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| Western Fire Chiefs Association, IAFC, partner with Constellis to make Fire Chiefs aware of two new products being used to combat COVID-19
Author: Western Fire Chiefs Association
The Western Fire Chiefs Association, along with the IAFC, have partnered with Constellis to make Fire Chiefs aware of two new products that are being used to combat the COVID-19 virus. One is a Rapid Test for the SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. The second is a UV-C Disinfectant for vehicle or station cleaning. Both of these products have been reviewed by multiple bodies of experts and shown to have great value to the Fire and EMS service. read more |
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| Mayor Turner announces new $5M COVID-19 fund for Houston, other city response efforts Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Wednesday that the Houston City Council decided to take $5 million from the economic stabilization fund and set up a fund specifically for anything related to novel coronavirus. Turner also announced that the city has leased two hotels and is working on leasing a third. These hotels will serve as quarantine spaces for firefighters, police, municipal workers and the homeless population, Turner said. There are 186 rooms that are ready to be used, and the leases will last for three months, Turner said. According to Turner, residents who cannot quarantine at home can also use a hotel room. The cost is about $200 daily, which includes food and other necessary services. Turner said Harris County is responsible for providing ancillary services for those using the hotels, including, food, health services and other essential services. KPRC-TV NBC 2 HOUSTON New Fire Chief in Trophy Club Starts Jack "J." Taylor, an assistant fire chief from the Irving Fire Department, is the town's new fire chief. Taylor replaces Wade Carroll, who led the department since 2017 but accepted the Assistant Town Manager position in November. "We are excited to welcome Chief Taylor to our leadership team," Town Manager Steve Norwood said. "Through the recruitment process, Taylor's leadership qualities set him apart and will make him a tremendous asset now and in the future for our fire department and the residents we serve." Taylor, 53, has an extensive background in the fire service and brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and education to the town. He is a graduate of the prestigious Southwestern Oklahoma State University with a BS in Biology/Chemistry. CITY OF TROPHY CLUB Nacogdoches firefighters, EMS split duties to limit COVID-19 exposure among first responders The Nacogdoches Fire Department and county EMS workers are splitting duties to prevent exposure to COVID-19 between first responders. Keith Kiplinger, fire chief for the City of Nacogdoches, said his fire and rescue staff met with Hospital District EMS management to discuss contingency plans regarding COVID-19 in early March. During the meeting, Nacogdoches Fire & Rescue modified its response plans more toward life-threatening emergencies, Kiplinger said. As part of the contingency plan, ambulances were relocated from fire stations to hospital-owned facilities to further prevent exposure between EMS and firefighters. "This move was designed to reduce first responder exposure, help us maintain effective social distancing. and keep our responders safe and able to respond to all of the hazards our community faces every day," Kiplinger said. KTRE-TV ABC 9 LUFKIN Follow-up: New Waco fire chief starts with introductions, big goals in critical time Gregory Summers stepped into his new role as Waco's fire chief Monday, introducing some of his long-term goals for the department while staying on top of a public health crisis. Summers said his first priority is meeting with deputy chiefs and fire department staff, connecting with employees, learning about their concerns and priorities and planning meetings with crews at each of the city's fire stations over the next few days. "My first 100 days is termed ‘the listening tour,' and all I want to do during this time frame is to make sure that the people that are part of the organization have input," Summers said. "As a chief I don't ride on the fire trucks, I don't live in the firehouse, I don't wear the firefighting gear. So I need to make sure those individuals that do those things have input as to the direction of the organization." WACO TRIBUNE-HERALD 14 people test positive for coronavirus in San Antonio nursing home San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood said that, on March 21, SAFD was made aware of an outbreak of coronavirus at Southeast Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. A group of