One person died and another was seriously injured when a 2-alarm fire erupted at a Vancouver apartment Tuesday night. The fire broke out at a 5-unit apartment complex at 3701 E. 18th Street, authorities told KOIN 6 News. Fire crews were on the scene within 3 minutes of the call, and just minutes later rescued one person from the apartment.
- PUB DATE: 3/10/2021 2:30:45 PM - SOURCE: KOIN-TV CBS 6 Portland

How old are your fire apparatus tires? Tire blowouts are a common cause of fire apparatus and emergency vehicle crashes. Unfortunately, countless firefighters and emergency responders are killed or injured as a result of a tire related vehicle crash.

In this video, Chris Daly will explain how to check the age of your emergency vehicle tires to prevent the blowout of an old and brittle tire.

Buy the Textbook: https://fireengineeringbooks.com/drive-to-survive​

In-Person Training Information: https://www.drivetosurvive.org/

Virtual Training: https://courses.drivetosurvive.org/

The post Video: Determining the Age of Your Emergency Vehicle Tires, Part 1 appeared first on Fire Apparatus.

According to a report from Sentinel Source, voters in Swanzey, New Hampshire, rejected the town’s proposal for a new fire station for the fourth time in several years.

Over the past several months, Swanzey Fire Department (SFD) members and town officials have been advocating for a new station that they say would have offered multiple improvements over the existing central fire station beneath town hall. However, the $4 million project failed at the polls on Tuesday after winning a simple majority—625 to 495—but fell short of the 3/5 majority required. 

In addition to the fire station, voters also struck down an article that would have permitted the town to bond $600,000 to purchase and equip a new fire engine. This article also got a majority of the vote (643 to 464), but also didn’t reach the required supermajority. 

And voters re-elected Selectboard Chairman Kenneth Colby, while incumbent Town Clerk Ron Fontaine was ousted by challenger Heather Estrella. 

SFD Chief Bill Gould said he was very disappointed that the station, which would have been built on Old Homestead Highway, was voted down. He also said he felt bad for those who have been working to get a new station approved since the first attempt in 2015, but he felt most voters balked at the cost of the project. 

Swanzey has two other fire stations: one covering East Swanzey at 204 South Road and another covering West Swanzey at 34 Main St.

Swanzey officials said a new station would have provided much-needed additional space as well as more facilities for training, allowing the SFD to move its central station out from under town hall, where fire operations and fumes from the trucks can disrupt city business above.

The town has pitched a new central fire station to voters in 2015, 2016, and 2020, with the proposal failing all three times. The 2020 vote came the closest to passing, with the station being supported by a majority of voters, but not enough to achieve the needed supermajority. 

In 2020, the proposal fell short by just 5.3 percentage points of the 60 percent needed; this time, it missed by just 4.2 percentage points.

The post Swanzey (NH) Voters Reject New Fire Station for Fourth Time appeared first on Fire Apparatus.

A man has pleaded guilty to stealing an AR-15 rifle from a Seattle Police cruiser before helping set it on fire during the riots in Downtown Seattle in May, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday. Tyre Means Jr. was captured on video on May 30 lighting a paper towel and setting in the back seat of a damaged patrol car parked in the 1600 block of 6th Avenue while others in the crowd poured lighter fluid and other accelerants on the flames, eventually setting the patrol car ablaze, according to federal prosecutors.
- PUB DATE: 3/10/2021 12:23:30 PM - SOURCE: KOMO-TV ABC 4 and Radio 1000

According to a report from Action News Now, the town council of Paradise, California, is expected to finalize the purchase of the Church of Christ Paradise property at 1181 Pearson Road, which will be used to build a new fire station.

The nearly five-acre property has been empty for several months. The Council approved the purchase on November 2, 2020, at a cost of about $200,000.

John Gaddie, Butte County Cal Fire Public Information Officer, said Paradise is in need of a new fire station to replace its Station 82. Gaddie said he estimates that Station 82, located on South Libby and Pearson Roads, is at least 50 years old. That fire station currently staffs three firefighters 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

No details have yet been made public about construction. The town plans to use money from its general fund to purchase the plot of land.

The post Proposed Paradise (CA) Fire Station to be Built on Church of Christ Property appeared first on Fire Apparatus.