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National Fire News

Former Pennsylvania fire chief struck by tanker at firehall, killed

Don Ishman, the former chief of the Hilltop Volunteer Fire Department, was killed Saturday afternoon when he was accidentally struck by a tanker apparatus at the firehall on Saturday afternoon. Kane-based state police said Ishman, 60, of Cyclone, was one of several firefighters assisting with a public service detail on Saturday.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bradford Era

New Hampshire firefighter dies while fighting brush fire

An Orford firefighter died in the line of duty, according to the State Fire Marshal's Office. Charles Waterbury was an active member of the Orford Fire Department for about 10 years. While fighting a brush fire in Lyme, Waterbury suffered a medical emergency and was taken to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WMUR-TV ABC 9 Manchester

Judge: First responders in Tennessee train derailment didn’t volunteer for reckless risk

Police, firefighters and other first responders sign up for inherently dangerous work, but that doesn't give citizens or businesses a blank check to harm them without financial consequences, a federal judge has ruled in the case of a Maryville train derailment. Chief U.S. District Judge Tom Varlan has turned aside a bid by CSX Transportation Inc.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: knoxville news sentinel

Philadelphia Firefighter Dies While on Duty

Firefighter Gabriel Lee, who died during a night shift in North Philadelphia Saturday, was a kind and soft-spoken father of three who had worked in the department for more than 20 years, his family said Sunday. Lee, 42, of East Germantown, was also an accomplished amateur boxer, said his mother-in-law Faustine Myers, and he was recently baptized at Second Baptist Church of Germantown, the same church where his son sings in a choir.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: philly.com

Missouri firefighter dies after response to vehicle fire

The Missouri Fire Service is reporting a death in the line of duty for a firefighter responding to a call Sunday morning in rural Livingston County. The fire service reported the death of Ed Cosgrove of the Green Township Fire Protection District, five miles west of Chillicothe. Cosgrove is described as a 15 year veteran of the fire department.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: kttn.com

Texas fire lieutenant suspended for ‘neglect of duty,’ memo says

The city’s fire chief considered firing or demoting an Austin Fire Department lieutenant based on his attitude toward Austin-Travis County EMS medics and dispatchers, according to a memo she wrote to the civil service director. Austin fire Lt. James Crowther was ultimately suspended from duty for 60 days, a time period that ends Sept.
- PUB DATE: 7/25/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: statesman

Top New York county fire official killed after being struck by truck

The top fire official in Tioga County was killed Wednesday when a county pickup truck struck him while backing up, officials said. Tioga County Fire Coordinator John Scott, 71, of Campville, was one of several employees who were performing maintenance at a county radio tower on Carmichael Road in the Town of Owego when he was struck around 3 p.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: press connects

New Orleans fire union calls for end to door-to-door smoke alarm installations in wake of police killings

In the wake of killings of police officers in Baton Rouge and Dallas, the New Orleans firefighters union is pushing back against sending its members door-to-door to install smoke detectors, arguing that the practice could put them at risk of being targeted. Fire Superintendent Tim McConnell said Thursday, however, that the policy has put no one in danger and will not be changed.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The New Orleans advocate

New Wisconsin mobile clinic treats firefighters on scene

A new mobile rehabilitation clinic in Rock County is helping emergency responders stay safe and healthy while on the job. “We have about 100 fire service-related deaths on duty in the country,” Mercy Health Associate EMS Medical Director Christopher Wistrom said. “That’s unacceptable.” Town of Beloit Fire Chief Gene Wright said more than half of those deaths are from overexertion or heart attack.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WMSN-TV Fox 47 Madison

Denver Fire Department sued by former captain on gender discrimination allegations

A former Denver fire captain is suing the city with allegations of gender discrimination. In her federal lawsuit, Colley Fisher said she worked for the Denver Fire Department for 23 years. During her tenure, she said she became one of the department’s first female engineers before eventually being promoted to captain.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KMGH-TV ABC 7 Denver

VIDEO: California fire, police depts. dance to raise funds for girl with cerebral palsy

