Orange Fire Department responded to an early morning fire and found one man dead. Firefighters arrived at the scene around 7:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 29 in the 900 block of Link Avenue. Upon arrival, fire crews saw the heavy smoke and flames coming from a single-story home, Orange Fire Deputy Fire Chief Lee Anne Brown said in a news release. Firefighters saw a car in the driveway. Neighbors told the firefighters that there is usually someone home when a car is in the driveway. Firefighters tried to search the inside of the home, but were forced out due to the heavy fire and deterioration conditions. After the fire was contained, crews searched the home again. An 81-year-old man was found dead in the home.  

The Brownwood Fire Department hosted a pinning ceremony Friday afternoon for its recently installed chief, Eric Hicks, and for three other firefighters who have been recently promoted. Jody Horton has been promoted to assistant fire chief, William Campbell was promoted to lieutenant and Jesse Castillo was promoted to driver. The department also named Justin Cadenhead as firefighter of the year. In a ceremony held in the Central Fire Station's large engine bay, City Manager Emily Crawford introduced Hicks, who retired as chief in De Kalb, Illinois and moved with his wife, Kathy, to Texas where their son and two daughters live. Hicks was named Brownwood's fire chief in November following the resignation of former Chief Eddy Wood and began working in January.  

Austin Fire Chief Joel Baker is shifting resources in response to a looming budget crunch, but the leader of the firefighters union says he's worried the money-rescuing effort could make fire crews less safe. In a recent budget memo to firefighters, Baker said the Austin Fire Department had spent nearly $2 million more on overall overtime expenses than it had anticipated, just four months into the fiscal year, which began Oct. 1, 2019. Baker blamed the "unprecedented spending" on firefighters taking more sick, family and injury leave than expected, which spiked overtime costs when other firefighters had to fill the shifts. "We can estimate and predict a lot of things, but the human factor, such as injuries, is not one of them," Baker said in a statement to the American-Statesman. To scale back on overtime spending, Baker said he would move 19 firefighters in charge of running safety programs back to standard firefighting duties to help fill the 103 vacant positions within the department.  

All from getting in and out of tight spaces to cutting through dangerous wires, firefighters from across the country have spent the last few days with our firefighters in Annaville. It's all about sharpening their skills and getting ready for the next call. Alfredo Franco Jr., is the Training Officer for the Annaville Fire Department. "Make sure that we are up to date and up to par whether it be knowledge, skills, tools, techniques...anything to better serve our community." Said Franco. The firefighter survival search and rescue school is named after Randy Ccarpenter who, alongside two other firefighters died in the line of duty. Michael Snodgrass is the President of the Randy Carpenter Memorial Firefighter Survival Search and Rescue School. He says his job is to make sure the ones who run into a burning building to protect us make it out, alive.  

The Chapel Hill Volunteer Fire Department received an HB2604 grant for a forcible entry simulator that will allow firefighters to sharpen their skills on popping open doors, windows, and locks. "This is very handy for not only our training but for every other district in the county as well," 2nd assistant chief of Chapel Hill Volunteer Fire, Adam Moore said. The Fire Department Assistance - Texas A&M Forest Service helped provide the simulator in January. "Chapel Hill VFD's commitment to protecting its community is based on response and training. This new forcible entry simulator will allow the department to prepare for accessibility issues they may encounter during emergencies," said Josh Bardwell, RFC Texas A&M Forest Service.  

Officials responded to a house fire call in Cypress Saturday after people were said to be inside. "It's pretty amazing what those gentleman did to go in and get the resident out. If they hadn't done that, the chances of his survival would have been very low," said Cypress Fire Chief Richard Lieder. Inside the home was a couple; a woman and her quadriplegic husband. Some neighbors happened to be standing outside when they saw smoke. "He's in hospice and he's bedridden. He can't move. I mean, my main priority was to get him out. If we waited any longer, he might not have made it," neighbor Andrew Cline said. "Me and my dad didn't think we were going to make it out, to be honest with you. I've never felt like I couldn't breathe like that." Chief Lieder said the men's actions were heroic.  

The International Association Firefighters (IAFF) and the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters (WSCFF) issued a joint statement reporting that several firefighters have been exposed to the virus. The statement reports that members from Kirkland Fire, Redmond Fire and Woodinville Fire had been exposed to the coronavirus, and were isolating themselves for evaluation. IAFF and WSCFF say they spoke with infectious disease experts and medical professionals to find resources and information, and develop a way to make that information more accessible. They announced the creation of their ‘Coronavirus online toolkit,' which aims to provide up-to-date information on the coronavirus and what has transpired so far in Washington.  

VIDEO: Falls happen on ice, in homes, and outside. When EMS and fire crews respond, Des Moines Fire says it's easy for them to get hurt when lifting someone that has fallen. That's why Jeff Downing, an engineer with Des Moines fire, created the Jak Harness. "I felt the need to create this because in recent years we've been going on more and more calls of people that have fallen down and they're not injured and they can't get up," Downing said. Des Moines fire crews have gone out on 700 public assist calls since last September. The thought is that the Jak Harness will make the calls easier. "I had this idea and I'm like, 'I'm just going to try it,' explains Downing. "It's been working really well!" The Jak Harness has been in the hands of first responders for a month and was used on four different apparatus calls. Downing says that the Ames and Bondurant fire departments are one of the few stations in the area testing out the product.  

First responders in Nebraska would be offered annual "resiliency training" to help combat and cope with post-traumatic stress disorder under a bill given initial approval by state lawmakers on Wednesday. State Sen. Mike McDonnell, a former Omaha fire chief, said that 1 in 4 firefighters on average will visit an emergency room during their career for physical injuries on the job. But, he said, "We don't think about the mental injury. A lot of times we don't see it. It's hidden." McDonnell made Legislative Bill 963 his priority bill. It was introduced by State Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, a decorated military veteran, who said that he received treatment for PTSD, but that was 11 years after he was shot and wounded in battle. Brewer said that PTSD has contributed to an epidemic of suicides among veterans that now numbers 22 a day.  

It isn't easy to describe the life of an emergency responder, but Jonathon Gould, with Chatham EMS, sees it as "sheer boredom interrupted with complete chaos." Gould, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician from Ludowici, has wanted to help others since he was a teenager, putting himself through EMT school at the age of 17. "What we do isn't glorious," Gould says. "You're supposed to fix people, but sometimes we can't. That's the most frustrating part, is throwing up your hands and saying: 'There's nothing we can do. They need more intensive care.'" Despite being a first responder for nearly a decade, the hardships of the stressful line of work can still be challenging. From these stresses and hardships, Gould created a way to make time go a little more easily. "We found this random rubber duck," Gould says. "We hid this duck to see who could find it, which ambulance crew could find it. Then police got involved, and they wanted to go find rubber ducks."