One of the hardest things for me to understand is why, with all the technology and focus on mobile web, more news sites don’t take the time to cater to the mobile user that visit their sites? Yeah I know, the browsers are getting better and if you are carrying an iPhone, you don’t need a mobile version of any website because you can read the site as is.

Many readers of these sites have smart phones but not all have iPhones. Because we want to make it easier for our readers to view the articles on Fire Service News, we had added a feature that will recognize you mobile browser and display a lighter, less complex theme to allow easier browsing.

We hope you will find this an improvement and would love to have your feedback about this upgrade. Please feel free to send us an e-mail, comment here, or comment on our Facebook page if you care to share your opinion about this or any thing else at fire service news.

Chris Kimball

Editor

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Firefighters arrive to find a single story home heavily involved and confirmed the home had been evacuated. The decision was made to take a defensive stance on the fire and deploy master streams on the fire.

The fire tore through the home in the 1800 block of N. St. Johns Drive in about 40 minutes and ignited a car in the driveway as well. The occupant of the house reported sustained minors burns but refused transport by paramedics.

A second fire was ignited in a home adjacent to the fire building by firefighters knocked it down before it damaged any more than the exterior siding on the home.  Neighbors milled around the scene for several hours and firefighters remained on scene into the early morning hours.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s office in conjunction with investigators from St. Johns County Fire Rescue.

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Firefighters from St. Johns County Fire Rescue and St. Augustine Fire Department were called to the home after the Kluger’s 17-year old daughter, Gina, heard a loud crack, and started smelling smoke in the home.

Gina was able to get all the family pets out of the home and then leave the home herself safely. Fire fighters arrived to find smoke issuing from the eves of the home. The roof was opened above the suspected fire area but smoke continued to stream out of the home in several other spots as firefighters worked to contain the fire.

After nearly an hour trying to locate the source of the fire, flames broke through the roof of the home, sending flames nearly 20 feet into the air. The fire and smoke could be seen from across the intercoastal waterway, several miles away, according to a firefighter from the other side of town.

Ladder 6 was used to attack the fire from above and several master streams were used on the ground around the home. The fire eventually generated a second alarm, bring fire apparatus from around the county to the scene.

The home was listed as a total lose by fire department officials and the State Fire Marshal’s office will be investigating the cause of the afternoon blaze.

There were no injuries as a result of the fire, however, the heat and humidity left firefighters drained of energy and fresh firefighters had to rotated in to working position often.

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Two passengers in the gold Ford minivan were airlifted to Shands after being declared trauma alerts by firefighters from St. Johns County Fire Rescue at the scene. The van left the road as it was headed west on SR 206 and struck several trees on the east bound shoulder.

According to FHP officers at the scene, the driver fled the scene, running into the woods. FHP deployed  dogs into the woods and requested the assistance of SJSO Air 1 to search for the driver.

Engine and Rescue 8 responded to the scene and immediately requested an addition rescue out of Station 11 then later another Rescue out of Station 5. There has been no information released about the condition of any of the passengers transported from the scene at this time.

The scene was turned over to FHP shortly after firefighters removed the victims from the scene.

UPDATE: FHP has release information indicating the driver of this vehicle was apprehended after a four hour search using canines, a helicopter and ATV’s. His name has not been released at this time.

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A witness to the accident said that the bicycle was crossing the entrance to Kmart nearest Kentucky Fried Chicken when the car struck her. The woman on the bicycle was transported to Flagler Hospital where she was transferred to the TraumaOne air transport crew and flown to Jacksonville with head injuries.

The extent of her injuries has not been released at this time. The crew from Station 5 responded to the accident and Rescue 5 transported the woman, with Squad 5 providing ground support.

Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the incident with the assistance of the St. Johns county Sheriff’s Office.

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Arriving first at the scene, Engine 12’s crew made entry into the home and stopped the fire in the kitchen of the home. The battalion chief on the scene said, “The fire was contained to the kitchen. She [the home owner] will not be able to stay here tonight but we have Red Cross coming out to help her with that.”  He also said he thought some cleaning and a little repair work would make the home livable again.

Crews vented the building to clear it of smoke and assisted the home owner but recovering some clothing and personal items from the home.

No dollar estimate of the damage has been released at this time. There were no injuries as a result of the fire and firefighters spent about an hour on scene. The cause is under investigation at this time.

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St. Johns County, FL – A Jacksonville, Florida man died in an accident on I95  just south of SR 16 on Saturday morning around 1:30 am. Walter Eugene Dixon, 52, was driving a tractor trailer north on I95 when the truck left the roadway and slide down the right shoulder.

Investigators from the Florida Highway Patrol say the truck slide through a ditch then slammed into the trees along the side of the road, bursting into flames. Firefighters from St. Johns County Fire Rescue were the first to arrive on scene, reporting the cab of the truck fully involved.

The first piece of apparatus, responding south from SR16, passed the scene in the opposite lane and reported the fire. The second truck, Tanker 4, responded down the northbound lane in a southbound direction, arriving first to the scene.  Engine 4 arrived moments after followed by Battalion 2, Rescue 5 and Squad 5.

The fire was extinguished by firefighters and Florida Highway Patrol was able to start investigating the scene. Initial reports from the scene had the driver not on scene but it was later discovered that he had perished in the fire and while the cause of death is still being investigated along with the accident cause, firefighters believe he died in the crash rather than the fire.

FHP will be working to determine the exact cause of the accident. There were no reported firefighter injuries as a result of the incident and crews worked well into the morning hours securing the scene.

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Some things are more tolerable than others in the workplace. Recently, I was contacted by a source who did not wish to be identified telling me of a problem that exists in at least a few St. Johns County Fire Stations and has the potential to spread to many more.

An infestation of bed bugs has been discovered by firefighters in several of their stations. In fact, several firefighters have reportedly seen their doctors for what they believe to be bed bug bites.

Firefighters from at least three county stations have discovered the infestation of bed bugs in the bunkrooms. With firefighters being moved from station to station and filling shifts county-wide, the potential for this to spread quickly is very possible.

The source inside the department says firefighters pulled beds apart and found what was described as “hundreds of bugs” in the mattress seams, the bed frames and around the beds. This same source also says that the administration has not acted on this other than to send someone out to look at the situation, leaving firefighters to deal with this on their own, at least for now.

Image Courtesy Orkin.com

Firefighters will still have to report to work in these stations and sleep somewhere during their 24 hour shifts. One can’t blame them for not wanting to sleep on bunks infested with these insects.

Speculation from several firefighters is that the lack of a rapid response to the problem stems from the firefighters refusal to relinquish their cost of living adjustment just a week ago.

Along with the potential for spreading this infestation from station to station, firefighters could carry them home in clothing or duffel bags and have to battle the problem there as well. Further, they could also carry them unknowningly into the homes of private citizens, hospitals and any other place they visit daily.

Firefighters that work in the affected stations are not sure how the problem started, but they are hoping the county will resolve it quickly.

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In the Crosshairs is a column written by Christopher Kimball and is mostly made up of opinion of things in the news. Watch for it to start very soon. Not all the content in it will be fire service related but we are sure it will entertain you and may bring some light to issues.

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