The Richfield Fire Department responded to a residential fire in a 14,000square foot home on April 22, 2025.
See story on page 4
Wind a Factor in Thorn Township Fire
Winds make for a very fast moving structure fire.
See story on page 8
3
Rescued in Scaffold
Collapse in Cleveland
Cleveland companies responded to an emergency rope rescue on West Lakeside at West 6th.
See story on page 10
Ya’Just Never Know
Concord Township 3 units assisted a resident with a fawn stuck in their garage.
See story on page 14
Stork Awards to Strohl and Skipworth
Lieutenant Ryan Strohl and Paramedic Sam Skipworth were awarded for their successful field delivery of a healthy baby!
See story on page 20
Obituary
Cleveland’s Symeon Williams
See story on pages 22-23
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Big House Fire in Richfield
The Richfield Fire Department responded to a residential fire in a 14,000-square foot home at 0709 hours on April 22, 2025. Richfield Engine 2 and 14 reported a fully involved structure fire. Richfield Chief George Seifert activated the MABAS system to a fourth alarm, resulting in 14 fire departments responding to the scene. A
watershuttle was set up and moved over500,000 gallons of water. The residents were not home at the time of the fire. It took crews close to eight hours to fully extinguish the fire.
- Submitted by George K. Seifert, Fire Chief
Fast Work at Akron Residential Fire
Akron Fire crews made quick work of a kitchen fire in the 700 block of Longview Avenue. Crews arrived to find the 1-1/2 story home with smoke showing, and quickly stopped the fire. - Photos courtesy of Akron FD
Fatality at Cleveland Blaze
Cleveland Fire units responded to a fatal fire on West 148th, north of Terminal in Battalion 3 recently. An adult female died despite valiant rescue efforts by residents and neighbors. The cause of the fire was underinvestigation.
- Photo courtesy of Cleveland FD
Smoke Detectors Win Again
Licking Township Fire Company responded to an early morning house fire in the 5700 block of Cristland Hill Road. The fire was quickly contained and there were no injuries to report. The homeowners had working smoke detectors. Thank you to ourmutual aid partners. - Photo courtesy of Licking Township FC
Fire Showing from Front Window on Arrival
The Warren City Fire Department was dispatched to the 1200 block of Oak Knoll Avenue SE fora structure fire. Car 12, Ladder6, Rescue 1, Engine 5 and Engine 6 responded. Units arrived to a single-story structure with fire showing from the front window. Crews immediately made an aggressive interiorattack bringing the fire undercontrol in less than five minutes. The property was believed to be vacant. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was underinvestigation by the Ohio State Fire Marshal.
- Photos courtesy of Warren Professional Firefighters Local 204
Wind a Factorin Thorn Twp. Fire
Thorn Township units along with mutual aid responded to a barn fire that extended into a garage. The fire was quickly contained even though the winds made this a very fast-moving fire.
- Photos courtesy of Thorn Township Fire & EMS
3 Rescued in Scaffold Collapse in Cleveland
Cleveland companies responded to an emergency rope rescue on West Lakeside at West 6th. Workers were tuck pointing brickwork when theirscaffolding collapsed, leaving three workers hanging by
safety harnesses. One victim was able to self-rescue through a window, while the othertwo were rescued by Tower1. No injuries were reported.
- Photos courtesy of Cleveland FD
Sometimes It Just Stays Busy
Madison Township Medic-101, Rescue-101, and Chief-112 responded to SR-16 eastbound nearthe Marne Road intersection fora two-carMVA. Both drivers were checked forminorinjuries. One lane remained closed forapproximately an hourwhile crews cleared debris from the road. Crews had just cleared from a previous auto accident on SR-16 nearBrownsville Road.
- Photos courtesy of Madison Township FD
5 Injured at Apartment House Fire
Cleveland Fire responded to a two-alarm explosion and fire in an apartment building at East 70/Garden Valley recently. Five people were transported by Cleveland EMS to MetroHealth. The extensive fire required 22 companies and over60 firefighters to respond. Engine 41 was first on scene because first-due Engine 26 was out shutting down hydrants. E41 crew rescued a trapped woman from a third-floorwindow. The woman had dropped herbaby down to
onlookers as the E41 crew was approaching with theirladder. Anotherresident tied bedsheets togetherto escape the blaze. Engine 10 rescued a cat and members of Cleveland Division of Police transported the cat to West Park Animal Hospital. Two dogs were also rescued. The cause of the explosion and fire was underinvestigation. Fire spread through the cockloft area below the roof of the large 44-unit building. - Photos courtesy of Cleveland FD
Ya’Just NeverKnow
Sometimes you neverknow what runs you will take in a 24-hourshift. Concord Township 3 units assisted a resident with a fawn stuck in theirgarage. The crew was able to remove the baby deerand reunite it with its motherin a nearby fence row. - Photo courtesy of Concorn Township FD
BetterThan Rescuing a Cat
Out of a Tree
Akron Police OfficerLaurie Natko was flagged down on Kelly Avenue recently fora baby duck down a sewerdrain. Momma was on the side of the road with herotherbabies. Akron Fire came out, climbed down the hole and rescued the errant baby. Firefighter
DeerMe, What a Rescue!
