Welcome to the IAFF Frontline News Brief, distributed twice a month to IAFF affiliate leaders and IAFF members. We encourage you to forward this news to your members and others in the fire service.

The Frontline News Brief is delivered directly by email and is also published on the IAFF web site. You can view past issues at http://www.iaff.org/Comm/frontline/news.htm.

Your feedback is also welcome - email pr@iaff.org with questions and comments.
 

"SAFER Grant Application Period Open" (International Association of Fire Fighters)
"Los Angeles Fire Fighter's Photos of RFK Killer Released for First Time" (International Association of Fire Fighters)
"Charleston 9 Memorial Service" (International Association of Fire Fighters )
"Fire transfers revealed" (Charleston Post & Courier)
"Phoenix Fire Fighter Takes Office" (International Association of Fire Fighters)
"Vermont Governor Signs Life-Saving Smoke Detector Bill" (International Association of Fire Fighters)
"Universal Studios Fire Burns Video Vault, Injures Firefighters" (NBC News)
"Bill Would Study Rates of Cancer Among Rhode Island Fire Fighters" (Boston Globe)
"Can You I.D. Fire Memorial Desecrator?" (City News Service)
"Hoover Fire Chief Saluted for 60-Year Career" (Birmingham News )
"Fire Fighters File Human Rights Complaint" (Fire Fighting News)
"Seattle Pays Damages to Fire Fighter Hurt in Training" (Seattle Times)
"Montana Fire Fighters Contest Media-Access Policy" (Associated Press)
"Nashville Fire Fighters Question Chief's Leadership" (News Channel 5)
"Fire Fighters Attend More Medical Emergencies and Fight Fewer Fires" (Fire Fighting News)
"Movie May Be Made of Life of Fallen Firefighter" (Myrtle Beach Herald (SC))
"Shaping Up All Part of the Job for Firefighters" (Aurora Sentinel)
"Fire-Station Special" (The Washington Times)
"First Coast Firefighters Raise Money for the Charleston Nine" (First Coast News)
"Plan Could Revise When Firefighters Respond" (News-Leader)

 

SAFER Grant Application Period Open
International Association of Fire Fighters (06/03/08)

The IAFF encourages its affiliates and their fire departments to apply for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Services (SAFER) grants. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began accepting applications May 27, 2008. 
(Web Link)
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Los Angeles Fire Fighter's Photos of RFK Killer Released for First Time
International Association of Fire Fighters (06/09/08)

On the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, retired Los Angeles Fire Captain Jim Perry released photos that were taken June 5, 1968, by Los Angeles fire fighter and fire department photographer Harold Burba just moments after Kennedy was shot during a presidential campaign speech at the Ambassador Hotel after winning the California primary.
(Web Link)
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Charleston 9 Memorial Service
International Association of Fire Fighters (06/06/08)

A memorial service for the Charleston 9 will be held June 18, 2008, at 10:00 a.m. at Gaillard Auditorium, 77 Calhoun Street in downtown Charleston. The service is expected to last about one hour. Seating will be limited, but an overflow area will be in the auditorium's exhibition hall with closed circuit television.
(Web Link)
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Fire transfers revealed
Charleston Post & Courier (05/31/08); Menchaca, Ron

The Charleston Fire Department released a list of nearly 50 fire fighters who were abruptly reassigned, prompting fresh criticism that some moves are payback for those who called for change in the wake of the deadly Sofa Super Store blaze. The latest criticism comes as a City Council committee was scheduled to meet to discuss the flurry of promotions and transfers approved by Fire Chief Rusty Thomas in the waning weeks of his tenure. Thomas announced his retirement May 14, the day before a consulting panel issued a scathing report on the department's handling of the sofa store fire.
(Web Link)
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Phoenix Fire Fighter Takes Office
International Association of Fire Fighters (06/05/08)

When Phoenix, AZ Local 493 fire fighter Joel Navarro decided to run for Tempe City Council, his fellow Local 493 members and other IAFF fire fighters from across Arizona rallied behind his campaign. Thanks to all of their hard work, Navarro won his election and is set to take office July 17.
(Web Link)
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Vermont Governor Signs Life-Saving Smoke Detector Bill
International Association of Fire Fighters (06/03/08)

