VIDEO: Ketchikan Area Mayors are taking action after a major fire at the South Tongass Volunteer Fire Department (STVFD) last Tuesday left the station unusable and five emergency vehicles with serious damage. On Friday, the mayor's of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough, City of Ketchikan and City of Saxman signed a Joint Declaration of Local Disaster Emergency in response to the building fire. In a Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly meeting on Monday, the body approved a resolution approving the declaration put forward by the Ketchikan area mayors in a vote of 7-0. The declaration further requests that Gov. Mike Dunleavy issue a disaster declaration and for the state to provide additional assistance to the borough during this time of need.  

A Brooklyn merchant wound up in fire marshals' handcuffs for improper storage of highly-flammable lithium-ion batteries inside his business — the first arrest of its kind ever reported in New York City, FDNY officials announced Monday. Tian Liang Liu, of the Electric Bicycle Shop at 1239 Flatbush Ave., was taken into custody on April 12 in a rare criminal action by the FDNY. Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh outlined the details of the arrest during a Monday press conference at the FDNY's MetroTech headquarters in Downtown Brooklyn. "The FDNY E-safety task force made up of the Bureau of Fire prevention, our Special Investigations Unit, and Fire Investigations conducted an inspection," Commissioner Kavanagh explained. "Fire marshals arrested Tian Liang Liu and brought him to the 70th Precinct to be charged."  

VIDEO: The Los Angeles Fire Department is mourning the loss of a recruit firefighter who was killed in a hit-and-run crash on the northbound 101 Freeway in Studio City Monday morning. According to LAFD, Jacob Fuerte, 22, "may have been involved in a traffic collision" shortly after 5 a.m. near Vineland Avenue as Fuerte was on his way to training. "He got out of his vehicle, likely to assess the situation and render aid to anyone in need, when he was hit by another vehicle," fire department spokesman Erik Scott said in a videotaped statement posted on X, formerly Twitter. Despite the efforts of emergency responders, including the fire department, Fuerte was pronounced dead at the scene. "We extend our heartfelt sympathy to the immediate family, friends and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time," said Scott.  

VIDEO: When we think of dangers to firefighters, it's the flames and burning buildings that come to mind. But there are dangers you don't see like the chemicals that can lead to esophageal and other cancers. New screening methods are helping catch the cancers earlier. Firefighters are exposed to hundreds of chemicals such as benzene, formaldehyde, and asbestos. "Everyone knows somebody going through it. We have someone on duty right now working with cancer," said Steve Cook, President Birmingham Firefighters Association. Gases, vapors and particulates get on their skin, eyes and gear. Birmingham firefighters have a high call volume, more than anywhere in the state, leading to greater exposure to hazards. Eighty firefighters were recently screened at an event in the metro area for esophageal cancer. The one minute EsoGuard test is used to find precancerous cells in the esophagus.  

VIDEO: A piece of firefighting history has returned to the place where it first began its service to the community nearly a century ago. The Exeter Township Fire Department has acquired a 1930 Mack fire truck, thanks to a donation from the Reiffton Fire Company Social Quarters. "I saw pictures of what we were going to get, but when I walked in, it got me a little emotional just to see it in person," said Dep. Chief Chris Jordan. The truck served the township for more than 25 years. "We brought back the 1930 Mack that was an original piece of apparatus for the Reiffton Fire Company, which has now merged into the Exeter Township Fire Department," said Jordan. It was then sold to the Kulptown Fire Company in Union Township, which used it for about a year, according to the E.T.F.D. The truck ultimately ended up in the hands of Jack, a private collector in Maine.