Members of Cleveland Fire Engine 2 responded on Fire Boat Marine 21 to a report of a deerin distress behind the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Ladder23 was first on scene and confirmed that a young buck had been swimming in the harborand was now laying on the rocks next to the wall. In coordination with the Cleveland Metroparks and Ohio Department of Natural Resources, they were able to load the exhausted animal into a Stoke’s basket, strapped him down and relocated him to the wooded area nearGordon Park, not farfrom the E. 72nd Marina. Anice job by Lieutenant Mike Dailey, and Firefighters Eric Hack, Nicolas Rivera and Daniel Holowenko. - Photos courtesy of Cleveland FD
Matt Pace, backed up by Lieutenant John Jennings and Firefighter TaylorCharles, were the heroes. Betterthan rescuing a cat out of a tree, hands down! - Photos courtesy of Akron FD
MVA on
Dayton Road
On May 15, 2025, at 1900 hours, Madison Township Medic 101, Rescue 101, Chief 111 responded to Dayton Road between Hazel Dell and Shalimarfora single-carMVA. One patient was transported. - Photo courtesy Madison Township FD
Youngstown Fire Training New Recruits on LadderWork
- Submitted by Tommy Gibbs
Training
MCI Training at RickenbackerInternational
Air travel remains the safest way to get to a destination, but, as we just saw with the tragic crash of Air India Flight AI 171, accidents do occur, and our first responders must remain ready should tragedy strike.
This is why the FAArequires airports to conduct full-scale mass casualty training exercises every three years. On June 11, 2025, Columbus Division of Fire joined first responders from Rickenbacker International Airport, Madison Township Fire and others for Rickenbacker International Airport’s tri-annual full-scale emergency response training.
The scenario was this: Imagine Air flight 611 was preparing for takeoff when Cessna 172 crossed into its path. The collision caused the planes to burst into flames and the Imagine Air Airbus to go off the runway and come to rest on Ramp 1.
Rickenbacker ARFF (Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting) crews from the Ohio 121st Air National Guard quickly responded. Due to a slight delay in the propane gas delivery, the Fire Force airplane fire simulator was not in action yet, but the crews responded as they would in an actual emergency to put out the flames, then turned to helping the victims.
Soon crews from Columbus Fire and Madison Township Fire arrived to take over triage efforts and begin transporting the injured.
The victims were volunteers, whose realistic looking gruesome injuries were the work of artists from the Franklin County Emergency Management and Homeland Security Moulage team. The team uses professional theater make-up to transform volunteers into realistic victims with severe, life-like injuries.
Helena Nova-Thatcher, Emergency Preparedness Senior Specialist for the Columbus Regional Airport Authority, led Wednesday’s training and was happy with the outcome.
“I think it went well. We had really good feedback, we have some take aways that we are going to put into our improvement plan for the future,” said Nova-Thatcher.
She also expressed the importance of mutual aid and interagency cooperation. The airports do not have all the resources needed to
respond to this type of event on their own, so a seamless response from Columbus and township departments is vital in providing the best outcome possible.
Beyond rendering aid to the “victims” and providing transport, members of Columbus Fire also did evaluations on the EMS response. Captain Jacob Rotthoff was one of the evaluators and was pleased with how the training went.
“Things went smoothly,” said Rotthoff. “Those scenes are going to be chaotic, especially at the early onset but things worked out and everyone performed well.”
The SALTMass Casualty Triage Algorithm to determine care for the victims was used in triage. SALTstands for Sort, Assess, Lifesaving Interventions, Treatment/Transport. After an initial assessment, one of five color coded ribbons were attached to the victim to indicate the severity of their injuries. Black-deceased, Gray-an injury not compatible for life, Red-priority, Yellow- next priority, Green-minor injuries. The EMTrack system was also being tested during this training. The EMTrack system uses barcodes to track patients. Currently all hospitals in Ohio are required to use the EMTrack system in a mass casualty incident (MCI).
