News stories tagged with "fire"

(04/10/12) It's wildfire season in the North Country...the period between mid-March and mid-May, when the snow's mostly gone but fields and grass haven't greened up yet. Almost half of the state's approximately 2300 annual wildfires usually happen during this period--so officials encourage people to take extra precautions, and forbid brush-burning during this time. more

(04/03/12) State fire investigators and the Alcoa corporation are looking for the cause of a fire that broke out at the Alcoa West plant near Massena Thursday.

Alcoa spokeswoman Laurie Marr says investigators were able to start looking closely at the cast house, where the fire took place on Friday. more

(04/02/12) Smelting operations at both the Alcoa East and West plants are continuing as usual Monday, and an investigation into the cause of a fire in the casthouse of the West plant last week is underway.

A preliminary survey of the casthouse Friday found areas that are structurally safe. That allowed state fire investigators to get to work in the building.

Alcoa spokeswoman Laurie Marr said it's too soon to determine the extent of the damages, or the long-term impact on the plant's operations.

(03/30/12) UPDATE: Alcoa now says a preliminary survey of the casthouse Friday "determined areas that are structurally safe. This allowed state fire investigators to begin their investigation. It is too soon to determine the extent of damage to equipment and the long-term impact on processes. It is unknown how long the investigation process will take."

Firefighters were still working Friday afternoon to extinguish small flare-ups called "hot spots." at the Alcoa West plant near Massena. The fire began Thursday afternoon. more

(03/30/12) Officials with Alcoa say flare ups from a large fire at their West Plant casthouse building, near Massena, were out by 4:30 this morning. Alcoa spokesperson Laurie Marr says firefighters from multiple fire departments were on the scene through the night.

She says no one was hurt in the fire. Thick black smoke drifted over Massena. Marr says they don't think the smoke contained hazardous materials. more

(02/15/12) Investigators have determined that a fire that broke out last Friday at SUNY Canton wasn't caused by "an intentional or criminal act."

Students were evacuated, and the campus is shut down this week as local fire and police departments look into what started the fire. In a press release, the Canton Fire Department said Tuesday that the fire had started in a chemistry prep and storage room.

College spokesman Randy Sieminski says they're waiting for test results to make sure it's safe to reopen academic buildings and residence halls. He says the school is still hopeful that classes will resume on Monday. He told Julie Grant everyone's glad arson has been ruled out as a cause. more

(02/10/12) Crews from ten fire departments were at SUNY Canton today, after a reported explosion and fire. A spokesman for the school says it happened in a chemistry lab, on the north end of the Cook Science Center.

No injuries had been reported.

NCPR was on the scene at around 12:30 this afternoon, and ran into John Stafford of Canton Fire and Rescue...

"Cooke, there's a fire in Cook Hall. There's toxic fumes. So they need to stay out of there... we've got fire departments from all over, rescue squads, everything going here."

Stafford was wearing a yellow mask over his head and mouth to protect him from the chemical smoke. The campus center was closed, and officials were stationed along campus roadways, preventing people getting too close.

Surrounding buildings were evacuated. Student Jeremy Coleman was walking around campus looking a little dazed. A few minutes earlier, he'd been asleep in his dorm...

"They came banging on the door, saying everyone has to leave, the building is being evacuated."

Fire officials said all firefighters will have to go through a decontamination process.
It is not known whether anyone was in the lab when the fire began. Arson investigators are reportedly looking into the matter.

(01/04/12) Officials in Essex County say an arson attack over the weekend could have destroyed much of the downtown business district in Port Henry. They also say that the man accused of setting at least four fires, 43-year-old Joseph King, attacked firefighters while they were battling the dangerous blaze. Brian Mann has our story. more

(09/06/11) Federal workers reportedly complained about the inability to communicate during Irene, and following the recent earthquake, when cell phone networks went down. According to the Washington Post, many felt they were left in the dark, and agency leaders couldn't disseminate key information.

The Federal Communications Commission and wireless carriers report that 65-hundred cell sites were down along the East Coast during Hurricane Irene. Forty-four percent of Vermont's cell sites were down. The Post reports that confusion and a lack of coordination has federal employees worried that the government is still woefully unprepared for emergency situations.

Here in the North Country, Jefferson County is planning big improvements to its emergency communications system. The legislature just named a committee to research options and report back to lawmakers on the issue. Joanna Richards has more. more

(04/20/11) Across the North Country, volunteer fire squads are struggling to find new recruits.

Departments face a lot of challenges. Many small towns have fewer and fewer young people.

Training demands have grown over the years.

As Chris Morris reports, the region's fire chiefs are organizing to try to rebuild the tradition of service. more