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National Fire News

Mississippi firefighters learn to be eyes and ears in catching sex traffickers

Interstate 20 is the corridor for sex trafficking from Dallas to Atlanta. The City of Clinton sits roughly in the middle. It now has more eyes being trained to look for victims who are trapped in the prostitution and labor system. The message to Clinton Firefighters and first responders is to take a second look at the scene and the people there, especially minors.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: msnewsnow.com

Power struggle at Delaware fire department prompts lawsuit

For 47 years, former Fire Chief Lynn Rogers was an active member of the Milton Fire Department but that legacy is gone, stripped away by the action of the fire company board. His photo still appears on the department's website but his record as a past chief, lifetime member, and chief emeritus is gone.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: delmarvanow.com

Woman is first in 10 years to pass firefighter test for Georgia county

Wearing 60 pounds of equipment, Jessica Vanegas on Tuesday became the first woman in 10 years to pass the physical agility test to become a Paulding County firefighter. She’s expected to graduate the fire academy in two weeks, Channel 2 Action News reported. And it’s a career the young woman told Channel 2 she’s wanted her whole life, while growing up in Paulding County.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ajc.com

New York firefighter who shot own hand won't face criminal charges

The on-duty city firefighter who accidentally shot himself in the hand Feb. 10 will not be criminally charged, city police said. "Our investigation determined that it was an accidental discharge and no crime had been committed," Albany police spokesman Officer Steve Smith said. The fire department is still conducting its own investigation and may take disciplinary action against the firefighter, Fire Chief Warren Abriel said.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Times Union

Wyoming fire chief dies at home after helping remove ice jams

A statewide fire group says the longtime chief of the Greybull Fire Department died Thursday. Worland Fire Chief Chris Kocher of the Wyoming Local State Assistance Team says Chief Paul Murdoch died at home on Thursday after he had spent the day helping to remove ice jams from the Big Horn River. Kocher says Murdoch, 53, was found unresponsive at his home.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Casper Star-Tribune

Phoenix fire captain dies after battling prolific injuries from 2009 on-duty crash

A Phoenix fire captain who suffered prolific injuries in an on-duty accident almost 8 years ago died Saturday after "amazing display of courage," fire officials say. "This is really a difficult day for us because it marks the end of a 7 or 8-year battle," says Phoenix Fire Capt. P.J. Dean. On Aug. 10, 2009, Crystal Rezzonico, who was aboard Engine 910 traveling near Interstate 17 and the Dunlap overpass, was ejected after a car slammed into the fire engine that was responding to an emergency call.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KASW-CW6 & KTVK-3TV

California Fire Truck Falls Off Edge of Crumbling Interstate

VIDEO - Repairing a section of the 15 Freeway that washed out in the Cajon Pass amid Friday's storm will cost about $3 million, officials said. The crumbling roadway caused first a big rig to go over the side of the freeway - and then a fire engine that was dispatched to assist the truck driver also tumbled down over the side.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KABC-TV ABC 7 Los Angeles

Shots fired into Wisconsin fire station, forcing it to close

Gunfire struck a Milwaukee Fire Department fire station on the west side Friday afternoon, forcing the station to close, fire department officials said. Multiple shots were fired into Engine Co. 13 at 2901 N. 30th St. about 1 p.m., a news release from the department said. No department members were injured.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Journal Sentinel

Three Pennsylvania firefighters shocked at house fire

Three firefighters were hurt and a family of four displaced during a fire in Conewago Township Sunday afternoon. Emergency crews found a fully involved fire when they responded to a call at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on Buck Road in Conewago Township. Photos from the fire show a home completely engulfed in flames.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: York Dispatch

Update: St. Louis Fire Dept. Instructor Lied about Helping Boston Marthon Victims

St. Louis Fire Department instructor falsely claimed that he ran to the aid of victims at the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Shawn Daniel, a paramedic training officer for the city's fire department, had said he was among the emergency workers who hurried to help the injured. A statement from the St.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse.com

Michigan firefighter facing additional charges in accident that killed 2 fellow firefighters

