Eight years ago, Green Bay firefighters and medics answered a call that would change their lives.
The six responded to a call about a premature newborn who wasn’t breathing.
“I’ll never forget when he let out a little scream. We were high-fiving in the back of the truck,” Firefighter Chad Bronkhorst said, adding that they took ‘Little Doug’ a stuffed animal that he still has.
That was the beginning of a relationship that has grown over the years, the boy’s mother, Cami Behl, told reporters.
They’ve been there for birthday parties and welcome ‘Little Dough’ and his friends to the fire station for visits.
And when they learned last summer that his heart pump was failing, they responded — just as they had eight years earlier.
‘Little Doug’ was in Children’s Wisconsin and placed on end-of-life care.
“That’s where the firemen (sic) were such a blessing because they had such a strong belief in him,” Cami said. “They just knew that this is a little fighter here and he’s gonna make it and he’s going to be okay.”
One of his wishes was to open his own bank account. So, Green Bay firefighters started a “Dollars for Doug” fundraiser.
Things were looking up on the medical front was well when Dr. Iki Adachi from Children’s Hospital in Houston, Texas, took a chance and performed a life-saving surgery.
“Little Doug is making history in the medical community,” Dr. Adachi said. “It’s very rare and that he survived.”
Today, Little Doug is doing great.
“He has paid us in ways that you can’t put any dollar amount on,” Bronkhorst added.
A woman and two children were taken to an area hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, but a spokesperson for the City of Prichard later confirmed all three had died, WKRG reported.
March 5, 2023 FDNY officials say a lithium-ion battery ignited a five-alarm fire that left seven people, including five firefighters, injured in a Bronx supermarket.
Seven people were injured as a five alarm fire swept through a Bronx supermarket Sunday morning.
FDNY shared on Facebook that the fire was sparked by a lithium-ion battery in an an e-bike.
“This is an extraordinary amount of damage from this single e-bike, said Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said. ” Thanks to the quick work of our members who were here in under four minutes, we have not suffered a loss of life. There is extraordinary damage. This entire building behind me is completely destroyed. The roof is caved in. There is nothing left.”
The fire was reported at 10:41 a.m. and crews were on scene within four minutes.
“We quickly stretched the hoseline into the building and started to extinguish the fire,” FDNY Chief of Department John Hodgens said. “The amount of fire that is produced by a single battery in just under five minutes, we were unable to get ahead of it. It had spread quickly into the void spaces of the building and took off from there. These buildings are old and the lumber and when you expose that aged lumber, to fire, it quickly spreads throughout the entire building.”
The fire reached five alarms, with FDNY firefighters using tower ladders and ladder pipes, along with hoselines, to battle the smoky blaze.
Officials said five firefighters, one EMS member and one citizen suffered injuries, but they were not considered life-threatening.
“We stopped the fire from spreading to the furniture store but the fire had already spread to the laundromat. It’s really something that we have never seen before as far as a small fire turning into something like this in a matter of a few minutes.”
A fuel tanker overturned and exploded on U.S. 15 in Frederick Saturday and the massive flames quickly ignited nearby houses and brush.
The driver of the rig was killed in the incident, Frederick County Fire Chief Tom Coe said at a press conference.
A call to the 9-1-1 center about a house fire on Schley Avenue adjacent to the highway at noon was followed by multiple calls about a tanker explosion, Coe said.
Frederick County firefighters quickly determined that in addition to the tanker, three houses and three vehicles were burning as well as brush as the burning fuel continued to spread.
One house on Apple Avenue sustained extensive damage while two others suffered superficial damage. No civilians were injured.
“Those fires were placed under control within 40 minutes of the dispatch time,” the chief said.
Dark smoke from the burning fuel and tanker were visible for many miles in the Frederick area. The highway was shut down for several hours as firefighters worked to control the blaze.
Hazmat crews, assisted by the Maryland Department of the Environment and Frederick Department of Public Works, contained the runoff fuel and prevented it from entering Carroll Creek which flows through downtown Frederick.
Coe added that the foam used to extinguish the massive blaze did not contain PFAS, linked to cancer.
He added that the foam residue visible posed no risk to the public.
More than 100 firefighters responded to the incident including crews from Carroll, Washington, Montgomery and Viriginia as well as Fort Detrick and Camp David.
Frederick Mayor Michael O’Connor called it a ‘very scary day’ with many moving parts but said the “agencies represent the best what this county does when faced with a tragedy and challenge…”
The mayor went on to thank the responders for their quick actions and coordination which helped control the situation.
There was no spillage into the city’s sanitary sewage system. “The city will continue to monitor the environmental effects of this incident.”
The Maryland State Police is handling the crash investigation, which is continuing.
The northbound lane of the highway was reopened at 10:51 p.m.
Trevor James/Facebook
Frederick County firefighters tackle blaze after tanker explosion Saturday.
Joe Weaver woke up early Thursday morning to someone yelling outside his Lake Arrowhead home.