patients that are among the city's most vulnerable residents were transported through a private ambulance and SAFD unit. Now, we know that 14 total have tested positive for COVID-19; eight are residents and six are staff members at the facility. All remaining residents were tested and 74 tests are awaiting results at this time. One of Tuesday's reported COVID-19-related deaths was a resident from this facility. The nursing home residents in Councilwoman Rebecca Viagran's district, and she calls the developments "very distressing." She also said the facility is not allowing visitors, which begs the question: How did the coronavirus end up there? KENS-TV CBS 5 SAN ANTONIO Texas Companies Are Repurposing To Help Fight COVID-19 As Texas and the U.S. face a shortage of protective medical gear and cleaning supplies due to COVID-19, companies across the state are repurposing their operations to help meet demand. A chocolate factory in northeast Texas is using its plastic packaging to make face shields, while a Dallas-based leather furniture company is now sewing face masks. And distilleries across the state like Tito's Handmade Vodka in Austin and Gulf Coast Distillers in Houston's East End are producing hand sanitizer. For Carlos de Aldecoa, President and CEO of Gulf Coast Distillers, making hand sanitizer was a natural fit because it uses ethanol, which they use to make their spirits, like vodka and bourbon. "The feedstock was there, the processing facility was there; it was just a matter of being able to produce it and blend it in such a way that it had to be denatured, which means that it's not for human consumption," he said. HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA PREVIOUS STATE NEWS |
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| Union Head: FDNY to enact ‘doomsday scenario' for medically-trained firefighters to assist EMS with coronavirus 911 calls Firefighters trained as paramedics and EMTs will assist the FDNY's overloaded medical services bureau as part of a "doomsday scenario" to deal with the surging coronavirus pandemic, the Daily News has learned. Roughly 209 FDNY firefighters with emergency medical technician licenses have been ordered to man rapid response vehicles, according to a six-minute video released Tuesday night by United Firefighters' Association head Gerard Fitzgerald. They're being asked to respond to some of the estimated 6,000 calls flooding the department's Emergency Medical Service crews each day and evaluate patients for possible coronavirus infection or other medical problems, Fitzgerald said. An additional 63 firefighters with paramedic certifications are also on tap to assist EMS on medical calls, the union leader said. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Detroit will be first city to use new 15-minute COVID-19 tests today The city of Detroit will be the first to have specific test kits that could have results in minutes. Normally, the swab tests take days to yield results. Testing with these kits begin today but only for Detroit police, first responders and bus drivers. Instead of waiting days to get results to find out if you have the coronavirus — you get results in 15 minutes. And the interesting thing about these test kits is that they can show positive results even before someone shows symptoms. "Detroit will be the first city in the country to use the 15 minute testing," said Mayor Mike Duggan. Waiting for any health test result can be nerve-wrecking, but when it comes to coronavirus — knowing if you're infected can help save lives while protecting others. WXYZ-TV ABC 7 DETROIT Fire crews in California launch mobile health support to help screen for COVID-19 Sacramento-area fire crews and public health officials are launching a new initiative to provide mobile health support to the community. "We're essentially bridging the gap between emergency services and the hospital," Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District Capt. Scott Perryman told FOX40. Think of it as an urgent care center on wheels. "They'll let us know is it something simple like a strep throat or is it seasonal allergies or is it something more significant," said Perryman. The initiative is driven by an effort to screen possible COVID-19 cases among people who may not be able to travel to be tested. "We have the ability swab and test and get it to the laboratory right then and there," explained Perryman. Typical ambulances provide immediate lifesaving care and take people to the hospital, but the teams in these trucks are different. KTXL-TV FOX 40 SACRAMENTO South Carolina creating COVID-19 database for first responders The South Carolina Department of Health is creating a database that will give first responders more information about the places and