Lieutenant Mike Ciampo (FDNY) will present “Truck Skills Beyond the Textbooks” in 21 counties. On-site and pre-registration are available for the three-hour program in Albany, Broome, Clinton, Cortland, Erie, Fulton, Herkimer, Monroe, Oneida, Orange, Otsego, Rensselaer, Rockland, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Steuben, Suffolk, Westchester, and Wyoming Counties. Registration is $35 (NYSAFC Individual and Department Members) and $50 (non-members) per person. Online registration is now available!

Join NYSAFC and the Islip Town Fire/EMS Museum Educational Center for three days of education and exhibits – February 3-5, 2023, at Nassau Coliseum. Nine educational seminars will be delivered by some of the most prominent leaders in the emergency services. Lecturers include Chief Michael Lombardo (Buffalo F.D.), Deputy Assistant Chief Frank Leeb (FDNY), Battalion Chief John Salka (FDNY), and Lt. Tim Klett (FDNY). New – an Elevator Emergencies hands-on training program will be presented by the Suffolk County Fire Academy. 90 vendors (and counting) will be displaying apparatus, tools, equipment, and services.

The New York State Fire Service Alliance has announced its legislative initiatives for 2023. The alliance consists of the New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, Firefighters Association of the State of New York, Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York, New York State Fire Marshals & Inspectors Association, County Fire Coordinators' Association of the State of New York, and Volunteer Fire Police Association of the State of New York.

The NYSAFC Government Affairs Committee encourages association members to review this document from the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC).

New York state has made local governments an offer officials are likely not going to refuse. The state Legislature and Governor Kathy Hochul have approved a property tax exemption of up to 10% on the primary home for volunteer first responders who have been members of a fire department or ambulance service for at least two years.

The Islip, Long Island, husband and father of two suffered a critical head injury in a fall at his Brooklyn firehouse and had been on life support.

A stranded Buffalo family was rescued from the area’s snow-choked roads by local firefighters who gave them the best present of all – Christmas.

Cars buried in snow littered State Route 37 driving into Hammond on Christmas morning, the vehicles stranded and abandoned during the weekend blizzard. “Seen a lot of winter, never seen this much this fast,” Hammond Fire Chief Lenny Bickelhaupt said.

Michael Chiapperini and Tomasz Kaczowka were killed in the pre-dawn hours on Christmas Eve in 2012, as they responded to a house fire.

The New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services recently announced that Luci Labriola-Cuffe has been appointed deputy state fire administrator in the Office of Fire Prevention and Control. The former chief of fire training for Westchester County is first woman to serve as deputy state fire administrator.

Buffalo firefighter returned to work after the city settled his wrongful termination lawsuit and agreed to acknowledge his rights as a registered medical cannabis user.

Addiction referral app and Ebola training for EMS.

The Chief Neil McNeight Hands-On Training Award is a scholarship available for students interested in Hands-On Training at the NYSAFC 117th Annual Conference & FIRE 2023 Expo in Syracuse. Two applicants will be selected to receive HOT enrollment, plus hotel accommodations, a meal stipend, and Conference Full Term Registration for entry to the lectures and exhibits at The Oncenter. The award is open to qualified NYSAFC Individual Members and firefighters from agencies that are NYSAFC Department Members.

NYSAFC has issued a call for EMS presentations at the 117th Annual Conference & FIRE 2023 Expo. The deadline to submit a proposal is January 6, 2023.

Fire departments and county organizations that are interested in bringing NYSAFC Regional Hands-On Training to their area are encouraged to review and submit the Host Request Forms for the "Beyond the Basics," "Fire Behavior On the Inside," and "Flashover" courses. Weekends are filling up quickly in 2023. There’s no cost to host Regional HOT, but host agencies must assist with logistics and acquiring supplies and equipment. A minimum student requirement must be met to conduct training. Student registration fees cover the expense of moving NYSAFC’s mobile training unit, supplies, and instructor expenses.

At some point in a fire service career, it’s easy to feel insignificant, reduced to the number on our badge. While some firefighters have good reason to feel this way, it’s a dangerous sentiment. All too quickly, it leads to disengagement. We can combat these feelings and thought patterns by embracing the concept of taking ownership in the fire service.

Anthony Demarco Jr. will step down from his post at the end of December, according to a dedication penned by Catskill Fire Company.

Michael Briscoe has served his community for almost 50 years – 30 of which he held the position of chief.

“She has broken multiple glass ceilings in her career," Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said, praising Lillian Bonsignore for her leadership through hard times.

Two city firefighters make history as they become the first women to be appointed as fire investigators in the history of the Buffalo Fire Department.

Preserving history, one fire engine at a time.

View the NYSAFC calendar of events.