On February 13, 0 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

VIDEO - It has been a rough month for first-responders in rural Berkeley County. A few weeks ago a firm hired to assess 26 volunteer departments released its findings from an independent fire study and determined, what a lot of those departments already knew, they are underfunded, understaffed and under pressure.
- PUB DATE: 2/14/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Berkeley Independent

Roughly two-thirds of the firefighters in South Tucson have now indicated they will resign by the end of the month, leaving residents of the small city wondering if there will be enough personnel to adequately respond to emergencies. A former South Tucson firefighter claimed that due to the mass resignations there are two days next month where only one Fire Department employee is scheduled to work on a specific shift.
- PUB DATE: 2/14/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Arizona Daily Star

On Feb. 9 passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (H.R. 1892) which funds the federal government through March 22 and raises government spending limits. H.R. 1982 also contains several provisions which address challenges facing the fire and emergency service. H.R. 1892 contains some of the most significant EMS reimbursement reforms that Congress has enacted in several years.
- PUB DATE: 2/14/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: International Association of Fire Chiefs

Sixty years ago, Firefighter Donald Blaskovich left a theatre where "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs" was staged to witness an all-too-real living hell. The 85-year-old FDNY retiree, a member of the now defunct Engine Company 13, is the last firefighter alive to have fought the deadly blaze at the Elkins Paper Company on Wooster St.
- PUB DATE: 2/14/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse

Mayor Jean Stothert said she first saw the "soda can" alert when she watched our KETV report. Some firefighters place pop cans on top of a printer that activates when emergency calls come in--causing the pop cans to fall to the floor making a loud noise. "When I saw the cell phone video, I was very disappointed firefighters want to give the idea to the public their safety is at risk," Mayor Stothert said.
- PUB DATE: 2/14/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KETV-TV ABC 7 Omaha

VIDEO: According to investigators, there are no injuries after a chimney fire on the 2,000-block of Ellis Street in Stevens Point Tuesday evening. The Assistant Fire Chief for the Stevens Point Fire Department, Jodi Baganz, told our reporter at the scene the there was also fire on the exterior of the home, but everything is out, now.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 9:34:38 PM - SOURCE: WSAW-TV CBS 7 Wausau

Firefighters on Monday night, Feb. 12 were called out to Mr. B’s restaurant on Capitol Drive in Brookfield for a possible chimney fire. The call came in around 6:55 p.m. According to the City of Brookfield Fire Department, a passersby noticed heavy smoke and fire embers from a chimney and informed the business operator.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 9:07:14 AM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

A Little Chute firefighter was taken to the hospital after battling a house fire. The call went out around around 5:30 last night (Monday) on Rolling Meadows Drive. When crews arrived, smoke and flames were pouring out of the garage. The firefighter taken to the hospital was treated for smoke inhalation.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 7:11:39 AM - SOURCE: WIXX-FM 101

Firefighters on Monday night, Feb. 12 responded to the scene of house fire in the Town of Rhine. Crews were called out to a residence on County Road EH near Little Elkhart Lake Road shortly before midnight. According to the caller, the fire started while the residents were using their fireplace. No additional details have been released — including the extent of damage to the home.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 4:35:06 AM - SOURCE: WITI Fox Channel 6

Firefighting equipment is expensive and can eat up most of a small department’s budget, fire chiefs throughout the county report. As a result, departments look for federal grants, like ones available through FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program, to help offset costs. “These grants help us purchase needed equipment without taking away funding for operations,” Salem Lakes Fire Chief Mike Slover said.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 1:46:50 AM - SOURCE: Kenosha News

One firefighter was killed and four other firefighters were injured while battling a house fire Monday evening in Lawrenceburg. Multiple fire departments from across the region began fighting the fire around 4:30 p.m. at a home in the 500 block of Hood Lakes Road. The home collapsed and a county-wide mayday protocol was established, meaning a firefighter is in danger or injured, just before 8 p.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WKRN-TV ABC 2 Nashville

It's long past midnight in Flatbush, Brooklyn, and firefighter Mark Merrell of Engine 255 is explaining to me why medals aren't important and being called a hero doesn't matter all that much. "What you try to achieve is for somebody to say, 'you're a good fireman.' That's probably the biggest compliment you can get," he says.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WABC-TV 7online.com

Horry County firefighters are leaving and moving to other departments like Myrtle Beach with complaints of too much overtime and low pay, according to Rob Mullaney, president of the Horry County chapter of the International Association of Firefighters. “A lot of the problems are staffing,” he said. “Our turnover rate is ridiculous and you’re losing a lot of mid-level and senior guys to departments, starting over at departments because the benefits are better, the pay is better, the longevity with the pay is better.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: MyrtleBeachOnline.com

In an interview with JET 24 Roger Gilbert Junior confirms that he has officially resigned as Fire Chief of the Spartansburg Fire Department. Gilbert says he has been a Spartansburg volunteer firemen for 25 years, starting as a junior fireman. He spent five years as assistant chief, before being elected chief a year ago.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJET/WFXP YourErie.com

Samuel Eaton isn’t afraid of many things. A battalion chief for the Palm Beach County Fire Rescue, the 52-year-old has made a career of charging into burning buildings and coming out in one piece. But thinking toward his upcoming birthday, he’ll tell you he’s deeply concerned. Eaton lost one of his best friends, a retired fire captain in the department, last year at 53.
- PUB DATE: 2/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Miami Herald

On February 12, 4 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

An experienced firefighter was sworn in Monday as the Portage Fire Department’s new engineer. In the Common Council chambers of the Portage Municipal Building, in front of an audience of firefighters, law enforcement, family and city officials, Fire Chief Clayton Simonson Jr. introduced Capt. Matthew Asch, 40, as the department’s new engineer.
- PUB DATE: 2/12/2018 7:56:26 PM - SOURCE: wisc news

On February 11, 6 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

A Madison fire crew helped a dog that was badly injured in a fall from a rooftop Saturday, officials said. The Madison Fire Department said a passerby reported hearing the cries and whimpers of a dog trapped on the roof of a house in the 100 block of North Butler Street at 5:23 p.m. When firefighters arrived four minutes later, the dog had already jumped or fallen off the roof and had badly broken its leg, according to the report.
- PUB DATE: 2/12/2018 12:54:42 PM - SOURCE: WISC-TV Channel 3000.com Madison