Firefighters from across the Tri-Cities are raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society ahead of the Seattle Stairclimb. The Pasco Fire Department has teamed up with other departments and districts to collect funds for the cause. For many of them, they have a personal stake in the charity. “It means we’re helping someone,” said Ty Schoenwald, a Pasco firefighter.
- PUB DATE: 1/8/2020 5:42:04 PM - SOURCE: YakTriNews

The Spokane Fire Department has sent out a statement regarding their assistance to the bushfires currently raging in Australia. Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer shared a photo of the statement on Twitter on Wednesday, January 8. "Having experienced firsthand the devastation that wildfires can create, we share your concern about the tragic wildfires currently ravaging Australia.
- PUB DATE: 1/8/2020 3:37:33 PM - SOURCE: KHQ-TV NBC 6

A southwest Washington fire district swore in Kristan Maurer as its first female fire chief Tuesday night. Maurer grew up in Houston, Texas. Her family moved to Washington, where she went to Battle Ground High School. It was during a four-year paramedic program at Central Washington University where she first rode along with fire departments.
- PUB DATE: 1/8/2020 12:47:48 PM - SOURCE: OPB

As California Governor Gavin Newsom continues cracking down on the state's oil industry, local officials say that a move away from oil may carry some unintended consequences. If Kern's oil industry took a hit, so would it's economy. And that would manifest itself in many ways, one of which being property taxes.
- PUB DATE: 1/8/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KERO-TV ABC 23 Bakersfield

New Cedar Falls Mayor Rob Green wants the city council to review the city’s controversial Public Safety Officer program. The city has been slowly replacing firefighter positions with Public Safety Officers, or PSO’s, which are police officers cross-trained as firefighters. The move has angered firefighters and was a big issue in the election where council member Green defeated incumbent Mayor Jim Brown.
- PUB DATE: 1/8/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Radio Iowa