Alaska smokejumper Keaton Shepard held an IV bag full of red liquid, while across the table, Chena Hotshot Max Ryan hunched over a raw beef roast sitting in a metal tray. Next to him, Warehouse Materials Handler Charlie Pohlman held the roast steady while Ryan frantically stuffed gauze into a hole in the roast. The three BLM Alaska Fire Service employees were not taking cooking lessons at the AFS dining facility on March 12, 2020, but participating in basic training to become Emergency Medical Technicians. The three took turns simulating wound care by stopping the flow of blood, in this case the red liquid running through an IV line and out a hole in the roast. This three-week Basic EMT class is routinely offered to BLM AFS and State of Alaska wildland firefighters who may be among only a handful of people working on remote fires far from any established trauma medical services.  

Mayor Lori Lightfoot has cut a one-year deal with the Chicago Firefighters Union that includes $95 million in back pay but would nearly double employee health care contributions. One union official said rank-and-file members are "not happy" about the hike in health care costs, though the contract also maintains treasured union perks and outdated staffing requirements that cost taxpayers millions. However, the mayor's office said the higher health care contributions by employees would save taxpayers roughly $7 million a year. Active members will have to pay an additional 1.5% of their salaries towards health care costs. The deal also raises the salary cap for those contributions to $115,000. Firefighters and paramedics would continue to be eligible for retiree health care at age 55.  

VIDEO: The Franklin Fire Department trains for all types of incidents, but the rescue of two teenagers from a railroad bridge above the Harpeth River Monday was unique. Officials told News 2 the teenagers were walking on the railroad tracks around 8:15 at night. One of them dropped a cell phone, and both went to retrieve it. They ended up in a metal cage under the tracks and above a concrete pier unable to climb out. The pair used the phone to call their grandmother. She made the call to 911.The rescue was difficult on many levels, according to Battalion Chief Joseph Polenzani. First it was dark. Second the bridge was approximately 400 yards from the nearest access point making it impossible to get big equipment and crews right to the scene. Chief Polenzani said, "We weren't given an exact location at first. So, we sent in two crews to check the railroad tracks in both directions."  

PHOTO: The Wilmington Fire Department is testing out new helmets, only four firefighters are giving the new equipment a try right now, but the deputy fire chief says it could be something they phase in over time. The helmets look much different than the traditional design with many bells and whistles that make them unique including LED lights. There is also a communication system add-on which makes the helmet nearly five times more expensive than the helmets used now, costing about $1,100 for one. However, the chief says the new helmet can make communicating with other firefighters on scene much easier. "Speakers inside the helmet and a large lapel mic and boom mic that allow easy access in the dark just by feeling and you find that transmitter and you can push it and hear very clearly through the speakers in your helmet," WFD Deputy Chief Steven Mason said. "That greatly improves communications right there."  

Brownouts for local fire stations have been taken off the table as county officials plan to use one-time funds to bolster deficits in the Kern County Fire Department budget. Citing the need to save $6.5 million annually, Fire Chief David Witt prepared a plan that would have temporarily closed an average of three fire stations per day for the next year. The plan was considered solid enough that in July, the county's Human Resources Department set up a negotiation meeting with the local fire union over the brownouts. However, after the County Administrative Office worked with Witt to mitigate the need for the brownouts, the meeting was called off. Still, the fire union was alarmed by the plan, going so far as to organize a community campaign to keep all stations open. "We will see an increase in life loss, we will see an increase in property loss with delay in response times," union President Dave Nelson said of the potential for fire station closures.  

Hawaii is regularly seeing triple-digit increases in COVID-19 infections, a situation that underscores just how fast the virus is spreading in Hawaii. Scientists actually track that rate of spread ? or reproduction rate. And experts say that Hawaii now has the highest reproduction rate in the nation, at 1.6. In other words, every person who gets sick is passing the virus on to 1.6 other individuals on average. "That is very, very high," said Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell. Anything above 1 means the virus is spreading quickly. The next closest state is South Dakota, at 1.2. In Texas, the number is 1.16. Dr. Scott Miscovich, who has overseen mass testing events statewide and on the mainland, said Hawaii's reproduction rate is bad news. "It's just a glaring example of how we need to be serious about this. We need to wear masks, we need to social distance," he said.