In today’s world, in which the fire department gets called to almost everything and anything, its members must be prepared to handle any kind of rescue scenario. Selected by an application process, Lufkin Fire Department Chief Ted Lovett and Capt. Dustin Ledford recently participated in a week-long course on special operations program management at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Md. Funded by FEMA through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the course consisted of various team management skills of special operations disciplines including hazardous materials, swift water,...

In today’s world, in which the fire department gets called to almost everything and anything, its members must be prepared to handle any kind of rescue scenario. Selected by an application process, Lufkin Fire Department Chief Ted Lovett and Capt. Dustin Ledford recently participated in a week-long course on special operations program management at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Md. Funded by FEMA through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the course consisted of various team management skills of special operations disciplines including hazardous materials, swift water,...

COLONIAL HEIGHTS – Rescue crews from throughout the state came to Central Virginia this week to participate in the Rescue Challenge. The first rescue challenge was held in May 1995, an invitation-only event to six departments from throughout the state. Since that time, additional teams have been invited to the event, and last year’s event saw 10 teams representing 23 organizations competing. The challenge is designed to test each team’s technical and organizational skills as well as to foster networking between them. The events give rescuers a chance to exchange ideas as...

BURNABY, B.C. – Dozens of people could have died because of a mushroom farm owner’s negligence, the lead investigator into the deaths of three men on the farm has told a coroner’s inquest.  Mohinder Bhatti of WorkSafeBC testified Tuesday the workers who died or were injured had no idea what they were doing when they tried to unplug a pipe on that fateful day in September 2008. “They weren’t thinking straight,” he said.  Bhatti said had they cleared the pipe fully, hydrogen sulfide, a colourless, poisonous gas that smells like rotten eggs, would have...

GRAND RAPIDS — A 37-year-old woman suffered a leg injury after she fell 12 feet down an open manhole, requiring firefighters to mount a “technical rescue” to rescuer her. The accident happened about 11:40 p.m. Monday in an alley in the 800 block of Innes Street NE, near Eastern Avenue.  Grand Rapids Deputy Fire Chief Jerry Salatka said authorities called for the department’s “confined space rescue team” to handle the incident.  Police were investigating why the manhole cover was missing. Rescuers set up a tripod above the manhole and used harness system...