Sunday, February 1, 2015   Thomas Erwin, Syracuse fire district chief and a longtime firefighter, died at Crouse Hospital Saturday night surrounded by his family.Erwin, 51, of North Syracuse, had continued working until Christmas while battling lung and bone cancer that had spread to his brain. When he could no longer drive, his colleagues picked him up so he could come to work, said his daughter, Danielle Erwin.

On Wednesday, Thomas Erwin watched his 17-year-old daughter graduate in a special ceremony from his hospital bedside (video). The ceremony was arranged and conducted as a surprise for Danielle and her dad by Bishop Grimes High School administrators and a teacher.

"It meant the world to me,'' Danielle said.

Thomas Erwin, who had been back a... [ more ]

Saturday, January 31, 2015  There are questions about why an Osceola County firefighter fell three stories from a training center building.
He fractured his pelvis in two places, and now state investigators will look into what went wrong.
The training facility is where most of the areas firefighters go to train.
Firefighter Jay Jackson was on the building earlier this week when he fell.
On Tuesday he posted on Facebook that he had two fractures in his pelvis, one fracture on the ball of his radius, and that he didn’t need surgery.
Sources who were there said Jackson was showing some trainees at the center how to use their emergency backpack.
Firefighters use the pack in case they need to get out of a building quickly.
While Jackson was 30 feet up with a belay, or safety rope, he fell straight to the ground.
He was showing the trainees how to use part of that emergency pack.
He landed on his feet and rolled, which likely saved him from a deadly injury.
Jackson was tied with a rop... [ more ]

Saturday, January 31, 2015  Kern County (California) Sheriff's officials say a man who shot at Firefighters and deputies early Friday morning near Lost Hills has taken his own life. It happened at 11:55 P.M. Thursday on southbound Interstate 5 near Highway 46, according to the California Highway Patrol. A Mt. Shasta County Fire Department Chief and Firefighter noticed a car swerving erratically.  When the fire chief stopped to help, the suspect -- who hasn't yet been identified -- opened fire and ran into a nearby field. Deputies responding to the shooting were also fired upon,. No injuries were reported.  A SWAT team was called to assist. After a standoff which lasted for approximately four hours, they found the suspect dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  

Saturday, January 31, 2015  Firefighters put out a blaze in a structure on Highview Terrace.The call for the fire came in at 3:50 p.m., according to the Berlin deputy fire marshal. The heavy fire, which started in the garage, spread quickly.

Fire crews attacked the fire using tanker water, which was exhausted quickly. Then crews had to dig out fire hydrants from the snow to run hoses to the fire trucks.
It took 30 minutes to knock the fire down.While fighting the fire, firefighters were ordered out of the structure when the roof partially collapsed; it collapsed when firefighters stepped onto it.

The homeowner was outside plowing when the fire started, and he ran in to rescue his son in law and three-year-old grandkid. All three were taken to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

The ranch home is a total loss, and the cause of the fire is being investigated.

Cromwell Fire was called in to assist with the firefighting efforts.



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Saturday, January 31, 2015  As Syracuse district fire chief Thomas Erwin battled cancer over the past year, he promised his daughter Danielle he would see her graduate from high school in June.
The cancer that started in his lungs and bones spread to his brain, but the 51-year-old dad from North Syracuse continued to repeat his vow to his daughter.
As he grew sicker and spent more time in the hospital, Danielle began to worry he might not make it to her graduation from Bishop Grimes High School.
On Wednesday afternoon, Thomas Erwin got to fulfill his promise to Danielle.
He watched his beloved, only child graduate and receive her diploma from his hospital bed in a special ceremony arranged by Bishop Grimes Assistant Principal Patrick Kinne.
"It meant the world to me,'' Danielle said Friday from Crouse Hospital where the family has gathered.
Danielle Erwin's uncle, Steve Erwin, called school officials Wednesday morning to ask about the possibility of conducting a ceremony. Thomas Erwin's lungs... [ more ]

Saturday, January 31, 2015   A new computer-based fire-dynamics study by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has helped to clarify the circumstances and violent fire behavior of a lethal 2011 blaze in a San Francisco hillside home. The fire in the multi-story, single-family dwelling claimed the lives of two firefighters.The analysis, conducted using NIST’s Fire Dynamics Simulator, underscores the importance of ascertaining how heat and gases are likely to flow in a burning building before mounting an attack.

Summarized in a report* and a video (see box), the study concludes that the failure of basement windows near where the fire began transformed an interior stairwell into a “chimney for hot gases” that poured onto the first floor, where the downed firefighters were found. Air... [ more ]

Saturday, January 31, 2015  According to firefighters at the scene on Marion Street, this was the “worst case of hoarding they have seen.”

