Firehouse.com

MIAMI

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Firefighters used a crane to rescue a man who fell into a cargo ship's hold as it approached Miami on Wednesday morning.

According to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, the cargo ship was about 20 minutes off shore when those aboard called for help.

Officials said a 67-year-old man had fallen about 15 feet into a cargo hold.

When the ship arrived, firefighters used the vessel's crane to lift the man from the cargo hold and onto a stretcher. The man was transported to a hospital.

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The department received some welcome news leading up to this time of remembrance for their six fallen colleagues.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today the House passed a measure reauthorizing the FIRE Act grant programs.

The bill sets aside $1B for AFG and $1.2M for SAFER annually through 2014.

The legislation, which passed by a 395-31 vote, includes the establishment of a survey to determine if departments are adhering to safety practices; OKs funds for river rescue operations; and authorizes grant money to be spent for equipment that conserves water.

An allegedly drunken Tennessee truck driver, heading to Bucksport to deliver chemicals used in papermaking, missed his turn on Interstate 95 by nearly 75 miles Sunday night and then crashed his big rig spilling most of the chemicals he was carrying, officials said.

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BARDSTOWN, Ky. --

Firefighters rescued a bedridden man from a burning mobile home in Bardstown, only to discover he stopped breathing and they couldn't save his life.

The rescue happened on Cleo Avenue near North Third Street in Bardstown Monday afternoon.

The Bardstown fire chief said his firefighters had never experienced anything like this before.

Pinellas fire chiefs and county officials created a cutting-edge computer system to deliver crucial information to firefighters on their way to battle blazes.

But five years later, the system is full of holes because some fire departments have failed to provide critical data, leaving firefighters to dash blindly into dangerous situations, according to a St. Petersburg Times review.

Nov. 17--COLUMBUS -- The Columbus Fire Department will have a simulator to educate Columbus and surrounding communities about fire safety following the City Council's approval Monday of an $82,701 combination sprinkler/fire safety house.

Nov. 17--Cory Shifflett, the son of former Bedford County volunteer fire chief Jeffrey Shifflett, pleaded guilty today to seven counts of embezzlement, throwing himself on the mercy of the court.

"His position is he wants to take responsibility and make things right," Bedford County Commonwealth's Attorney Randy Krantz said after this morning's hearing in the county Circuit Court.

HIGHLAND -- Dan Baxter peers out his front window at the new neighbor that blocks his views of American Fork Canyon, has forced him to abandon the front half of his home and is currently shining a bright red light on his face. "It's almost as if the building is positioned to shine the lights right in our home," he said.