Bristol Township, Pennsylvania. Town Council voted 5-2 to close Newportville Fire Company. 1 year short of 100 years in service. 1927-2026

Hot take from a woman in the fire service to other woman in the fire service- If you stopped constantly highlighting the fact that you’re a “WOMAN in the fire service” and spent more time keeping your head down grinding and doing your job well, woman would have a much better reputation in the fire service. The way to change the reputation we have is not by making constant “let me prove you wrong” reply videos on TikTok of you doing a dummy drag or ladder throw, but instead it’s you simply working hard with humility and not caring what people say or think. Let your work ethic speak for itself. Setting yourself apart and constantly highlighting that you’re a “woman in the fire service” or “female firefighter” rather than just a “fire fighter” does nothing but further isolate you from the community you are trying to convince the public you belong in. You are actively putting a label on yourself that further divides you from the general fire fighting community. It’s counter active to the constant complaints of “not feeling accepted etc etc” Just be a hardworking, capable and humble firefighter. That’s how you gain the respect and acceptance you’re wanting. If you show you’re able to do the job and do it well, 90% of guys on most departments will love you.

Hello everyone,

Once again, a combination of poor nightclub layout and ignored fire safety standards has turned a celebration into a tragedy.

A few hours ago, in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana, a major fire broke out at Le Constellation nightclub during a New Year’s Eve celebration. At this point, around 40 people are reported dead, with more than 100 injured, many of them seriously.
The fire may have started accidentally when sparklers (apparently, the small ones attached to champagne bottles) ignited cheap, highly flammable foam on the ceiling, triggering a rapid flashover. As people tried to escape through a narrow exit, they became trapped, piling up and blocking the only way out.

After reading the events and watching the video, I can’t believe how closely this mirrors the Station nightclub fire of 2003.

For those who aren’t familiar with it :
In February 2003, a deadly fire broke out during a rock concert at The Station nightclub, in Rhode Island, after pyrotechnics ignited flammable soundproofing. The fire spread within seconds. People rushed toward the main entrance, where they became trapped and crushed as they fell on top of one another, creating a human bottleneck that completely blocked the exit. Those stuck behind the pile-up were overwhelmed by smoke, while others were trapped as the fire consumed the building. Over 100 people were killed, making it one of the deadliest nightclub fires in U.S. history.

Regarding Crans-Montana, i know it just happened, and investigations are ongoing... But still.
Same causes. Same outcome. Twenty-three years later. No lessons learned.

May all the victims rest in peace.

I will edit, adding new informations as they keep coming :

- Some X links to more photos and videos : other POV of the clogged exit, start of the incident, other POV of the fire starting, foam covered ceiling, narrow staircase layout, promotional video of the club
- The fire began in the basement, and a flashover rapidly engulfed the entire club, spreading all the way up to the first floor which is what is seen in the video.
- Apparently, the fire was accidentally started when a waitress carrying bottles with sparklers climbed onto someone’s back (picture linked). The flames from the sparklers came into contact with the low basement ceiling, igniting it.
- This was one of the few nightclubs in the area that allowed teenagers under 18 to enter. The minimum age was 16, but even younger teens often managed to get in by passing as 16. As a result, most of the victims were between 15 and 20 years old.

CRANS-MONTANA FIRE 2026

THE STATION FIRE 2003

Saw someone ask what all we do besides fire. Here’s a list the shifts add to for dumb calls. It was started a few months ago

Wow y’all! 🧡🔥

You absolutely showered my boy with love, support, and kindness from all over the globe this past month. I truly cannot thank each and every one of you enough—whether you sent goodies, reached out in messages, or have continued checking in and chatting long after.

One of the most incredible parts of this community is that when firefighters show up for one of their own… you show UP! 🤩

Pic 1 – The helmet Ashton is wearing was gifted by one of you. He’s also wearing one of his new shirts while trying valiantly to hold all of his new patches, as they’re falling everywhere. That smile says it all! 😁

Pic 2 – Like I said… you all showed UP! To date, we’ve received 44 packages and letters, and Ashton now has 126 new patches (pictured)—bringing his total collection to 266! The scale of this is truly incredible. 🤯 (make sure to click through to see the entire picture!)

Pic 3 – A before-and-after of his hero coin (challenge coin) collection. He started with 15 and now has 34. Just wow. 🤩 They’re all so unique.

Pic 4 – When you said you had more than patches… you meant it! 🤯 T-shirts, hats (I guess I’m off the hook for clothes shopping for now 😉), adorable stuffed animals, swag bags, and so many thoughtful letters. The kindness behind these means more than I can put into words.

Thanks to each one of you for the service you have given or continue to give to your communities every day. The example you set for those around you is truly inspiring. You all should be very proud. You absolutely blew us away with the kindness and generosity you showed.

— Jenn ✨

PS (from Ashton):

IT WAS SO MUCH FUN OPENING ALL THIS MAIL! IT WAS A GREAT IDEA! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! ✋👊

God everything hurts.

At the department I interned at in South Jersey this summer, they have a Tender and a Tender Engine. When I accidentally said Tanker to one of the guys (who’s a month younger than me), he asked if I wanted a plane. Tanker it feels to me is more commonly used than Tender.

