More than half of firefighters' line-of-duty deaths are caused not by external dangers such as flames or building collapses, but from cardiovascular reactions to the physical stress of the job, experts say. Hanover Park Fire Chief Craig Haigh believes his department can help bring down those numbers as the main test subjects of a 21-month national research project.
- PUB DATE: 3/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Daily Herald

The chief of the Lake Arrowhead, TX, Volunteer Fire Department said his worst nightmare came true this weekend when he received a call that his fire station was on fire Saturday night. Fire Chief Mike Hall was just two bites into dinner when his cell phone rang around 7 p.m. "The ambulance crew called and asked 'Are you alright?' and I asked why and they told me the fire station is on fire," Hall said.
- PUB DATE: 3/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Firehouse

Several people were arrested and detained Friday after a Clayton County firefighter found his stolen car at an alleged chop shop, Channel 2 Action News reported. The firefighter’s car was stolen outside Fire Station No. 1 in Morrow, where he works. He used an app to find his car, the news station reported.
- PUB DATE: 3/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Knights Valley resident Bud Pochini runs his welding business, owns a Christmas tree farm and helps coach high school softball. And for the past 25 years, he has been a mainstay of the Knights Valley Fire Co. volunteers. Fallen trees, neighbors’ medical emergencies, car crashes. Some of the calls are so grim the assistant fire chief wonders why he sticks with it.
- PUB DATE: 3/28/2017 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Petaluma Argus Courier

PHOTO - Yakima firefighter Andrey Belza likes riding in the back of the department’s ladder truck. Way back. How far back? Nearly 62 feet from the front seat. As one of the department’s tiller drivers, he’s responsible for steering the back end of the department’s biggest truck. How big? Well, consider this: The front driver might be westbound on one street, while Belza could still be northbound on another street preparing to make the turn west.
- PUB DATE: 3/27/2017 11:46:40 PM - SOURCE: Yakima Herald-Republic - Metered Site