Union Fire Fighter News
| September 25, 2008 -- Despite continuing partisan wrangling ahead of the November elections, legislation strengthening the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) is on the verge of becoming law. Both chambers of Congress have voted to pass S. 2606, the United States Fire Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008. |
| September 25, 2008 -- IAFF Governmental Relations staff has been working with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to ensure that an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) review that began in 2007 of requirements concerning the appropriate age at which public employees may qualify for a service retirement doesn't negatively affect public safety workers. |
| September 22, 2008 – On Saturday, September 20, 2008, a crowd of approximately 5,000 fire fighters, family and friends from the United States and Canada made their 22nd annual pilgrimage to Colorado Springs, Colorado, for the IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial observance honoring 137 fallen fire fighters. |  |
 | September 19, 2008 – The Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire (PFFNH), with support from the IAFF, kicked off its campaign for former New Hampshire Governor Jeanne Shaheen at a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire. IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger, Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire President Dave Lang and 150 fire fighters participated in the event held at Manchester Local 856’s Somerville Street Fire Station/Engine 7. |
| September 19, 2008 -- The IAFF has announced winners in the 2008 Media Awards Contest! The complete list of winners is published on the IAFF web site and will also be featured in the September-October issue of the International Fire Fighter. |
| September 18, 2008 -- As the Gulf Coast was hit first by Hurricane Gustav and followed by Hurricane Ike, the IAFF was on the ground, ready to provide immediate assistance to affected members. While Gustav certainly left his mark, it was Ike that left many fire fighter homes heavily- damaged, some beyond repair. |  |
 | September 17, 2008 -- The IAFF continues to review disaster relief applications and distribute relief funds to IAFF members whose homes have been damaged by Hurricane Ike. Based on assessments conducted so far, most IAFF members have experienced housing damage due to flooding from Hurricane Ike and are waiting for insurance representatives to evaluate their homes. However, a number of members in Orange, Galveston and Port Arthur have homes that are completely destroyed and will need to be replaced or rebuilt. |
| September 15, 2008 -- More than 48 hours after Hurricane Ike swamped the Gulf Coast, rescuers flew for the first time into areas cut off by the storm and found a scene of devastation, with whole subdivisions obliterated, and began evacuating survivors. 11th District Vice President Sandy McGhee has established an IAFF operations/relief center in La Marque, Texas, to provide temporary shelter for IAFF members and their families until FEMA aid or insurance can take over. |
| September 14, 2008 -- It was a run-of-the-mill call that unfolded into a rescue effort involving hundreds of fire fighters, law enforcement officers and others and would shock the senses of even the most hardened veterans. |  |
| September 14, 2008 -- Hurricane Ike has weakened to a tropical depression after making landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast as a Category 2 hurricane, paralyzing Houston and flooding Galveston and other coastal areas. The full extent of the damage — or even a rough sense of casualties — is still unclear, in part because many roads are impassable. In Galveston — where the storm caused the greatest devastation -- 11th District Vice President Sandy McGhee reports that of the seven fire stations there, four are “liveable,” while the condition of the other three is unknown. He is also concerned about Orange, Texas, on the Louisiana border, which was also hit hard. He is in touch by phone with other affiliates in the region and continues to attempt to reach Orange, TX Local 1432. |
| Hurricane Ike crashed into densely populated southeast Texas early Saturday, battering the coast with driving rain and ferocious wind gusts as residents who decided too late they should have heeded calls to evacuate made futile calls for rescue. All emergency services are suspended until the storm winds and surges subside. |
| September 12, 2008 -- The Ear & Hearing journal has rebuked a Washington University researcher for failing to disclose that he was working as a paid expert for a siren manufacturer when he published a study saying fire fighters weren't at risk for job-related hearing loss. |
 | September 11, 2008 – Hurricane Ike is expected to make landfall somewhere between Corpus Christi and Houston, Texas, late Friday or early Saturday. The National Hurricane Center reports that the storm could come ashore as powerful as a Category 4. Accordingly, the IAFF and its members are on alert, ready to respond. |
| September 11, 2008 -- Pam and Neil Price of Mesquite, Texas, will soon be taking a dream vacation courtesy of global insurance provider Liberty Mutual and the IAFF. Liberty Mutual teamed up with the IAFF Financial Corporation (IAFF-FC) to promote the “Fun With Family and Friends” interactive sweepstakes. |
| Today marks the 7th anniversary of the darkest day in our union’s history. No matter how many years pass, we must always remember the ultimate sacrifice made by our 343 fallen FDNY brothers after terrorists launched their cowardly attacks on the World Trade Centers. |
| September 9, 2008 -- Now that the federal election date is known and some of its ramifications have come into clearer focus, the IAFF has made the difficult decision to cancel the October Conference. The next Canadian Legislative Conference will be held during its usual April timeframe. |
| September 9, 2008 -- Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), the U.S. Senate’s foremost champion of working people and a great friend to America’s fire fighters, has announced he will continue seeking treatment for his health challenges in Massachusetts instead of returning to Washington for the brief Senate session scheduled for this month. “Our primary concern is for Senator Kennedy to get well so he can return at full strength to fight on behalf of our members, and we fully support his decision to place his health first," says IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger. |
| September 8, 2008 -- The IAFF is now accepting applications online for the 2009 Political Training Academy, scheduled for March 1-6, 2009, in Baltimore, Maryland. Applications for the 2009 Political Training Academy are available online at www.iaff.org. Over the last 10 years, the Political Training Academy has graduated more than 600 IAFF members or immediate family members from 48 states and six provinces. |
| September 3, 2008 -- A scathing report blames three of last fall's southern California wildfires on San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Cox Communications, saying the companies violated state regulations by failing to properly maintain electric and cable television wires in areas where blazes started. The investigation by the California Public Utilities Commission's Consumer Protection and Safety Division alleged the companies were out of compliance with state rules designed to ensure the safe operation of cables. |
IAFF Raises Record $27,530,000 for MDA
| September 3, 2008 -- A scathing report blames three of last fall's southern California wildfires on San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Cox Communications, saying the companies violated state regulations by failing to properly maintain electric and cable television wires in areas where blazes started. The investigation by the California Public Utilities Commission's Consumer Protection and Safety Division alleged the companies were out of compliance with state rules designed to ensure the safe operation of cables. |