JA’KORI MADISON
The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La.
(TNS)

The Milton Volunteer Fire Department received $250,000 to upgrade its station, helping it enhance fire protection for the community and ensure first responders have the resources they need to protect lives, according to Fire Chief Damon Broussard.

Lafayette Consolidated Government, which provided the funding, hosted a ribbon cutting Friday to celebrate the newly renovated fire station at 303 W. Milton Ave. Mayor-President Monique Boulet, former state Sen. Paige Cortez and members of the community were on hand.

Now we have a place that if we need to come in and take a break, maybe get a cup of coffee or something, we have a place for them to go, because before it was just a vacant building,” Broussard said.

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The building had remained vacant since its construction in 1976, leading to the gradual deterioration of its insulation. The renovations included a kitchen with a sink, an office with a desk and computer, and a refined paint finish. While the improvements benefit first responders, the new building also can serve as a source of pride for the community.

Students can now visit the station on field trips — something that wasn’t previously possible due to the building’s condition, Broussard said.

“A big thank you to all those who are first responders, particularly here in Milton. Being in the unincorporated area, adds a layer of challenge. So achieving this is special, Boulet said.

© 2025 The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La.. Visit www.theadvocate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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The Gerrittsen Beach (NY) Volunteer Fire Department has a primary response area that runs from the outskirts of Brooklyn to Jamaica Bay, Oceanside, and Plumb Beach. The department was fortunate to receive two grants that enabled it to consider replacing an aging engine.

Chief Daniel Cavanaugh points out, “We have 12 volunteer firefighters who respond alongside Fire Department of New York, which has overall responsibility for the area, and we report to the Office of Fire Prevention and Control.” He adds that Gerrittsen Beach is one of nine volunteer fire departments in the City of New York.

Cavanaugh says that Gerrittsen Beach has purchased all of its fire apparatus from Darley. “We had a 2001 Darley engine on an HME chassis that was showing its age, and when we got a $350,000 grant we were able to start the project on getting a new engine,” he says. “After we got an additional $250,000 grant, we decided to go with a Darley tactical pumper, especially for its maneuverability and ability to get into and out of tight spots.”

Kyle Darley, vice president of Darley’s Tactical Division, says the tactical pumper Gerrittsen Beach purchased is built on a Ford F-550 XLT 4×4 four-door cab and chassis and is powered by a 6.7-liter PowerStroke diesel engine, and a 10-speed automatic transmission. Darley says the cab is set up to carry four firefighters, two of them in H.O. Bostrom self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) seats with IMMI SmartDock brackets, with two SCBA brackets on an aluminum backboard in between those seats to hold SCBA for the driver and officer.

He notes that the tactical pumper has a 1,500-gallon-per-minute (gpm) Darley PSMC midship pump; an integral copolymer body; a 300-gallon water tank; a 20-gallon foam cell; and a Darley AutoCAFS system with a FoamPro 2001 foam injection system.

The rig has two preconnected crosslays of 200 feet of 1¾-inch hose and one crosslay of 2½-inch hose, all compressed-air-foam-capable. The tactical pumper also has two 2½-inch discharges on the left side of the pump panel and one 2½-inch and one 3-inch discharge on the right side. At the r

Amie Windsor
The Press Democrat
(TNS)

Gold Ridge Fire Protection District is tentatively set to reopen the Bodega fire station this weekend after the district and the nonprofit that owns the firehouse have verbally come to terms on a one-year lease brokered by a former Sonoma County supervisor.

Occidental attorney and former Fifth District Supervisor Eric Koenigshofer got involved in the negotiations in advance of a heated town hall-style meeting this week about the station’s July 1 closure.

He told The Press Democrat he created and brought the deal to Gold Ridge and the Bodega Volunteer Fire Department ― the nonprofit that owns the fire station, adjoining McCaughey Hall community center and U.S. post office ― because “it was important to get the fire station back open again” and address community public safety concerns.

Under the agreement, the nonprofit would lease the station to Gold Ridge for $1 a month ― as opposed to the $2,000 a month BVFD had been demanding ― until June 30, 2026. The deal also would establish a framework for a longer term lease beyond that.

