A woman accused of obstructing firefighters and emergency workers who were handling a potentially deadly gas leak Sept. 11 in Boyd has been charged with two felonies. Sara A. Gordon, 39, no address given, was charged in Chippewa County Court with intentional obstruction of emergency or rescue persons and second-degree recklessly endangering safety.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 3:26:21 AM - SOURCE: Eau Claire Leader-Telegram

State police identified the Hanover firefighter killed Thursday night as Lt. Brad Clark. Clark was killed and three others firefighters were injured after their firetruck was rear-ended on I-295 in Hanover County Thursday night. "The trooper's preliminary investigation reveals that Hanover Fire Engine and EMS was on scene providing assistance with a two-vehicle crash with all of its emergency equipment activated, when a tractor-trailer traveling southbound struck the engine in the rear," Hill said.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTVR-TV CBS 6

A San Antonio firefighter died while battling a blaze in the Spartan Gym last year after the Fire Department failed to safely search the building, keep track of fellow rescuers and adequately ventilate the smoke-filled structure, a federal report released Thursday states. The review by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, an agency that seeks to improve workplace safety, concluded that some of the San Antonio Fire Department’s tactics actually made conditions worse inside the gym where firefighter Scott Deem, 31, died after he became lost.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: San Antonio Express News

VIDEO - A fire in a vacant home in Fresno almost killed a homeless man but firefighters arrived in time to cut a hole in the side of the building and pull him to safety. The dramatic rescue was captured on a video camera attached to a firefighter’s helmet. Fire Chief Kerri Donis praised the heroism of those who saved the homeless man but said the rescue simply underscores the larger problem of too many vacant buildings in Fresno catching fire.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse

Federal investigators probing the deadly natural gas explosions that rocked three northern Massachusetts towns last month are blaming faulty work orders given to the work crews by the local utility. The investigators say Columbia Gas failed to instruct the workers to deactivate pressure sensors when taking an old cast-iron gas main out of service.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: USA Today

Four public safety officers are being moved to full-time positions at the fire department, and the Cedar Falls Firefighters Association says the transfer violates state civil service law. Scott Dix, Cedar Falls Fire Local 1366 president, announced the move in a press release Wednesday. Dix said the union will legally challenge the move.
- PUB DATE: 10/12/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier

Just before midnight in September, Michael Scharf doesn't remember first responders breaking his window, pulling him out or attempting to find a pulse. Scharf, 52, had just suffered a heart attack and West Allis police officers were the first to find him, locked inside of his car that had just crashed.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 10:08:48 PM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

VIDEO: The Glasow family is staying strong after Jacob was diagnosed with ALS. 36-year-old Jacob, a husband, father to five children, and volunteer firefighter, given three to five years to live. "When I was a little kid, you know, all the kids look up to firefighters. So when I got the chance, I did it," said Jacob.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 9:19:36 PM - SOURCE: NBC26

VIDEO: A new fire station designed to cut down response times may not get a new ambulance. Madison Mayor Paul Soglin rejected a request to provide this service at Fire Station 14 near Stoughton Road. News 3 has been following this story since 2013, when a man died in an apartment fire where it took more than 10 minutes for fire crews to arrive.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 3:43:23 PM - SOURCE: WISC-TV Channel 3000.com Madison

VIDEO: Thursday, 103 United States firefighters were honored and remembered at a memorial ceremony in Eau Claire. Lieutenant Andrew Dorn, with the Eau Claire Fire Department and Honor Guard says it’s an annual ceremony that started in 1991. He says each firefighter’s name is read aloud and a bell is rung.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 3:14:02 PM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV 13 News

An arrest warrant has been issued for a man accused of neglecting an 18-month-old boy who died of injuries caused by a fire last month. A criminal complaint filed Oct. 5 against Vernon Williams, 29, of Menasha, charges him with neglecting a child causing death. The boy was rescued by firefighters Sept.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 1:42:24 PM - SOURCE: Appleton Post-Gazette & Post Crescent.com

VIDEO: About 40 years ago, Troutland Rescue Squad started shuttling patients from the White Lake area to the hospital in Antigo. Troutland is about to make its last run. It simply can't find enough volunteers to serve as EMTs. This fall, the city of Antigo took over primary responsibility for calls in this part of rural Langlade County.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 7:20:23 AM - SOURCE: WJFW-TV NBC 12 Rhinelander-Wausau

They died after suffering the effects of cancer, or a heart attack, or in a collision with a train. Their deaths were as recent as six months ago, and as dated as nearly 90 years ago. But on Saturday, eight Wisconsin firefighters will be honored all at the same time, in the same way, for giving their lives in serving their communities.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 6:16:57 AM - SOURCE: Marshfield News-Herald

Fourteen people were treated Wednesday afternoon at Divine Savior Healthcare for carbon monoxide exposure at Dawn’s Foods, located in Portage’s industrial park on the city’s west side. As of 7 p.m. Wednesday, two of the patients had been discharged, and 12 remained in the emergency room for observation, said Divine Savior spokeswoman Haley Gilman.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 6:15:13 AM - SOURCE: wisc news

Firefighters battling a two-alarm blaze at an Oakley tire company early Wednesday were nearly hit by a speeding freight train on tracks they thought had been closed off. The train tracks are only a few feet from the back of the auto shop that the fire began in. The East Contra Costa County Fire District requested for train traffic to be stopped while they fought the fire.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KPIX-TV CBS 5 San Francisco

A divided Ogunquit Board of Selectmen voted Tuesday to uphold the termination of the town fire chief following a tense meeting that culminated in more than 200 residents being asked to leave. The termination appeal hearing focused on the firing of Mark O’Brien, who had served with the Ogunquit Fire Department for 37 years before he was placed on paid administrative leave in June while town officials investigated complaints about his management style and interaction with his staff.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Portland Press Herald

In a ploy that could save the company millions of dollars and potentially protect it from ongoing lawsuits, a private ambulance outfit has poured $21,900,786 to date into the statewide campaign to pass Proposition 11, a measure on the November ballot that regulates lunch and rest breaks for people who work in ambulances.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Mission Local

Officials in Lake County have been seeing a rise of accidental 911 calls from residents' smart watches. When Apple released its new watch about one year ago, it came with a new feature that lets users press and hold a button on the side of the device to call 911 for help. Since then, 911 call centers across the country, and in the Chicago area, have been experiencing a problem with accidental calls.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WGNTV.com

After a long legal battle, a judge ruled in favor of Homer Salinas - a Mission firefighter denied workmen's compensation after he was diagnosed with kidney cancer. "When I went ahead and submitted all the paperwork, the TML, which is the insurance carrier for the city, denied me," Salinas said. The city's insurance carrier claimed that his diagnosis was unrelated to his work and refused to cover treatment costs, but Salinas appealed that decision last November and finally got the answer he'd been waiting for.
- PUB DATE: 10/11/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ValleyCentral.com

On October 10, 0 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.