VIDEO: Massive military transport vehicles are being refitted to fight wildfires and perform rescues during floods. Excess equipment the federal government no longer needs is now being put to use by volunteer fire departments to save lives and property. It's all possible because of a little-known, but heavily used program through the Nebraska Forest Service.
- PUB DATE: 3/4/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KETV ABC 7 Omaha

At 718 PM CST, Doppler radar was tracking a cluster of thunderstorms across much of central and north-central Wisconsin. A wind gust to 47 mph was reported in Wisconsin Rapids. Movement was northeast at 55 mph. HAZARD...Wind gusts up to 45 mph and pea size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is possible. Locations impacted include... Wausau, Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids, Antigo, Rhinelander, Waupaca, Wautoma, Crandon, Eagle River, and Marshfield. Special Weather Statement 2024-03-03T19:21:00-06:00 2024-03-03T19:21:00-06:00 2024-03-03T19:21:00-06:00 2024-03-03T20:45:00-06:00 Actual Alert Met Expected Moderate Observed Vilas; Oneida; Forest; Florence; Lincoln; Langlade; Menominee; Northern Oconto County; Marathon; Shawano; Wood; Portage; Waupaca; Waushara 44.7299999,-90.3199999 45.12,-90.09 45.12,-90.04 46.2299999,-89.59 46.14,-89.09 45.99,-88.67 46.02,-88.53 45.9799999,-88.37 45.54,-88.58 43.9799999,-88.99 43.9799999,-89.6 44.25,-89.6 44.25,-90.3199999 44.7299999,-90.3199999 SAME 055125 SAME 055085 SAME 055041 SAME 055037 SAME 055069 SAME 055067 SAME 055078 SAME 055083 SAME 055073 SAME 055115 SAME 055141 SAME 055097 SAME 055135 SAME 055137 UGC WIZ005 UGC WIZ010 UGC WIZ011 UGC WIZ012 UGC WIZ018 UGC WIZ019 UGC WIZ020 UGC WIZ021 UGC WIZ030 UGC WIZ031 UGC WIZ035 UGC WIZ036 UGC WIZ037 UGC WIZ045 AWIPSidentifier SPSGRB WMOidentifier WWUS83 KGRB 040121 NWSheadline THUNDERSTORMS WILL IMPACT WOOD...LINCOLN...MARATHON... ONEIDA...WAUSHARA...WESTERN SHAWANO...PORTAGE...FOREST...VILAS... WESTERN FLORENCE...NORTHWESTERN MENOMINEE...WAUPACA AND LANGLADE COUNTIES THROUGH 845 PM CST eventMotionDescription 2024-03-04T01:18:00-00:00...storm...225DEG...53KT...46.37,-89.81 45.5,-89.61 44.56,-89.89 43.96,-90.28 maxWindGust 40 MPH maxHailSize 0.25 BLOCKCHANNEL EAS BLOCKCHANNEL NWEM BLOCKCHANNEL CMAS EAS-ORG WXR

VIDEO: After 28 years of service, Assistant Chief of Operations Jeff Murphy is retiring. Chief Murphy began his career in the fire industry volunteering at the age of 15. He was hooked and knew he had to do it full time. He joined the La Crosse Fire Department in 1996 and worked his way up the ranks.
- PUB DATE: 3/2/2024 5:35:00 AM - SOURCE: WKBT-TV CBS 8 La Crosse

VIDEO: At the Kenosha Fire Department, fire crews have been training on how to handle electric vehicle fires. During traditional car fires powered by gasoline, fire crews would put out the fire with water quickly, usually within 2 to 3 minutes. However, with an electric vehicles, fire crews must take a different approach because electric vehicle fires pose different safety risks compared to gas-powered vehicles.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTMJ-TV NBC 4 Milwaukee

