The 2025 event is just around the corner – January 31 – February 2 – at Nassau Coliseum! Registration is $25 per day and includes entry to the expo and seminars. Parking is free. 130+ companies will be displaying new apparatus, equipment, and services for fire and EMS agencies. Six fire/EMS seminars will be presented by Lt. Mike Scotto, Battalion Chief John Salka, Battalion Chief Jim Duffy, and more. Classes for junior firefighters will also be offered! The Suffolk County Fire Academy will present Hybrid Vehicle Extrication Hands-On Training.

Past Chief/Coordinator of Education Mike Healy (Central Nyack F.D./Rockland Co.) and Firefighter/Instructor Jeff Daniels (FDNY/Rockland Co.) will deliver seminars at 20 locations from February through November. Registration is $35 (NYSAFC members) and $50 (non-members) per person. Sign up in advance or at the door. Join us in Albany, Cortland, Erie, Fulton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Monroe, Nassau, Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Orange, Otsego, Rensselaer, Rockland, St. Lawrence, Steuben, Suffolk, Westchester, and Wyoming Counties.

 Open enrollment is available for NYSAFC Regional Hands-On Training! Fire Behavior On the Inside is scheduled for Fulton, Monroe, Schenectady, and Ulster Counties. Flashover is coming to Monroe, Onondaga, Saratoga, and Steuben Counties. NYSAFC offers four HOT courses for delivery at the local level – Beyond the Basics, Fire Behavior From the Outside, Fire Behavior On the Inside, and Flashover. Agencies interested in bringing training to their region should review and submit the Host Request Form available on our website for each course.

NYSAFC is joining forces with emergency services industry leader FIRE NEWS for production of its tri-annual magazine in 2025. SIZE UP will continue to feature articles on fireground operations and fire department administration by renowned fire service experts, along with columns by NYSAFC officers and updates on government affairs and New York state EMS issues. Look for the new and improved SIZE UP to debut in spring of 2025.

Applications are now being accepted for the NYSAFC Scholarship Program and the Chief Neil McNeight Hands-On Training Award. Nominations are being accepted for the Chief Fred Singer Fire Educator of the Year Award, James Wright Public Education Award, and New York State Fire Chief of the Year Awards. The deadline for submitting required materials is April 1, 2025. Eligibility criteria is available in the Application & Nomination Package.

A proposal requiring sprinklers in all new single-family and two-family homes is being opposed by Habitat for Humanity and builders based on the costs of affordable housing. On the other side, New York fire safety and building code officials say the mandate is long overdue.

Some firefighters expressed anger Sunday after a last-minute decision by Washington lawmakers dropped funding for 9/11 first responder health care program. The stopgap federal spending bill passed to avoid a government shutdown was expected to fund the World Trade Center Health Program through 2040. Currently, the program is only fully funded through 2027. A measure setting federal safety standards for lithium-ion batteries was also not included in the funding bill.

The department says Thaddeus “Ted” Coller passed away while answering a call earlier this month.

Police said the man's actions could have jeopardized the safety of firefighters at a recent structure fire.

Nearly a dozen contributing factors, including a lack of pre-incident planning and crew integrity, are listed in the report on the death of Spring Valley Firefighter Jared Lloyd in 2021.

Following hefty tax hikes this year, there may be some relief in the future. Both municipalities are exploring a merger of their fire and police departments.

East Syracuse Fire Department staff and supporters decried the decision to have DeWitt firefighters take over and warned the move could jeopardize public safety.

The county was honing in on two options, both of which would place both municipal and nonprofit ambulance services under its authority.

Through newly awarded funding from the DHS FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Fire Prevention & Safety Grant program, the Fire Protection Research Foundation – the research affiliate of the NFPA – is conducting the three-year, $1.06 million study.

EMS Workforce Report Published; DOH Portal for Reporting Excessive Wait Times Available.

The camp for young women ages 14-19 will be held July 20-25, 2025, at the Utica Fire Training Academy.

This award recognizes individuals that have made significant and lasting contributions within their communities through volunteerism and service.

One Capital Region fire company has come up with a creative approach to recruit volunteers – provide free housing for college students in exchange for volunteer hours.

Syracuse University junior Ryan Derkowski ignites his passion for learning and volunteer firefighting.

The front lawn at the New Hartford Fire Department has been designated as a firefighter park. The new park was recently dedicated to longtime member David Reynolds.

View the NYSAFC calendar of events.