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Quick Takes

Restaurant fire in Guatemala: Posted yesterday, there is no date on this fire in Xela. Listen to the crowd reaction.

Crash between two Maryland fire trucks exposes deeper mutual aid issues: If you read all of the emails and statements coming from both sides of the Anne Arundel – Calvert border you will likely draw the conclusion that the crash of Tower 40 and Engine 51 on February 14 is only a symptom of a greater problem. There are accusations from the leadership of both the Anne Arundel County Fire Department and the Dunkirk Volunteer Fire Department that the other side is responsible for their relationship woes. We have a lot for you to read and to see. Click here for our coverage.

Our friend Steve Skipton took in this fire in Camden, New Jersey on the way home from work last night. He has more pictures from the blaze on Mt. Ephraim at PhillyFireNews.com. Click the image.

Fireground audio and pictures from 3-alarm PGFD fire: A fire yesterday afternoon tore through the garden apartment building on Mistletoe Springs Road. We have pictures from Mark Brady and other sources and radio transmissions from our friends at FireSceneAudio.com. Check it out.

$300,000 severance package for fire chief who makes more than the governor: Chief Scott LaVielle‘s salary running the North Highline Fire District in King County, Washington was $186,370. LaVielle was responsible for two station’s and 35 employees. By contrast, Seattle’s Chief Gregory Dean, managing 32 stations and 1155 employees, makes almost $13,000 less. I am also guessing that Chief Dean doesn’t quite have Chief LaVielle’s golden parachute. In this tough economy LaVielle’s position has been eliminated, but he walks away with a severance package worth $300,000. Keith Ervin at The Seattle Times takes a look at how this came about.

City stalling on funeral bill because more than 40% was for booze: City officials in Buffalo say they aren’t backing down from their refusal to pay for almost $11,000 in alcohol that was part of the $25,000 bill submitted by IAFF Local 282 to cover expenses for the funerals of Capt. Charles “Chip” McCarthy and Firefighter Jonathan Croom. Union says the city is breaking a contract and the law. Read the story from WKBW-TV.

Ops chief is cool under fire: Reno’s Joe Durousseau deftly landed his Cessna 172 in the middle of traffic on I-80 yesterday. The operations division chief was returning from a humanitarian mission to Mexico when the plane had engine problems. No one was hurt. Read the story. Watch the story and the interview.

Volunteer firefighter guilty of speeding to a fire: In Erin, Tennessee, volunteer firefighter and alderman Brian Richardson has been found guilty of going 77 mph in a 30 mph zone while traveling in his own vehicle to a fire. But there is so much more to this story. Richardson blames it all on politics and an ongoing conflict between the cops and firefighters. The story gets somewhat complicated to follow, but I will let you figure it out. Click here.

10-year sentence for EMS worker in fatal wreck with ambulance: Firegeezer has been following this tragedy from Kentucky for some time and has the conclusion.

Suburban chiefs say layoffs will impact mutual aid: Concern around Flint, Michigan, with the latest fire department cut backs, that mutual aid to the suburbs will be less mutual. Read more.

Posted by dave statter on February 23, 2010 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Buffalo Fire Department, Career - Volunteer Issues, Command & Leadership, EMS Health & Safety, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, IAFF, In the Line of Duty, Line of Duty, Major Incidents, News, Quick takes, Videos • Tagged: Brian Richardson, Buffalo, Buffalo Fire Department, Camden, Capt. Charles "Chip" McCarthy, Cessna 172, Chief Gregory Dean, Chief Scott LaVielle, Dave Statter, Erin, firefighter, Firefighter Jonathan Croom, Firegeezer, Flint, golden parachute, Guatenala, I-80, IAFF Local 282, Joe Durousseau, Kentucky, King County, Lousiville, Michigan, Mt. Ephraim, New Jersey, New York, North Highline, North Highline Fire District, PhillyFireNews.com, Reno Fire Department, Seattle, severance package, speeding, STATter911.com, Steve Skipton, Tennessee, washington, Xela

Quick Takes

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Austin raw video: This is somewhat early amateur video taken yesterday morning in Austin, Texas after Joseph Stack crashed his plane into a building housing the IRS. Our coverage from yesterday is here. Firegeezer was also updating the story through much of the day.

The must read story from Detroit: It immediately was overshadowed by the events from Austin after I posted this one from Detroit News reporter Charlie LeDuff. Still, it really is worth taking the time to read. LeDuff visited fire stations, apparently against Detroit Fire Department rules, in his effort to determine how money allocated for firehouse repairs was used. He found it was used, but apparently not for fixing the fire stations. The response from fire department officials is quite interesting. Here is the story.

Collision between two fire trucks that appears to be a hit and run: Dave is kicking himself for not finding the time to follow this one after receiving a tip a few days ago. If you haven’t done so already, check out the coverage by the Annapolis Capital of the crash Sunday between a fire engine from Dunkirk in Calvert County and Anne Arundel County’s Tower 40. Police report that charges are pending against the driver of Dunkirk’s engine (whose driving duties are currently suspended). The police report indicates that Tower 40 had the green light as it was responding though an intersection and was sideswiped by the Dunkirk rig. This pushed the tower into two other vehicles. Witnesses say the Dunkirk engine kept going to the call, but Chief Toby Sealy says his firefighters are indicating they didn’t leave the scene. Here’s the story.

$6.2 million discrimination & harrassment award to LAFD firefighter overturned: The 2nd District Court of Appeals says Brenda Lee, a black lesbian firefighter, failed to exhaust administrative remedies. Read the latest.

Dispute between volunteer companies over newspaper ad: In November we told you about the ousting of Fire Company No. 1 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Now, they have taken out an ad urging citizens to vote against the $25 million budget. It has estranged them from two other volunteer houses in the Cherry Hill District. Here’s the latest.

One fire officials answer to slow EMS response times – lie about your symptoms: We just came across an article from earlier this month where a deputy fire chief in Erin, Ontario tells people to exaggerate their symptoms when calling for an ambulance so a fire truck can also be sent. This is his answer to sometimes hour long waits for an ambulance to arrive on the scene. It is a technique that we all know has been widely used by citizens who want a faster EMS response in some of our largest cities. Here is the original story. Here is the response from paramedics who believe this is not the answer to the problem.

Backdraft in Chicago injures four firefighters: It happened during a house fire yesterday afternoon. Firefighter Close Calls and Breaking News Center have the details.

Indiana firefighter arrested on arson charges: Lee Yoder is a volunteer firefighter in DeKalb County, Indiana who has been charged with setting three structures on fire. Here’s the story.

Three-alarm church fire in East Baltimore: Fire destroyed the Mt. Calvary Baptist Church on North Milton Avenue yesterday morning. Here is our coverage.