"In over 30 years of being a fireman, this is probably one of the worst I've seen as far as hoarding conditions inside the house,” said Munhall Fire Chief Ed Pletsch.

A 65-year old woman lived at the home; however, she was not there when the fire started.

Channel 11’s Brandon Hudson reported that the injured firefighters fell off a ladder and were taken to an area hospital. Pletsch said one firefighter broke his leg and another bruised his shoulder.

Officials said it was hard to fight the flames because of the conditions inside the home. 

The homeowner is staying with relatives while the fire marshal investigates how the blaze started.

Friday, January 30, 2015  We regret to pass on to you that Firefighter Leslie "Les" Fryman, 58, of the Rosendale VFD (Wisconsin) died in the Line of Duty while responding on a run.,

Firefighter Fryman was a passenger in a tanker/tender responding to a mutual aid structure fire when he went unresponsive. Fellow members treated Fryman and transported him to a local hospital. Firefighter Fryman was subsequently transferred to another hospital where he succumbed to his injury seven days later. The nature and cause of fatal injury is still to be officially reported. Our condolences to all affected. RIP.

Friday, January 30, 2015  Caney (Kansas) Firefighter Cliff Sanders, 55, died in the Line of Duty yesterday after having collapsed at the Caney firehouse while responding to a fire call for a grass fire Wednesday afternoon.

FF Sanders was first transported to a hospital in Tulsa where he died several hours later.

This is the first line of duty death for the Caney Volunteer Fire Department. Our condolences to all those affected.

Thursday, January 29, 2015   A total of eight people were hurt in an Akron (Ohio) house fire this morning. When companies arrived, they had working fire conditions. Three civilians were rescued by the members and were taken to local hospitals with one woman was badly burned, while another man and woman sustained smoke inhalation injuries.
Five firefighters suffered "minor burns" and one had to jump out of a window. Three adults, a man, and two other women, were trapped inside as the blaze blocked a stairway.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015   We have always looked at PPV as another tool-used based upon conditions, in coordination with companies operating and only ordered by command.   

UL is now testing positive pressure ventilation....and HERE are excerpts from an article on ABC7 Chicago.com (entire article link and VIDEO below) about fire fighting testing at Underwriters Laboratories:


Researchers at Underwriters Laboratories in Northbrook [monitor] the oxygen levels and temperatures [in a controlled burn] … to reduce the number of people killed in blazes.  About 150 sensors are strategically placed [two] homes, which are inside a UL warehouse.


“A lot of tactics are coming in question because while the number of fires are going down the number of deaths are remaining the same we are hurting ourselves,” said Mike Halterman, a firefighter and paramedic in Wilmette.


Not only are those firefighter deaths concerning, but so is... [ more ]

Tuesday, January 27, 2015  As we posted Saturday, Phoenix had a CLOSE CALL when some members were caught in some vented fire. The video shows one of those firefighters falling off the roof to the ground as well as the fire conditions following the venting. Check it out HERE:

http://www.fox10phoenix.com/clip/11066799/phoenix-firefighter-suffers-burn-falls-from-burning-home-during-early-morning-blaze

Monday, January 26, 2015   An early morning fire displaced three people and injured one firefighter in South Middleton Township.Citizen's Fire Company Chief Tim Yingst said the cause of the blaze, which broke out around 3:35 a.m. Sunday at 709 W. Pine St., is still under investigation by the state police fire marshal.

One firefighter was hurt when a rafter came down and struck him on the head, Yingst said. He was transported to the hospital with a neck injury and is expected to be released soon.

The American Red Cross is also assisting three people who were displaced by the fire.

Yingst said the fire started in an attached garage and totally destroyed the garage and the two vehicles inside. It spread into the home, causing moderate damage.

Crews had the fire under control in about a half-hour.  

Sunday, January 25, 2015  Five months after being diagnosed with a terminal illness and receiving immense support from the community, Jonesborough firefighter Luke Story died Saturday afternoon with his family and extended family by his side, a news release from the Jonesborough Department of Public Safety said. Story was 37.Story was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer in August after doctors at the Johnson City Medical Center identified cancerous masses on Story’s liver and pancreas. Doctors gave Story three months to a year to live, and after that, Jonesborough community members rallied with emotional and financial support by selling merchandise and holding events in his honor.

Story became a volunteer firefighter in Jonesborough at age 19, and became a full-time firefighter three years later. In 2007, he was promosted to Officer in Charge and became a platoon sergeant.

“Sgt. Luke Story spent his adult life serving his community to make it a better and safer place,” Jones... [ more ]