The state can cut city firefighters’ pay and benefits while a legal case against a state takeover of the city advances, an appellate panel ruled Thursday. In a written order, Appellate Division Judge Carmen Messano said a trial judge correctly ruled state-imposed cuts in compensation are not “irreparable harm” because money for lost wages or benefits would be available if the union succeeds in its case.
- PUB DATE: 4/7/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Press of Atlantic City

The reckless homicide conviction of a semitrailer truck driver accused of killing Hudson firefighter Chris Brown in a 2013 crash has been reversed by the 4th District Appellate Court. In its ruling issued Wednesday, the court found that the state's evidence against Mansur Shakirov fell far short of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that he caused the death of the 39-year-old Brown.
- PUB DATE: 4/7/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bloomington-Normal Pantagraph

Jennie Stout, a nurse in Ocala, Fla., was finishing an afternoon shift when she got a panicked call from home. Her 13-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, had tripped and fallen into smothered coals left over from burning leaves in their backyard, scorching her hands, knees, and shins. Ambulance paramedics on the scene when Jennie arrived said that Ashlyn should be sent by helicopter to a burn center in Gainesville for fast treatment.
- PUB DATE: 4/7/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Consumer Reports

On April 5, Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Thomas Carper (D-DE), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Jon Tester (D-MT) introduced legislation reauthorizing the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) and Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant programs. The bill, S. 829, extends the authorization for AFG and SAFER through FY 2023 and eliminates a “sunset” provision currently set to take effect in January 2018 that would eliminate the programs.
- PUB DATE: 4/7/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FireRescue1

All Orlando Fire Department emergency vehicles are now equipped with bulletproof vests and helmets specially designed for firefighters and medics responding to mass-casualty incidents and active violent crime scenes, and Orange County Fire Rescue is planning to do the same. After last year’s June 12 Pulse shooting that killed 49 and injured more than 63, Orlando-area officials and first responders gathered to brainstorm how to best address what OFD Chief Roderick S.
- PUB DATE: 4/7/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Orlando Sentinel