Vermont Governor Jim Douglas has signed into law legislation requiring the installation of photoelectric smoke detectors in homes across the state. Support for this life-saving initiative was garnered through testimony from the Professional Fire Fighters of Vermont (PFFV), along with Barre, VT Local 881 and Boston, MA Local 718 fire fighter Jay Fleming.
(Web Link)
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Universal Studios Fire Burns Video Vault, Injures Firefighters
NBC News (06/02/08)

More than 300 fire fighters were needed to extinguish a raging fire on a Universal Studios back lot on June 1. A total of 10 people were injured in the blaze, including nine fire fighters. An explosion later in the day sent two additional people to the hospital. According to representatives for the Los Angeles County Fire Department, the fire moved very quickly because it was fueled by extremely flammable building fronts used in the studio's films and television shows.
(Web Link)
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Bill Would Study Rates of Cancer Among Rhode Island Fire Fighters
Boston Globe (06/08/08);

Fire fighters are used to rushing into burning buildings, and now some are worrying if they may also end up fighting an another threat -- cancer. Rhode Island fire fighters are pushing a bill that would authorize the Department of Health to study the rate of cancer among members of their profession.
(Web Link)
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Can You I.D. Fire Memorial Desecrator?
City News Service (05/30/08)

Certain Canadian fire fighting associations are offering an $11,000 reward to anyone who provides information that leads to the arrest of the person who defaced a fire fighter memorial at Queen's Park in Toronto. The May 12 incident was captured on a security camera, but investigators have not been able to get a positive identification of the perpetrator because of the poor quality of the video footage. Authorities say the fair-skinned man who appears in the video vandalized the Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial with nonsensical graffiti that has yet to be fully removed, according to Brian George of the Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association. The crime has drawn the attention and support of the fire fighting community in Canada and abroad. "We would like to see the individual who committed this cowardly and depraved act arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law," says International Association of Fire Fighters General President Harold Schaitberger.
(Web Link)
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Hoover Fire Chief Saluted for 60-Year Career
Birmingham News (05/31/08); Cason, Mike

Hoover fire fighter David Forehand said he and his colleagues know not to try any shortcuts in their work with their 79-year-old chief, Tom Bradley. Bradley, who started with the Bessemer Fire Department in 1948, has seen it all. Bradley was recognized for a career that will reach the 60-year mark on September 1. He received a 60-year service pin from the International Association of Fire Fighters.
(Web Link)
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Fire Fighters File Human Rights Complaint
Fire Fighting News (05/31/08)

Twelve Paducah fire fighters filed a complaint with the Paducah Human Rights Commission alleging that the city practiced age discrimination in canceling two tests for promotions in the department.
(Web Link)
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Seattle Pays Damages to Fire Fighter Hurt in Training
Seattle Times (05/10/08)

The city of Seattle has paid more than $1.7 million to a fire fighter injured during a training exercise, ending its fight against a court award in the fire fighter's favor. Kevin Locke, now an emergency dispatcher, was badly hurt when he passed out and fell from a ladder in the training accident in 2000.
(Web Link)
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Montana Fire Fighters Contest Media-Access Policy
Associated Press (05/28/08)

The fire fighters' union is challenging a Billings Fire Department policy that demands that on- or off-duty employees notify supervisors when contacted by the news media. International Association of Firefighters Local 521 says the policy violates freedom of speech. The union's legal team in Washington, DC, is likely to issue an opinion on the policy, said Dan Cotrell, Local 521 president. "It's obvious it is not okay to talk to the press," said Cotrell, who finds some of the policy's language contradictory.
(Web Link)
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Nashville Fire Fighters Question Chief's Leadership
News Channel 5 (06/04/08)

Nashville fire fighters are challenging the leadership of the chief. Fire fighters said proposed cuts in the new budget will jeopardize citizens' safety. "It's a tough time and I think we need to realize that," said Nashville Fire Chief Steve Halford. He plans to expand ambulance service and rollback, layoff or eliminate 49 positions. The fire fighters union objects. More than 1,400 members received ballots calling for a no confidence vote on Halford.
(Web Link)
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Fire Fighters Attend More Medical Emergencies and Fight Fewer Fires
Fire Fighting News (05/28/08)

