Nighttime aerial firefighting equipment that helped knock down Australian wildfires last year will be tested in Orange County over the next five months. Starting July 1, the Orange County Fire Authority will run a pilot program with two special helicopters: one that does reconnaissance of ground conditions, any obstacles such as power lines, and where the nearest water sources are, and a second chopper that will be “the first-ever nighttime, hover-filling tanker in the U.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Orange County Register - Metered Site

A long-term shortage of emergency medical service, and eventually firefighter, volunteers will severely impact Dodge County municipalities both large and small in coming years, according to county officials. And while mutual aid can help minimize the impacts of that shortage, fire and EMS organizations have been preparing for the future.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

VIDEO: They are fire investigators on four legs who help the FDNY solve some of the most difficult arson cases around the city. Weighing in at just under 70 pounds each, Bucca and Pete pack a type of crimefighting muscle different than any other firefighter. They’re part of the K9 arson squad. They sniff, they sit, they solve.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCBS-TV CBS 2 New York

As wildfire season approaches, local winemakers are concerned about the potential for more dense smoke. For two summers in a row, thick smoke consumed the Pacific Northwest. It didn't just worsen air quality, it affected wine vineyards, too. Freddy Arredondo, the winemaker for Cave B Winery, told me there can be both positive and negative impacts on grapes.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTVL-TV CBS 10 Medford

History was erased after a fire gutted the decades-old Hartland Inn Saturday night, June 29. It was just about closing time Saturday night at Beer Snobs' when owner, Steve Berger, started to see a swarm of fire trucks from the window. "We looked over at the Hartland Inn and saw smoke. When that happened, our hearts all dropped here," said Steve Berger, Beer Snobs owner.
- PUB DATE: 6/30/2019 12:04:26 PM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

Local firefighters and law enforcement officials rode their motorcycles across Southern Wisconsin Saturday to honor one of their own. The second annual Richard Garner Memorial Ride kicked off in Madison on Saturday morning. The ride honors Madison firefighter Richard Garner, who passed away in April 2018 when he collapsed after finishing a shift.
- PUB DATE: 6/29/2019 6:06:11 PM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

Prying off a car door to save a car accident victim. Crawling to put out a fire in a room full of smoke. Rappelling down a 40-foot building. These are just a few things that members of Fond du Lac Fire/Rescue train for in their day-to-day work.On Thursday, however, this reporter — along with a group of journalists — got to try her hand at being firefighters through simulated versions of these incidents.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 6:09:31 AM - SOURCE: Fond du Lac Reporter

The Ohio Senate balked at mandates in a House-passed budget to provide workers’ compensation for first responders diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and to make all injured workers declare their immigration status. With those and other policy measures stripped from the bill, the Senate voted unanimously Thursday to approve the budget of the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, which is funded by employer premiums.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Canton Respository

Every day a lot of men have to shave. No matter how good a job they do they have to do it all over again in a day or two. Once a year the VC Fire Protection District has to map as much of the district as it can before the fire season begins in earnest and send out letters to property owners warning them if their property poses a fire hazard.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Valley RoadRunner

When a fire in a New Gloucester mobile home was reported in the middle of the night, it took three towns to muster enough firefighters to fight the blaze. Poland Fire Chief Tom Printup, the first to arrive on scene because he lives nearby, said 12 firefighters responded to the fire on Quarry Road just after 2 a.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Portland Press Herald

VIDEO: A humid day in Mattapan did not slow the pace of an intense basketball game between teachers from Mattahunt Elementary School and a team from the Boston Fire Department. Kimberly Hogan, part of the teacher’s team, said her student spectators were thrilled to watch. "The kids are all amped,” Hogan said.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCVB-TV ABC 5 Boston

An artist who has painted scenes around the world will unveil a new mural design for Philadelphia on July 3 to honor an organization that has protected the city for hundreds of years — the city Fire Department. A 500-square-foot mural depicting the history of the Philadelphia Fire Department will be painted on 4th and Arch streets, next to the Ladder 2 Fire Station and around the corner from the Fireman’s Hall Museum.
- PUB DATE: 6/28/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCAU-TV NBC 10 Philadelphia

The Coon Valley Fire Department responded to a house fire on Mathison Lane, Thursday afternoon. When the department arrived the house was fully engulfed in flames, and the roof had already caved in. The residents of the house were not home at the time, but multiple pets were inside. It is not clear if they're still alive, but they are presumed to be dead.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 9:28:44 PM - SOURCE: WKBT-TV CBS 8 La Crosse

One person is dead after a structure fire in Stevens Point Wednesday evening, according to the Stevens Point Police Department's assistant chief Tom Zenner. Stevens Point Fire Department received the call about the fire on Sixth Avenue at 6:47 Wednesday evening. Plover Fire, Town of Hull Fire and the Stevens Point Police Department also assisted at the scene.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 6:44:57 AM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

The town of Pickerel is coming together after a devastating house fire claimed the lives of six community members including four children on Tuesday. Neighbors in the community tell NewsChannel 7 the victims were well-known residents in the area. “It’s a really sad day for everyone in the community,” stated Gerri Adams, who lives in the neighborhood where the fire happened.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 6:44:48 AM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

VIDEO: When an emergency occurs, the public has little concern for whether the responders are employed by their municipality – they simply want help as soon as they can get it. Unfortunately, in the case of fire and emergency medical services in Milwaukee County, municipal boundaries used to get in the way of getting the closest most appropriate responder to a fire/rescue emergency.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin Policy Forum

VIDEO: In an effort to reduce a strain on San Diego’s 911 response system, the city’s mayor announced the resurrection of a decade-old program to help its top abusers -- some who call hundreds of times a year. “Every day, San Diego’s emergency 911 response system receives thousands of calls day and night for help from residents and visitors alike.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KNSD-TV NBC 7 San Diego

New Jersey paramedics may now offer another medication to overdosed patients revived with naloxone, but some are taking a wait-and-see approach. N.J. Health Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal authorized the state's 1,900 paramedics to carry buprenorphine, an oral medication used to treat the acute symptoms of opioid withdrawal.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Courier-Post - Metered Site

The path to becoming fire chief is often challenging and unpredictable. With that in mind, how can you best prepare to become a five-bugle chief? Anne Arundel County (Maryland) Chief Trisha Wolford and Prince William County (Virginia) Chief (Retired) Mary Beth Michos share their experiences and address key elements of preparation, including formal education/training; political and policy development skills and experience; public speaking and communication; work history and reputation; teachable potential, succession planning and job shadowing participation.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: IAFC.org

VIDEO: Public safety departments across the country are ditching dated restrictive grooming and appearance standards. It's an effort to modernize policing with hopes of boosting morale and bolstering recruitment and retention efforts. As of June, the City of Montgomery is part of the national trend, allowing officers and firefighters to grow facial hair and show tattoos while in uniform.
- PUB DATE: 6/27/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WSFA-TV NBC 12 Montgomery