VIDEO: It has been five days since the Black River Falls Fire Department announce the passing of their firefighter Alec Muth. Fighting fires and racing motorcycles were two of Muth's favorite activities. "We're going to miss his lightheartedness," said Bruce Bresee, an employee at Al Muth Harley-Davidson and family friend.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 3:50:07 AM - SOURCE: WXOW-TV ABC 19 LaCrosse

Verizon Wireless' throttling of a fire department that uses its data services has been submitted as evidence in a lawsuit that seeks to reinstate federal net neutrality rules. "County Fire has experienced throttling by its ISP, Verizon," Santa Clara County Fire Chief Anthony Bowden wrote in a declaration.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ars Technica

Mike Beadle, Palm Coast’s longtime fire chief, will be retiring in September and his second-in-command, Gerard “Jerry” Forte, will take the reins of the department, city officials announced Tuesday. City Manager Jim Landon formally appointed Forte, currently the deputy fire chief, to take over in Beadle’s stead during Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Daytona Beach News-Journal

The panel that oversees the Los Angeles Fire Department voted Tuesday to give the agency’s internal watchdog “unfettered access” to the disciplinary files of its firefighters, nine years after voters created the post to assess the agency’s handling of misconduct complaints. The Board of Fire Commissioners unanimously changed its policy to give the watchdog, known as the Office of the Independent Assessor, the power to obtain unredacted interview transcripts, evidence and other records generated over the course of a discipline case.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Los Angeles Times

PHOTO - A kindergartner rode to his first day of school in style fulfilling the wishes of his late father. Last week, Cooper Brooks, 5, arrived in a fire truck alongside dad Christopher Brooks' colleagues from the Sullivan County Volunteer Fire Department. Christopher Brooks, a father of three and volunteer firefighter, died May 7 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC News

As the Puyallup Police Department embarks on its move to South Hill, Central Pierce Fire & Rescue is putting shovels in the ground for their state-of-the-art station on the same lot. CPFR is building a new Station 72 on two acres of what’s known as the Lumbermen’s property at 703 39th SE. It will stand alongside the new Puyallup Justice Center.
- PUB DATE: 8/22/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The News Tribune

VIDEO: The dam in the Village of Belleville is overflowing with water, according to officials with the Belleville Fire Department. Volunteer firefighter Jeff Kankel said the whole community is involved in sandbagging and trying to save anything that is salvageable after the dam was breached. He also confirmed that people on the southeast side of town are being evacuated.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 7:37:10 PM - SOURCE: WMSN-TV Fox 47 Madison

VIDEO: Searchers on Tuesday recovered the body of a man who was wrenched away from would-be rescuers during flash flooding that forced evacuations around Wisconsin's capital city and cut power to many homes. More than 11 inches (28 centimeters) of rain fell overnight in places in or around Madison, according to the National Weather Service.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 7:19:52 PM - SOURCE: WKOW-TV 27 ABC

Aug. 23 in 1998 was a typical late-August day in Door County — warm, humid, enjoyed by those stretching the last few days of summer out by staying a just a little longer in the county. The frantic pace within the county, experienced all summer long, was slowly draining as families returned home to prepare for school.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 9:50:05 AM - SOURCE: Green Bay Press-Gazette

Dane County Executive Joe Parisi has declared a state of emergency and one person has been confirmed dead after a deluge of heavy rain fell Monday evening. Eleven to 13 inches of rain fell in some areas of western Dane County, according to the National Weather Service, flooding major roads and intersections and knocking out power to thousands of people.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 7:46:16 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin Public Radio

VIDEO: Crews are now working to recover the body of a missing person after flooding on Madison's west side, according officials on the scene. The search was originally a rescue, but was switched to a recovery effort on Tuesday morning. Firefighters in Madison are looking for a person who is missing after being caught in a vehicle that stalled in floodwater.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 5:52:48 AM - SOURCE: WXOW-TV ABC 19 LaCrosse

Fire retardant dropped from an airplane into an area that should have been cleared of firefighters may have had something to do with last week’s death of a battalion chief at Northern California’s Mendocino Complex fire. Matthew Burchett, 42, was struck and killed by falling tree debris Aug. 13 near Lake Pillsbury (Lake County) in a spot where, simultaneously, thousands of gallons of the chemical slurry used to quash flames was released, state fire officials said in a preliminary report Monday.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle

The Toledo Fire and Rescue Department used nearly 96 percent of its overtime budget — $2.27 million in overtime costs — six months into the year, but city finance officials said they’re not too worried about the department’s overall financial health for 2018. The department budgeted $2.37 million for overtime costs in 2018 and as of June 30 had spent $2.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Toledo Blade

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (U.S. Department of Commerce) Monday issued the following press release: Today, FirstNet Board Chair Sue Swenson and Vice Chair Jeffrey Johnson notified Assistant Secretary of Commerce David Redl of their resignation from the FirstNet board.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: International Association of Fire Chiefs

Four years after New Carlisle Assistant Fire Chief Jamie Middlebrook was killed while fighting a fire, a federal agency has released a report on the incident and announced several recommendations as a result of its investigation. The report was created by the Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC 57 WBND-TV South Bend News

Channel 2 Investigates has learned a rotating group of Houston firefighters equipped with a tent, waited with a broken HFD fire truck for about 11 hours. The rotating crews were on-duty but unavailable to respond to emergency calls during the overnight event in Kingwood. "Nobody gave them direction as to checking on them, where do they go, there was no water, no restrooms out there, and no one gave them direction," Patrick Lancton, president of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, said.
- PUB DATE: 8/21/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KPRC-TV NBC 2 Houston

The West Allis Fire Department has received Accredited Agency status with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) for meeting the criteria established through the CFAI’s voluntary self-assessment and accreditation program. The West Allis Fire Department is one of more than 250 agencies to achieve Internationally Accredited Agency status with the CFAI and the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc.
- PUB DATE: 8/20/2018 7:00:49 PM - SOURCE: West Allis, WI

On August 18, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

Firefighters at the New Lisbon Fire Department has a new tool at their disposal. “Wabash bought us a new set of confined space equipment,” said New Lisbon Fire Chief Lynn Willard. “It’s a cart that’s got two one hour bottles on it and two SCBA masks with 100 feet of hose for each one.” The New Lisbon Fire Department also now has a small air tank they can use to establish an air supply to an individual in need of rescue.
- PUB DATE: 8/20/2018 12:45:42 PM - SOURCE: wisc news

On August 17, 3 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.