Dave Statter spent 38 years in broadcasting in the Washington, DC area before retiring in June of 2010. In his youth he had been a volunteer firefighter, fire department dispatcher and a cardiac rescue technician in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
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Dave Statter joined 9NEWS NOW (WUSA-TV) in Washington, DC as a general assignment reporter in August 1985. Since May of 2007 he has also edited the website STATter911.com. STATter 911 focuses on fire and EMS issues worldwide, with special attention to news and videos Dave generates from the Metropolitan Washington area.
Besides a career in broadcasting that began in 1972, Dave was a volunteer firefighter in Oxon Hill, MD from 1974 to 1980. Dave also worked as a dispatcher for the Prince George’s County, MD Fire Department from 1976 to 1979. In 1977 Dave was in the first group of Cardiac Rescue Technicians certified in Prince George’s County.
Dave, along with his wife Hillary Howard, an anchor at all-news WTOP Radio, annually host the satellite uplink from the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Memorial Weekend in Emmitsburg, MD. In 2007, STATter 911, in partnership with Firehouse.com, provided the first-ever live streaming of the events, allowing the important ceremonies to be seen around the world.
In his broadcast career, before coming to 9NEWS NOW, Dave worked at WTOP Radio where he was a news and traffic reporter. Prior to that he worked at a number of radio stations in Southern Maryland and in his home town of Baltimore.
In 1997, Dave was the first in the mainstream press to discover and report on the problems with “Omega” fire sprinklers. “Omega” sprinklers were eventually recalled by the CPSC.
The stories he is most proud of came under the banner “Get Out Alive”. From 1995 to 2001, 9NEWS NOW did a series of reports and a half-hour special teaching people what to do in case of a fire in a single family home, a high-rise building, and a garden-style apartment. Those reports and the special have been shown to the public at fire prevention seminars around the country. Thousands of brochures have been handed out by firefighters throughout the region. 9NEWS Now still gets requests for the brochures and tapes.
In 1993, Dave was named “Best Crime Reporter” by Washingtonian magazine. His still pictures of the arrest of James Edward Swann, the 1993 “Mount Pleasant Stalker,” were used by 9NEWS NOW and on the front pages of The Washington Post, The Washington Times and in papers around the country.
In 1991 Dave won an Emmy for Spot News Coverage of the Mount Pleasant Riot. Dave, with the late photographer Sheldon Levy, received a Gold Medal in the International Film and TV Festival of New York for his coverage of the dramatic rescue of a family from its burning Northeast Washington home in 1989.
In 1988, he and 9NEWS NOW photographer Mike Flynn taped a DC ambulance searching for a location for 30 minutes. This coverage led The Washington Post to write a series of editorials on the subject, along with a greater examination of the local ambulance system.
In 1986, along with former 9NEWS NOW reporters Mike Buchanan and James Brown, Dave broke the tragic Len Bias story, receiving a 1987 United Press International Broadcast Journalism Award and a Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters’ Association Award.
Dave’s coverage of the 1987 Amtrak derailment, which prompted drug testing of all future Amtrak employees, won a local Emmy and a 1988 Chesapeake AP Broadcasters’ Association Award. In 1989, Statter covered two nights of rioting in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Dave has extensive experience in hurricane coverage including reporting from Charleston, SC as hurricane Hugo made its direct hit on the city. In his spare time Dave also has spent many hours storm chasing in the Midwest and Great Plains.
His first live reporting assignment for WTOP Radio was covering the 1982 Air Florida disaster.
Dave and Hillary live in Northern Virginia with their son Sam.
Dave,
Can’t believe I’m the first to comment. Congratulations on the new web site. Looks Great! This is one of the first sites I check daily to see what is going on in the fire world. Keep up the good work!
Does this mean that your site won’t be e-mailed daily to us, as the blog was in the past? Thanks.
I like the fresh new look… Keep up the great work Dave!
Dave – Nice look but that’s not what’s great about your site. You’re a professional reporter and the agenda is information. Not so common.
The new website format is good except it lacks one feature contained in the old site. As you scroll down the article summaries in the new site and click to read the detail you are taken back to the top of the articles when you close out the detail. This wastes a great deal of time re-reviewing the article summaries already covered to get back to where you had been. The former site took you back to your current spot in the summaries when you closed out an article. It may not seem like much of a problem but it’s not very efficient for the users.
