A veteran firefighter is doing his part to help first responders come to terms with post-traumatic stress. In a video by Starbucks, 29-year veteran firefighter Mike Washington, with the Seattle Fire Department, said keeping stress in after difficult calls is like holding a “ticking time bomb.” “If we don’t find ways to work with that stress, eventually it’s all going to catch up to you, and I’ve been that guy,” Washington said.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firerescue1

Clallam County Fire District No. 2 received a new brush engine designed to fight fires in wildland urban interface areas surrounding Port Angeles. The 2017 Ford F-550 chasiss engine can carry 19,500 pounds including a crew of five firefighters, hand tools, equipment and more than 1,000 feet of fire hose.
- PUB DATE: 11/6/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Peninsula Daily News

Studies show firefighters have an increased risk of cancer and now Spokane County firefighters are taking steps to change that. “We're seeing so many young firefighters at young ages getting struck down with cancer,” explained Tony Nielsen, Spokane County District 8 fire chief. “And it all seems to be coming down to this absorption that we hope we can prevent.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2017 3:54:55 AM - SOURCE: KREM-TV CBS 2

A Wenatchee-area fire chief’s skills are being put to the test in Puerto Rico today. Chelan County Fire District 1 Chief Mike Burnett is currently on-assignment in the country as a member of the Pacific Northwest Incident Management Team 3. The team is one of 16 National Type 1 teams that are down there helping in response to Hurricane Maria.
- PUB DATE: 11/5/2017 3:22:50 AM - SOURCE: iFiberOne

More than 3 1/2 months after they started, two fires that charred more than 90,000 acres of Central Washington’s forests are still burning. But authorities say colder temperatures and winter precipitation will be the key to extinguishing the blazes. The Norse Peak Fire, burning 11 miles west of Cliffdell, and the Jolly Mountain Fire, burning 11 miles northwest of Cle Elum, started as a result of lightning during an Aug.
- PUB DATE: 11/4/2017 1:53:31 AM - SOURCE: Bellingham Herald