State utility regulators have opened a formal investigation into last summer’s fatal Sun Prairie natural gas explosion that killed a firefighter and leveled several buildings in the city’s downtown. The Public Service Commission voted unanimously Thursday to investigate a complaint filed by USIC Locating Services, the company that was contracted to mark the locations of underground pipes.
- PUB DATE: 2/25/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin State Journal

Alabama law enforcement officers have been the target of gun violence recently. Several officers have been shot or killed in Auburn, Birmingham, Mobile and Selma. Now, there’s work to add protection to law enforcement officers and first responders. Under existing law, the murder of a first responder is not a capital offense.
- PUB DATE: 2/25/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WBRC-TV Fox 6 Birmingham

This is how bad things have gotten in Julian since San Diego County took control of the region’s last volunteer fire department eight months ago. When first responders went out on a call, someone would paint over the marking that reserved the new county fire chief’s parking spot at the fire station, which used to be manned by the local volunteers who resided in the popular tourist destination.
- PUB DATE: 2/25/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Los Angeles Times - Metered Site

VIDEO: Tipton County was hit with flooding as a result of constant, driving rain. The Brighton Fire Department is drying out after the tables were turned as several inches of water flooded their station forcing an evacuation. "This one was one of the worst because not only did the fire station get affected and if that gets affected, we can't help people," said Tipton County Fire Chief, Jon Piercey.
- PUB DATE: 2/25/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: LocalMemphis.com

The Community Response Team has received its second one-year grant as the mental-health project develops a system to identify and help “super utilizers” of emergency services without repeated 911 calls. The CRT triumvirate — police officer, fire paramedic and mental-health counselor — respond to mental-health calls in an emergency medical service truck.
- PUB DATE: 2/25/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Tulsa World