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National Fire News

Kentucky and Indiana towns consider fire aid pact

While the cities are less than 10 miles apart, Henderson and Evansville fire departments don't have a formal agreement to help the other out if needed. To bridge the gap, the Henderson Fire Department is pushing for a formalized mutual aid agreement that legitimizes help between departments. The Evansville City Council will vote on the proposal on June 13.
- PUB DATE: 6/2/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: evansville courier & press

Houston firefighters find themselves under fire after responding to mass shooting scene

When firefighters responded to the mass shooting at Memorial and Wycliffe in west Houston Sunday, they found themselves under fire. "As we almost came to a stop, is when he shouldered his rifle and started aiming at us and firing on us. I could see him through the rest of the windows,” Houston Fire Capt.
- PUB DATE: 6/2/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KPRC-TV NBC 2 Houston

How a firefighter went from the star of the FDNY to torching her uniform

Syndie Molina was a star member of the city’s elite rescue-paramedic squad. The FDNY asked her to appear on “Good Day New York” with Regis Philbin and to do a Q&A with The New York Times. “I was the face of the department. I loved the department,” she says. But after 10 years with the FDNY, she has flamed out.
- PUB DATE: 6/2/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: new york post

Female chief finalist for Florida job sues, alleging gender discrimination

Shari Hall, one of two finalists whom the County Commission considered last year to be chief of Marion County Fire Rescue, is suing the county and alleging that it engaged in gender discrimination by choosing the male finalist, Paul Nevels. Before filing suit in circuit court earlier this month Hall lodged discrimination complaints with the U.
- PUB DATE: 6/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Ocala Star-Banner

Kentucky department has fire trucks repossessed

Monday, May 23 was a dark day for the Warfield Volunteer Fire Department as they had five vehicles repossessed by a Illinois based company called First Government Lease citing non payment for the past six months. WVFD Chief Doug Hinkle and several members of the fire department were at Thursday’s fiscal court explaining the situation the fire department is in.
- PUB DATE: 6/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: williamson daily news

$950K settlement in fatal crash between FDNY, van for disabled people

The brother of a Special Olympian killed five years ago when the Lifestyles for the Disabled van in which he was riding collided with a Fire Department ladder truck in Dongan Hills has settled his wrongful death lawsuit for $950,000, court records show. William Perry III, as administrator of Eric Perry's estate, had sued Lifestyles for the Disabled, the van driver and the city in state Supreme Court, St.
- PUB DATE: 6/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Staten Island Advance

Australian Research: Firefighter boots may cause injury

Firefighters in Canberra are suffering from injuries commonly seen in skiers, but their boots are to blame. University of Canberra assistant professor Wayne Spratford said the boots worn by firefighters are a root cause in an abnormally high number of back, knee and hip injuries. “We looked at their boots and found they used a boot that constrained the ankle — basically the ankle can’t move,” Spratford told the Canberra Times.
- PUB DATE: 6/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: firerescue1

Wisconsin firefighter accused of drunken driving behind wheel of fire truck

A Sussex firefighter is arrested, accused of driving drunk behind the wheel of a fire truck and hitting a parked car. He was taken off the force, immediately. The fire chief told WISN 12 News reporter Christina Palladino as soon as he learned of the incident Monday, he placed the firefighter on administrative leave.
- PUB DATE: 6/1/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WISN-TV ABC 12 Milwaukee

A wrong turn led to Philadelphia for new fire chief

A wrong turn on the way home from Taco Bell changed Adam Thiel's life. It was 24 years ago when the then-19-year-old student at American University got lost returning to campus and passed a firehouse advertising free EMT lessons. Thiel, impressed by the emergency responders who rushed his father to the hospital when he was dying of cancer, signed up and never looked back.
- PUB DATE: 5/31/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: philly.com

New York town's firefighters OK contract requiring new hires to live in city 5 years

New Syracuse firefighters will have to reside in the city for the first five years of their career under the terms of a three-year union contract ratified this week by firefighters. That's a first for Syracuse firefighters, who previously were exempt from residency requirements under state law. The state law, which exempts police, fire and sanitation workers, can be superseded by local collective bargaining agreements, said Paul Motondo, president of Local 280 of the International Association of Fire Fighters.
- PUB DATE: 5/31/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Syracuse Post-Standard & Syracuse.com

