PHOTO: The third annual Kickin' It For Kids kickball tournament was held at McGaw Park on Aug. 20. The event benefitted REACH-A-Child, a nonprofit based out of Madison that helps first responders comfort children they come across in a traumatic situation by giving them a children’s book. The event also included appearances from state and local law enforcement and first responders, corn hole, a bounce house and other kids' activities, concessions and a silent auction.
- PUB DATE: 9/7/2016 4:38:05 AM - SOURCE: Fitchburg Star

Fire departments from throughout Jefferson and Dodge counties responded today to a call at 7:20 a.m. for what firefighters said may have been a dust explosion at Insight FS cooperative grain mill in Ixonia that injured one worker. According to Jefferson County Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy Jeff Parker, who accompanied the Daily Times on a half-block walk west to the mill on Marietta Avenue from a command post set up at the intersection of Marietta and American streets, word among fire fighters was that the incident may have had its origins in a dust explosion at the grain facility.
- PUB DATE: 9/7/2016 4:14:23 AM - SOURCE: Watertown Daily Times

Emergency calls for the Racine Fire Department are up from 2015. The department had responded to 6,789 emergency response calls as of Aug. 23, up from 6,658 calls at the same point in 2015, according to Racine Fire Department Division Chief Jeff Perkins. “These cover a wide variety of emergencies such as fire, medical, hazardous materials, water rescues and other specialties,” Perkins said.
- PUB DATE: 9/7/2016 2:21:16 AM - SOURCE: Racine Journal Times

Nick Hempel remembers walking into an apartment and seeing a man face down on the kitchen table, as a result of an apparent overdose. The man was unconscious. An overdose seemed likely but there were no needles in sight, said Hempel, division chief of EMS for the Racine Fire Department. When responders lifted the man’s head, the drug use became apparent.
- PUB DATE: 9/7/2016 2:19:50 AM - SOURCE: Racine Journal Times

The La Crosse Fire Department hopes to add a fifth fire station on the city’s South Side after data analysis showed it would allow them to better respond to at least 17 percent of emergency calls. While the department hasn’t yet drafted an official proposal, Fire Chief Gregg Cleveland and Division Chief Mark Amann told the Common Council Tuesday that bringing the city back up to five stations by building a new one near the intersection of 33rd Street and Mormon Coulee Road would support the city’s growth and protect its citizens.
- PUB DATE: 9/7/2016 1:41:35 AM - SOURCE: Lacrosse Tribune

Budget and general outlay request are starting to roll in and Beaver Dam’s fire and police department chiefs previewed their 2017 general outlays for the Police and Fire Commission meeting, Tuesday night. The budget and outlay requests are preliminary, at the moment, and most likely will change in the months ahead.
- PUB DATE: 9/6/2016 7:18:41 PM - SOURCE: wisc news

Several people are displaced after a house fire in Fond du Lac. It happened just before 10 Monday night at 4th Street and Fond du Lac Avenue. When crews arrived on the scene they saw smoke and found flames in the laundry room. Firefighters were able to put out the fire, but not before it caused smoke and heat damage.
- PUB DATE: 9/6/2016 6:07:11 AM - SOURCE: WDJT-TV CBS 58 Milwaukee

The number of emergency calls fielded by the Janesville Fire Department continues to rise, while the department's staffing levels continue to flatline. Car accidents and medical emergencies have been going skyward for years. And so far in 2016, those trends have been coupled with spikes in residential fires, water rescues and hazardous materials incidents.
- PUB DATE: 9/6/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Gazette Extra - Metered Site

VIDEO: Two Eau Claire Firefighters are gearing up for a new challenge that's 140 miles long, and have a special reason for taking part in the race. On Sunday thousands of athletes from all over the country will make their way to Madison, Wisconsin for the IRONMAN triathlon. Among them will be Pat Hamler and Jeff Patrow, firefighters with the Eau Claire Fire Department.
- PUB DATE: 9/5/2016 8:58:01 PM - SOURCE: WKOW-TV 27 ABC

