Early video of Virginia townhouse fire: You will hear a pretty good blast on this brief cip taken at a townhouse fire at 610 Olde Greenwich Circle. The early morning fire yesterday kept firefighters in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania busy. Click here for Part 2, which lasts a bit longer.
NEW – Jacksonville firefighter shot and killed overnight: In Florida police are trying to determine who killed a Jacksonville firefighter at a service station early this morning. A spokesoman for JFRD will only confirm at this point that the victim is one of the department’s firefighters. Click here for the story.
NEW – Chief’s test is a mess: Actually it isn’t the test itself that is the problem in Lynn, Massachusetts. Finding a new chief is complicated by the fact that there was already controversy because of how the current acting chief was appointed to deputy chief in 2006. That went to arbitration and the city lost in June. Read the details.
Promotions in New Haven a step closer: In a process that took 6-minutes, New Haven’s Civil Service review Board did what it did not do in 2004 and okayed the promotions of one Hispanic and 13 white firefighters. Read the latest.
Don’t panic: You may recall after the recent death of Montgomery County, Maryland’s Scott Doyle there was information about donations that can be made to the Don’t Panic Foundation. At the time I wasn’t that clear on the purpose of the group. Now, thanks to Sam Villani, I am. The Don’t Panic Foundation was formed to help public safety professionals and their families recover from injuries that occur while off duty. You may recall that Scott Doyle’s family initially had difficulty bringing him back home after he was injured while BASE jumping in Idaho. You can click here for details or go to the website at don’tpanicfoundation.org.
Decembers past: Billy Goldfeder takes a look at a month that has us remembering some tragic incidents. He focuses on 1999 and the tenth anniversaries of fires in Worcester, Massachusetts and Keokuk, Iowa that together took the lives of nine firefighters. Check out The Secret List which includes links to many stories and reports. Make sure you read the one on retired District Fire Chief Michael McNamee who made the decision not to send any more firefighters into Worcester Cold Storage and likely saved the lives of other firefighters.
Group gets what it opposes: You may recall that Habitat for Humanity International joined the National Association of Homebuilders in the opposition of residential sprinklers. Another local chapter apparently doesn’t buy that position. In Wilmington, North Carolina firefighters and Fire Technologies, Inc. teamed up to provide residential sprinklers for Habitat homes. Click here.
Not guilty plea for former Long Island chief accused of altering stats for pension: Former Hempstead Village fire chief Lester Arsell entered a not guilty plea on a 50-count indictment that accuses him of inflating the number of calls Arsell and his wife responded to as part of an effort to qualify for pension benefits. Read more.
Bank robbers get stiffed: This has nothing to do with fire and EMS, but it is a story from my colleague Scott Broom that you don’t want to miss. In Calvert County, Maryland a pair of bank robbers thought they were holding up a bank on Monday. They were about as inept as Woody Allen in the movie Take the Money and Run. Instead of a bank they found themselves inside the funeral home next door. Click here to watch the story and the interview with the funeral home manager.
Pennsylvania house fire: A second alarm was called on Saturday for a house fire in Lower Macungie Township. NewsWorking.org was on the scene and wrote this about the fire – At 1945 hours Lower Mac #30 responds to 1299 Walnut Lane for a house fire with possible entrapment. On arrival, crews find a two-story single-family Dwelling with heavy fire showing. A second-alarm was struck immediately. Tanker 25, Engines 15, 31, 7, ladder 8, Air 32 and rehab 66 respond on the 2nd alarm. Heavy fire was consuming the rear of the house and second-floor. Multiple hand lines were stretched and Truck 30 went to the roof to open up.
