Florida Attorney General Recognizes Nonprofit’s Support of First Responders as Yellow Lab Buster Becomes Eighth Dog Adopted Through the Station Dog Program

PONTE VEDRA, Fla. (Oct. 7, 2021) – Today, K9s For Warriors, the nation’s largest provider of trained Service Dogs to military veterans, received Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Back the Blue Award for its dedication to the state’s first responders. In celebration, K9s For Warriors donated a Station Dog to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) to mitigate the stress and anxiety commonly found in dispatch operators, first responders and police officers.

Attorney General Moody’s Back the Blue Award honors law enforcement officers, citizens and organizations that have taken extraordinary steps to forge positive relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve. The campaign recognized K9s For Warriors for its Station Dog program, which reallocates trained Service Dogs that either completed their time paired with a veteran or are identified as having a temperament better suited for a Station Dog environment.

“The brave men and women of Florida law enforcement often find themselves in extremely stressful and dangerous situations,” said Attorney General Ashley Moody. “I am so thankful for the work being done by K9s For Warriors to help connect law enforcement heroes with K9s to help them heal and cope with some of the invisible wounds inflicted while protecting Floridians. I look forward to watching the Station Dog program grow and help even more members of our law enforcement community.”

Founded in 2011, K9s For Warriors has rescued more than 1,300 dogs across the country and paired nearly 700 veterans with trained Service Dogs to mitigate symptoms of post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injuries and military sexual trauma. The nonprofit’s Station Dog program provides homes for trained dogs that will no longer be paired with veterans by placing them with police and fire departments. JSO’s adoption of Buster, a yellow Labrador retriever, marks the eighth Station Dog donated by K9s For Warriors and the seventh in Florida.

“We are dedicated to supporting our nation’s heroes, and while our focus is on helping military veterans overcome mental trauma, we started the Station Do

Personnel with Marble Falls (TX) Fire Rescue will have a $863,000 fire engine in service as the city council voted to enter in a turn-in lease agreement at a meeting on Tuesday (Oct. 5), according to a report published by DailyTrib.com.

According to the report, the 10-year lease will allow the department to retire a 2003 model in reserve and use the proceeds to help pay for the new apparatus. The report continued to say the lease arrangement gives the firefighters the option to turn-in the truck at the end of 10 years and get something different that might be better suited to department needs at that time. The department currently operates two frontline engines and an aerial with one in reserve, the report stated.

The report said the 2003 that will be liquidated when the new engine arrives in about 13 months is not big enough to carry all the department’s equipment currently and the department doesn’t want to find itself in the same situation in the future.

The Boswell (PA) Volunteer Fire Department Wednesday held a ground-breaking ceremony for its new station.

“Since its founding in 1908, the Boswell Volunteer Fire Department has called the 600 block of Hower Avenue home. In 1959, the original wood frame building was torn down and in its place a brick and cinder block structure was erected. This building at 606 Hower Avenue has been our base of operations for over six decades and has been able to be adapted to more or less meet the growing and changing needs of the department, the department said on Facebook.

“But operating a modern public safety agency requires a modern facility. We have quite literally outgrown the current station. Undersized garage bays limit the types of vehicles we can purchase, and have been the cause of numerous scratches and dents to our apparatus. Ambulance staff bunking in overnight lack private quarters in which to sleep. Spare equipment is packed into nearly every corner, nook, and cranny throughout the station. 606 Hower Ave has been a great home, but it’s time for an upgrade…

“And that upgrade begins [Wednesday]. Through the generosity of an anonymous donor, along with grant funding, we are officially breaking ground on a new and modern station to be built on our bingo hall/firemen’s grove property just down the street at 201 Hower Ave. This project has truly been years in the making, and once completed will help us in providing quality emergency service to our community for years to come.

“You’re invited to join us Wednesday afternoon at 4pm as we welcome Senator Pat Stefano, other local leaders, and the media for our official groundbreaking. And don’t forget to watch with us in the months ahead as our new home takes shape!”

An accident that destroyed a $400,000 Anderson County (SC) 2014 fire engine and left a firefighter charged with DUI will be a test for the county’s volunteer firefighter system as a tax increase for new engines will begin to show up in tax bills in the coming weeks, reports independentmail.com.

The tax increases, narrowly approved by voters in May, are expected to be about $0.77 extra for a $100,000 home or $2.12 for a $300,000 home in the first year of a multi-year increase, the report says.

It’s not clear what the insurance will be or how much, if any, of the new collections will go toward a replacement for the wrecked apparatus that served the Starr community, according to the report.

Officials say it will take some time for the insurance and investigation process to unfold. They had planned to buy three new engines this year but will only be buying two because it may take some time for the investigations to conclude.

The destroyed apparatus immediately replaced by a backup, which the county keeps several of around, the report says.

We had a push-in ceremony to celebrate a new fire engine now in service at Station 16 (Pantops).

Push-in ceremonies call back to the 1800's when apparatus was pulled by horses and had to be pushed into the bay.

We don't have the horses, but we still have the traditions. pic.twitter.com/otyGPqreMv

— Albemarle FireRescue (@AlbemarleFire) October 6, 2021

The Albemarle (VA) County Department of Fire Rescue’s new engine will serve Pantops, the surrounding areas, and be the first to run fire calls from Pantops’ Station 16, reports cbs19news.com.

The apparatus cost $850,000 and was part of an 18-month project, officials say, and it was funded through the Capital Improvement Project plan.

The new engine aims to better support Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital and local senior living facilities.

In addition, the report says the department hired 22 new firefighters and is looking for more.

Learn more about how this engine fits into a larger initiative to enhance fire rescue service in Albemarle County: https://t.co/BW99LZO7FC

— Albemarle FireRescue (@AlbemarleFire) October 6, 2021