Columbus Fire is still testing EMTrack for use on the fire/EMS side. If this system is approved, Columbus firefighters would have the EMTrack app on their phone or tablet. In the triage area, a band with a barcode would be attached to the victim. First responders would scan the code and add some basic information such as the triage category (Red, Yellow, Green), estimated time to transport and which hospital they will transport to. This system would have several benefits in an MCI, including helping with family reunification.
Towards the end of the training, once all victims had been evaluated and transported, Columbus Fire, and Madison Township Fire crews had the opportunity to train on the Fire Force Mobile ARFF Trainer. The Fire Force is a realistic airliner fire simulator.
- Photos courtesy of Columbus Division of Fire
Training
Practice Makes Perfect
Arecent training forMadison Township was held and 12 of our members and five juniors learned how orfreshened up on their drafting skills. This is one of the firefighting processes that can become frustrating orrequire more extensive troubleshooting if members are not well trained and encountera problem. Typically, if drafting, it is a largerfire requiring lots of water. Losing wateron a fire scene is a high-pressure situation to fix. Many firefighters do
not know how to draft ormay not feel comfortable doing it during an emergency. This can be due to a lack of need because of hydrants orbecause it doesn’t make the priority list fortraining. Training night is where we fail, where we teach, and where even ourcrusty old veterans learn something new. Thanks to all of ourvolunteers and juniorfirefighters forgiving up this mild sunny evening to refine theirskills. - Photos courtesy of Madison Township FD
American Holds Joint Grain Rescue Class
American Township Fire Department held a joint grain rescue training class last evening with Delphos Fire Rescue and we owe a big thank you to Pisle Farms forthe use of theirfacility and retired Lieutenant Mike Peters forhis semi and assistance. This is a high risk, low frequency type of incident and the exercise was to get
familiarwith the equipment. Forsome newerfirefighters that do not have farming experience, this gave them a new perspective and appreciation forhow dangerous grain can be, and what type of situations can happen. We also took the time to see where ourladder can reach if needed. - Photos courtesy of American Township FD
Training with Cuyahoga Co. OEM
Cleveland Fire participated in a series of training evolutions today led by Cuyahoga County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) at Progressive Field in downtown Cleveland. The scenarios covered active shooterand mass casualty incidents (MCI). They worked on
incident command, communication, coordinated response and tactics. Some excellent training we hope to neveruse. Thanks to everyone, sworn and civilian, who made today a success.
- Photos courtesy of Cleveland FD
Stork Awards to Strohl and Skipworth
Congratulations to Lieutenant Ryan Strohl and Paramedic Sam Skipworth who were presented with Stork Awards fortheirpart in the successful field delivery of a healthy baby!
- Photo courtesy of Delaware County EMS
Family Fun Day in Cincinnati
Cincinnati firefighters had an amazing time at Family Fun Day at Smale Park. We were thrilled to fit so many kids with bike helmets and help ensure theirsafety on the road. Remember, wearing a helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by over85 percent. Ahuge thank you to the Cincinnati Fire Foundation and the Cincinnati Parks Foundation formaking this possible.
- Photo courtesy of Cincinnati FD
New Rescue Boat forGreen Perrysville JFD
The Green Perrysville Joint Fire District is proud to announce the newest addition to their emergency response fleet, a rescue boat acquired through ODNR via a Surplus Equipment Grant.
Though the boat arrived in poor condition, thanks to the hard work and generosity of several community partners, we’ve brought it back to life and it’s now fully equipped and ready for service.
This vessel features down-scan and side-scan sonar, critical technology that allows us to see detailed images below and to the sides of the boat. This is incredibly important during rescue and recovery operations, helping our crews quickly and safely locate submerged vehicles, objects, or people - even in low visibility conditions.
But the journey doesn’t stop here. Our members will now complete
operator training for both the boat and its sonar systems. Once trained, they will continue expanding their skill sets to focus on water-based rescue and recovery operations, further enhancing our ability to respond quickly and effectively when every second counts.
Ahuge thank-you goes out to the organizations who helped make this possible: Ehove Career Center (Marine Trades Program); Lesch Canvas of Norwalk; Burgess Ambulance Sales; Fin Feather Fur Outfitters; The Renaissance Tradesmen Corp; and Ashland County Community Foundation
This boat will serve not only our community, but also surrounding areas through mutual aid agreements for years to come.
