At least 12 people are recovering from injuries after a massive fire burned through several businesses in Sunnyside, Queens. The fire broke out inside one store on Queens Boulevard around 2:14 a.m. Thursday and quickly spread. Dozens of firefighters were called to the scene as the fire grew to five alarms.
- PUB DATE: 12/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WABC-TV ABC 7

Austin City Council members on Thursday will consider an ordinance that would require most of the city’s fire vehicles to be staffed with a minimum of four people, a move decades in the making that supporters say will improve safety and efficiency at the Fire Department. The ordinance would essentially bring into law a policy that the Fire Department has already been implementing to make sure that first responders are able to act immediately during a critical fire incident.
- PUB DATE: 12/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Austin American-Statesman

The attorneys for the Ghost Ship defendants are asking the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office for an unusual move — to arrest the warehouse landlords and fire department officials for the deadly fire. Attorneys for Derick Almena and Max Harris announced the motion to compel the arrests on Tuesday, asking for a laundry list of arrests that includes the Ghost Ship warehouse landlord Chor Ng and her two children, Eva and Kai, who served as building managers.
- PUB DATE: 12/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: East Bay Times

The head of the city council's investigations committee has requested an independent probe of the events leading up to the suspension of a top Fire Department chief accused of abusive behavior. Councilman Ritchie Torres, (D-Bronx), sent Department of Investigation Commissioner Margaret Garnett the request Tuesday, days after FDNY Chief of Department James Leonard was relieved of his command and put on desk duty.
- PUB DATE: 12/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Daily News

Mitch Crocetti's job pays pretty well, but his old job pays him even better. The Pingree Grove & Countryside Fire Protection District chief receives $117,500 a year in his current role, but his pension after his previous 30-year career with the Wood Dale Fire Department also pays him $124,037 annually.
- PUB DATE: 12/13/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Illinois Daily Herald