PHOTOS: The Fond du Lac area has many landmarks of which to be proud, but how many have been lost to tragedy? One of the city's most famous fires occurred in 1908, known as "the night the churches burned," although it had started in an old opera house. The Crescent Opera House opened in 1887 on Second and Marr streets with Shakespeare’s classic, “As You Like It,” starring Helena Modjeska.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fond du Lac Reporter - Metered Site

A massive fire tore through a 23-bedroom historic mansion in Northbridge, Massachusetts. The fire at the Whitin Lasell Manor, which is more than 100 years old, started just after 1 a.m., fire officials said. Several people were living inside the manor that has stood on Hill Street since 1890. According to a Facebook post by Estate of Mind, an artist collective that operates at the home, all of the residents escaped without injury.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCVB-TV ABC 5 Boston

PHOTOS: Greeley Fire’s newest ride — a walk-in hazardous materials response truck — has been on nearly a year’s worth of calls involving hazardous materials, a number that approached 230 in 2023. Already, the hazmat team says, it has made everybody’s lives easier. The truck equipped with most — if not all — the bells and whistles carried a price tag of $710,000.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Greeley Tribune - Metered Site

VIDEO: Alachua County Fire Chief Harold Theus is excited for the public to check out their newest and largest station. Chief Theus is hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony alongside Alachua County Manager Michele Lieberman, Commission Chair Mary C. Alford, and Public Works Director Ramon Gavarrete. The 11,500 square foot building fits 10 beds and three bays.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WCJB-TV ABC/CW+ 20 Gainesville

Fairdale High School in Fairdale, KY is making waves by training the next cohort of fire fighters and EMTs. During a recent ceremony held at the school, Dan Shirley, an instructor at the school’s Fire and EMS Academy, announced the acquisition of the school’s new Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) license allowing students to undergo testing before graduation.
- PUB DATE: 3/1/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: IAFF.org

VIDEO: Station 2 was one of the City of Eau Claire's busiest fire stations last year. It's attached to city hall and responded to over 1,750 out-of-district calls in 2023. However, Station 2 is one of the city's oldest — being built in the 1940s. Deputy Fire Chief Robert Haller said the building is showing its age, its living quarters are only separated by curtains, the showers and bathroom are open and it was built before the implementation of Americans with Disabilities Act.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WQOW-TV ABC 18 Eau Claire

VIDEO: The Wausau Fire Department is seeing stronger drugs than what their life-saving medications are equipped for and it’s forcing them to use more than the standard. Wausau Fire Department EMS Division Chief Jared Thompson said when they see an increase in overdose calls, it comes in spurts. It’s very dependent on what drugs are in the area and how strong they are.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS/MyNetworkTV/CW+ 7 Wausau

PHOTOS: One firefighter was injured after a three-alarm fire in south Austin that is now under control, the Austin Fire Department said. No civilians were injured. The blaze started Wednesday afternoon, and AFD said over 120 firefighters were working to extinguish the fire. At 2:20 p.m., AFD said crews responded to the three-story building with a “defensive” fire in the 2900 block of South Interstate 35 service road northbound, the agency said on social media.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KXAN-TV NBC 36 Austin

PHOTOS: After more than a century at the town’s Island Avenue fire station, the department officially moved Wednesday to its new home at the town’s public safety building. The last firefighters to work from the old fire station, at 16 Island Ave. on the island downtown, finished their shift Wednesday morning.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Central Maine - Metered Site

Last week, AT&T suffered a nationwide outage that the company believes was caused by “the application and execution of an incorrect process used as we were expanding our network, not a cyber attack,” according to the company’s website. AT&T acknowledged the outage on its site at 10:15 a.m. on Thursday and reported that all service was restored just after 2 p.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Redstone Rocket

VIDEO: Dunedin Fire Rescue just got a new set of wheels which, they say, will help them respond to calls more efficiently. Firefighters say they’re the only department in the Tampa Bay region with a miniature ambulance. Alex Miller is a firefighter with Dunedin Fire Rescue. He said it's going to be perfect for responding to crowded events where they would have to maneuver through narrow spaces.
- PUB DATE: 2/29/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTSP-TV CBS 10 St. Petersburg

