first responders

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Judge Frees Paramedic Jailed for Elijah McClain Death

Peter Cichuniec's 5-year prison sentence has been vacated; he receives 4 years of probation instead

(Newser) - A Colorado paramedic sentenced in March to five years behind bars for his role in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain will see freedom earlier than anticipated. Per the AP , Adams County District Judge Mark Warner on Friday vacated Peter Cichuniec's sentence and instead reduced it to four years...

911 Calls in NYC Will Soon Draw a New 'First Responder'

NYPD says it plans on deploying drones in response to 'certain' emergency calls

(Newser) - If you call 911 in New York City in the coming months, drones may show up to assist as the NYPD's newest first responders. Per the New York Daily News , station houses in five precincts—including the one that covers Central Park, as well as three in Brooklyn and...

Court: No Suit Over Woman Mistakenly Declared Dead

Panel says family of Timesha Beauchamp, who did eventually die, can't file complaint against EMTs

(Newser) - The family of a Michigan woman who was erroneously declared dead in 2020, then declared dead for real eight weeks later, tried to sue the city of Southfield and four first responders whose bad judgment, they say, contributed to Timesha Beauchamp's demise from a brain injury. Her family says...

At Uvalde, Police Response Wasn't the Only Problem
At Uvalde, Police Response
Wasn't the Only Problem
longform
Dec 20, 2022 11:41 AM CST

At Uvalde, Police Response Wasn't the Only Problem

Medical response was chaotic, uncoordinated, and may have cost lives: report

(Newser) - The slow response of police to confront the gunman at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, has been well documented. But a new examination of video and audio from the scene, as well as interviews, shows that the medical response that day in May also was mired in chaos and...

Deputy Heard Baby's Cries Amid Fire, Started Climbing

William Puzynski saves 1-year-old girl from 3rd-floor balcony in Orlando

(Newser) - A local sheriff's deputy was in the right place at the right time when an apartment building in Orlando, Fla., went up in flames over the weekend. Per WKMG , William Puzynski of the Orange County Sheriff's Office was on patrol around 4am Saturday when a call was radioed...

He Spent Weeks on the Pile After 9/11. What Did It Do to His Brain?

The 'Washington Post' looks at cognitive decline among first responders

(Newser) - In 2015, at age 52, Ron Kirchner was diagnosed with dementia. His wife was told an MRI scan of Kirchner's brain could be mistaken for that of an 85-year-old. What makes that reality all the more tragic is this: Kirchner was a firefighter who spent almost 600 hours—the...

Condo Collapse Rescuers Heard Woman, Couldn't Save Her

'The wind was knocked out of our guys,' supervisor said

(Newser) - Miami-Dade firefighter Lt. Obed Frometa also serves as a chaplain, and he says the Surfside condo collapse is taking a heavy toll on rescuers. One such example: In the hours after the building collapsed last Thursday, rescuers were in contact for hours with a woman they were unable to save,...

The Treasury Took $4M From 9/11 Program: Report

'I mean, this is absurd'

(Newser) - A health care program that serves 9/11 first responders is nearly $4 million short because the Trump administration shifted those dollars away to another program, the New York Daily News reports. In fact, the Treasury Dept. has quietly siphoned money from the FDNY World Trade Center Health Program—which covers...

Young Daughter of First Responders Dies of COVID

Skylar Herbert, 5, is Michigan's youngest victim

(Newser) - Michigan has its first child fatality of the COVID-19 outbreak. The parents of 5-year-old Skylar Herbert took her off a ventilator on Sunday after doctors said she had no hope of recovery and was likely brain-dead, reports the Detroit News . Skylar started having headaches about a month ago, and a...

Police Chief to Feds: Stop Testing NBA Players

He says he is having a hard time getting officers tested for coronavirus

(Newser) - A California police chief urged White House officials to make testing first responders for coronavirus a priority during a conference call between police chiefs and White House and Homeland Security officials. "Stop testing NBA players, and start testing our first responders," Vacaville police chief John Carli said during...

