Best of the Rest – Blog of the Year Voting, Firefighter Nation, Mahlon Mitchell, LODD, SAFER, and More!

Voting ends tomorrow for the 2012 Blog of the Year contest. Hosted by EMS1, FireRescue1 and FireCritic.com, and sponsored by the American Military University. There are some great blogs on the ballot in both Fire and EMS categories! There were almost 400 nominations for 55 blogs.

Vote for your favorite Fire Blog here

Vote for your favorite EMS Blog here

Dave Statter is the one on the right. He said he wouldn't be caught dead in red!

I have to admit something readers…I have been wrong. All this time I have stuck with my story that Dave Statter was NEVER a firefighter. Part of the reason for my inability to think that he could ever have been one of us is because I couldn’t find a department who would claim him. Until this week. The funny thing is that Dave was the first to break the story. Any department who fights fire in drag would have allowed Dave to join their ranks. Here’s to you Sedan Fire Department in Minnesota!  Read more here

St. Patrick’s Day 2012 is behind us. I had fun hanging out with the family. We made it to downtown Roanoke after the parade was over because my son had two lacrosse games to play in. It was the first parade I have missed in several years. According to facebook updates, everyone seemed to have a lot of fun at their respective events!

Shoutout: Firefighter Nation

Web site: Firefighter Nation

Facebook: Facebook.com/firefighternation

Twitter: @FireNation

Think of it as Facebook for Firefighters. The site is a social networking site that allows members to join and share videos, photos, thoughts, ideas, blogs, recipes, etc….etc. Get in on the fun now!

Quick Drills

You can view all of the weekly drills by FirefighterCloseCalls.com here. Try these two at the firehouse this week:

Random Tweet of the Week

 I think we can all relate to this with some of our officers!

News and Opinion

Mahlon Mitchell. photo source http://bloggingblue.com

Mahlon Mitchell is running for Lieutenant Governor in Wisconsin in a run-off election. He is a firefighter and fed up with the way they have been treated. He is trying to make a difference.  http://mahlonmitchell.com/

Mahlon Mitchell was born in Milwaukee and grew up in Delavan, Wisconsin. He now lives with his wife, April and two children, Sie’anna and Karson, in Fitchburg.

Mahlon followed in his older brother’s footsteps when he became a fire fighter in Madison fifteen years ago. His two brothers are fire fighters in Atlanta and St. Paul. These careers came out of a family that instilled values of service and working for others.


FireGeezer.com – Mike “FossilMedic” Ward is seeking to get a road named after FireGeezer.com. Apparently everything is for sale in Virginia! Read more here

Officer.com – In Arkansas, a firefighter is killed and a police officer and firefighter in critical condition after a motorist hit them at an accident scene. Read more

FirefighterNation.com – Be on the lookout for this trailer which was stolen from Lexington (KY?). See the information here

Also on FFN is IAFF: Romney Opposes SAFER and FIRE Act Grant Programs. Most of my friends are republicans….they don’t care about stuff like this

Cincinnati.com – Speaking about SAFER…Cincinnati wants $6 million to hire firefighters. City Wants $6m To Hire 40 Firefighters; Staffing Down To 770

VAFireNews.com has the story on a 54 y.o. Norfolk Firefighter who died at the firehouse. Read more here

Firehouse.com – An off-duty Massachusetts firefighter is being hailed as a hero after saving a family from a fire. Read more here

Video below shows how two firefighters are lucky to be alive after their tanker rolled over. This happened in Madison County, MS. WATCH THE VIDEO to see the destruction the firefighters lived through!

 

Firefighter Product Review