State fire commissioner Tim Solobay stepped down Sunday with the resurfacing of a sexual harassment claim filed six years ago by Rachel Moore, who worked as an aide to Solobay when he was still a state senator.
At the time, he denied Moore’s claim that he slapped her on her rear end in his Harrisburg office, but on Sunday, he tendered his resignation to Governor Wolf. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CBS Pittsburgh
A man allegedly tried to stab a firefighter who was trying to save him from an early morning house fire in Citrus Heights, police said Sunday.
Police were already at the scene when firefighters responded to the fire on Glenn Avenue at 1 a.m, said Sgt. Wesley Herman of the Citrus Heights Police Department. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Sacramento Bee
A Cranston fire lieutenant is the suing the city and the firefighters’ union after the deputy chief allegedly punched and slammed him while on duty in September, because the lieutenant had refused to participate in a “Fill the Boot” fundraising campaign.
Scott Bergantino filed suit in U.S. District Court, alleging that Deputy Chief Paul Valletta Jr. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Providence Journal
A lawsuit filed last week in federal court contends the city of Wichita does not pay its fire department investigators fairly for their work.
At issue in the complaint is how many hours the investigators have to work before they begin receiving overtime.
Currently, Wichita Fire Department investigators and firefighters get paid time and a half if they work more than 204 hours in a pay period, which is 27 days long, according to the lawsuit. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Witchita Eagle
State fire commissioner Tim Solobay stepped down Sunday with the resurfacing of a sexual harassment claim filed six years ago by Rachel Moore, who worked as an aide to Solobay when he was still a state senator.
At the time, he denied Moore’s claim that he slapped her on her rear end in his Harrisburg office, but on Sunday, he tendered his resignation to Governor Wolf. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CBS Pittsburgh
In a blow to the Kokomo firefighters’ union, a Howard County judge late last week denied a sweeping request that was at the center of a recent complaint filed against city officials.
The decision, denying the union's request for arbitration and injunctive relief, is the latest development in what has become a publicly contentious clash over the two sides’ collective bargaining efforts toward a new contract - a process that began in June and has included at least eight private meetings. - PUB DATE: 1/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: kokomotribune.com
Mothers and their children frantically scrambled down fire escapes to survive the inferno that consumed their Bronx homes.
They dashed out into the frigid night in whatever they were wearing, without jackets, without shoes, just holding on to their lives.
They were the lucky ones.
A raging fire quickly swept through the five-story building on Prospect Ave. - PUB DATE: 12/29/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Daily News
First responders across the United States now have access to FirstNet after all 50 states, two territories and Washington, D.C. opted into the network.
AT&T announced that all first responders can now choose to use the lifesaving communications network. “This is a landmark day and monumental achievement for public safety – one that has been years in the making,” First Responder Network Authority Board Chair Sue Swenson said. - PUB DATE: 12/29/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FireRescue1.com
A handful of words often come to mind when most people think of the fire service.
Bravery, duty, compassion and sacrifice are among the most common, but the one that stands above all others for one Detroit-area family is dedication.
One family has shown more dedication to the Detroit Fire Department over the last century than many could imagine. - PUB DATE: 12/29/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse.com
They used to be points of pride among firefighters – and with some they might still be considered as such.
But now area fire departments, as well as many others around the country, are trying to teach their personnel that dirty coats and soot-blackened helmets represent cancer risks to be avoided.
Studies have shown firefighters developing or at risk of developing cancer at a higher rate than the general population – nearly twice as much with some forms of cancer such as testicular or malignant mesothelioma. - PUB DATE: 12/29/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Examiner
Two dozen horses died in an early morning blaze at Folly Farm in Simsbury Thursday, one of the deadliest barn fires nationally in recent years and a staggering blow to the family-owned farm.
All 24 horses housed in the farm’s largest barn died of smoke inhalation, according to James Baldis, chief of Simsbury Volunteer Fire Department. - PUB DATE: 12/29/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Hatford Courant
Two Eastern Iowa fires that killed a combined nine people, including four children, within five days made 2017 the deadliest year in more than a decade for fire deaths in Iowa.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office reported 38 confirmed fire deaths as of Wednesday, with another 13 expected to go on the list, said Ron Humphrey, special agent in charge of the Office’s Arson and Explosives Bureau. - PUB DATE: 12/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Gazette
West Lebanon Township has suspended and decertified Speedwell Fire Company as a first responder because company members allegedly responded to a call after drinking alcohol.
Seven out of nine fire company members who responded to a call at 10:10 p.m. Dec. 14 were under the influence of alcohol, township commissioner John Brenner said in a letter to Lebanon County EMA Director Robert Dowd. - PUB DATE: 12/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Lebanon Daily News
A Hibbing, Minn., fire that claimed several lives Tuesday took a heartbreaking turn on Wednesday when Hibbing authorities revealed that the deaths included a retired city fire captain, his wife and two of their grandchildren.
Steven Jon Gillitzer, 67, and his 63-year-old wife Patricia Lynn Gillitzer died at their home while attempting to rescue their grandchildren in 20-below temperatures, the Hibbing fire department said in a statement Wednesday. - PUB DATE: 12/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: mprnews.com
Firefighters across Delaware are moving toward a universal procedure for answering the most serious call that can come over their radios — the one that signals one of their own is in trouble.
Delaware firefighters all soon will be using the same mayday signal, an attempt to keep them better coordinated if the worst should happen. - PUB DATE: 12/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: delawareonline.com
A Pompano Beach charity that collected more than $43 million for breast cancer research, families of fallen firefighters and fire victims, kept most of the money, authorities say.
The Florida Attorney General’s Office is seeking to shut down the Community Charity Advancement, Inc., which did business as Breast Cancer Research and Support Fund, U. - PUB DATE: 12/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Sun Sentinel
Many firefighters at New Milford Fire Company 1 will remember Frank Matagrano for his 43-plus years of dedication to the company as both a volunteer firefighter and an engineer.
Matagrano, 75, died on Friday, nine days after he suffered a stroke, which then led to a heart attack as he was on his way to a scene. - PUB DATE: 12/27/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Northjersey.com
After over a year of surgeries in an attempt to heal his knee from infection, a firefighter underwent surgery to have his leg amputated.
Reporter Herald reported that Berthoud Fire Protection District fire investigator Josh Macdonald was injured in a March 2016 house fire after pulling 75-year-old Cecil Ann Dunfee from her burning home. - PUB DATE: 12/27/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FireRescue1.com
Spokane Fire Department said they are seeing an increase of violent calls that have jeopardized the safety of first responders.
The Spokane Fire Department responded to a house fire earlier this week.
The homeowner became violent. He struck a firefighter in the face while being rescued. He became violent again, striking another first responder. - PUB DATE: 12/27/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KREM.com
A Kansas City, Kan., firefighter and paramedic was found dead in his bed Tuesday morning at the Fire Station 19 at 80th Terrace and State Avenue, the fire department announced.
Jason Garrett was 46 years old and had been with the Kansas City, Kan., Fire Department for five-and-a-half-years. The death is under investigation, but it is believed he died of natural causes. - PUB DATE: 12/27/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Kansas Star
