Firefighter James Lee Jr. of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) has been named the 2017 Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award recipient. The award will be presented on Wednesday during the Opening Ceremony of FDIC International 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Firefighter (FF) James Lee rescued an 81-year-old man from the top-floor rear window of a five-story Old Law tenement that had two railroad flats per floor.
- PUB DATE: 2/23/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fire Engineering

Last summer, as the Austin fire union was preparing to represent one of its members at a disciplinary hearing, department officials permitted union president Bob Nicks to review confidential documents in the case under a provision of the city’s labor contract with firefighters. With a couple of clicks, Nicks secretly downloaded the information onto his personal laptop — but says he disclosed what he’d done a few days later to top department officials.
- PUB DATE: 2/23/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Austin American-Statesman

Tacoma Fire Department leaders have revised their hiring practices in the wake of a News Tribune story about a firefighter who died of a drug overdose in July 2016 after showing up for work impaired. Deeper scrutiny of criminal background check information and broader questions about illegal drug use are the key changes the next round of job applicants will face in April, when the department will begin filling 16 positions — 12 new positions authorized in the city’s latest budget and four existing slots to account for retirements.
- PUB DATE: 2/23/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Tacoma News Tribune

At a Berlin day care center, a little boy lights a match and touches it to another, making a sudden flare. The girl sitting next to him shouts a word that is the same in German and English: “Cool!” The two children, both under 6, aren’t breaking any rules. They are taking part in a fire workshop designed by Kain Karawahn, an artist who, as part of a performance piece about freedom in 1987, once set a blaze at the Berlin Wall.
- PUB DATE: 2/23/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Times

VIDEO: The busiest fire engine company in Wisconsin is back open for business. Fire Station 13 at 30th and Locust in Milwaukee reopened Wednesday morning with heightened security after somebody used it for target practice last week. Battalion Chief Dan Lipski tells CBS 58's Julie Parise that morale is high.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 8:29:14 PM - SOURCE: Telemundo Milwaukee,WI

VIDEO: From the Trestle Trail shooting in Menasha to the San Bernardino terrorist attack in California, active shooter incidents can happen in any community. A conference happening this week in Fond du Lac is educating law enforcement, fire and EMS on the response. For the first time in Wisconsin, hundreds of police officers, firefighters and paramedics are gathering to learn the importance of training together on how they’ll respond to active shooter situations in their communities.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 5:00:34 PM - SOURCE: WBAY-TV ABC 2 Green Bay

On February 21, 2 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

An early Wednesday morning fire that appears to have started from a gas grill, on a deck being left on, has resulted in between $115,000 and $130,000 damage to a single-family home at 210 S. Pontiac Drive, said Janesville Fire Department Battalion Chief Chris Lukas. Homeowners grilled out about 6 p.m.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 7:17:40 AM - SOURCE: Janesville Gazette

VIDEO: An overnight fire destroyed an apartment building in Berlin, leaving four families without homes. The fire happened on Quarry Street, on the Berlin’s east side. The City of Berlin Police Department says flames had spread throughout the four-unit apartment building by the time fire crews responded about 8:00 Tuesday night.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 2:19:27 AM - SOURCE: WBAY-TV ABC 2 Green Bay

City fire and emergency medical staff are concerned over the steadily increasing volume of fire and medical calls. The Beloit Fire Department responded to 5,431 total calls in 2016, compared to 5,036 in 2015. The most common types of calls fielded over the two years stemmed from difficulty breathing to reports of chest pains and fire alarm responses.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 1:45:22 AM - SOURCE: Beloit Daily News

On February 21, 0 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

Nearly one year into the District’s use of a private ambulance service to improve 911 response times and the fire chief is acknowledging the department is "struggling" with the availability of advance life support medic units. Those are the ambulances staffed by paramedics who are supposed to respond to the most critical emergency calls like cardiac arrest.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: nbcwashington.com

Interstate 20 is the corridor for sex trafficking from Dallas to Atlanta. The City of Clinton sits roughly in the middle. It now has more eyes being trained to look for victims who are trapped in the prostitution and labor system. The message to Clinton Firefighters and first responders is to take a second look at the scene and the people there, especially minors.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: msnewsnow.com

For 47 years, former Fire Chief Lynn Rogers was an active member of the Milton Fire Department but that legacy is gone, stripped away by the action of the fire company board. His photo still appears on the department's website but his record as a past chief, lifetime member, and chief emeritus is gone.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: delmarvanow.com

Wearing 60 pounds of equipment, Jessica Vanegas on Tuesday became the first woman in 10 years to pass the physical agility test to become a Paulding County firefighter. She’s expected to graduate the fire academy in two weeks, Channel 2 Action News reported. And it’s a career the young woman told Channel 2 she’s wanted her whole life, while growing up in Paulding County.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ajc.com

The on-duty city firefighter who accidentally shot himself in the hand Feb. 10 will not be criminally charged, city police said. "Our investigation determined that it was an accidental discharge and no crime had been committed," Albany police spokesman Officer Steve Smith said. The fire department is still conducting its own investigation and may take disciplinary action against the firefighter, Fire Chief Warren Abriel said.
- PUB DATE: 2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Times Union

VIDEO: For the second time in under four months fire hits a popular barbecue restaurant in Milwaukee. The kitchen at "Ashley's Que" on 2nd and National caught fire this afternoon, right as the family was rebuilding their first restaurant that burned down. The back of the building on 2nd and National is pretty heavily damaged but firefighters were able to get the fire under control, contain it to that spot, and put the whole fire out in about an hour.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 9:17:20 PM - SOURCE: WDJT-TV CBS 58 Milwaukee

VIDEO: Nearly a dozen homes alongside Highway 80 near Pittsville were flooded Tuesday after a heavy rainfall overnight. According to Pittsville Fire Chief Jerry Minor, the Yellow River rose quickly giving nearby homeowners little warning. “We've been in the middle of a remodel in the basement,” said Tanya Stelzer.
- PUB DATE: 2/21/2017 8:52:03 PM - SOURCE: WKOW-TV 27 ABC

On February 20, 5 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.

On February 19, 6 residential fire fatalities were reported by the Nation's news media.