A small yurt south of Port Townsend burned to the ground Thursday afternoon. The approximately 400-square-foot round structure was destroyed after a man living there left several dead birds near the stove to dry them and left the building, according to East Jefferson Fire-Rescue spokesman Bill Beezley.
- PUB DATE: 11/20/2015 3:16:35 AM - SOURCE: Port Angeles Peninsula Daily News

Columbus firefighters recently rejected a three-year contract proposal that would have given them raises of 3.5 percent in the first two years and 3 percent in the final year. Union members mainly objected to lower pay differentials for paramedics and increases in health-insurance premiums. More than two-thirds of the members rejected the contract, according to three firefighters, including a captain.
- PUB DATE: 11/20/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: columbus dispatch

A Detroit firefighter and longtime veteran died last night while on duty. Sgt. Vince Smith, a 24-year veteran with Detroit Fire died in his sleep at Engine 48, on Fort St near Marathon Oil refinery. Smith was assigned to DFD Ladder 13 but he was pulling a duty shift overnight at Engine 48. "He had a special way that he saw life," said Battalion Chief Steve Kirschner.
- PUB DATE: 11/20/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJBK fox 2 detroit

A proposal to reclassify three of the Kingman Fire Department's six battalion chiefs from exempt to non-exempt status revealed conflict between the city's police and fire departments at Tuesday's City Council meeting, and led to hard feelings and some profanity. City Manager John Dougherty said the change was necessary for three of the battalion chiefs who work in operations and are on the same 24-hour shift schedule as firefighters.
- PUB DATE: 11/20/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: daily miner

Fuel mitigation is crucial for combating the nation’s growing wildfire problem, but culture, politics, and geography can be significant barriers keeping communities from doing the work. That’s one of the key findings in “Local Wildand/Urban Interface: Fire Department Wildfire Preparedness and Readiness Capabilities,” the new report of an ambitious NFPA project aimed at capturing, for the first time, how municipal fire departments nationwide are adjusting to their increased role in battling wildfire.
- PUB DATE: 11/20/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: NFPA Journal