Around 7.am., a neighbor noticed a strong smell of natural gas surrounding their property off Highway 173 near Kuffel Canyon Road, Weaver said. So Weaver and wife Dana promptly started digging to reach their gas meter buried under 15 feet of snow. They weren’t successful, but with the help of a friend, the gas meter was eventually turned off.
That same morning, two homes went up in flames nearby due to what appeared to be gas-leak explosions, local fire authorities said. A day before, another apparent gas explosion occurred, as did a structure fire.
Still, on Thursday evening, the odor persists — and the Weavers said they haven’t been aided by the San Bernardino County Fire Department or SoCal Gas.
“If somebody comes by with a cigarette or something, these houses are going to go up (in flames),” Joe Weaver said.
Other neighborhoods near Grizzly, Rainer, and Thunderbird roads also reported gas odors Thursday.
“It’s dire up here. We are just waiting for people to die up here,” Joe Weaver said. “We can’t rely on the federal government, the state government, or the county. It’s just the residents up here are banding together to help each other out.”
Ashley Garcia said she also smelled the gas driving down Highway 173 to the grocery store during a brief excursion from her snowed-in Lake Arrowhead residence.
San Bernardino County Fire Department Battalion Chief Mike McClintock said the four fires were “unusual.” He said the blazes were under investigation but likely tied to the severe storm, adding that gas lines could be damaged by the fallen power lines, trees, and other damage that’s come with the nearly 10 feet of snow dumped on the area in recent days.
McClintock said San Bernardino County Fire was working with Southern California Gas to investigate leaks.
SoCal Gas spokesperson Brian Haas said the utility received calls from residents in the San Bernardino Mountains reporting the natural gas odor and was working to reach out to them. He added that personnel will be on the ground, but have had difficulties accessing the communities because of road conditions.
“The biggest thing if you do have a gas leak (is) to call 911,” McClintock said. “If you have a suspected gas leak inside your home (and) you’re able to access the meter, shut (it) off.”
A statement also provided by Haas said residents should “ensure that gas appliance intake and exhaust vents are clear of obstructions.”
McClintock added that fire authorities were working on educational materials to be distributed to the public about gas leaks.
But Thatiana Viana-Stine, another Lake Arrowhead resident, said the outreach has been far too slow.
Viana-Stine, who has been snowed at her home for more than a week, said she called the fire department multiple times asking for guidance on gas leaks and felt there was no clear guidance from authorities.
In the meantime, she said she took matters into her own hands and managed to clear her home’s ventilation to prevent a blaze.
“I follow the (San Bernardino) County Fire Department, and I keep seeing these tweets about houses exploding here. They’re not communicating to us,” Viana-Stine said. “The houses are exploding, like, what do we do? How can we prepare a house? How can we (prepare) so that we’re not the next house?”
The Apopka IAFF Local is calling for the ouster of Chief Sean Wylam.
The move comes after 85 percent of the members voted ‘no confidence’ in Wylam, WESH reported.
“He is and has been incapable of competently managing the men and women who have dedicated and given their lives to service at Apopka Fire Department,” union president Alex Klepper told city leaders at their meeting this week.
Michael Duran, whose son, Austin Duran, was crushed by a trailer last summer, is supporting the union’s request.
The union president pleaded with the council: “We ask you to remove Sean Wylam from his position as fire chief, so that when the next family member, wife, child or friend asks us if my loved one dies, or needs help, will I also have to fight so hard for the right thing to be done.
Duran walked around and handed each council member a photo, slapping the desk with the final one. Reporters said it was a photo of his son in the hospital.
Chief Wylam didn’t address the demand at the meeting. On Thursday, however, he wrote: “I must acknowledge and listen to the feedback and concerns of our department members. I will start by gathering the relevant facts and understanding the various perspectives from the no confidence statements.”
He vowed to work to increase his communication to reach a satisfactory resolution.
“My goal is to regain their confidence and exceed their expectations.”
A Brooklyn federal judge rubber-stamped an upcoming raft of FDNY demotions, rejecting the chiefs’ argument that the department wouldn’t be able to handle a major crisis without their leadership and experience.
FDNY Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh ordered the chiefs demoted on Feb. 3. In short order eight more chiefs, including John “Jack” Hodgens, the FDNY’s most senior uniformed official, and Chief of Fire Operations John Esposito, relinquished their ranks and asked to be put back in the field in solidarity.
The demotions will all be in effect come Monday, leaving a major staffing vacuum in the top levels of the FDNY, officials said.
“This case is about one thing: the safety of the public and valiant firefighters of the New York City Fire Department. (Kavanagh’s) demotions pushed the FDNY past the tipping point,” Attorney Jim Walden, who is representing the chiefs, noted in his law papers.
The judge didn’t buy the argument that the chiefs were unreplaceable.