people they're responding to during the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement came on Tuesday during a news conference with Dr. Linda Bell, DHEC's Director of the Bureau of Communicable Disease Prevention and Control. "We are setting up a system through a secure database to provide to EMS dispatchers information that they need to make decisions about response," Bell said. Department of health officials said they're hoping to have the system up and running early next week. The details of this system are limited, but it did come after the South Carolina Association of Counties wrote a letter last week to Governor Henry McMaster. WMBF-TV NBC 32 MYRTLE BEACH First responders urge Minnesota lawmakers to ease path to workers' compensation for those with COVID-19 First responders and emergency workers are urging Minnesota lawmakers to ease their ability to obtain workers' compensation should they contract COVID-19. A bill before lawmakers would encompass firefighters, paramedics, police, nurses, doctors and people providing child care to emergency responders, among several others whose jobs put them at particular risk of contracting the disease that had infected 689 and killed 17 Minnesotans as of Wednesday. "It's very important, because first responders, nurses, other folks that we have included in this bill, we are going to be working directly with populations that are susceptible to COVID-19, or, already have COVID-19," said St. Paul fire Capt. Chris Parsons, who spearheaded the effort. "We are going to be put at a greater risk than the general public [for] contracting this illness." STAR TRIBUNE PREVIOUS NATIONAL NEWS |
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| | | FireRescue GPO - is now partnering with Sourcewell, one of the largest cooperative purchasing organizations in North America. Sourcewell (formerly NJPA) - is a government organization providing cooperative purchasing solutions across the United States and Canada to over 50,000 public-agency members. Membership is free with no obligation to purchase. With over 400 competitively awarded vendors - members have access to contracts for fire apparatus, ambulances, fleet vehicles and products, facilities (MRO), furniture, office supplies, leasing services, and more. Learn more about the new partnership. |
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| Firefighter/EMT and Firefighter/Paramedic - Klamath County Fire District No.1 - Klamath Falls, OR Fire Chief - City of Rocklin - Rocklin, CA Fire-EMS College Student Live-In Program - Southern Maine Community College - South Portland, ME 3M Eastern Zone-Field Service Specialist - MD, NJ, PA, DE or New York EMS Director - Meeker Volunteer Fire & Rescue - Meeker, CO (closes: Apr 05, 2020) Assistant Fire Chief - City of Savannah - Savannah, GA (closes: Apr 10, 2020) Fire Chief - Lake Valley Fire Protection District - South Lake Tahoe, CA (closes: Apr 17, 2020) Training/Safety Captain - North Whidbey Fire and Rescue - Oak Harbor, WA (closes: Apr 30, 2020) Firefighter IV/III/II - City of Thornton - Thornton, CO (closes: May 04, 2020) POST JOB MORE JOBS |
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| Bauer Fill Stations - Asking $7,995 / $8,995 - Arlington, WA 1999 Ford F550 Rescue - Bids due by 4/23/20, Minimum bid $20,000 - Grass Valley, OR 1989 American Eagle Tender - Asking $20,000 - Yakima, WA 2012 Freightliner Ambulance for Sale - Asking $39,000 - Carol Stream, IL 2001 Ford Excursion Command Vehicle - Asking $7,000 - Murphys, CA 2000 Pierce Engine - Asking $150,000 - Cody, WY POST EQUIPMENT MORE EQUIPMENT |
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| 2020 IFE-USA AGM And Educational Conference - Indianapolis, IN - April 20, 2020 Decision-Making & Financial Management for Fire/EMS Organizations - NFA - Online-mediated - May 10 - July 26, 2020 IAFC conneXions - Dallas, TX - May 18-20, 2020 International Hazardous Materials Response Teams Conference - IAFC - Baltimore, MD - June 4-7, 2020 NFPA Conference & Expo - Orlando, FL - June 15-18, 2020 Water Rescue Instructor Academy - Lifesaving Resources, LLC - Portland, ME - June 25-28, 2020 TEEX Municipal Fire School - College Station, TX - July 19-24, 2020 Canceled: FFABCs Diversity Workshop - 50th Convention IABPFF - Hartford, CT - August 2-7, 2020 Fire-Rescue Med Conference - IAFC - Phoenix, AZ - August 17-18, 2020 Fire-Rescue International Conference and Expo - IAFC - Phoenix, AZ - August 19-21, 2020 American Fire Sprinkler Association to host AFSA39 - Orlando, FL - September 13-16, 2020 Wildland-Urban Interface - IAFC - Reno, NV - November 2-6, 2020 VCOS Symposium in the Sun - IAFC - Clearwater, FL - November 12-15, 2020 POST EVENT MORE EVENTS |
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