Former Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran, who described homosexuality as a perversion akin to bestiality in a book he authored two years ago, is entitled to his religious beliefs, attorneys for Cochran and the City of Atlanta agreed Wednesday. But his faith isn’t the reason he was fired last January, Mayor Kasim Reed’s administration argued in a federal court hearing over his dismissal.
- PUB DATE: 10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: wsb radio

A veteran firefighter died Wednesday while on a call around the corner from his home, according to city officials. Gerald "Bear" Celecki, 70, collapsed after responding to a call concerning the smell of gas at a home on Parker Avenue, said South Amboy Fire Chief Michael Geraltowski. "We don't know exactly what happened yet," Geraltowski said Wednesday afternoon.
- PUB DATE: 10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Newark Star-Ledger/NJ.com

Mayor Mike Duggan named someone from outside the Detroit Fire Department to become the city's new fire commissioner this morning, selecting Eric Jones, a former cop and director of the city's Building Department. Duggan introduced Jones, 46, at a news conference this morning at the Detroit Fire Department's Engine Co.
- PUB DATE: 10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: detroit free press

Rapid City firefighter Dave Ruhl apparently was trapped by a sudden shift in the direction of the California wildfire he was scouting in July, according to a newly issued Forest Service report on his death. The body of Ruhl, 38, was found July 31 at the scene of the Frog Fire in the Modoc National Forest, where he was on a temporary assignment away from his regular duties as an engine captain in South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest.
- PUB DATE: 10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: rapid city journal

VIDEO - October is Fire Prevention Month and it can be a challenge to get children excited about fire prevention. So, the Mustang Fire Department put on a production like no other to get elementary kids to soak up the safety tips and it worked. Firefighters took popular songs and changed the lyrics into fire safety terms.
- PUB DATE: 10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KWTV-TV Oklahoma City