Ambulances, in place of 'caged police car,' to carry people in mental health crisis in Oregon

Police throughout the metro area expect this fall to start routinely calling for an ambulance to carry people suffering a mental health crisis to the hospital instead of handcuffing them in the back of a patrol car for the ride. The state has adopted new rules that allow for ambulance services to apply to provide secure transport for people suffering behavioral health problems.
- PUB DATE: 5/31/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: the oregonian

Dallas paramedics make house calls, but not much money for the city (yet)

Dallas paramedics are making plenty of house calls, but they’re not making much money for the city. Officials started the Mobile Community Healthcare program last year with the hope that that it could pay for itself using fees from hospitals that want to alleviate the burden on their emergency rooms.
- PUB DATE: 5/31/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: dallas morning news

Pennsylvania firefighters injured at blaze after fire engine rolls during pump operations

A man and dog escaped a fire that erupted at noon Saturday and destroyed the home at 435 New St., Germania Hose Company Chief Joe Bender said. Three firefighters sustained minor injuries when a fire engine malfunctioned as the crew was setting up to pump water, and the vehicle’s windshield smashed into a tree after the fire engine began rolling, Bender said.
- PUB DATE: 5/31/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: citizens voice

California board votes to cut firefighters’ pay, make them pay back some salary

In what labor union lawyers said was an unprecedented move, the Central Fire board Thursday voted to cut firefighters’ base pay 7 percent starting in July and require firefighters to pay back 7 percent of their base salary for the past 12 months. The decision came with a caveat: If Central Fire and its labor union negotiate a new contract by mid-July, there will be no pay cut or retroactive pay cut.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: santa cruz sentinel

Rhode Island fire district asked to remove American flags from trucks

An American flag on the back of a fire truck and decals on the truck windows is leading to a new dispute at the Central Coventry Fire District. The firefighters union said they're being asked to take them off. "The members are very upset," Firefighters Union President David Gorman told NBC 10 News. "I have a couple members, armed service retired, retired from the guard.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJAR-TV NBC 10 Providence

Woman Files Discrimination Lawsuit Against 17 Virginia Fire Department Employees

A former fire investigator who worked for the Fairfax County Fire Department for 20 years has filed a lawsuit against 17 of her ex-colleagues, accusing them of bullying, sexual harassment and conspiring to get her to quit. Patricia Tomasello said the harassment and discrimination started when she joined the department in 1996.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: nbc washington

Louisiana governor signs first-of-its-kind 'Blue Lives Matter' bill

Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a bill expanding the definition of a hate crime in order to increase protections for first responders. Louisiana is the first state with so-called "Blue Lives Matter" legislation on the books. "Coming from a family of law enforcement officers, I have great respect for the work that they do and the risks they take to ensure our safety," said Gov.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WVUE-TV Fox 8

Firefighters work together to replace New Hampshire veteran's flag

VIDEO - An American flag is flying once again in the yard of a 91-year-old World War II veteran in Nashua. Richard Chasse's flag and flag pole were stolen weeks ago, but members of the Nashua Fire Department thought he should have a new one, especially with Memorial Day coming. The World War II veteran said his flag and flag pole were stolen about six weeks ago.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WMUR-TV ABC 9 Manchester

Meet the First Female Chief Fire Officer in Miami

She's in charge of five fire stations in the north end of Miami and also oversees the Miami Fire-Rescue's dive team and technical rescue team. But Melissa Llera is even more than that at Miami Fire-Rescue, she's the department's first female chief fire officer. "I spent time as a fire fighter and as a lieutenant and as a captain before getting to the rank of chief," Chief Fire Officer Llera said.
- PUB DATE: 5/27/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: nbc miami

Portland's female firefighters knock down stereotypes

VIDEO - It’s a warm afternoon in late May. The skies are partly cloudy over Portland Fire & Rescue’s Northeast Portland training center, but closer to the ground new recruits are feeling 100 percent humidity. “Grab hold of it!” Yells one firefighter-in-training as he pounces atop a flailing fire hose.
- PUB DATE: 5/26/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KGW-TV Northwest News Channel 8

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