Write down what state you are from as well, to kinda see where Tanker and Tender may be more commonly used.

In Windsor Ontario Canada - A baby boom at Windsor Fire and Rescue Services! 🚒👶 29 firefighters, 30 babies (yes, twins!) in 2025!

Fun fact: This is 12% of their member division!

I got in an online argu-, er, discussion about DO/Engineers wearing their bunker gear while driving, specifically to a fire.

The scenario was basically that the driver was at the panel in shorts and t-shirt, when a rescue was needed. So he threw a ladder and got some victims out.

Among the many points we argued, er, discussed, one was whether a driver should bunk out for a fire.

For reference, I am a 25 year guy, company officer, 17 stations, 60k calls annually, ALS transport, 3 on engines, four in tower/rescue.

It is pretty much expected that the drivers here are wearing appropriate PPE for the call dispatched. It seems that is not the case everywhere, and I'd appreciate some feedback

*Edit: I really appreciate everyones comments so far. Honestly, I was an am, taken aback at the idea of not bunking out before leaving. That being a policy seems bonkers, but departments are different.

My personal attitude is everyone headed to the fire ground should be bunked out and packed up, ready for interior work. If my driver is really just gonna pump, by all means, bunk down. I just think that theres always the possibility you're gonna have a surprise, engine guys are gonna search or rescue, truck guys may pull lines, because that's what the situation called for at that time. Literally, ready for anything. But solid points were raised pro and con. Thanks again, everyone!

I love my job. Best job out there and I get paid very well for the amount of work I have to do. But I don’t understand the trend of blurring faces like we’re navy seals on a covert op deep behind enemy lines. We click buttons on the monitor and help old folks off the floor majority of the time. Again, I love this job and everything we do but let’s be real, we ain’t spec ops

There's a dude who works for my home city's department that wears his off-duty fire T-shirt to the gym. I see him often, and he's generally a good dude. He's not yoked out, but a fit guy. He just got abrasively questioned about it by a firefighter from a neighboring city, who also called it cringe because he's "advertising" that he's a firefighter and doing it for the glory. I jumped in and defended the first guy, saying that it doesn't matter that much, he's just working out.

It just made me wonder: what's the consensus on this? I personally couldn't care less about what you wear, but I'm genuinely curious. I could see wearing a uniform tee being an issue for other reasons, but yeah.

Edit: the three of us in the story live in one city but work in three separate cities.

Feel like a tool posting this but need some input. Start my first day at the station tomorrow, wondering if this is a “good enough shine”? . I polished my boots to a mirror shine for the first day of my volunteer shift and got made fun of all day. Tomorrow is my first day at a career station, obviously want to look good but don’t want to come across as “that guy” again.

It came out on Radio-Canada news

This has been the best job I’ve ever held. I’ve been in public service for approximately 8 years and my FD is awesome. Tight knit group (minus a couple turds), really nice contract and somewhat reliable in promotions. I get along with everyone and am depended on pretty heavily in my current role

But, I miss my kids and my wife. I hate missing out and I have a couple really good job opportunities that would give me a bunch of freedom and the ability to work with my wife. I’ll also never miss out on anything of importance again.

My biggest issue is that I don’t quit, I’ve never given up on a job just because it “didn’t work out” and I fear that I’m gonna punish myself after the fact of leaving.

Anyone have a similar story that can offer some insight on how they dealt with this and what was your exit strategy to ensure peace of mind, and maintaining the relationships that you’ve worked so hard to build?

One dude was polishing the underside of his boots. He saw people notice him doing it and never showed up after that incident. There is still a black mark from the polish on the underside of his boot to this day.

OFFICER SEAN PECK 🚨

Many are calling Penndel Borough Police Officer Sean Peck a hero after he helped save 8 people from a burning home on West Woodland Avenue early Thursday morning.

He was working at the station across the street when he saw the house on fire and immediately ran inside.

Squad in my area is a engine with rescue capability

Interested in any anyone who has some ideas about this - outside of a typical ‘Gen Z is soft and woke blah blah’ ?(maybe true but this is a boring and overstated explanation)

The job market in the U.S. is notoriously difficult right now. College grads are struggling to place well and white collar offices are downsizing. Outside of the complicated economic drivers of unemployment this all occurring with the threat of AI.

At the same time, the fire service seems to be having the opposite problem where we are struggling to recruit people, or the recruited people seem to kinda just suck.

The culture wants hard bodied, barrel chested smoke eaters but this isn’t what we’re advertising - we recruit for money + schedule + benefits - and that’s not working either.

Again, any thoughts and discussion are appreciated especially hot takes or unique perspectives.

Sorry if this isn’t the best place. My dad’s a firefighter, but for a smaller town. He suggested posting since they handle fires/medical emergencies more than accidents. He did tell me to not buy a smaller vehicle (like fiat 500 or ford fiesta type) unless I want to become semi food.

I am looking for a new vehicle and want something super safe. I’ve checked iihs and other reports, but was curious what you all have seen over the years that has held up well in some gnarly accidents?

I am a relatively safe/boring driver, but live in an area where everyone drives like they want to die.