In the depths of Southcentral Alaska, a small tourist town called Talkeetna sits on the edge of the Susitna River, below Denali National Park, where the continent’s tallest peak towers over the mixed spruce and hardwood trees, the hilly terrain and the rivers. On July 3, 13 miles south of Talkeetna, a bolt of lightning struck the brush and started burning.
- PUB DATE: 8/7/2019 1:52:44 AM - SOURCE: Spokane Spokesman-Review

A house and shed were destroyed in a Tuesday evening blaze. “All hands responded to a double structure fire in downtown Twisp,” officials from Okanogan Fire District 6 said Tuesday evening. “A shed in the backyard exploded and caught the house on fire. Quick positioning of fire engines kept the fire from spreading to adjacent homes.
- PUB DATE: 8/7/2019 1:48:59 AM - SOURCE: Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle

After seven years of demanding that their death and disability benefits be restored, San Diego City Firefighters finally had their voices heard after the City Council voted unanimously to bring the benefits back. The council made the decision less than five minutes after the firefighters arrived at City Hall and was met with a standing ovation.
- PUB DATE: 8/7/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KGYV NBC 10 San Diego

VIDEO: For firefighters, sometimes the blaze is only half the battle. "Regardless of who you are on the fire scene you get exposed to chemicals.” Over the past 3 years, Dr. Jeff Burgess, Associate Dean for Research and Professor at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, and Tucson Fire have researched ways to reduce cancer causing particles.
- PUB DATE: 8/7/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOLD-TV CBS 13 Tucson

A state Senate probe of New York's building codes zeroes in on two municipalities with terrible reputations: Mount Vernon, where a lone inspector handles the entire city, and Ramapo, where lax enforcement has led volunteer firefighters and the County of Rockland to step in. "The key takeaway from this investigation is that there has been a systematic failure to adequately prioritize code enforcement at all levels of government," said state Sen.
- PUB DATE: 8/7/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Journal News (LoHud.com)