Hey dave might want to check into the fire in dallas texas reports from fox4 lastnight that two members have gone to hospital at a 7 alarm fire after a wall collapse
dave
i know this is not fire related,but can you update us on the four officers killed in washington state.
Have you been informed of Burtonsville (drunk)Vol. firefighter who urinated on sleeping career firefighter?
Does anyone know how Sandy Lee is doing? Sandy (Barbara A. Lee) was a former Bladensburg VFD member who became one of the first female PG Co. Firefighters. She had a series of unfortunate incidents (Kicked by a horse, run down by a vehicle, and finally run over and dragged by Truck 22 responding on a 9-Box) After I left Bladensburg VFD & PGFD and moved to Polk County, Florida, I had heard that she had many challenges,and was wondering what ever became of her. I did hear that she did a safety film titled “Under the Wheels” but have never seen it.
Can you find out wo the new medical director in Washington DC is? Dr. Augestine apparently resigned, don’t know exactly when though. Aren’t we supposed to always have a Doctor in to operate under? Anyway, my chain of command doesn’t know whats going on.
Dave,
It’s nice to see info, news and vids about incidents from around the country on your new website…which seems very well developed. I have 2 recommendations for ya to consider though.
1. Have a means of displaying or linking Washington DC area info directly aside from national stuff. Your new page is soooo smothered with non-DC Metro area info that it seems you could lose your DC area fan base…especially ME. I used to pull the page up every day…now it’s once a week because I’m tired of scrolling through all the national info. and flipping pages to get local stuff. Your big start was in DC and your affiliation is there through WUSA9….let us not forget our roots big guy.
2. The numerous vid clips on your main page sometimes makes it take awhile to load and at my office (authorized use). It often locks up and won’t display at all. How about putting news links instead of embedding the vids directly…or organizing the page into DC local vs Nat’l news…just a suggestion for those of us that don’t have the latest & greatest PCs or allot of time to hunt for news on our local brothers.
Thx
Hey Dave, update on your DFC Ellerbe Story. Word on the street is that he resigned from the DCFD on Jan 15. Is there a way you can confirm that new development and circumstances?
Dave -
I’ve followed your stories for years & am very impressed with both your website, and the breadth of coverage.
I am a physician misbehavior researcher. I examine cases of sheer goofiness – and only the very rare medical error. I am wondering of you would be at all interested in such material.
God bless & keep up the great work.
Dave,
Thank you for sharing all these stories. I am a 911 Trainer and I teach new and current dispatchers. I always need stories to share to keep up skills. Thank you for taking the time. I believe dispatching is a profession, not a job!
I have a fire video from Hemet Calif for your blog. How do I submit it to you?
Also, on another subject. I watched the hearings on 3/17 on Fire/EMS overtime. In it, Chief Rubin said that Assistant fire Chief Shultz had received $4,000 in overtime pay during one pay period because of the blizzards. In fact, he said that ALL the assistant fire chiefs have been paid overtime this year. These guys report directly to the Fire/EMS Chief and earn about $140 K a year. It is against District of Columbia law for Assistant Fire Chiefs to be paid overtime. I think it is in D.C. Code Section 1-616(f). Assistant Fire Chiefs are explicitly banned from receiving overtime. I know $4,000 is not that much in the scheme of things, but if all five or six of the Assistant Chiefs are receiving overtime, it could amount to a tidy sum. BTW, Assistant Fire Chiefs in other administrations NEVER received overtime.
So Sparky was the arf-onist?
Dave,
During your trip down memory lane, do you recall a number of fires in Takoma Park, MD around 1983 due to gasoline in the sewer system? I was with Silver Spring Engine 11 that day and recall about 14 building fires in a couple of hours time.
Dave,
Just wanted to say thank you for everything you do for public safety across the country. I work in a suburb of Phoenix, Az but have spent a significant amount of time in the DC and surrounding areas. You have always been professional and respectful in your years of reporting. Thank you for everything, I wish you luck in your future endevors.
Sheesh, how’m I gonna tell you about it when you never call, you never write….Miss you too!
I don’t remember you telling me about the emmy either! Email me, I have some news (good)
Terri
We were in a Washington Area Public Safety – Media Relations Council meeting that I was chairing. I think it was being hosted somewhere in Virginia. I was still working or WTOP Radio. I ended up on Ray Road covering it. But I was way late to the party. I do recall it.
Dave, Are you leaving channel 9? If so, may I ask why? I only half heard Anita say something regarding you tonight at the end of the 6 o’clock.