- Photos courtesy of Green Perrysville Joint Fire District
Green Perrysville Gets New Rescue Pumper
We are thrilled and thankful to announce the arrival of our brand-new 2024 Spartan/4 Guys Rescue Pumper. This marks a major milestone as it is our first fire engine purchase since 2005, and it represents a big step forward for the department and the community we proudly serve. This new rescue pumper is a critical part of our fleet reduction program, designed to help lower maintenance costs while increasing operational efficiency. It will replace two current units by combining the functions of our 1993 Freightliner E-One engine and 2005 HME Ahrens Fox rescue truck into one powerful, versatile apparatus.
Key Features Include: a 1,500-gpm pump,1000-gal water tank, built-
in oil dry hopper, increased storage capacity, fully equipped for structure fires, vehicle accidents, and general service calls.
Thanks to the support of our community and the equipment levy passed in 2022, we were able to finalize the order in March 2023. Today, several of our members proudly traveled to Pennsylvania to bring this impressive new truck home!
Before it officially goes into service, we’ll be completing equipment mounting and training. We’ll also be holding a dedication and “push-in” ceremony, so stay tuned for the date and time!
- Photos courtesy of Green Perrysville Joint Fire District
Cleveland’s Symeon Williams
Funeral services were held for Cleveland Fire Cadet Symeon Williams, who died at MetroHealth after suffering a medical emergency during training on May 16, 2025. Firefighters came from as far away as New York to honor Williams.
The Division of Fire extends our sincere condolences to Cadet Williams’family and friends. Thanks to Cleveland Fire Fighters IAFF
Local 93 and Vanguards of Cleveland for their coordination and support of the family.
“Rest easy, brother. We’ll take it from here.”
- Photos courtesy of Cleveland FD Continued on next page.
Understanding the “Why” Behind Mental Health in the Fire Service as NFFFPartners with Darley forthe 2025 Fire Service Thought Leadership Essay Competition
The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), in partnership with W.S. Darley & Company, is proud to announce the launch of the 2025 Fire Service Thought Leadership Essay Contest. This initiative challenges firefighters nationwide to explore the critical yet often overlooked mental health issues within their ranks.
The competition seeks to uncover the deeper reasons behind firefighters’ persistent mental health challenges, beyond the daily high-stakes stress of their lifesaving roles. “Understanding the ‘why’behind the mental health crisis is crucial,” said Garry Briese, a member of the Darley Board of Directors. “This competition provides a unique platform for firefighters to voice their experiences and insights.”
With a focus on introspection and analysis, participants are encouraged to examine various factors contributing to mental health issues, including job stress, firehouse culture, and broader societal impacts that uniquely affect firefighters.
How to Participate:
• Eligibility: Open to active and retired firefighters, both career and volunteer.
• Essay Requirements: Submit a three-tofour-page essay in PDF format, using 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced.
• Submission Period: March 24 - June 2.
“We often hear firefighters say, ‘I’m OK,’masking the true emotional toll of their duties,” said Victor Stagnaro, Chief Executive Officer of the NFFF. “This competition is a call to action for firefighters to express themselves openly.”
Submissions will be peer-reviewed by a panel of fire service and mental health experts, ensuring a comprehensive evaluation of the insights presented. For more details on the competition and submission guidelines, please visit https://darley.com/essay-contest.
FAMAFire Apparatus Design Symposium
The Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’Association (FAMA) will be held on Tuesday, October 21 through Friday, October 24, 2025 at the Rosen Centre, 9840 International Drive, Orlando, FL32819.
It’s an opportunity all fire chiefs, fleet managers and spec committees, to join FAMA’s 1st Annual Fire Apparatus Design Symposium! Afire apparatus is a huge investment for any fire department, and making sure it’s specified properly from the start is critical. Committees spend countless hours developing these specifications and have many questions. There appear to be many resources for getting answers to these questions, but often those answers are integrated into advertisements, and sales pitches from specific manufacturers. All too often, a committee ends up getting a specific opinion from one manufacturer, guiding them towards purchasing their product, instead of fact-based information on the technology, allowing them to make their own conclusions on which product to purchase.
FAMAis a non-profit organization and is recognized as the most comprehensive resource to the emergency vehicle industry. The association consists of apparatus manufacturers, as well as component manufacturers, and has existed for over 75 years. As a Fire Chief or Apparatus Committee, who can better answer your questions than the people who actually engineer, test and produce the products?
This symposium brings together the resources you need to guide you on safety, new technology, and apparatus design in general. By offering presentations delivered by competing vendor suppliers, you can be assured that the information will be fact-based on the technologies, and not a typical sales pitch..
The FAMAFire Apparatus Design Symposium has been strategically scheduled in a location that is easy to access from anywhere in North America, at a top-rate facility, with presentations from industry experts.
If your department wants to stay on top of apparatus tewchnology, and make connections with industry leaders, this is the one event you don’t want to miss!
