Mayor Sylvester Turner on Wednesday invited the Houston firefighters union to sit down with him to discuss “any ideas you have” about how to implement the pay parity measure passed by voters last November, but left it unclear whether negotiating pay raises through contract talks was an acceptable idea.
- PUB DATE: 1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Houston Chronicle

Two Skagit County fire districts are awaiting reimbursement from the state of Washington after sending firefighters and equipment to California to help battle summer wildfires. In August, fire districts 3 and 14 — which serve the areas of Conway and Alger, respectively — sent crews to battle some of California’s deadly wildfires.
- PUB DATE: 1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: GoSkagit.com

Training has been halted for thousands of firefighters. The U.S. Forest Service can’t let contracts for needed equipment. In forests across the West, no federal employees are reducing dry fire fuels that feed catastrophic blazes. These are some of the effects of the federal shutdown on federal firefighters, and experts say the situation could quickly worsen.
- PUB DATE: 1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bend Bulletin

Two utility contractors faulted for contributing to an explosion that leveled part of downtown Sun Prairie and killed a volunteer firefighter in July have been fined for “serious” violations by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. In citation letters dated Jan. 4, OSHA said its inspectors found that Kansas-based Bear Communications and Michigan-based VC Tech failed to call a diggers hotline or utility owners to locate underground lines before starting work.
- PUB DATE: 1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin State Journal

Winter is when the federal government starts spending dollars to prepare for the wildfire season, but the ongoing shutdown has put some of this preparation in limbo. Cutting underbrush and holding prescribed burns are critical to keeping firefighters safe and protecting towns near fire-prone areas. But there’s basically no prescribed burning going on right now according to the National Association of State Foresters.
- PUB DATE: 1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Boise State Public Radio