After a frigid 15 minutes or more in the water, emergency workers rescued a 15-year-old boy who fell into Lake Michigan Wednesday evening. According to a preliminary investigation, the Racine County Sheriff’s Office reported that the boy and a 16-year-old friend were walking on the icy shore when the ice underneath them gave way, dropping the younger boy into the lake.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 7:41:21 PM - SOURCE: Racine Journal Times

On February 19, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

On February 18, 7 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

On February 16, 4 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

Several promotions within the Kenosha Police and Kenosha Fire departments were approved by the city’s Police and Fire Commission Tuesday. Kenosha Police promotions included Patrick Patton from sergeant to interim lieutenant and Tadas Zukauskas and Michael Madsen from patrol officers to interim sergeants.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 2:06:07 AM - SOURCE: Kenosha News

Portage County is participating in a new app to speed up assistance for people having a heart emergency. The app, called PulsePoint, is designed to alert app users and first responders to people nearby who are experiencing cardiac arrest. It also helps you find the nearest automated external defibrillators (AED).
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

Spotsylvania County mourns the loss of Volunteer Fire Chief Norman Brooks, Sr, who passed away Wednesday, February 13, 2019. Chief Brooks dedicated his life to serving and helping others. He remained focused on fulfilling that mission until the end of his life. Chief Brooks was part of a county team overseeing final inspections and acceptance testing of Tower 1 and Rescue Engine 8 this week in Wisconsin when he suffered a sudden medical emergency.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fredericksburg Today

The Burlington County Board of Freeholders began reorganizing a first responders’ advisory board Wednesday over objections from some fire and emergency services associations who fear the changes could politicize the group. The resolution approved by the freeholders Wednesday amended the advisory board’s makeup so that it consists of three members from the fire service, three from the emergency medical service and three from police, plus the county Public Safety Director and another representative from the county Department of Public Safety.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Burlington County Times

A city fire captain seriously injured while fighting a Newell Street arson fire last year has filed suit against the two men who started the blaze. Theodore G. Kolb III filed state Supreme Court action Friday against John H. Long and Scott Munson, both of whom are serving 2 1/3- to 7-year state prison sentences imposed in November in Jefferson County Court for third-degree arson and first-degree reckless endangerment convictions stemming from the Feb.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Watertown Daily Times

Fire departments across the United States have long struggled with outdated federal reimbursement policies which fail to reimburse fire departments for the cost of providing EMS treatment without transportation and prohibit transporting patients to alternative destinations like urgent care clinics. However, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) announced today that they will begin testing a model policy in which CMMI reimburses fire departments for the cost of providing Medicare beneficiaries with treatment-without-transportation and transporting patients to alternative destinations.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: IAFC.org

Allegations that the Thorndike Fire Department leadership is unprofessional and has endangered the lives of firefighters from other communities are having an incendiary effect on the small town and its volunteer-run department. The allegations came in the form of a Jan. 23 letter sent by four Waldo County emergency response officials to the Thorndike Select Board and town residents.
- PUB DATE: 2/20/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bangor Daily News

Recognizing the cancer epidemic that firefighters are facing, MH Medical Imaging Company has donated 31 low-dose radiation CT scans to the Kenosha Fire Department. These scans are often not covered by insurance and are a useful tool in detecting cancer. "They were able are able to pick up cancer at a much earlier stage than a chest x-ray," said Dan Paulson with MH Imaging.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 8:42:59 PM - SOURCE: WDJT-TV CBS 58 Milwaukee

After months of being short-staffed, the Rice Lake Fire Department is now asking the city council to revisit its decision to cut a full-time firefighter position. While the council says that decision was caused by a budget deficit, officials with the department say something needs to be done to ensure the safety of the community.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 5:55:15 PM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV 13 News

VIDEO: Firefighters in Stevens Point have a new tool that will help them improve their speed and efficiency while fighting fires. After saving for years the department was able to add a brand new fire engine to their fleet. It's been more than 30 years since the Stevens Point Fire Department got a new fire engine and with a new engine and new technology there came a big learning curve.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 3:03:34 PM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

An early morning fire killed three people, injured three others and substantially damaged a town of Waukesha home on Tuesday, Feb. 19. The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department announced the deaths Tuesday afternoon in an updated news release. Police did not identify the victims, but said they were an adult and two adolescents.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 1:00:53 PM - SOURCE: WaukeshaNOW

On February 14, 14 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

Fire crews deployed a bucket truck to rescue an injured worker who had slipped on the third floor of a Wauwautosa construction site on Monday afternoon. A worker for a subcontractor of the Milwaukee firm CG Schmidt fell and was injured while working on the third floor of a project at 10401 Innovation Drive in Wauwautosa, said Mike Abuls, chief operating officer at CG Schmidt.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 11:51:06 AM - SOURCE: Milwaukee Daily Reporter

William Kleich, owner of Loopy’s Saloon and Grill in the ntown of Wheaton, has filed a lawsuit against the Chippewa Fire District in an effort to allow the volleyball dome at his facility to continue operating 240 days a year without seeking a new permit. Kleich filed the lawsuit in Chippewa County Court on Monday.
- PUB DATE: 2/19/2019 10:46:05 AM - SOURCE: Chippewa Herald

On February 17, 4 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

On February 16, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.