Calif. School Shooting Had Surprise First Responders

That was the 'silver lining,' says LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva

(Newser) - Amid yet another school shooting, a ray of hope: two off-duty officers and a detective who rushed to help, USA Today reports. "Off-duty first responders were there and did not hesitate, turned around and went right into the source of the gunfire to attempt to neutralize it, and they...

Rand Paul Puts His Foot Down Over 9/11 Bill

The Kentucky senator won't let it pass unanimously

(Newser) - Republican Sen. Rand Paul on Wednesday blocked fast-track approval of a bipartisan bill that would ensure a victims' compensation fund related to the Sept. 11 attacks never runs out of money, the AP reports. Paul objected to a request by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, to approve the bill by unanimous...

Ex-Cop Who Testified With Jon Stewart on 9/11 Fund Dies

Former NYPD detective Luis Alvarez, 53, died of complications of colorectal cancer

(Newser) - When Jon Stewart lambasted lawmakers at a hearing earlier this month, Luis Alvarez was one of the first responders at his side, making his own impassioned plea to the House Judiciary subcommittee to stop dragging its feet on re-funding the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund. Now, sad news from Long...

Stewart: Mitch McConnell Is 'White Whale' of 9/11 Funding

'He has always held out until the very last minute'

(Newser) - Jon Stewart kept up the pressure on Congress to pass funding for 9/11 first responders in a Fox News Sunday appearance—and slammed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as the "white whale" of the issue. "I want to make it clear that this has never been dealt with...

Medics Meet Boy They Saved After Horrific School Bus Crash

Maverik Lowe nearly died in Indiana accident last year

(Newser) - A 12-year-old Indiana boy who survived a bus stop crash that killed three young siblings has met the medics who saved his life, per the AP . Maverik Lowe's mother wrote on Facebook that her son on Saturday met with a nurse and a paramedic who treated him during a...

9/11 Firefighter Died, but Kids Fulfill His Shark Tank Dream

Keith Young's children pitched his Cup Board Pro

(Newser) - Keith Young invented the Cup Board Pro, a cutting board with a detachable bowl attached, and he dreamed of bringing it on Shark Tank. But the New York City firefighter, who helped with Ground Zero cleanup after 9/11, died in March of cancer related to the World Trade Center attacks...

He Was Having a Heart Attack. He Really Wanted to Finish His Sod

First responders stepped in for Gene Work and finished his chore while he had surgery

(Newser) - It was a hot, humid day in Pasco County, Fla., on Saturday, and Gene Work was trying to beat the clock to lay down sod in his yard so he wouldn't face a fine from his homeowners association. But the 40-year-old, who was working with his brother-in-law Mark Rouco,...

He Guessed Shooting Victim Was Older Than 15. It Saved Her
He Guessed
Shooting Victim
Was Older Than
15. It Saved Her
in case you missed it
Mar 3, 2018 11:04 AM CST

He Guessed Shooting Victim Was Older Than 15. It Saved Her

Lt. Laz Ojeda made the call to take Parkland victim not to a children's hospital, but to a closer facility

(Newser) - Maddy Wilford was shot multiple times in the Parkland school massacre and was near death as first responders tended to her after the shooting. But an observant Coral Springs Fire Department lieutenant asked the teen an important question as they prepared to whisk her away, and it was one that...

They're FEMA's Elite Rescuers, Yet Some Do Little Rescuing

Bureaucracy, too much gear, and other inefficiencies are marring response efforts

(Newser) - They're called the "national Swiss Army knife of emergency response," teams of highly trained first responders sent by FEMA across the US when disaster strikes. But when hurricanes pummeled Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico last summer, many of the thousands deployed via the agency's National Urban...

Father and Son, Both 9/11 Responders, Have Died

FDNY's Raymond and Robert Alexander passed away within a year of each other

(Newser) - They were healthy, with no history of cancer in the family, but within a year of each other, a father and son have died—the 76-year-old dad last year after fighting seven different cancers over 13 years. The common link: Both Raymond Alexander and his son, Robert, who died Monday...

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