Fire service today is increasingly making more data-driven decisions, and the collection and analysis of data has become a new field in the fire service organization. The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), along with Esri, will be hosting a one-day Fire Data Analyst meeting to cover the role of this position and how different technologies can help with better analysis.

The meeting will be held in conjunction with IAFC's Fire-Rescue International conference, which is being held on Aug. 22 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in San Antonio. Breaks and lunch will be provided, and seating will be limited. Pre-registration is required, and no walk-ins will be allowed due to space constraints.

For more information and to register, follow the link below to view the flyer for this event.

Want to learn how to stand up to bullies and help those who are being bullied? Attend Extinguish Bullying, a Pre-Conference Program as part of Fire-Rescue International on Tuesday, August 23 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Each summer, thousands of the most prominent fire and emergency service leaders from across North America and around the globe come to Fire-Rescue International to learn, network and collaborate together.

FRI education covers all areas of the emergency service:
     •  Navigating the political environment
     •  Managing change
     •  Ethical leadership
     •  EMS issues
     •  Career development

FRI attracts hundreds of exhibitors to showcase the newest fire service innovations in apparatus, technology, equipment, gear and more. If you're a fire/EMS chief, chief officer or company officer - this is YOUR conference for leadership education. 

City administrators in Miami County say they are concerned about increased staffing and cost issues in emergency medical service and fire operations.

That concern, particularly in EMS, led them to ask the countywide Communications Center board to contract for an independent emergency medical services and fire operational study.

A University of Texas at Arlington electrical engineering researcher is creating a portable, wearable device for rapid gas analysis that could detect illness immediately.

Yuze "Alice" Sun, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, said the device will play an important role in health care, industrial and workplace safety, environmental monitoring and defense and national security sectors. For her research, she received a $550,000 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant from the Partnerships for Innovation - Research Partnerships program, which aims to take devices developed in the laboratory to the marketplace more quickly.

The title of the project is: "PFI-RP: Portable integrated photonic micro-gas chromatography system for rapid gas analysis."

VIDEO: A horse stuck in the mud was rescued by Denton County Fire Department officials and volunteers Sunday. Officials said they received a call Sunday morning shortly after 7 a.m. and later arrived at the scene, where they found the horse, laying on its side and unable to get up.

Firefighters dug through the mud and underneath the horse so the rope could be applied and used to help get the animal out. Ropes were eventually ineffective and even at one point, a tractor was used. A winch was eventually used successfully.

A veterinarian was on the scene with medication and assisted in taking care of the horse, who is still resting with IV fluids, food and water and is with the owners. One firefighter was submerged in the mud all the way to his waist to assist the horse and when trying to get out himself, was suctioned in and injured his knee.

It's been a busy summer for the Longview Fire Department. Their crews have been deployed all across the state as drought-like conditions have set Texas ablaze. 

Craig Barton is a Longview firefighter paramedic and Hallsville fire chief. Barton recently returned from a 15-day deployment. 

"Since December, I have been out on three deployments," Barton said. 

Source: Spectrum News 1 

Dry conditions and grass fires have been a thorn in the side of fire departments all across the Lone Star State, leaving many to re-evaluate their resources.

Balch Springs Fire Marshal Sean Davis has held that title since 2017. Before that, he spent countless years being a firefighter in this Dallas County community.

However, in all of Davis’ years, he’s never dealt with a grass fire like the late-July ones that affected 26 homes, leaving several destroyed.

“Frankly, nobody has seen anything of that significance and size,” Davis said. 

Fighting near constant fires in these triple digit temperatures is taking a physical and mental toll on first responders in Texas.

"So far this week, we have crews out in the Wichita Falls area, out at Possum Kingdom Lake, and we also had crews yesterday out in Bridgeport," said Deputy Chief Brandon Barth with the Flower Mound Fire Department.

The Flower Mound Fire Department sends strike teams out 14 days at a time to help firefighters in more rural areas of the state.

This week's update covers the following:
  •  Several Texas Cities File Lawsuit Seeking Franchise Fees from Streaming Services
  •  Federal Infrastructure Bill Update
  •  Last Call: Resolutions Due August 22 for 2022 Annual Conference
  •  Mandated Cybersecurity Training and Reporting Due August 31
  •  House and Senate Committee Interim Hearings

In this episode of Fire Law Roundup, Brad and Curt discuss a New Jersey lawsuit alleging firefighters responded to a fatal fire after drinking at a local event; a ruling that dismissed a lawsuit challenging Los Angeles County Fire Department’s vaccine-mandate; an appeal being filed following a jury verdict in favor of FDNY in a race discrimination suit; the filing of a sexual harassment and discrimination suit in Iowa; and the filing of a race and gender discrimination suit filed by four DC firefighters.

A Meridianville man stole three vehicles, including an ambulance and fire truck early Sunday, according to the Limestone County Sheriff's Office.

According to a spokesman from the Athens Police Department, police responded to a call about a suspicious man at the Circle K gas station on Highway 31 North in Athens. Before officers arrived, he attempted to steal a car. After being seen by the car's owner, he got into a different car and headed toward Pryor Street. Police were notified that a car on Pryor Street was rear-ended by a man who attempted to steal that car as well.

The driver was able to fend him off, and he fled on foot. Officers say that the same man was eventually able to steal a car from a business after he broke in and stole the keys.  

VIDEO: A massive fire burns down an old manufacturing building in Chickasha.

Chief Tony Samaniego with the Chickasha Fire Department estimates 1.5 million gallons of hand sanitizer fueled the fire at the Chickasha Manufacturing Building on Sunday. The intense flames and black billowing smoke drew a crowd.

“They were tall, they were big, and they were hot,” said Alicia Musshafen, who lives nearby. “I was really in shock that the building was engulfed.”

Nearly 100 firefighters from 15 different agencies responded the fire, only to find their tactics had to change.