An Upper Peninsula firefighter who is being held responsible for the deaths of two of his fellow firefighters is now facing additional charges. Micheal Allen Johnson of Baraga is said to be the man behind the wheel on August 27th, 2016, when the Beartown Fire Department bus he was driving suddenly struck the median, killing Alan Schwartz, 25, and James Shelifoe Jr.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC 10 - Ishpeming, MI

Firefighters raced to battle Nov. Tennessee wildfire, only to find some hydrants were running dry

Firefighters from across Tennessee flocking to Gatlinburg to battle a growing firestorm couldn't be sure the fire hydrants they uncapped would provide any water. And within two hours of the mega wildfire reaching the city Nov. 28, the hydrants were running dry. "Water loss occurred in certain areas as early as 8:30 p.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: USA Today

New report says there isn’t adequate warning, escape route outside Oroville Dam

Communities just downstream of California’s Lake Oroville dam would not receive adequate warning or time for evacuations if the 770-foot-tall dam itself — rather than its spillways — were to abruptly fail, the state water agency that operates the nation’s tallest dam repeatedly advised federal regulators a half-decade ago.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Sun

New York fire chief's son files discrimination complaint over hair length

The son of Utica Fire Chief Russell Brooks has filed a federal civil complaint against the City of Utica alleging the city violated federal and state anti-discrimination laws. On Dec. 2, John Brooks filed the federal civil complaint saying he was subjected to a hostile work environment at the Utica Fire Department — where he has been employed as a firefighter-paramedic since 2006 — because he requested an accommodation as a practicing Nazirite.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Utica Observer Dispatch

Fire truck drivers: How not to get creamed at intersections

You’re driving your engine to the scene of reported structure fire as part of a multi-company response. You’re navigating traffic on a heavily traveled thoroughfare and you’re fast approaching a controlled intersection. What should you be prepared to do? Stop! That’s the first lesson I always imparted to firefighters when I was teaching them how to drive fire apparatus.
- PUB DATE: 2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FireRescue1

Mississippi fire chief dies at scene of brush fire

A long time servant of Jefferson Davis County and the town of Bassfield died in the line of duty on Tuesday. Bassfield Volunteer Fire Chief Bill Matthews, a retired Marine, was found slumped over in his fire truck on the scene of a brush fire. Mayor Patricia Courtney said a firefighter was manning the hose and called to Matthews to move the truck and got no response.
- PUB DATE: 2/16/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Jackson Clarion-Ledger

2 Omaha battalion chiefs file lawsuit over hiring of fire chief

Two Omaha firefighters sued the city Tuesday over Mayor Jean Stothert’s hiring of Fire Chief Dan Olsen, alleging she failed to follow the correct selection process. Battalion chiefs Robb Gottsch and Dan Stolinski, both finalists for the chief position, asked that a court declare Olsen’s promotion to be void.
- PUB DATE: 2/16/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Omaha World-Herald

Confusion on official procedures could impact Massachusetts fire chief's situation

A selectman called attention Tuesday night to the town's potentially flawed and confusing policies and procedures, which might come into play in deciding the fate of the town's fire chief, who has been on paid administrative leave for over a month. On Jan. 10, the selectmen alleged Fire Chief Peter Martell did not have the authority or the selectmen's approval to spend $33,814 of town money for a 2017 Ford Expedition.
- PUB DATE: 2/16/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Review of Virginia fire department finds workplace bullying

A six-month study of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department found on-the-job bullying, harassment and other problems, issues that were raised after 31-year-old firefighter-paramedic Nicole Mittendorff took her own life last year. No one knows if cyberbullying played a role in Mittendorff’s death, but she had faced online harassment and bullying, possibly by colleagues.
- PUB DATE: 2/16/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTOP-AM 1500 Washington

Convicted man ‘prays every day’ for six Kansas City firefighters killed in 1988 explosion

It was a crime that thundered across Kansas City, took the lives of six firefighters, and 28 years later, still resonates as a shattering, life-changing moment for countless people. And on Wednesday, many of those people packed a Kansas City courtroom — and an overflow room with a monitor — for a hearing to determine if Bryan Sheppard, one of those convicted of that crime, will one day walk out of prison.
- PUB DATE: 2/16/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Kansas City Star & KansasCity.com

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