A timely training exercise for first responders in Sheboygan as they hit the waters of Lake Michigan to refresh their lifesaving skills. While this call isn’t urgent, the situation these guys are training for can be. “It creates different currents and the lake changes fairly quickly,” Sheboygan Fire Department’s Battalion Chief Jeff Salzman said.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 3:51:23 PM - SOURCE: WITI-TV FOX 6 Milwaukee

Will Boone is a member of the Madison Fire Department and Sable Flames, a non-profit organization within the Madison Fire Department made up of all African American firefighters. Boone typically responds to calls at Fire Station 6, but recently he’s responded to a different type of call. He created a new initiative to bring groceries to people in need in minority communities.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 6:04:54 AM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

A kayaker from out-of-state drowned in the Wisconsin River in Oneida County on Wednesday. A report from the Sheriff's Department says it happened around 1:20pm in the waters near County Highway E just east of County Highway D in Woodruff Township. First responders got a call from a person saying they were with a male kayaker floating int he water and barely breathing.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WSAU-FM 99.9

VIDEO: Crews responded to a large fire burning at a tire recycling facility in rural Weld County on Wednesday evening. According to the Platteville Gilcrest Fire Protection District, the fire started shortly before 5:30 p.m. near County Roads 26 and 41. The location is northeast of Fort Lupton and southeast of Platteville.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KDVR-TV FOX 31 Denver

City leaders announced this month that noncriminal and nonviolent calls will be handled by social workers, not uniformed officers. The proposed program is a response to the demands for police reform from Black Lives Matter protesters. “Our citizens are asking for change,” St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway told the media during the July 9 announcement.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Tampa Bay Times

One of the scariest parts of the coronavirus pandemic is the idea that anyone could get infected at any time. With the virus circulating as widely as it is, anyone could be unlucky. But while we are all at risk of COVID-19 infection, we are not all at equal risk. You’re clearly more likely to get sick if you live in an area currently experiencing a surge in cases, like Florida, Arizona and Texas.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: TIME

Traditionally, chaplains’ roles have been ceremonial; they are called upon for banquets, funerals, blessings, and weddings. They are well-meaning and primarily volunteer people of faith, having a heart and hand in assisting first responders and their local agencies. But the days of the ceremonial chaplain are over if we genuinely want operational effectiveness.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: IN Homeland Security

When Asheville Fireman Mark Jameson returned to the fire station after responding to a particularly difficult call, the only thing that lifted his spirits was seeing Denali wagging her tail with excitement upon his return. “We had a call that was DOA, dead on arrival,” Jameson said. “It was an older woman, lived by herself, no one had seen her for a while, and she passed.
- PUB DATE: 7/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Smoky Mountain News

Storms left their mark in Cadott overnight, and authorities have closed off several roads to get the cleanup underway. Fire and law enforcement crews from across Chippewa County were responding to calls of damage and debris through early Wednesday morning and are expected to be at it for some time. Some roads have been blocked off, due to down power lines, including portions of HWY 27.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WQOW-TV ABC 18 Eau Claire

VIDEO: Emergency crews pulled a man who was trapped in a deep trench on the Northwest Side after about two hours of effort on Tuesday. The man, a construction worker, fell into the trench while his crew was excavating near Galm Road and Swayback Ranch. He was waist-deep in dirt, officials said after the dramatic rescue.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KSAT-TV ABC 12 San Antonio

Buffalo Fire Officials say first responders were blocked while responding to an emergency early Sunday morning on Laurel. “We couldn’t pass through that intersection to get to the scene,” said Buffalo Fire Commissioner Bill Renaldo. Firefighters were responding to a call for a car into a house further down on Laurel.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WKBW-TV ABC 7 Buffalo

VIDEO: A special mural in honor of a volunteer for the Greater Tucson Fire Foundation is finally finished. It's for Patty Vallance who recently passed away. Vallance commissioned local artists, Wagon Burner Arts, to paint a mural honoring firefighters just one week before she went into the hospital.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOLD-TV CBS 13 Tucson

PHOTOS: Four Davidson and Randolph County firetrucks were damaged in three separate accidents over the weekend. The Westside Volunteer Fire Department in Asheboro responded to a multi-vehicle accident on Interstate 73/74 northbound near Vision Drive on Friday night. At around 9:30 or 10 p.m., a vehicle hit their firetruck in the back, said Chief Racil Williamson.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Courier-Tribune

Convenience stores across America are joining together this Friday, July 24, to recognize the contributions of front-line responders, medical personnel and American Red Cross volunteers on 24/7 Day. The NACS Foundation’s 24/7 Day features a variety of free in-store offers from 18 different convenience and fuel retailing partners, most of which are available to doctors, nurses, EMTs, police officers, firefighters and American Red Cross volunteers.
- PUB DATE: 7/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Forbes

Crews from eight fire departments were called in to battle a blaze at a dairy cooperative that is one of Burnett County's largest employers and is a popular stop for tourists in western Wisconsin. Sheriff's officials said the fire at Burnett Dairy Cooperative was reported about 10:30 p.m. Monday, July 20.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 12:47:32 PM - SOURCE: Wisconsin State Farmer

An overnight fire caused an estimated $30,000 in damage to a detached alleyway garage at 2206 Geneva St. There were no injuries in the incident. The Racine Police Department and Racine Fire Department Engine 1, Engine 2, Truck 1, Quint 3 and Med 3 responded to the scene, as well as an evidence technician, battalion chief and fire investigator.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 10:49:10 AM - SOURCE: Racine Journal Times

The Beaver Dam Common Council approved moving ahead with a referendum to ask voters whether to approve funding six new firefighter/paramedic staff positions in the fire department. Fire department staff and officials have been lobbying for a referendum for months, saying that the new positions are necessary for firefighters and EMS staffers to respond safely and effectively to emergencies as the city grows and its population ages.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 9:42:12 AM - SOURCE: WiscNews

Fire early Tuesday morning caused extensive damage to a house that was under renovation on Fond du Lac’s Doty Street. The fire was reported at 1:24 a.m. on the 200-block of Doty. Firefighters found heavy flames coming from the second floor of the two-story home. Extra crews were called in to help. Firefighters went into the house to look for possible victims and found the house was vacant.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 4:45:40 AM - SOURCE: WBAY-TV ABC 2 Green Bay

The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday adopted legislation sponsored by Bainbridge Township GOP Rep. Dave Joyce to ensure that families of first responders who die from or are disabled by the coronavirus get Public Safety Officers Benefit program payments for firefighters, police officers and emergency medical technicians who are killed or disabled in the line of duty.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Cleveland.com

VIDEO: Massive flames ripped through a farm in South Jersey overnight, killing nearly 300,000 chickens. The blaze broke out around 8:30 p.m. Monday at the Red Bird Egg Farm on the 100 block of Cemetery Road in Pilesgrove, Salem County. Crews battled the four-alarm fire all night and remained on scene Tuesday morning putting out hot spots.
- PUB DATE: 7/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KYW-TV CBS 3 Philadelphia