On Monday evening, the nonprofit invited community members to McCaughey Hall to discuss the lease dispute. Some 100 community members joined Gold Ridge personnel and BVFD board members at the event.

On behalf of the nonprofit, Koenigshofer “tried to give an explanation of the time frame and how we got to where we were,” said James Piazza, a BVFD board member. “Then it got dirty. Everyone was up in arms. A handful of people wanted to give (the station) away. Others want to hold onto it.”

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A straw poll taken at the event concluded with 60% of community members favoring a $1-a-year lease option for the firehouse ― rather than see Gold Ridge take over the station altogether. The planned deal ups that to $1-a-month, or $12 a year.

Piazza describes it as “a lease to keep the door open and finish negotiations.” The fire district and nonprofit plan to work throughout the next year to negotiate a longer-term agreement, he said.

As for the one-year lease, the two parties were working to finalize it on Thursday. Gold Ridge Chief Shepley Schroth-Cary said he feels “hopeful” about a weekend reopening of the Bodega firehouse. “Both sides are working hard to make it work,” he added.

The nonprofit had proposed $2,000 a month in rent for the roughly 12-year-old station, citing its BVFD-owned fire engines and state of the art equipment. “We are trying to lease it for a reasonable amount,” said David Hamilton, president of the BVFD board. 

Gold Ridge countered with $1 a year, an amount that Schroth-Cary says is common for the taxpayer-funded district.

Bodega fire station history The July 1 closure of the Bodega fire station stems from Gold Ridge Fire Protection District leaders failing to renew their lease with a nonprofit called the Bodega Volunteer Fire Department. BVFD owns the station even though the fire department, which had the same name as the nonprofit, stopped providing firefighting services once Gold Ridge absorbed the BVFD service area into its territory in 2019. Shortly before then, BVFD — the nonprofi

Mark Price
Miami Herald
(TNS)

A 72-year-old man has been identified as the “Nail Bandit” responsible for tossing sharp objects in the path of fire and rescue vehicles headed to emergencies, Florida investigators say.

John Allan Starnes faces “multiple felonies” in the case, which involved “repeated acts of sabotage targeting Okeechobee County Fire Rescue Station 1 and the Emergency Operations Center,” the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office said in a July 10 news release.

“Over the past 19 months, sharp objects — including nails and modified wire wheels — were intentionally thrown behind fire rescue vehicles and emergency access points,” the sheriff’s office said.

“These actions caused tire damage and endangered fire personnel and the public they serve, potentially delaying emergency response.”

A team began investigating the incidents in April and six other occurrences were documented in the months since, officials said.

“After weeks of surveillance, deputies witnessed Starnes commit the act in real-time during the early hours of July 10. Following a traffic stop, Starnes confessed to all six documented incidents (occurring since April),” the sheriff’s office said. “He was arrested and charged with multiple felonies.”

Evidence found during his arrest includes a collection of nails, screws and sharp objects that could be used to puncture tires, officials said.

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Okeechobee County Sheriff Noel E. Stephen noted at a press conference that targets over the 19 months included emergency response vehicles and privately owned vehicles parked at county facilities.

Punctured tires are potentially deadly for first responders, who frequently drive at high speeds to fires, crashes and medical emergencies, Stephen said.

Starnes “has a beef” with Okeechobee County Fire Rescue and the Okeechobee County Commission, and resorted to handling the situation by tampering with the vehicles of first responders, the sheriff said.

Details of Starnes’ alleged grievance were not released.

“Tampering with fire rescue vehicles is not just criminal — it endangers every resident of this county,” Chief Deputy Michael Hazellief said in the release.

Specifics of the charges against Starnes were not released.

The county’s fire department is based in Okeechobee, which is about a 110-mile drive southeast from Orlando.

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ROSENBAUER—Ash Township Fire Department in Carleton, MI, pumper-tanker. Commander 6011 cab and chassis; Cummins LD 450-hp engine; Waterous CSC20 1,250-gpm pump; UPF Poly 1,700-gallon water tank. Dealer: Wendy Simon, Front Line Services, Inc., Freeland, MI.

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