Fire Chief BJ DeMaa introduced a proposed “High School Fire Intern” program, along with a job description for participating students, at Tuesday night’s Waupun City Council meeting. According to a resolution summary, “As part of the fire department’s five-year strategic plan, we have identified a need to ensure our firefighter staffing model meets local needs.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 4:36:05 PM - SOURCE: Daily Citizen

The Merrill Fire Department is partnering with a local hospital to help COVID-19 patients and take the pressure off a strained emergency room. The department believes it may be one of just a few in the state, and country, taking on this role. Normally, you’d only get a visit from Merrill Paramedics in an emergency.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 2:38:31 PM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

VIDEO: A familiar red glow encouraged Dwayne Ivey to make a beeline for the landmark Krispy Kreme on Ponce de Leon Avenue early Wednesday morning. When he neared the store, however, he realized the doughnuts weren’t the only things hot. Flames were shooting from the back of the building, an Atlanta institution for more than 60 years.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Spirit of Liberty Foundation, a local 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, recently unveiled the soft-launch of a national campaign “Operation Thumbs Up!” with the first “Thumbs Up” billboard installed in San Diego. The Spirit of Liberty Foundation’s Operation Thumbs Up campaign provides an opportunity for Americans to positively recognize and thank first responders, healthcare professionals, members of law enforcement, firefighters, Armed Forces and veterans whenever they see them by just giving them a big smile and an “enthusiastic Thumbs Up!” “These are very difficult times and now more than ever we need to bring America together for positive causes and one that almost every American can embrace when recognizing and thanking America’s real heroes — our first responders, healthcare professionals and military, the people who have kept us safe 24/7,” said Richard Rovsek, chairman of the Spirit of Liberty Foundation.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Rancho Sante Fe Review

“Brotherhood.” That’s one word that’s used a lot around a firehouse, or when talking about the fire service. But within these tightly-knit groups of brothers are sisters, too, scattered throughout the ranks of career and volunteer fire departments across the country. According to the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), women made up eight percent of the more than 1.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Times Herald

Lawmakers have reintroduced legislation which aims at protecting firefighters and the communities they serve from PFAS and other dangerous chemicals. The Protect Firefighters from Adverse Substances (PFAS) Act was introduced in the Senate Feb. 4 by Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, and other lawmakers.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Holland Sentinel

Even though the pace of vaccination has picked up dramatically and the number of daily new COVID-19 cases continues to decline in all regions of the United States, the emergence of new strains of the disease remains cause for serious concern. The COVID Tracking Project has reported that seven-day average cases in the U.
- PUB DATE: 2/10/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Forbes

Firefighters in Buffalo County had two house fires to deal with in the frigid cold over the weekend. The Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office says crews were called to a home in the town of Nelson around 2:30 pm Sunday afternoon. The house was fully engulfed when crews got there. The people who live there were not home at the time.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 11:37:21 PM - SOURCE: WLAX-TV Fox 25 La Crosse

A 57-year-old Milwaukee man died Tuesday afternoon in a house fire on the south side, police said, the latest in a rash of deadly and destructive fires in the city. Milwaukee police responded to the fire about 3:30 p.m. in the 1200 block of South 21st Street, according to a news release. The fire started at one house and spread to another, police said.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 6:39:52 PM - SOURCE: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Afirefighter with the “heart of a teacher” has been honored as the city of La Crosse Fire Department Firefighter of the Year. Engineer and EMT Bryon Stein was honored Feb. 2 during a virtual ceremony at the main fire station in La Crosse. “Anyone who is looking for an answer ... they seek Brian out for his leadership,” said assistant fire chief of operations Jeff Murphy.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:57:24 PM - SOURCE: Lacrosse Tribune - Metered Site

First responders pleaded with lawmakers not to let bipartisan legislation allowing them to access workers' compensation for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder linger any longer. Last year, it received overwhelming support in both chambers but failed to get a final clerical vote in the Senate before the session ended.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 11:37:08 AM - SOURCE: WTMJ-TV NBC 4 Milwaukee

On an overcast and cold February afternoon, Kim Robinson stepped inside Milwaukee Fire Station No. 2. The station, which also serves as the fire administration building, nearing its 60th anniversary next month since its dedication in 1961. The connections between present, and past, are not lost on Robinson as he walked through the large first-floor garage, climbed the steps and walked the third-floor halls with Chief Aaron Lipski.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 11:10:37 AM - SOURCE: WITI Fox 6 Milwaukee

Crews battled a fire at a multi-unit apartment complex in Wisconsin Rapids overnight Monday into Tuesday. According to officials at the Wood County Dispatch Center, crews spent several hours dealing with a fire on 1st Street North. The buildings sustained 'significant,' damage and will likely be ruled a total loss.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WAOW-TV ABC 9 Wausau

Aworker was hospitalized with second-degree burns caused by a flash fire at an East Side oil change facility on Friday morning, the Madison Fire Department reported. Ladder Co. 1 and Medic 8 were dispatched at 9:04 a.m. to Woodman’s Gas & Lube Center, 3805 Milwaukee St., arrived at 9:09 a.m. and were directed to an injured worker, who reported removing the oil plug from a vehicle when the engine oil, which was pressurized, caught fire, Fire Department spokeswoman Cynthia Schuster said in a report.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin State Journal

VIDEO: Firefighters responded to a four-alarm fire in Pleasantville, New Jersey that destroyed a warehouse and injured two firefighters. Crews were called to the 100 block of Main Street shortly before midnight Tuesday. Twenty companies responded from the surrounding areas. The warehouse, filled with auto parts and tires, collapsed in on itself after an intense fire raged for hours overnight.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WPVI-TV ABC 6 Philadelphia

VIDEO/PHOTOS: Jacksonville firefighters saved a 27-year-old man in a dramatic rescue Saturday evening in the St. Johns River, hoisting him out of the water after his car fell over the Dames Point Bridge. Photos from the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department show a captain harnessing the man as crews on the bridge pulled him to safety.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJXT-TV News 4 Jacksonville

PHOTOS: The emptiness across the block still unsettles Elsa Reyes after midnight, when she returns from work to her North 13th Street home in Allentown. During the first five years Reyes lived on the east side of the 500 block, eight row homes stood across the street. Her son Joel would walk to school with a girl, Katherine Cruz, who lived at 542 N.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Morning Call - Metered Site

As first responders are busy reporting to multiple accidents across the metro, officials say the cold temperatures and slick spots are wreaking havoc on rescue efforts. Batt. Chief Benny Fulkerson, with the Oklahoma City Fire Department, told KFOR that crews had already responded to 32 wrecks before 8:30 a.
- PUB DATE: 2/9/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KFOR-TV NBC 4 Oklahoma

Fireplace ashes that were thrown away were found to be the cause of a fire Sunday afternoon. Monona Fire and EMS Department was called around 1:30 p.m. to the 6200 block of Winnequah Road for a building fire and arrived about four minutes later, according to a news release. Monona Police Department noted that there was smoke and flames on the side of a house.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 5:36:24 PM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

Right after a snow storm fire officials say it’s extremely important we not only clear off sidewalks but also clear our street’s fire hydrant. “So it’s really important to have a fire hydrant shoveled out especially in the winter when there’s a lot of snow and it can easily get piled up because we need those fire hydrants due to a fire happening”, said Lieutenant Shauna Walesh with the Green Bay Metro Fire Department.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 3:06:52 PM - SOURCE: WGBA-TV NBC 26 Green Bay