Fire and police departments are dancing to raise surgery funds for a 2-year-old girl with cerebral palsy. Finley Smallwood, 2, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy after being born nine weeks premature. Her parents, Christina and Josh Smallwood, adopted Finley at birth when they learned pregnancy could be difficult and risky.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: firerescue1

California firefighters ordered to remove 'blue line' police flag from engine

Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department firefighters at a Moreno Valley station were ordered Monday, July 18, to take down a pro-law enforcement flag from one of the engines. The flag - which was black and white with a blue stripe through the middle - features the "thin blue line," which is commonly used to commemorate fallen police officers.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: the press enterprise

Pennsylvania Court: Fire chief's cancer death unrelated to firefighting, denies workers comp to widow

A Commonwealth Court panel has ruled the widow of a Williamsport fire chief who died from gastric cancer is not entitled workers' compensation benefits that would amount to about $40,000 a year. The panel Monday in a 2-1 decision found the October 2011 death of Platoon Chief Jeffrey Cole was not related to cancers suffered by firefighters.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Pennlive.com

Board upholds Georgia firefighters' terminations

Augusta’s personnel board has upheld the terminations of two firefighters who admitted picking up items from a Columbia County wreck scene. After a two-hour hearing Wednesday, the board quickly voted 8-0 to affirm. Member J.R. Riles said the board wanted to send a message. “The fire department and the police department, you’ve got to be able to trust them to take care of your personal stuff when you’re in a difficult situation,” Riles said.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: augusta chronicle

New York firefighters’ union claims members were ordered to work on community garden

In the latest volley involving a two-year contract dispute, the city and the firefighters’ union are squabbling over whether firefighters were forced to work on a new community garden located behind the South Massey Street fire station. The Watertown Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 191 filed an improper practice charge with the state Public Employees Relation Board against the city, claiming firefighters were told by the city that they must work on the vegetable garden behind the city’s Emma Flower Taylor Fire Station.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: watertown daily times

Nashville district chief in trouble for Facebook comments

A Nashville district fire chief is in trouble after several of his Facebook posts were published on a local blog. District Chief Tim Lankford has been pulled from the field and is now doing administrative work while the Nashville Fire Department continues its investigation. In a letter to Lankford from Deputy Director Steve Holt, the department began investigating when the posts were published on the blog EastNashville.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WKRN-TV ABC 2 Nashville

Empty fire station upsets California desert town

A woman was seriously burned and a home was destroyed in the small desert community of Shelter Valley on Tuesday after it took firefighters roughly 30 minutes to respond because the local Cal Fire station was virtually unmanned. Residents say the Shelter Valley station has been mostly empty the past few weeks and they’ve been told the situation won’t change for a while because of staffing shortages.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: the san diego union-tribune

New Dallas Fire-Rescue chief speaks about taking office days after ambush

A new fire chief took office last week just days after five police officers were killed in an ambush and the city was reeling from tragedy. “You don’t expect to get hired on a job and have five funerals to attend immediately, and that’s heart-wrenching,” said enw Chief David Coatney. Coatney was hired as chief of Dallas Fire-Rescue after serving as the chief for Round Rock near Austin.
- PUB DATE: 7/20/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFAA-TV ABC 8 Dallas - Fort Worth

Alaska fire chief who lost home in fire abruptly resigns

The small Susitna Valley city of Houston lost its top emergency official this month when Fire Chief Tom Hood abruptly resigned with just two days' notice. Houston, the only place in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough where marijuana businesses are currently allowed, is a city of more than 2,000 residents but no active police department.
- PUB DATE: 7/20/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: alaska dispatch news

Orlando fire chief defends crew's refusal to open station's doors for Pulse victims

The Orlando fire chief is defending his crew inside Station Five, after an Orlando officer wrote in an incident report that he saw several wounded Pulse victims not being let into the fire station. Chief Roderick Williams said that one of the ironies of having the station so close to Pulse, was the area was considered part of the crime scene.
- PUB DATE: 7/20/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WKMG-TV CBS 6 Click Orlando

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