Three Watseka firefighters recently completely training through a new blended program. Jacke LeSage, Dakota Schroeder and Chris Thibaut completed the basic operations firefighter course at at the University of Illinois Fire Service Institute in Champaign. The training was made possible through a grant from the Illinois State Fire Marshal's Office. "The basic operations firefighter is basically the starting standard for firefighters," said Watseka Fire Chief Tim Ketchum. "That's the very first certification that they want anyone to get," he said. "It's definitely a competency of all firefighting skills. It's the first step that everybody has to go through. "The traditional academy where firefighters would learn these skills is seven weeks, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to when you are done," he said.  

A 55-year-old man was killed in an apartment fire in the Back of the Yards on Saturday. The fire started around 4:30 a.m. on West 48th Street. Firefighters said the gas was off and residents were using space heaters, but the official cause of the fire has not been determined. "We've got to be sure that if you're using a space heater, please make sure it's used safely," said Deputy District Chief Walter Schroeder. "Don't overload your electrical outlet. Don't keep those space heaters close to anything combustible." Somewhere between 15 to 20 people were displaced. The man was found dead on the third floor. His name has not been released.  

The Harvard Firefighters' Association helped raise more than $10,000 for a 30-year veteran of the Harvard Fire Protection District who recently was diagnosed with cancer, Deputy Fire Chief Don Davidson said. In September, the association hosted a fundraiser called "Fight for Phil" to benefit firefighter Phil Jacobs, who was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. He has been undergoing chemotherapy, radiation treatment and stem cell transplants, according to fire district staff. The Fight for Phil fundraiser included a poker run and golf outing, as well as a 50/50 raffle and silent auction. Recently, Jacobs and his family were presented a check from the fundraising efforts.  

A fire Saturday morning in a Roseland home on Chicago's South Side caused serious damage. Firefighters responded just before 6 a.m. to the area of 112th and State streets for a reported structure fire. Crews were able to extinguish the blaze quickly, and no one was injured, fire officials said. It was not immediately clear how the fire began or how much the damage was estimated to cost. Smoke was still rising from the building later Saturday morning, as investigators walked around the home. Wood fragments also appeared to be spread across the roof and yard.  

A 55-year-old woman died Friday night after a two-vehicle, head-on crash on Bloomington's far west side. McLean County Coroner Kathy Yoder said her office was notified that the woman was pronounced dead at 7:21 p.m. at Advocate BroMenn Medical Center, Normal. The woman's name was withheld until next of kin can be notified, Yoder said. An Autopsy is scheduled for Saturday, Yoder said. The McLean County Sheriff's Department is working with Yoder on the investigation but did not release additional information late Friday. Firefighters and police from several agencies were called about 6:45 p.m. to the scene in the 1900 block of West Washington Street, which is just east of Bloomington Heights Road. The scene was closed to traffic until about 10 p.m. for the investigation.  

The failure of the state of North Dakota's ladder truck has left Jamestown Fire Chief Jim Reuther worried about the department's ability to fight fires and make rescues from taller buildings in Jamestown and the North Dakota State Hospital. The ladder truck is owned by the state of North Dakota under an agreement where the JFD provides fire protection to the State Hospital. Many of the buildings at the State Hospital are multi-story and would require a ladder truck in the event of a fire or rescue situation. That agreement was canceled by the state of North Dakota when the truck failed inspections after attempts to repair the ladder system. The truck is currently stored at the State Hospital and will likely be sold as surplus property, Reuther said. The absence of the truck has created a big problem for the JFD. "We have nothing to fill that need," Reuther said.  

VIDEO: A shortage of water hampered firefighters' efforts Friday to save a historic 120-year-old home in Concord which was originally built for the prominent descendant of a U.S. President. The fire at 240 Fairhaven Hill Road burned a 6,500-square-foot home that was built in 1899, according to records. The five-bedroom, five-bathroom mansion is valued at approximately $2.9 million. Advertisement By 2 p.m., the stately home had been reduced to a smoldering shell. Historical records show the home was designed by Boston architect H.D. Hale for Charles Francis Adams III, a great-grandson of President John Quincy Adams. It was one of the first two large country estates not associated with farming in the town. Charles Francis Adams III was an 1892 graduate of Harvard Law School, a treasurer for Harvard University, the fourth mayor of Quincy and the 44th Secretary of the US Navy.  

When the call comes in for an opiate overdose, Akron Fire District Chief Joseph Natko said paramedics drop everything and respond as fast as they can. But four to six minutes can pass from the time someone dials the phone to when a paramedic treats the patient. When people overdose, Natko said they can seem intoxicated or unresponsive. And sometimes, they stop breathing. "If they're not breathing, they're dying," Natko said. If the patient or someone close to them has the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, commonly known by the brand name Narcan, the patient could receive a life-saving dose sooner than waiting for paramedics, Natko said. "If they have the Narcan in hand, maybe they can change the outcome," Natko said.  

Jamie Dukes tried the door handle, throwing his weight against the small metal door that led to the outside of a North Charleston industrial facility. It wouldn't move. Inside the structure, pallets of polyester were stacked more than 6 feet high. A plastics warehousing firm was moving in, and Dukes, a North Charleston fire inspector, was on site to sign off that the property was up to code. The door worried him. It had to be fixed that day, Dukes told a project manager. An exit from the building couldn't be rendered useless. Each year, Charleston-area fire inspectors carry out thousands of visits at new construction sites and existing buildings. Buoyed by a strong economy, area development has expanded at a rapid pace over the past decade and fire departments are faced with a challenge — keeping up with the increasing inspection workload.  

VIDEO: The Newark Division of Fire now has a permanent way of remembering its fallen heroes. The department recently installed a memorial for firefighters killed in the line of duty. "It's a real risk and our new wall reminds folks of that," Newark Lt. Neal Murphy explained. The tribute consists of eight plaques with names, dates and a short description of each of the eight men killed since the fire department's inception. The glass markers were installed and a ‘thin red line' was painted on a wall in the main corridor of Station One near downtown Newark. "A lot of those people on the wall, none of us have ever met. They're from the early 1900s, 1800s," said firefighter Kevin Garwick. "But they're still part of our fire department family and part of our history."