“(The chiefs) have not established that irreparable harm will occur if the court does not immediately require plaintiffs to be restored to their previously held duties and prevent their formal demotions from going into effect,” Kovner wrote. “(They) have not even alleged that they themselves will suffer irreparable harm as a result of their demotions.”
The FDNY did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“If you love the department, you’ll stay, Banks told Hodgens, according to sources.
Walden said he was “disappointed” with Judge Kovner’s decision.
“But my clients will continue their fight for the public’s safety, which has been their sole mission for three decades,” Walden said.
In past FDNY administrations, demotions, particularly at the higher ranks, almost never occurred, one FDNY source said.
“It just didn’t happen,” the source said. “If they weren’t doing their job, they just wouldn’t get promoted anymore. If there was a real issue, the commissioner would just ask them to retire.
When Barbara Lovell fell in in her Hampton kitchen while cooking, she didn’t have a phone nearby, only her tablet.
The apartment was filling from smoke from the overheated stove top, WBZ reported.
She sent her best friend Lois Gannon a message on Facebook asking for help.
“She sent me a message and it said ‘Fire!’ Gannon said. “I said ‘What’s wrong are you having a fire?’ And she said ‘Yes stove on fire.’ All of a sudden she messaged me and said, excuse my language, ‘Call the (expletive) fire department,'” Gannon told a reporter.
The firefighters were able to quickly respond and put out the flames. McMahon said he is grateful the message made it to Gannon, who lives in a nearby state.
“It did work and we’re glad it did because it might not have been a good outcome for her,” McMahon said.
A spectacular fire destroyed a harborside tower under construction in Hong Kong.
More than 250 firefighters battled the fire for more than nine hours.
The skyscraper sits in the heart of the shopping district that’s visited by up to 30 million tourists every year, Reuters reported.
Falling scaffolding, made of bamboo, ignited fires in nearby buildings. Officials said Hong Kong is one of the last major cities to use bamboo in construction. Even though it’s strong and cheap, it’s being phased out. Steel and aluminum will replace it.
The 42-story building didn’t have a sprinkler system installed yet.
Mar. 2—A South Jersey woman who drove her car onto the shoulder of Interstate 76 in 2021, striking four people and killing a Lower Merion firefighter, was sentenced Thursday to 12 to 24 years in state prison.
Jacquelyn Walker, 64, of Little Egg Harbor, wept as the sentence was handed down by Montgomery County Judge William Carpenter in the death of Thomas Royds, 48, a longtime member of the Belmont Hills Fire Department.
Walker pleaded guilty in October to third-degree murder, aggravated assault by vehicle and reckless endangerment for swerving into Royds, two other firefighters and a state police trooper who were responding to a 3 a.m. crash on the side of the highway.
Carpenter said Walker showed little remorse for what he called the “malicious conduct” of driving her 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee in a severe state of disrepair, with faulty brakes, on the night she swerved into the group of first responders.
“She did not care for the rules of the road, and she had no justification for her actions,” Carpenter said. “A lesser sentence would diminish the seriousness of the crimes.”
Walker, in a tearful statement, apologized to the dozens of Royds’ family members and friends packed into Carpenter’s courtroom in Norristown. It was never her intention, she said, to hurt anyone on the night of the crash.
“I’m not trying to make this devastating accident any softer; my only wish is to have Tom Royds’ family not hate me any longer,” she said. “I’m truly sorry.”
Walker’s sentencing served as a memorial of sorts to Royds, whose family, friends and colleagues spoke about his selflessness and dedication to public service, as well as his mentorship to younger colleagues, who they said called him the “dad of the firehouse.”
Royds’ son, Thomas Royds-Helberson, took the stand to describe the fresh bout of grief he faces every day without his father. And he lamented the things he never got to experience, like sharing his first beer with him on his recent 21st birthday.
“He shouldn’t have died, but the one good thing about this is that he died doing what he loved — helping people,” he said. “One of the hardest things is when the people you make memories with become memories themselves.”
The younger firefighters struck alongside Royds took turns expressing their survivor’s guilt and remorse. Some raged at Walker, calling her a coward and saying she deserved a harsh punishment. Others said they forgave her, but still wished to see her face consequences for her actions.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele told the judge Walker’s crimes stood out because they were entirely preventable.
“What hurts so badly with this is that this shouldn’t have happened, and it wouldn’t have happened if not for the choices of this defendant,” he said.
In an interview with investigators, Walker said she had left her home hours before the crash, heading to a mall in Quakertown, according to the affidavit of probable cause for her arrest. She said she got lost as she tried to find her way home and had been pulled over three separate times by police from different departments over the course of her journey.
She said she drove onto the shoulder in an attempt to avoid the fire trucks stopped on the highway, which she said she noticed only “at the last second.” Walker told police she knew her brakes didn’t work, but chose to drive anyway.
Steele, the DA, said that decision was inexcusable.
“Firefighters understand the dangers of what they have to do to help people,” he said. “Standing on the side of the road is not something they envisioned to be the cause of a horrific death.”
