A headhunter hired by the city to help find a new fire chief has referred more than 12 candidates, according to Public Safety Commissioner Steven M. Pare. But 14 months after the departure of Fire Chief Clarence A. Cunha, the search continues. “The process of identifying and recruiting the right fire chief is still underway,” Pare said.
- PUB DATE: 9/14/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Providence Journal

The city of Vancouver hired an outside investigator earlier this year to look into issues of gender-based discrimination within the Vancouver Fire Department. That inquiry is ongoing now. Emails obtained by The Columbian raise questions about how female firefighters are treated in Vancouver. In April, a firefighter was using the women’s restroom at Station 10 when her male boss walked in on her.
- PUB DATE: 9/14/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Columbian

PHOTO - The Rock Hill Fire Co. had to deal with an emergency right at its own headquarters Tuesday after, the fire chief said, a fire company member, pulling a fire truck out to get it ready for Saturday’s parade, hit the main support beam on one of the company’s equipment bays, and the roof collapsed.
- PUB DATE: 9/14/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Middletown Times Herald-Record

Sheriff's deputies who pulled over an assistant fire marshal in East Texas for swerving allegedly found him watching porn on the county-owned vehicle's computer while drinking alcohol. Smith County deputies pulled over Oren Hale on Aug. 20, KLTV reports. The incident occurred about 9:20 p.m. on West Northwest Loop 323, near North Broadway Avenue, in Tyler, The Tyler Morning Telegraph reports.
- PUB DATE: 9/14/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Dallas Morning News

A firefighter received the state’s Medal of Valor Monday for intervening in an assault on a colleague. Alex Wallbrett came to the aid of coworker Ben Vernon June 24, 2015. The crew was treating a sick and drunk man in downtown San Diego, when a bystander began to stab Vernon repeatedly. The wounds left Vernon with a punctured lung and other injuries.
- PUB DATE: 9/14/2016 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FireRescue1