When a Spokane resident calls 911 with symptoms of a heart attack, the first responding vehicle likely will be a shiny red firetruck. It's a system that Spokane City Council members say takes years off the lifespan of expensive fire engines at a time when more than 80 percent of calls don't require fire fighting equipment. Like many cities' departments, Spokane's Fire Department has experienced a significant increase in medical runs over the past several years, while fire calls have remained steady. The city is considering purchasing cheaper trucks designed for medical emergencies and using the fire engines to fight fires.
(Web Link)
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Movie May Be Made of Life of Fallen Firefighter
Myrtle Beach Herald (SC) (06/04/08)

Walt Disney Pictures is considering making a movie about the life of Louis Mulkey, one of the nine Charleston fire fighters killed while fighting a furniture store fire on June 18, 2007. In addition to serving his community as a member of the Charleston Fire Department, Mulkey was a coach at the local high school. His team, which recently won the South Carolina Class four-A basketball championship, left their gold medals at his gravesite following their winning game.
(Web Link)
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Shaping Up All Part of the Job for Firefighters
Aurora Sentinel (06/04/08); Johansson, Brandon

The Aurora, Colorado, Fire Department is taking steps to improve fire fighter health and wellness. According to the department's health and safety officer, Lt. Eric Franks, more than half of fire fighter deaths in the United States are the result of cardiovascular problems. He also estimates that 75 percent of those problems could be detected with proper testing. As a result, the department has developed a new initiative to help fire fighters stay in shape and make sure they get their hearts tested regularly. In a recent presentation to the city's Public Safety and Courts Committee, Franks said overall, fire fighters are in good health and stay safe. There has never been an Aurora fire fighter killed in the line of duty and very rarely does any fire fighter fail to pass an annual fitness exam. Franks attributes this success to a 15-year-old department standard that requires fire fighters to exercise for one hour each day they are at the fire station using the station's weight rooms or running on its treadmills. Members of the department also participate in the Cross Fit program, which was designed for fire fighters and other professions with challenging physical requirements.
(Web Link)
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Fire-Station Special
The Washington Times (06/04/08); Geracimos, Ann

French-born chef Jean-Claude Le Lan shows his appreciation for the services fire fighters offer by preparing meals for the Washington, DC Fire Department's Engine Company 6. Formerly the chef at Le Refuge in Alexandria, Virginia, Le Lan cooks for the crew of Engine 6 for free, either at his house or at the firehouse. Le Lan, who lives in the neighborhood where the station house is located, goes all out, sometimes preparing three-course meals for the fire fighters and any hungry extras who stop by the firehouse. He provides everything for the gourmet meals, including professional utensils, an occasional appliance and a cooler on wheels to keep his ingredients chilled. His efforts are a treat for the crew, which normally spends $10 each per day on provisions for three hearty meals. Sean Gilligan says it is a treat for fire fighters, who are discouraged from using written recipes. "If you are seen with a cookbook, you lose credibility," Gilligan says. "If I get a recipe, I'll memorize it." For Le Lan, the gesture is a labor of love intended to show his appreciation for all the hard work fire fighters do.
(Web Link)
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First Coast Firefighters Raise Money for the Charleston Nine
First Coast News (05/28/08); Naquin, Talia

Brotherhood Ride 2008 is a nine-day ride honoring the nine fire fighters killed in a warehouse fire in South Carolina last year. Fire fighters from Florida and as far away as Texas and Ohio traveled to Charleston, South Carolina, to raise money for the fire fighters' families. Jeff Morse of the North Naples Fire Department coordinated the ride, which began on May 23. Morse said, "When you have a fire with nine fire fighters dying, not only does it make us stop and think, but it makes our families stop and think about it." Each day's ride began with a moment in which one of the deceased Charleston fire fighters was remembered; arriving at the next stop on the ride "[puts] that person to rest," said Morse.
(Web Link)
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Plan Could Revise When Firefighters Respond
News-Leader (06/04/08); Bridges, Amos

Officials in Springfield, Missouri, have proposed a new plan designed to ensure fire fighters are only called out for medical emergencies that are considered life threatening. Under current policy, fire fighters are dispatched for any cardiac arrest, any car accident with a confirmed injury, and any industrial entrapment. Other calls are forwarded to CoxHealth or St. John's, which handle Springfield's ambulance services. Dispatchers at those locations assess whether or not fire assistance may be necessary. The new policy will set forward a number of specific criteria that designates a situation "life threatening." Fire fighters will only be called out for situations meeting these criteria, although dispatchers will still have the opportunity to call fire fighters if they deem it necessary. Officials hope these new regulations will help reduce the department's emergency response times.
(Web Link)
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