Interesting video from UK fire: Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service seemed to be making progress on Friday with a fire at a fish and chips shop amid some 16th century Tudor buildings in Dartmouth. Things soon got out of control and the BBC reports eight businesses and up to 15 flats were destroyed. Read more about the fire.
Nice pictures from Maryland apartment fire: HowardFire.net tipped us to a nice series of pictures by Jim Codespote from Monday’s early morning fire north of Laurel. Two people were rescued. Click here.
Stand down by IAFC: Two confined space rescues that went bad and injured firefighters have the IAFC urging a fire/EMS stand down. Read details at Firefighter Close Calls.
City officials made case that battalion chiefs aren’t needed: Following two hours of heated discussion the Fort Walton Beach, Florida City Council did not cut the fire department’s three battalion chief positions despite prompting to do so. According to Jeff Barker at the Daily News, “City staffers recommended cutting all three battalion chiefs, saying a driver/engineer could direct operations from the outside until a fire chief or deputy chief arrives on scene.” Read more.
Update on Sandwich firefighters: Click here for the latest on two Cape Cod firefighters injured in what officials say was a backdraft during a house fire. The Sandwich chief downplayed the role of a closed fire station in having any impact on what happened. You can watch the story here.
Chief is the only one left: In Weston, West Virginia, in an effort to meet budget constraints, four of the five career firefighting positions have been eliminated. Check out the story.
Only two of seven firefighters showing up for work causes concern: In Endicott, New York the absence of five firefighters on one shift, leaving only two working, has people talking about what it all means. It comes at a time when the city got rid of 24-hour shifts popular with firefighters. Here’s the story.
Morganthau pulls out of FDNY discrimination case: Legendary former Manhattan district attorney Robert Morgenthau has decided not to oversee the city’s efforts to improve the FDNY’s hiring of black and Hispanic firefighters, citing the city’s “resentment” of him. Morgenthau’s appointment by a U.S. District Court judge upset the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Read the latest.
WW II bomb kills members of disposal team: In Goettingen, Germany three members of a bomb disposal unit were killed and others injured during efforts to handle a bomb that had been dropped by Allied aircraft. Read the article.
Ambulance stolen: Firegeezer has never met a stolen ambulance story he didn’t like. Read the latest one from Indiana.
Motel fire in Guilderland, New York: A fire at the Governor’s Inn and Suites on Route 20 in Guilderland early Monday morning.
