At the 7th Annual Public Safety Report meeting Thursday, Mayor John Hamilton announced a new $100,000 no-interest down payment assistance program for up to 10 police officers and 10 firefighters as an incentive to live in the city of Bloomington. Commencing immediately, the pilot housing program is the only such program known to exist in the country.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: City of Bloomington

When Jessica Markle — then Jessica Fink — walked into West Manchester Township Fire Department’s (WMTFD) Shiloh Fire Company back in April 2015, she was a college student who decided to become a volunteer firefighter on a whim. Little did she know that she was about to meet somebody who would change her life.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: York Daily Record - Metered Site

Six people are displaced, and two dogs are dead after a duplex fire near Douglas and High in Racine on Thursday, Feb. 9. Upon arrival, firefighters found a large fire at the back of the building. An overhaul of the duplex's interior and exterior was needed to put out the fire. There were no injuries to fire department personnel or civilians.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 10:31:50 PM - SOURCE: WITI-TV FOX 6 Milwaukee

The cause of a fire that started in the attic of a Monona home was believed to be an electrical issue, the Monona Fire Department said Thursday. Firefighters arrived to the 4400 block of Outlook Street within five minutes of the initial call made around 2:35 p.m., which indicated a possible fire after smoke was showing from an attic vent.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 7:17:07 PM - SOURCE: WMTV NBC 15 Madison

VIDEO: This week’s warmer temperatures are coming ahead of the start of sturgeon spearing season this weekend. Neenah-Menasha Fire Rescue was turning its attention to ice safety today -- and a guest who joined them has a deep connection to their dive team. That guest was Diane Keisow. Her fiance, Bruce Peterson, died February 19, 2011, when his truck went through the ice.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 2:42:00 PM - SOURCE: WBAY-TV ABC 2 Green Bay

The Stevens Point Fire Department has been awarded $228,750 from FEMA to purchase self-contained breathing apparatus. SCBAs protect a firefighter’s airway and lungs from toxic gases and harmful particulates during fire suppression. The department purchased 35 SCBA’s with 75 air cylinders. According to a news release, the grant funding removes a large burden from the city and taxpayers.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:05:09 PM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

Increased response times, making life-or-death situations even worse. That is what Lake Country Fire and Rescue officials are blaming on a lack of funding from state leaders. "The public needs to know what's happening," said fire Chief Matthew Fennig. A community group of Lake Country Fire and Rescue partners sent a letter to state lawmakers regarding the department's "critical stage.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WISN-TV ABC 12 Milwaukee

Home fire deaths were high in Wisconsin to start off 2023. Data from the U.S. Fire Administration shows that in January 2023, there were 266 home fire deaths nationwide in just one month. Seven of those were in Wisconsin. As of Feb. 1, Wisconsin was tied for 10th in the nation for the most home fire deaths so far this year, according to the data from the U.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Spectrum News 1

Nine cars were destroyed after a massive fire ripped through a carport in Hollywood overnight. The fire was reported around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday on Laurel Canyon near Hollywood Boulevard, authorities said. Firefighters rushed to the scene to extinguish the inferno. Video shows the flames engulfing the structure and vehicles, though they were confined to the carport and did not spread.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KABC-TV ABC 7 Los Angeles

VIDEO: The Pikeville Fire Department received its newest addition to the fire and rescue fleet this week, as firefighters work to learn the new tech of a $1.2 million investment in community safety. Tower 1, the new fire and rescue truck with a 100-foot ladder, is a custom-built truck which pushes out around 2,000 gallons of water per minute.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WYMT-TV CBS 57 Hazard

PHOTOS: At one point you're mowing your lawn and the next you're unconscious, on the ground, suffering a heart attack. That's what happened to 63-year-old Jack Fong. But due to Germantown Fire Department's implementation of Neuroprotective CPR, Fong survived his March 2022 heart attack with little to no neurological issues.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Commercial Appeal - Metered Site

VIDEO: As Fred lifted his pants leg he winced in pain. His jeans, damp from the freshly fallen snow, stuck to the open scab that stretched from his knee to his ankle, peeling away bits of skin as he revealed his wound. “It's amazing how fast it spreads. My leg actually looks like I got eaten by a zombie,” he said.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NECN

Over the past nine years, the La Crosse Fire Department awards one of their own the title of "Firefighter of the Year". For 2022, Captain Adam Markert receives that honor. The Firefighter of the year award is a peer-based award given every year to a firefighter who goes above and beyond for their station and community.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 1:54:00 AM - SOURCE: WXOW-TV ABC 19 La Crosse

After Fond du Lac Fire & Rescue saved the life of an elderly woman from a fire early Tuesday morning, the department details how the hearing-impaired can save themselves in an emergency. According to Fire Chief Erick Gerritson, the woman living at 984 Ashbury Court was sleeping in bed when crews rescued her from her house.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:21:33 AM - SOURCE: WFRV-TV CBS 5 Green Bay

A massive 6-alarm fire engulfed a building housing a row of businesses in West New York, New Jersey. The fire reportedly began inside one of the businesses located on Bergenline Avenue, near 61st Street. Multiple emergency responders are on scene, fighting the fire from inside and outside the building – trying to get it under control.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WWOR-TV FOX/MyNetworkTV 25 Secaucus

VIDEO: Last July, an electric transit bus in Connecticut burst into flames while parked at a depot. A month later, an electric scooter sparked a fire inside a New York City apartment that killed a 5-year-old girl and 36-year-old woman. And last month, a fire believed to be caused by the batteries in an electric scooter engulfed a multifamily home in Brockton, Massachusetts.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NBC News

VIDEO/PHOTOS: Stepping away from full time service to retirement can be a big transition for firefighters, as they move away from the family they had at their station. No one at Olympia Firehouse 5 expected to be meeting for Monday morning coffee surrounded by a half dozen vintage firetrucks in their retirement.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Thurston Talk

VIDEO: Tulsa International Airport (TIA) has upgraded its phone system to alert first responders in the event of an emergency. It’s called a crash phone system. TIA firefighters told FOX23 they’ve waited a long time for this new system. It costs around $100,000, and firefighters said the equipment is vital.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOKI-TV FOX 23 Tulsa

Greene County will give volunteer emergency responders a break on property taxes in an attempt to recruit and retain firefighters and EMTs as their numbers continue to decline across the state. The move takes advantage of a law signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in December giving counties a standardized way to give the breaks.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2023 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Times Union

After 34 years serving as a Waunakee first responder, Dave Kopp has retired. The Waunakee Fire Chief for the past six years, Kopp recently handed over the reins to Gary Hansen, who has served the department for more than three decades, as well. Kopp called the retirement “bittersweet.” He had carried on a legacy at the Waunakee Fire Department, following in the footsteps of his father, who was chief for 19 years.
- PUB DATE: 2/7/2023 8:00:00 PM - SOURCE: Cambridge News & Deerfield Independent