The Ashmore Fire Protection District has been awarded a $247,000 U.S. Assistance to Firefighters Grant for 2019 for the purchase of a new 4,000 gallon water tanker. Fire Chief Clay Berner said this new, grant funded vehicle will replace a 1972 tanker that has been patched repeatedly and leaks. He said this recent grant award follows Ashmore receiving a 2017 Federal Emergency Agency grant to purchase a 3,000 gallon tanker, which is newly in service now and is being outfitted to replace a 1964 vehicle. "This is great news for us because that pretty much gets our old fleet of tankers gone," Berner said. He added that Ashmore uses the tankers in the village at spots where hydrants are not operational, and uses them to support Oakland, Hutton and other area agencies as needed. "Having tankers and water supply available is a huge thing."  

The Libertyville fire department's "newest" piece of equipment actually is 20 years old, but the yearlong wait to get its refurbished ladder tower truck back has been worth the time and $647,000 cost, fire officials say. What is known as a ladder tower truck, because of the basket in front, has been in Weyauwega, Wisconsin, at a Pierce Manufacturing Inc. facility that specializes in renovating fire apparatus. "A group of us went up and gave it a final inspection and drove it back," Fire Chief Rich Carani said. "We'll let the guys get used to driving it again. The biggest thing is the ladder operation." In February 2019, Carani reported to the village board that the ladder truck was nearing 20 years old and was scheduled to be replaced. A new one was $1.3 million, he said, but a report from Pierce showed the truck could be refurbished.  

The Springfield Fire Department rescued an injured girl who was stuck on a ledge at Carpenter Park. Fire crews were called to Carpenter Park at approximately 5:15 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 27, to rescue the girl. Springfield Fire Chief Allen Reyne confirmed the girl was jumping off the rocks when she slipped, hitting the rocks. He said the girl may have a broken leg. First responders launched a boat from Riverside Park, then used a boat rope to cross the water and reach the girl.  

A fire caused extensive damage to a home on the 600 block of Country Club Drive in Kankakee on Sunday. Kankakee Fire Chief Damon Schuldt said firefighters were dispatched just before 7 a.m. The cause of the fire appears to be accidental, he said. Four adult occupants were able to escape due to a working smoke detector, Schuldt said. The occupants were assisted by the American Red Cross. There were no injuries reported. Siding on an adjacent residence was damaged.  

When Tommy McDonough learned to talk, one of his first words was "fire truck." His father, a longtime St. Paul firefighter, never doubted he would follow in his footsteps. For Mike Paidar, his path to the St. Paul Fire Department came after a successful career as a TV photojournalist. He joined the department when he was 44. And Floyd Jones, who was born and raised in St. Paul, was a trailblazing firefighter who served the city for more than two decades. Members of the St. Paul fire service and their families are mourning the recent losses of the three — men in the prime of their lives whose deaths demonstrate some of the greatest risks for firefighters, said Chris Parsons, president of Minnesota Professional Fire Fighters. One was battling cancer, another had cancer in recent years, and one died by suicide. Studies have found that firefighters are at greater risk of cancer, due to smoke and hazardous chemicals they are exposed to in their work.  

More than a dozen Milwaukee firefighters recently rode their bicycles 183 miles. It was all for a fellow firefighter who gave her life to save others. It was the first-ever Pedal for the Brave. "We have people joining us that never cycled before two months ago, but then to do a 100-mile ride one day is just a testament to the kind of grit and will that they have," said Milwaukee firefighter and Ignite the Spirit president, Joe Flick. Flick, 12 of his fellow firefighters, and a couple of civilians rode from Milwaukee to Wisconsin Rapids- the site of the Wisconsin State Firefighters and EMS Memorial. It's a trip that would take a little over two hours by car but took two days by bicycle. "We may have all gotten more than we bargained for," joked Flick. Money raised from the ride helped set up a scholarship in honor of late Milwaukee Fire Lieutenant Kristen Ciganek-Schroeder. She passed away from duty-related cancer.  

VIDEO: More than two dozen people are homeless after a 3-alarm fire at an apartment complex in New Orleans' Central City area Monday night. The New Orleans Fire Department said the fire was reported around 8:38 p.m. at a two-story U shaped apartment complex in the 1600 block of Washington Avenue. Firefighters arriving at the scene found the building heavily involved in flames. The fire department said as firefighters moved their hoses to the building, several residents ran from their apartments covered in towels as hot, thick black smoke rolled over their heads. NOFD said that 26 people were living inside 20 apartment units, but no injuries were reported. One resident's dog died in the fire. "Thanks to the remarkable job done by our firefighters and other emergency service professionals, there were no civilian or firefighter injuries reported," the fire department said.  

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 847,000 people worldwide. Over 25.3 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has varied from country-to-country. Still, the actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks. Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica. The United States is the worst-affected country, with more than 6 million diagnosed cases and at least 183,399 deaths.  

The Rochester Fire Department is expecting to welcome the largest minority group of new firefighters to its ranks during a graduation ceremony at 10 a.m. Sept. 2. Of the 30 recruits on schedule to graduate, 13 are Black, 9 are Latino and one is Asian. Two are female, including one Latina. The minority candidates comprise about 80 percent of the class. Should all recruits complete their training, their presence would bring minority service in RFD to nearly 30% of the total uniformed crew. Currently, there are 18 uniformed females in RFD. The recruit class started in January 2020. On-site training at the Monroe County Public Safety Training Facility was suspended in mid-March because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The recruits combined customized distance-learning and hands-on training at Genesee Valley Ice Rink. Wearing masks, physical distancing, hand-washing and continuous decontamination of equipment was a part of the daily training routine. Recruits returned to the training facility in mid-May.