VIDEO: Some local firefighters spent part of their Labor Day fighting a house fire in Onalaska. The fire broke out around 1:00 p.m. Sept., 5, at 2440 Thomas Court in Onalaska. Firefighters from La Crosse and the Town of Campbell assisted to put out the roof fire, that spread to the house's deck. They spent about an hour at the scene.
- PUB DATE: 9/5/2016 4:46:49 PM - SOURCE: WXOW-TV ABC 19 LaCrosse

VIDEO: The Brown County Fire Task Force is investigating the fire that reduced an abandoned school house building in Brown County’s Town of Rockland to a pile of rubble. Crews were called to the old Lincoln School building at the intersection of Old Martin and Ryan Roads at about 2:30 Monday morning.
- PUB DATE: 9/5/2016 4:07:10 AM - SOURCE: WBAY-TV ABC 2 Green Bay

Classes at Messmer Preparatory Catholic School were canceled Friday after an early-morning fire on the south end of the building. School president Jim Piatt said a staff member arriving for work at about 6:30 a.m. heard the fire alarm and called authorities. Firefighters quickly arrived at the school, located on the 3000 block of North Fratney Street in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood.
- PUB DATE: 9/2/2016 9:21:55 AM - SOURCE: WISN-TV ABC 12 Milwaukee

The Holmen Fire Department will soon be replacing their old protective equipment thanks to a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The department is getting nearly 90-thousand dollars through the FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant. Fire departments across the nation can apply for grants through the program to better protect the public and their members.
- PUB DATE: 9/2/2016 7:18:31 AM - SOURCE: WKBT-TV CBS 8 La Crosse

While most families spent the last few weeks buying necessities for the new school year, law enforcement and emergency crews worked on skills necessary to keep all students safe. NewsChannel 7's Jeff Thelen found out how crews trained for active shooter situations. Police and firefighters have to do it all the time.
- PUB DATE: 9/2/2016 6:54:46 AM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

A fire in a commercial oven early Friday morning caused damage at a restaurant on Gammon Road, according to a release from the Madison Fire Department. Firefighters were called at 12:02 a.m. to Chang Jiang restaurant at 646 S. Gammon Road when a passerby reported seeing smoke coming from the restaurant.
- PUB DATE: 9/2/2016 4:46:29 AM - SOURCE: WISC-TV Channel 3000.com Madison

VIDEO: A popular Gilman business went up in flames Thursday afternoon. Pirate's Cove, which was formerly known as the Gilman Bowl, caught fire just after 1:30 PM Thursday. Witnesses say it appeared as though the fire started in the basement and quickly spread throughout the building. Firefighters from Gilman and six nearby towns fought the flames all afternoon, but the business appears to be a total loss.
- PUB DATE: 9/1/2016 2:29:43 PM - SOURCE: WQOW-TV ABC 18 Eau Claire

Nobody was hurt, but a shed is a total loss after catching fire this afternoon. The abandoned workshop caught fire just after 4 in the afternoon. Several nearby fire departments responded to the call for assistance at 7808 Dickinson Road in the town of Morrison. They were able to extinguish the blaze.
- PUB DATE: 8/31/2016 10:16:48 PM - SOURCE: WGBA-TV NBC 26 Green Bay

Officials with the Milwaukee Fire Department on Wednesday afternoon, August 31st were called out to a fire at the Veolia facility on Jones Street near Lincoln Memorial Drive in Milwaukee. It happened around 3:00 p.m. Officials say the fire took place in an overheated conveyor belt motor, causing the conveyor belt to catch on fire.
- PUB DATE: 8/31/2016 8:53:43 PM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

The Finance Committee for the city of Clintonville has recently held two special meetings to discuss the future path the city takes regarding the city’s capital improvement projects and city debt. The meetings come on the heels of the city’s debt dominating the discussion at several meetings over the past couple months.
- PUB DATE: 8/31/2016 12:13:42 PM - SOURCE: Waupaca Now

A facility custodian accidentally mixed a toxic combination of chemicals at the Wisconsin Department of Corrections building on Tuesday. The Madison Fire Department says they responded to a report of a chemical spill at about 5:30 p.m. at the DOC building at 3099 East Washington Ave. Paramedics were added to the call when the Dane County 911 Communications Center learned somebody in the building was having trouble breathing.
- PUB DATE: 8/31/2016 10:45:53 AM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison