The city of Easton has been given the green-light to hire part-time firefighters. It's an issue that's caused some friction in the past. The part-time hires come as part of a new contract agreement. The firefighters' union had previously opposed the city hiring part-timers because of training concerns.
- PUB DATE: 3/5/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFMZ-TV Channel 69

A bill aimed to help volunteer firefighters and EMS personnel was unveiled today. Rep. Treig Pronschinske from the 92nd State Assembly District announced the bill at the Town of Pleasant Valley fire station. He says the bill hopes to address the recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters and emergency service personnel in Wisconsin.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 5:54:56 PM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV 13 News

A building in Waupaca County was evacuated because the roof was in danger of collapsing due to the weight of heavy snow. Assistant Fire Chief Brandon Leschke with the Weyauwega Fire Department said the roof in question was on an office building at the World Class Manufacturing campus. Leschke said workers noticed the ceiling tiles bowing and could hear creaking.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 2:57:46 PM - SOURCE: WMTV-TV NBC 15 Madison

On March 2, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

On March 1, 10 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

A massive fire burned through all three floors of an apartment building on Milwaukee's lower East Side. Crews were called to North Farwell and Webster Place around 2:45 a.m. Monday. Fire officials say firefighters spent two hours inside the apartment building, battling flames burning through all of its three floors.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 4:57:36 AM - SOURCE: WISN-TV ABC 12 Milwaukee

VIDEO: The Maine town of Berwick and first responders around New England are mourning the loss of a Berwick firefighter who died while battling an apartment building fire. Captain Joel Barnes died and four other firefighters were injured Friday. Berwick Fire Chief Dennis Plante says the 32-year-old Barnes "died a hero, battling a large and dangerous building fire'' and "made the ultimate sacrifice for his community.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NECN

VIDEO: Parts of Eufaula are now unrecognizable after the tornado passed through the town, completely destroying the north side fire station and the Eufaula Municipal Airport. Two firemen were on duty at the time when the tornado hit, fortunately both men remained safe by hunkering down in one of the bath tubs in the fire station.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTVY

The Jefferson City Fire Department is considering moving to 48-hour shifts to improve firefighters' health while still providing quality service. The Jefferson City Public Safety Committee voted Thursday to advance the Fire Department's proposal to switch to 48.5-hour shifts, with 96 hours off, to the Jefferson City Council for further discussion.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Jefferson City News Tribune

VIDEO: Two Detroit medics both fired accused of not performing CPR when it could have saved a life. A 30-year-old man was having a heart attack -- and died. Now one of the medics is sharing his story. The Detroit fire commissioner is not talking about what happened but the family of victim Patrick Clemons, is.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fox 2 Detroit

First, there's anxiety over the cancer diagnosis. Then, there's anxiety over how to pay for the treatment. Ryker Haselden, 49, called his prostate cancer diagnosis in 2017 a "gut-punch." He's been a firefighter in Mississippi for about two decades. Haselden has two children, one of whom is developmentally disabled, so his wife is a full-time mother.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Jackson Clarion-Ledger

A man and his two pets are safe after his residence caught on fire Sunday morning. The Two Rivers Fire Department were dispatched to a home on 17th Street in Two Rivers for a kitchen fire reported by the owner of the residence around 9:32 a.m. Firefighters say they arrived to the scene to find smoke and fire showing from the first floor of the structure.
- PUB DATE: 3/3/2019 2:05:30 PM - SOURCE: WFRV-TV and WJMN-TV Green Bay

Two people were treated at the scene of an apartment fire near 23rd and Layton Sunday morning, March 3. Fire officials said it was upgraded to a second alarm. It happened around 9:30 a.m. MFD Battalion Chief Todd VanRoo said firefighters with the first arriving engine unit found heavy smoke on the second floor after a call came in regarding smoke in the two-story brick apartment building.
- PUB DATE: 3/3/2019 12:38:33 PM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

The Merrill Fire Department is asking the community to help dig out fire hydrants after a resident took it upon himself to dig out 15. City officials say some fire hydrants are buried so far beneath the snow that firefighters had to use metal detectors to locate them. “This amount of snow is twice the amount that we are used to,” stated Battalion Chief, Tadd Wegener, with the Merrill Fire Department.
- PUB DATE: 3/3/2019 11:10:47 AM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV 13 News

Firefighters and police officers faced off on the ice Saturday for a good cause. The Oshkosh fire and police departments went head to head during their annual charity hockey event called Guns 'N' Hoses. The event held at the YMCA in Oshkosh helps raise money for a new local charity picked out by police and firefighters.
- PUB DATE: 3/2/2019 6:52:23 PM - SOURCE: WFRV-TV and WJMN-TV Green Bay

On March 1, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

VIDEO: Seated in rows and dressed identically in white shirts and black slacks, the 47 members of Toledo Fire & Rescue Fire Class 293 began their first day of six months of fire academy training. The class is one of the most diverse the department has had since 1984, Fire Chief Brian Byrd said. Out of 47 recruits, 30 are white, 12 are black, four are Hispanic, and one is American Indian.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Toledo Blade

Following the lead of Denver police, radio traffic from the Denver Fire Department will no longer be accessible to the public starting next month, though one automated dispatch channel will remain open. Fire department leaders in January made the decision to encrypt their radio traffic to make it easier to communicate with police, who decided to encrypt their traffic as well, fire department spokesman Greg Pixley said.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Denver Post

A Minneapolis firefighter injured and forced into early retirement because he wasn’t allowed to wear prescribed shoes will be able to pursue a disability discrimination claim against the city, the state’s highest court has ruled. On Wednesday, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled on a 5-2 majority that employees are able to sue separately under the state workers’ compensation law and the Minnesota Human Rights Act’s disability protection.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Star Tribune

California is facing the worst wildfire conditions in its history with fewer engines and firefighters than it had 40 years ago, says a group of lawmakers and fire unions asking Gov. Gavin Newsom for an extra $84 million to beef up the state’s fire response. Cal Fire has 31 fewer engines than it had in 1975 yet it is responsible for more land, provides protection for more cities and faces drier forests and a longer fire season, said Sen.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Sacramento Bee - Metered Site