PHOTOS: Kara Rathbone’s story may sound familiar to many firefighters who marched with her Tuesday along Bagby Street in downtown Houston. Rathbone’s husband, Austin, drives to work from their home in Bellville, about 70 miles away. A seven-year Houston firefighter, he has received scant raises since joining the department, and makes ends meet by installing irrigation systems on the side and working for a small fire department near Bellville, where about 4,300 people live.
- PUB DATE: 3/22/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Houston Chronicle

The city of Bloomington has been incorrectly billing businesses for fire protection for nearly 10 years, resulting perhaps in the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue. The current monthly rate, based on the diameter of the water line that serves a business's internal fire suppression system, is $27.
- PUB DATE: 3/22/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Pantagraph

The city’s fire department is testing out a new device that could help drivers using navigational apps steer clear of firetrucks responding to an emergency, helping improve safety for both drivers and firefighters. The device, a small black box about four inches tall and wide, sends out alerts to drivers about the locations of the trucks to drivers using a navigation app called Waze.
- PUB DATE: 3/22/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Patriot Ledger

The city of Lincoln is asking a judge to throw out the jury’s $1.2 million verdict in favor of a Lincoln firefighter, in part because of how jurors arrived at the amount. Last month, at the end of a two-week trial, a federal jury in Omaha awarded Troy Hurd, a Lincoln fire captain, $1,177,815.43 for retaliation after he reported discrimination against a female firefighter trainee born in Iraq.
- PUB DATE: 3/22/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Journal Star

Start stocking up on the eye drops and particulate masks, and if you haven’t installed an air filter or air conditioner yet, it may be time to start saving up — the Pacific Northwest wildfire season could be a doozy. Following on the heels of two historically bad fire seasons in 2017 and 2018, conditions could be ripe for wildfires before the summer even arrives, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 2019 U.
- PUB DATE: 3/22/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bellingham Herald