A housefire was reported early Sunday morning in Sterling at 3:45 a.m. An off-duty firefighter was woken up by his daughter after 3:00 a.m. to be alerted of a house fire in the area where he lived. Captain Joshua Thompson with Central Emergency Services provided the details to KSRM, "The way it started was, a guy that actually works for our department and his daughter woke him up at about 3:00 a.m. and looked across the lake and saw a house on fire. She woke him up. He woke up and looked out the window and saw it and thought maybe it was just a bonfire across the lake, but decided to go investigate it. When he went and investigated it, he found a house on fire with people inside that were sleeping. He kicked in their door, woke them up, and got them out. Probably saved their life, I'm sure. They had no idea that their house was on fire."  

First responders from all over Green Country were some of the first people on scene at the Oklahoma City bombing 26 years ago. "We watched it unfold and everybody is wanting to go help," said Tulsa Fire District Chief Pete Matlock. Matlock shared pictures from his time sorting through the wreckage in downtown Oklahoma City. He was sent to help a few days after the bombing. "Seeing a building like that was so ominous, it was something I had never seen before," Matlock said. Matlock describes almost every waking hour of the four days he spent there in what he calls an "ant train." "You would hand it to somebody, they would hand it down," he said. He said at that point, his mission was focused on body recovery, not rescue. Matlock remembers vivid details, like the smell of Little Caesar's cinnamon rolls, that employees made for the rescuers even though the bombing destroyed most of the restaurant. "They set up these tents and took care of us," said Matlock.  

Andrew Morgan, a firefighter at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity over the weekend. He took off in the backseat of an F-16 with Thunderbird Major Jason Markzon as his pilot. Prior to the flight, he was showed the ropes by Thunderbirds and given a brief training session. "It was surreal. It gave me a different perspective, obviously, from everything I'm used to and see on a daily basis," Morgan said. "To be able to do those maneuvers and what the guys are capable of is mindblowing." Firefighter Morgan is already a real-life hero. He made a daring rescue back in October, bringing three painters to safety at the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. They were hanging 375 feet above the ground after a scaffolding broke. Morgan reportedly repelled down the building, strapping one of the men to his body. The other two were hauled to the roof by the rest of his team.  

Acting President & Chairman of the Board Ken Stuebing and the Board of Directors of the International Association of Fire Chiefs are pleased to announce the appointment of Fire Chief (Ret.) J. Robert "Rob" Brown, Jr., as IAFC Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director. As CEO/Executive Director, Mr. Brown will be responsible to assure that the IAFC builds upon our near 150-years of success at the forefront of the fire, rescue and emergency services profession and that the IAFC's advocacy, leadership, education and service initiatives are laser focused on the success and support of our IAFC members worldwide. Additionally, Mr. Brown is responsible for the overall leadership, management and continuity of IAFC corporate operations and serves as President and CEO of the IAFC's subsidiary company, Emergency Services Consulting International (ESCI), working with ESCI Chair, Chief Chris Christopoulos.  

It's hard enough to be a volunteer firefighter. They rush into burning buildings. They get up in the middle of the night to battle blazes. They save lives. "I personally don't think you should be selling hoagies in the rain, in the freezing cold, on the weekend," Pennsylvania state Rep. Ryan Warner, R-Fayette County, told a group of firefighters assembled at the state Capitol Monday morning. He's hoping his recently introduced legislation will do just that – take some of the burden of fundraising off of firefighters. Fundraisers are what pay the bills for Pennsylvania's volunteer fire companies, but the coronavirus pandemic brought these efforts to a halt with restrictions on in-person gatherings. At first, some fire companies were holding online raffles, and that was working great, until they were contacted by the state police and their county treasurers' offices, saying under their small-games-of-chance licenses, they were not permitted to accept credit or debit card payments.  

PHOTO: On Friday evening, members of five local fire departments were engaged in a fierce fight — not with a fire, but with each other. Instead of their usual tools — hoses, axes and ladders — they were chucking foam balls at each other, playing dodgeball. It was a strange sight to see. Firefighters from the Saranac Lake, Lake Placid, Bloomingdale, Paul Smiths-Gabriels and Duane volunteer fire departments packed into the gymnasium of the Citizen Advocates building (the former Pius X high school) in Saranac Lake, paying dodgeball in full firefighting gear. It was a fun way to practice an important skill. It was an air consumption drill, teaching members breath control and oxygen conservation. "It helps build confidence for them in case they're in a situation where their TAS alarm goes off and they're either trapped or they need a little more time to get out of a burning building," Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department Second Assistant Chief Doug Peck said.