Sept., 2021, UPS, page 2
DOWNS: The operator of a Lakewood municipal garbage truck dumped his load onto the street after an electric scooter that was tossed into the truck caught fire, in July. The raised body of the truck created a pile of trash on Congress St., according to the Lakewood Scoop. Electric scooters are driven by small motors that use Lithium batteries, which can overheat and catch fire.
UPS: On July 12th, an off duty Port Authority police officer contacted the George Washington Bridge Communications Desk and reported that a man was unresponsive in a vehicle outside of the GWB Administration Building, in Fort Lee. GWB Tunnel & Bridge Agents James Gorgia, Antonio Pagano and Chris Kerrigan, along with PAPD officers found the male, in his 70's, unresponsive in the passenger seat of a vehicle. The patient had no pulse and the first responders removed him from the auto and initiated CPR, according to their Facebook page. Shortly afterwards, the patient regained a pulse. The victim was turned over to Fort Lee EMS and Englewood M.C. paramedics. At the time of the transport, the victim was breathing on his own.
DOWNS: East Orange Fire Captain Vincent J. Intiso, 57, passed away in July. The Professional Firefighters of New Jersey said he died of COVID-19, in the line-of-duty. Captain Intiso was a 34-year member of the E.O.F.D. He was described as “the heart of the firehouse.”
UPS: Dennis “Chip” Polo is celebrating 50-years of service to his community with the East Freehold Fire Company, in Freehold Township. The ex-chief is serving in his 25th year as a member of the Freehold Township District 2 Board of Fire Commissioners.
DOWNS: Atlantic County firefighters battled a 3-alarm fire involving a mixed occupancy building on North Main St. in Pleasantville, July 15th. Officials said the fire spread through a store on the ground floor and extended to apartments on the second-floor.
UPS: On Independence Day, Hackensack police and firefighters celebrated the holiday with their annual softball game. The tradition will now be known as the Annual Lt. Timmy Rice 4th of July Softball Game, in honor of the fire lieutenant who recently passed away after a battle with cancer.
DOWNS: Two residents of a Valley St. apartment building, in Maplewood, were treated for smoke inhalation at St. Barnabas M.C. as the result of a fire on July 14th. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries, officials said.
UPS: On July 16th, Steve Hines drove Belmar First Aid Squad's 1938 Ford ambulance onto a transport truck that took the vintage vehicle to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan-the ambulance's new home. The squad disbanded in March due to financial strain. Hines was a member of the squad since 1975. His father joined in 1938. A crew from the museum took the vehicle to Michigan to put on display. Members of the squad kept their pride and joy in excellent condition through the years.
DOWNS: After firefighters extinguished a fire in the bathroom of a Hazelwood Avenue dwelling in Rahway, July 14th, they found an unconscious person inside the bathroom suffering serious injuries. The victim was pronounced dead a short time later, according to RLS Media.
UPS: Rich Motta has been promoted to fire lieutenant in Englewood.
DOWNS: A Wall resident died as the result of a fire in a Belmar Blvd. home, July 21st, according to Monmouth County prosecutor's office spokesman Chris Swendeman. First responders found the victim inside the house, who later died as a local hospital, officials said.
UPS: The Ocean City Fire Department's Junior Firefighter Camp came back with full force this summer, after being postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The four-day-long training included firefighting techniques and lessons in CPR for some 30 kids.
DOWNS: A fire involved the tractor of a car carrier, as well as several of the vehicles, on I. 287 in Oakland, July 21st.
UPS: This summer, Sea Isle City has begun stationing firefighters overnight at the firehouse to bolster fire safety at a time when the municipality is crowded with tens of thousands of vacationers, according to Sea Isle News. Three or four firefighters are stationed at the firehouse, next to City Hall, seven days, between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. The City Council approved an ordinance creating a payment program for volunteer firefighters who are part of the overnight shift. Overall, the cost of the program will be capped at $30,000 per month, according to the ordinance.
DOWNS: During a car fire on Camplain Road in Hillsborough, July 14th, Fire Company 2 Assistant Chief William Shaffer suffered a medical emergency. He was treated at the scene by first responders and transported to RWJ Somerset Hospital. The hospital staff were unable to revive Assistant Chief Shaffer, according to a fire district press release. A.C. Shaffer served his community for 35-years. “The fire department was his life,” said Chief Fire Marshal Christopher Weniger. “It was very important to him and he had a family that was very understanding.”
UPS: Jersey City officials broke ground on Aug. 17th at the site of a new 12,000-square-foot firehouse for Engine Co. 10 and Ladder Co. 12, at 627 Grand Street. It will replace a 116-year-old building on Halladay Street that has been condemned. The firehouse covers the growing Bergen-Lafayette neighborhood.
DOWNS: A fire at the Bristol Station apartments in Carteret, July 23rd, damaged 48 units and displaced 75 residents, officials said. Numerous mutual aid fire companies operated at the scene.
UPS: Recent promotions in Paterson Fire Department include Joseph Henderson to provisional deputy chief and Salvatore Brigati and John Mauro to provisional battalion chief. Promoted to captain were Raphael Chavez, Gustavo Guitierrez and Kyle Hughes.
DOWNS: A Phillipsburg man was arrested on an arson charge, as four fires struck a local neighborhood shortly after midnight on July 24th, authorities said. A house fire, two vehicle fires and a trash fire occurred within about a half-hour in the area of South Main & Stockton Streets, Fire Chief Richard Hay told the Lehigh Valley Live. The fires caused minor damage, Hay said. A 20-year-old man was charged with aggravated arson after he was seen leaving the location of the fourth fire that was discovered involving a vehicle in a parking lot, Warren County Prosecutor James Pfeiffer said.