Snow will shift east during the early to mid morning, with additional accumulations of a half inch to an inch expected in far eastern Wisconsin. Strong northwest winds gusting to 25 to 40 mph will continue to bring cold air into the region, so any untreated roads will remain snow or ice covered and hazardous through the morning commute. Motorists should be prepared for hazardous driving conditions for the morning commute to work or school. Allow some extra time to reach your destination. Special Weather Statement 2024-02-28T03:53:00-06:00 2024-02-28T03:53:00-06:00 2024-02-28T03:53:00-06:00 2024-02-28T09:00:00-06:00 Actual Alert Met Expected Moderate Observed Vilas; Oneida; Forest; Florence; Northern Marinette County; Lincoln; Langlade; Menominee; Northern Oconto County; Door; Marathon; Shawano; Wood; Portage; Waupaca; Outagamie; Brown; Kewaunee; Waushara; Winnebago; Calumet; Manitowoc; Southern Marinette County; Southern Oconto County SAME 055125 SAME 055085 SAME 055041 SAME 055037 SAME 055075 SAME 055069 SAME 055067 SAME 055078 SAME 055083 SAME 055029 SAME 055073 SAME 055115 SAME 055141 SAME 055097 SAME 055135 SAME 055087 SAME 055009 SAME 055061 SAME 055137 SAME 055139 SAME 055015 SAME 055071 UGC WIZ005 UGC WIZ010 UGC WIZ011 UGC WIZ012 UGC WIZ013 UGC WIZ018 UGC WIZ019 UGC WIZ020 UGC WIZ021 UGC WIZ022 UGC WIZ030 UGC WIZ031 UGC WIZ035 UGC WIZ036 UGC WIZ037 UGC WIZ038 UGC WIZ039 UGC WIZ040 UGC WIZ045 UGC WIZ048 UGC WIZ049 UGC WIZ050 UGC WIZ073 UGC WIZ074 AWIPSidentifier SPSGRB WMOidentifier WWUS83 KGRB 280953 NWSheadline LOCALLY HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS EXPECTED FOR THE MORNING COMMUTE BLOCKCHANNEL EAS BLOCKCHANNEL NWEM BLOCKCHANNEL CMAS EAS-ORG WXR

VIDEO: Dry conditions and strong winds caused a grass fire to get out of control on Tuesday afternoon in Vernon County. The brush fire happened just off County Rd. NN and Jims Rd. near Coon Valley. The first call came in around 2 p.m. but a MABAS (Mutual Aid Box Alarm System) call alerted shortly after that asking for help from additional departments.
- PUB DATE: 2/28/2024 1:19:00 AM - SOURCE: WXOW-TV ABC 19 La Crosse

Firefighters have been working to put out a "fully-involved" structure fire at an old plant in Polk County that went up in flames Tuesday afternoon. The City of Cedartown said in a social media post that the fire engulfed the old Jockey plant on West Avenue. They asked that residents avoid the area and find other ways to travel.
- PUB DATE: 2/28/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WXIA-TV NBC 11 Atlanta

VIDEO: First responders in Jeffersontown are celebrating the grand opening of their brand-new fire and EMS Station. The ribbon cutting for Station 54 happened Monday morning at the new firehouse on Taylorsville Road, near the Gene Snyder. The project has been in the works for about five years. The firehouse will be staffed around the clock.
- PUB DATE: 2/28/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WAVE-TV NBC 3 Louisville

VIDEO; For those looking for a trip to the city, or Philadelphians planning a day in their community, the Fireman's Hall Museum promotes fun and fire safety! "There's been a lot of sacrifice to make this experience great for all ages...To learn where we came from to where we are today in fire safety," said Firefighter and Curator Brian Anderson.
- PUB DATE: 2/28/2024 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WPVI-TV ABC 6 Philadelphia