As July 4 approaches, two Lynnwood men learned the hard way Tuesday night why firefighters are so wary this year. The men, 32 and 26, were walking on a sidewalk along the Alderwood Mall Parkway just south of the I-5 overpass when one of them lit a firework. The 26-year-old man told police he knew he shouldn’t throw it into traffic so he tossed it over a fence into some dry grass.
- PUB DATE: 7/2/2015 3:09:04 AM - SOURCE: Everett Herald

Vashon’s fire department has been fined $900 and has increased its training after the state Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) issued a citation earlier this year. The penalty stems from a house fire one year ago that L&I officials contend Vashon responders did not handle correctly, possibly putting firefighters in danger.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2015 1:08:10 PM - SOURCE: Vashon-Maury Island Beachcomber

A high-ranking Bellingham Fire Department paramedic has been fired for coming to work with alcohol in his bloodstream, according to public records obtained by The Bellingham Herald. Sean Patrick Farnand, 46, a paramedic captain and a training program leader for Whatcom Medic One, has filed grievances with the city through the local firefighters’ union in hopes of getting his job reinstated.
- PUB DATE: 7/1/2015 4:32:39 AM - SOURCE: Bellingham Herald

The search continues for two men who investigators believe could be responsible for multiple brush fires that started along Interstate 5 Tuesday afternoon. WSDOT cameras captured images as brush fires started one by one along I-5. At least nine fires started within a couple of hours, and it didn’t take investigators long to notice something strange.
- PUB DATE: 6/30/2015 11:04:30 PM - SOURCE: KCPQ-TV FOX 13

Homeowners in the Broadview neighborhood say they were given a choice between wood, tile or slate roofs. At least one homeowner says this may have been the reason so many homes were lost. Fourteen years ago, Carolyn Barnes and her husband built their dream home in the hills above Wenatchee. 48 hours after a fire ripped through her neighborhood, she's taking a look at the damage and wondering why she was so lucky.
- PUB DATE: 6/30/2015 10:47:17 PM - SOURCE: KHQ-TV NBC 6