UPS: A bi-partisan resolution, SJR-59, passed by the New Jersey Senate will designate October as “First Responders Appreciation Month.”
DOWNS: Perth Amboy fire units were dispatched to a reported explosion on Barry Ave., July 27th, and found a seriously injured 28-year-old man. The victim was burned when a gas explosion blew out the garage area of his home, officials said. The man was airlifted to a burn center, in stable condition. “It appears that the the area of origin was somewhere on the first floor,” said Fire Chief Edward Mullen. “We're looking at all the different gas appliances, obviously, due to the vapor explosion.”
UPS: Tim Cranmer has been promoted to Deputy Director of the Brick Township Emergency Medical Services.
DOWNS: Area firefighters battled a fire at Groff's Recycling Center on Clarks Landing Rd. in Galloway Township, August 1st.
UPS: The Secaucus Fire Department received $42,600 in AFG funds which will go towards training and investing in machines to decontaminate their PPE.
DOWNS: A motorist who set himself on fire after he was stopped by police in Bayonne died on July 13th, acting NJ Attorney General A. Bruck said. An unmarked police car activated their warning devices to pull over the driver for several violations in the area of 54th St. & Broadway. The driver kept going and eventually turned into a dead-ended 52nd St., Bruck said. Officers approached the vehicle and repeatedly ordered the driver out. The driver ignored their commands and lit a fire that engulfed the interior in flames and smoke, according to Bruck. Police tried to douse the flames while calling the fire department, who extinguished the fire. The driver was taken to St. Barnabas M.C. in Livingston, with serious burn-related injuries. He was later pronounced dead.
UPS: At the first Burlington Fire Academy graduation ceremony since the pandemic, officials created a leadership award in honor of the late Moorestown Fire Chief David Constantine. He was the primary instructor for the graduating Firefighting Class 96 until his passing, this spring. Firefighter Thomas M. Jones, Jr., of the Jacobstown Fire Company in North Hanover, received the award in July.
DOWNS: A boat caught fire in Manahawkin Bay near the Boatyard and Marina, Aug. 7th, causing heavy damage to parts of the bulkhead and picnic area, authorities said. The NJ State Police Marine Bureau and Stafford Township Fire Co. 1 responded to the fire call.
UPS: The Demarest Fire Aid squad will celebrate its 60th anniversary with a live entertainment party at 10 Wakglee Dr., on Saturday, Oct. 16th, 12 pm-3pm.
DOWNS: A 3-alarm fire damaged several units at the Princeton Orchards Apartments, in the Dayton section of South Brunswick, according to the Monmouth Junction Fire Department.
UPS: In West Orange, William McGee has been promoted to deputy fire chief and William Kelly to fire captain.
DOWNS: The body of a 23-year-old man was found in the bedroom of a Lenox Avenue dwelling in Hamilton, July 9th, after firefighters extinguished a fire in the building, police said.
UPS: New fire department promotions in Lakewood include Captains Todd Stark and James Ecks. Also, Lieutenants Robert Cook, Michael Errichiello, Joseph Johnson, Jeremy Reyes and Steve Seiffert.
DOWNS: A dog died, but two residents of a Raritan Borough dwelling fire escaped the two-story home, Aug. 10th. The fire was extinguished in 90-minutes according to Fire Chief Brian Kredatus.
UPS: New members of the Lakewood F.D. are: B. Morales, B. Smyre, C. Hernandez, I. Figueroa, J. Concul, N. Gonzales, R. Bonner and T. Womack.
DOWNS: A woman died when she became trapped inside her car when it hit a truck and burst into flames on Route 571 in Toms River, Aug. 9th, officials said. Witnesses stated bystanders unsuccessfully tried to free the woman from the locked vehicle before flames consumed it, but her legs were stuck under the dashboard. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
UPS: Fair Lawn firefighters and rescue squad members rescued a construction worker who fell over 10-feet into an open foundation on Berdan Ave., Aug. 11th, officials said. First responders said the worker's injuries were not considered life-threatening.
DOWNS: An apparently distraught woman jumped into the Hudson River off Weehawken, Aug. 6th. The woman, who flagged down a Hoboken police officer and claimed she wanted to harm herself, drove to the New York Waterway Ferry Terminal, in Weehawken. She left her car in the middle of the street and plunged into the water, along with her ferret, authorities said. She began swimming away before rescuers from the North Hudson Fire & Rescue Marine Division and the NYPD Harbor Patrol could catch up to her. She was taken to Hoboken University Medical Center, and the ferret was in police custody.
UPS: In August, Hackensack Deputy Fire Chief John Taylor was honored by the Lodi Moose Lodge for his off duty, life-saving actions aiding the victim of a medical emergency and MVA on Route 80.
DOWNS: A 52-year-old man suffered burns over most of his body in a backyard fire on Annapolis Court, according to South Toms River Police Chief William Kosh. The man was flown by helicopter to RWJ Barnabas Burn Center, in Livingston, on Aug. 14th.
UPS: New firefighters in Paterson are; G. Guizar, N. Hoedemaker, T. Mc Kinney, T. Ellerbee, L. Agobjian, E. Martinez, G. Palatsidis, V. Perez, K. Habrahamshon, G. Behnke, K. Blair, D. Cezar, M. Abreu, D. Tollens, J. Mateo, J. Wanco, K. Raymond, K. Guzman, G. Aldas-Fuentes, J. Statuto, E. Page, E. Robles and A. Duran-Muckle.
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