Buena Vista Charter Township has scheduled a town hall meeting regarding the proposed merger of its police and fire departments. The town hall will take place Friday, Jan. 3 from 3 to 5 p.m. at Buena Vista Community Center, located at 1940 S Outer Drive, west of I-75. The township’s goal is to gauge public opinion, answer questions and provide information to residents regarding a potential merger of the township’s public safety departments.
- PUB DATE: 1/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Mlive.com

Santa Rosa artist Adrian Litman, who lost his home in the Tubbs fire two years ago, wanted to make a simple, direct statement with his new metal sculpture. He wanted to capture the importance of water in the often gut-wrenching work firefighters do every time an alarm goes off in the firehouse. Mounted atop a waist-high slab of concrete in front of the Santa Rosa Fire Station 1 on Sonoma Avenue, the metal sculpture is of a giant heart made of silver, flowing water that surrounds red tongues of fire.
- PUB DATE: 1/3/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Santa Rosa Press Democrat

A new emergency communication system is in place for Onalaska residents. The city will now work with the ‘RAVE’ alert system. The system replaced the Code Red platform the city worked with through the end of 2019. ‘RAVE’ will be put in place in other communities in La Crosse County in the future as well.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 3:46:14 PM - SOURCE: WKBT-TV CBS 8 La Crosse

The city of Columbus and village of Fall River are considering how its emergency services, provided by LifeStar, will be affected with the addition of Reeseville and Lowell. According to Columbus Mayor Mike Thom, Reeseville and Lowell requested last fall to be added to LifeStar’s coverage area beginning in January on a partial agreement with the possibility of a full-time contract beginning Jan.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 10:41:31 AM - SOURCE: Columbus Journal - Metered Site

The La Crosse Fire Department was called to extinguish a garage fire Wednesday on the 330 block of South 23rd Street. Firefighters arrived at the scene about 10:30 a.m., finding a detached, two-car garage in flames. Suppression crews applied water to the blaze and performed overhaul operations to prevent the fire from spreading, according to a release from the department.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 6:45:09 AM - SOURCE: Lacrosse Tribune

Some Wisconsin fire departments have stopped using firefighting foam that contains a group of man-made chemicals that have been linked to increased cholesterol and cancer risk, among other health hazards. The Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances contaminate Wisconsin’s groundwater and waterways, and are also found in products like nonstick pans, the Wisconsin Public Radio reported.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 3:50:44 AM - SOURCE: Greater Milwaukee Today

Tuesday night saw the end of a 73-year-old tradition. The Burlington Rescue Squad, a volunteer emergency medical service that has covered the City and Town of Burlington since 1946, officially disbanded when the clock struck midnight. “It’s bittersweet,” said Burlington Rescue Squad Chief Jeff Koenen, who frequently refers to the volunteer service as a tight-knit family and bonafide lifestyle.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 1:45:42 AM - SOURCE: Kenosha News

The number of people who died in fires fell by 25% last year, even as emergency crews responded to a record number of medical emergencies, the FDNY said Wednesday. Sixty-six people died in fires across the five boroughs in 2019, 22 fewer than the 88 victims in 2018, officials said. Yet the number of medical emergencies jumped by more than 2,300, bringing last year’s total to 1,531,870 — the second highest in the FDNY’s history, officials said.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Daily News

A Birmingham firefighter who says the conditions at an East Birmingham fire station made him sick has now filed a lawsuit against the City of Birmingham and Mayor Randall Woodfin. Michael Horsley who started with Birmingham in 2006 claims he, former and current employees of the City of Birmingham Fire Department ("BFD") have been forced to work in dangerous conditions at Fire Station 27 in the Huffman area.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WBRC-TV

Tuesday night saw the end of a 73-year-old tradition. The Burlington Rescue Squad, a volunteer emergency medical service that has covered the City and Town of Burlington since 1946, officially disbanded when the clock struck midnight. “It’s bittersweet,” said Burlington Rescue Squad Chief Jeff Koenen, who frequently refers to the volunteer service as a tight-knit family and bonafide lifestyle.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Kenosha News

Detroit's fire commissioner says he will investigate the circumstances of a social media photograph posted on New Year's Eve showing 18 firefighters posing in front of roaring house fire, according to media reports. The photo was posted on the "Detroit Fire Incidents Page" on Facebook along with the caption "crews take a moment to get a selfie on New Years!" In the background is a house engulfed in flames.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Detroit Free Press

A week after passing a measure to set up what’s called a 401(a) plan, tax-deferred retirement saving accounts for retiring public safety employees, the City Council on Monday afternoon rescinded the resolution. Members of the City Council approved the repeal without opposition in an emergency meeting.
- PUB DATE: 1/2/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Paterson Times

One woman is okay after a house fire that started Wednesday afternoon. According to the Captain with the Shawano Area Fire Department, they were disptached to a two story home on S. Evergreen St. around 3:30 pm. The homeowner called in the fire and she was able to escape. However, the homeowner and two children were displaced.
- PUB DATE: 1/1/2020 3:37:35 PM - SOURCE: WFRV-TV and WJMN-TV Green Bay

Firefighters from nearly a dozen departments battled a house fire off of Parkview Drive in Hartford early Wednesday, Jan. 1. Crews were called to the scene just after 1:30 a.m., where flames in an attached garage quickly spread to a portion of the house. Fire officials said the homeowners made it out safely, and there were no injuries to firefighters.
- PUB DATE: 1/1/2020 4:37:18 AM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

VIDEO: An OSHA report on the fire that left a fire captain dead and three other firefighters injured in Bethalto, Illinois, said communication problems contributed to the dangerous conditions at the fire. Godfrey Fire Captain Jake Ringering was killed in a fire at 4064 Culp Lane on March 5. An OSHA report of working conditions at the fire was completed in September and was released to 5 On Your Side Monday.
- PUB DATE: 12/31/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KSDK-TV NBC 5 St. Louis

Since joining the Fire Department in 2006, Lieutenant Kyra Neeley King has not only seen a great melding of various rescue services — including medical professionals and firefighters — into a cohesive response force, but she’s also witnessed these brave first responders serving a common purpose of helping New Yorkers.
- PUB DATE: 12/31/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: AM New York

VIDEO: The New Bedford firefighters union is once again calling on the city to end its policy of "blacking out" certain engines when the department is short-staffed. The city's black out policy sometimes leaves one random truck unstaffed to save money. The department has been operating under the policy for at least ten years.
- PUB DATE: 12/31/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WLNE-TV ABC 6

PHOTOS: Julian Reams literally is leaving his mark on the St. Lucie County Fire District. Reams, 32, a firefighter with the agency, also is an accomplished artist from Miami, and he brought some of his artistic passion to his job as a first responder. Reams has painted three murals on as many fire stations, two of which are stations where he’s been based since joining the agency in December 2012.
- PUB DATE: 12/31/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: TC Palm

VIDEO: As a singer-songwriter, Larry Long has made a career out of making music with a message, but he hopes his latest creation will strike a chord on the issue of firefighter health and wellness. "You can never predict where a song is going to go or the effect it's going to have, but time will tell," said Long, who is from south Minneapolis.
- PUB DATE: 12/31/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KMSP-TV FOX 9 Minneapolis

On Monday evening, crews responded to a partial building collapse in the Village of Fairchild. The collapse happened downtown at an old storage unit that has a private owner according to the Fairchild Fire Department. Firefighters say half of the back of the building collapsed. According to the fire department, no one was inside at the time or hurt in the collapse.
- PUB DATE: 12/30/2019 8:43:42 PM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV 13 News