chief's job.
For several months, Public Safety Commissioner Steven Paré has been acting chief as the city searches for a new department head from outside the city — an effort that has hit some bumps since it began a year ago. - PUB DATE: 8/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: providence journal
Brad Morris was driving an ambulance on Feb. 13, 2004, when he and other paramedics and firefighters responded to a domestic violence call on Adams Lane in rural southern Fayette County.
His co-worker, Lt. Brenda Cowan, Lexington’s first black female firefighter, was gunned down that day by a man who shot and killed his wife before paramedics arrived. - PUB DATE: 8/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: lexington herald-leader
VIDEO - The Bay City Department of Public Safety has shared two new videos showing the public how its officers transition from a law enforcement officer to a firefighter.
The videos were posted on the agency's Facebook page the morning of Friday, July 29. They depict public safety officers Eric Sporman and Brandon Murphy simulating how they would respond to a structure fire. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: mlive.com
Dover Fire Chief Richard "Turkey" Mattison, who died on Wednesday, will be honored with a fireman's service on Monday evening and a fireman's procession on Tuesday morning.
Mattison, who served in Dover's fire department for 43 years, was "just an all-around great guy," said Deputy Chief Bill Gilbert, who retains that title while now running the department. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Newark Star-Ledger
A federal judge declared Monday that there is enough evidence to move to trial regarding former Nampa Deputy Fire Chief Doug Strosnider who claims he was wrongfully fired.
Strosnider claims he was wrongfully fired in 2014 by Nampa Mayor Bob Henry and Fire Chief Karl Malott.
Strosnider’s lawsuit claimed he was fired without justification after he’d been with the department since 1992. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Nampa Idaho Press-Tribune
A bulldozer operator who died helping battle a wildfire raging in the Big Sur area was identified as a 35-year-old Fresno County father of two children, officials said Thursday afternoon.
Robert Reagan III, a privately contracted heavy-equipment operator from the Sierra foothills town of Friant, died after rolling his earthmover in a remote area while helping fight the Soberanes Fire in Monterey County, officials said. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: sfgate.com
Residents of the small community of Olney north of Whitefish are calling for an investigation into possible embezzlement within the local fire department, alleging that tens of thousands of tax dollars were misappropriated within the past year.
On Wednesday night, the Olney Rural Fire District Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of Fire Chief Ken Morehead, and several residents signed a written request for the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office to investigate a pattern of questionable spending. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: daily inter lake.
If you often find yourself extricating patients from Mercedes-Benz vehicles, a new app can help.
The official Rescue Assist app released by the company can show first responders where it is safe to make cuts into the vehicle. By looking at these diagrams, responders can avoid hitting fuel lines, battery cables or any other components that would affect the safety of the patient or caregivers when cut. - PUB DATE: 7/29/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: firerescue1.com
Hoyt firefighters were on their way to a parade in Holton on Wednesday when a tragic accident occurred.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reports a Hoyt Firetruck was northbound on U.S. Highway 75, south of 174th Road just before 5:00 p.m. when it blew a tire, causing the vehicle to leave the roadway to the left and crossing the median. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KSNT-TV nbcTopeka
Sterling Nelson was still processing the chaotic moments Saturday that led to the death of his neighbor, and, if not for a valiant stand, would have left him without a home.
“I was terrified,” said Nelson, reflecting Tuesday on the Sand fire’s fatal rampage through his neighborhood in the 26800 block of Iron Canyon Road. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: los angeles daily news
Tensions mounted at Stoddard Town Hall Monday night as residents spoke out against the recent ouster of the town’s longtime forest fire warden, Joseph Sarcione, during a selectmen’s meeting.
About 20 people — most of whom opposed the selectmen’s recent decision to have Sarcione terminated — gathered for a discussion that resulted in fiery debate. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: sentinel source.
Shots were fired at paramedics responding to the scene of a fire in Walnut Hills, authorities said. Firefighters have been advised to wear bulletproof vests while responding to violent calls.
They want to focus on saving lives without having to worry about saving their own.Fire officials said a gunman in a passing car fired three to five shots at paramedics and an ambulance during a run on July 16 at Kenton and McGregor streets. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WLWT-TV NBC 5 Cincinnati
A man was struck by a Costa Mesa fire truck Wednesday in an apparent suicide attempt, police said.
The incident was reported at 8:17 a.m. in the 500 block of West 19th Street, said Costa Mesa police Sgt. Bryan Wadkins.
A 37-year-old man from Costa Mesa walking west when he apparently stepped off of a curb into the path of the fire truck, said Wadkins. - PUB DATE: 7/28/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: orange county register
Petaluma Fire Department Firefighter-Paramedic Steven Clegg was wrapping up some reports at the city’s downtown fire station on Sunday when a man allegedly smashed through the facility’s glass front door and aggressively confronted the firefighters inside, an episode that ultimately ended in the man’s arrest, according to petaluma fire and law enforcement personnel. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Petaluma Argus Courier
The city has filed legal action against its firefighters in an attempt to prevent arbitration of the city’s decision to demote eight fire captains as part of a restructuring plan designed to save money.
The city filed a petition Tuesday in state Supreme Court against the Watertown Professional Firefighters Association Local 191 seeking a permanent stay of arbitration, which the union demanded in July through a filing with the state Public Employment Relations Board. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: watertown daily times
A series of mistakes by Cincinnati firefighters contributed to the growth of a March 2015 fire, which caused heavy smoke and poor visibility for rescuers searching the building, indicated a federal investigation released today.
One of those firefighters, Daryl Gordon, fell to his death when he stepped into an elevator shaft. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Cincinnati Enquirer
The widow of a retired borough firefighter who was killed in a 2015 hit-and-run accident in front of the Lincoln Hose Fire Co. 4's firehouse has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in hopes it will aid the investigation.
Anita Kavanaugh, the widow of George R. Kavanaugh, filed the lawsuit in Somerset County Superior Court on July 20 seeking unspecified damages. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Newark Star-Ledger/NJ.com
Fire investigators discovered two illegal hash-oil extraction operations inside the Nederland home that caught fire following an explosion Monday afternoon, seriously burning two people inside.
Steve Pischke, who works with the Multi-Agency Fire Investigations Team, said investigators found one of the operations inside the garage — where the explosion occurred and the fire started — and another in a separate room. - PUB DATE: 7/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Colorado Daily
