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Family aided after fire

The Home News
http://www.mycentraljersey.com

Tri-County Red Cross Disaster Action Team Leader Mike Prasad gave the Maggs family the support they needed after a fire in Fanwood spread through their Shady Lane home in Fanwood on July 19.

Their home was destroyed completely, as were their personal belongings, according to a Red Cross press release.

Prasad was called to the fire by the Fanwood Police Department, and provided housing and financial support to purchase new clothes and food for the Maggs family after they told him they had nowhere else to go.

“Mike is always ready to step up and respond to local disasters in our chapter, providing every family that needs it with the basics so they can begin rebuilding their lives,” said Nathan Rudy, CEO of the Tri-county Red Cross. “I’m very proud of our volunteers like Mike Prasad, and the local residents and businesses who donate the finances we need to always be there.”

Support for disaster victim relief is provided by the Tri-County Red Cross Disaster Fund, and donated by local individuals, organizations and businesses. The Red Cross receives no financial support from the government for these services, but relies on the kindness of neighbors. Donations may be made online at www.tricountyredcross.org/donate.html, or by calling Corinna Krauskopf at 908-756-6414 or krauskopfc@usa.redcross.org.

Local residents interesting in volunteering for the Disaster, Blood, Volunteer, Health and Safety or Fundraising committees should contact Victor Webb at 908-756-6414 or webbv@usa.redcross.org.

Harvey Cedars house damaged by fire
Asbury Park Press
http://www.app.com

HARVEY CEDARS — Firefighters and police responded to 5504 Holly Ave. after a report of a structure fire at 3:50 p.m. Monday, borough police said.

When they arrived, officers saw black smoke coming from the side of the house. Neighbors attempted to put the fire out using garden hoses, police said.

Members of High Point Volunteer Fire Company in the borough arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire, which damaged an air conditioning unit and siding.

The fire appears to have started in or around a recently-installed air conditioning unit but the Ocean County Fire Marshall is investigating the exact cause of the fire, police said.

Mendham Township residents Jennifer and Danie MacBlain own the home. Volunteers from the Surf City Fire Department, Barnegat Light Fire Department and Barnegat Light First Aid Squad also responded to assist with the call. Borough police officers Steve Frazee and Sean Marti are assisting with the investigation.

Fire hoses churn lake after dead fish found
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
BY ELIZABETH MOORE
Star-Ledger Staff
http://www.nj.com

The Newark Fire Department sprayed water in the lake at Branch Brook Park yesterday to churn the water after 30 fish were found dead because of a lack of oxygen.

The fish — which included bass, crappie, carp, goldfish and sunfish — were found floating on the surface of the lake yesterday near the Second Avenue Bridge.

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo, county Parks Director Dan Salvante, county Health Officer Michael Festa and the fire department went to the park yesterday afternoon to respond to the problem.

“It’s an oxygen-related issue,” Festa said. “There is not enough movement in the pond itself.”

He said he doesn’t know why this phenomenon is happening at the lake now, as opposed to other summers.

DiVincenzo said he called on the fire department to churn the water in the lake, providing oxygen for the fish and animals remaining there. But he said it is a temporary solution and the lake needs an aeration system to prevent the problem from happening again.

DiVincenzo said he’s asked representatives from the Passaic Val ley Water Commission to examine the lake to discuss aeration possibilities. He said the county would need electrical outlets nearby to install an electrical aeration system or another fountain at the lake to help churn the water on a regular basis.

Previously, DiVincenzo said the county upgraded the south side of the lake and as part of the improvements created a better aeration system. He said there were plans to also upgrade the north side of the lake — where the fish were found — but now those plans will have to be expedited.

Parks employees cleaned the dead fish out of the lake yesterday and DiVincenzo said county employees would be back at the 360-acre park today to discuss aerating the lake.

Branch Brook Park stretches through Newark and Belleville and was designed by the firm of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted.

Woodbury elects new fire department chiefs
Thursday, July 24, 2008
By Siobhan A. Counihan scounihan@sjnewsco.com
WOODBURY The city’s Fire Department has elected new officers, and the new chief said he’s ready to hit the ground running with ideas to improve and expand the department.

As a result of last week’s elections, William Volk was elected as the new fire department chief. Randall Gartner and Derek Lynch were also elected as the new deputy chief and assistant chief, respectively.

Volk, who served as assistant chief before Chief John Keuler resigned earlier this month, said he has been a member of the fire department since the early 1990s, and has held positions at lieutenant and captain.

Volk said he already has a few ideas that will help to improve the department.

“Moving forward, the big one right now is a new mutual aid plan,” Volk said.

The department is currently in a mutual aid plan with Westville and National Park, meaning that teams from those towns are called in to assist with fires. Volk said the department will be “getting away from that” and instead enter into a plan with towns that border Woodbury, like Woodbury Heights, West Deptford Township and Deptford Township.

Volk said such a plan would not only decrease the city’s liability in fires but also improve response times.

“We’re looking to provide the best possible fire service for the city residents,” Volk said.

There will also be efforts to beef up the department’s volunteer membership, he added. The department currently has four paid and 11 volunteer firefighters, and Volk said he was able to attract an additional eight former members to rejoin since his election.

“We have four brand-new recruits going into the fire academy in August,” Volk said. “And we’re working on an additional five to six folks who have left in the past.”

Volk said the department is also considering relaxing its membership rules, which currently prohibit members from holding membership with other fire departments.

“At Deptford, for example, you can hold a dual membership,” Volk said. “And that’s how they’ve been attracting a lot of volunteers. So we’re in discussions right now about relaxing that rule a little bit.”

Additionally, the department will be holding membership drives as well as improving the appearance of the fire house and the apparatuses.

“That’s on the short list right now,” he added.

Volk said that anybody who is interested in becoming a volunteer firefighter with the Woodbury company should come by the fire house on Delaware Avenue and pick up an application. Members must be 18 or older to join.

Firefighters plan ‘Night Out’ event
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
http://www.nj.com
CHATHAM TWP. — The Chatham Township Volunteer Fire Department will host its annual National Night Out Against Crime at Fire Headquarters, 495 River Road.

Festivities begin at 7 p.m. and last until 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 5. Fire Department members will supply music, grills, soda and beer to people of legal drinking age.

McGruff, the Crime Dog will drop by to visit with children and adults.

Organizers said, “This is a fun event where people get a chance to interact with their local volunteers, and it gives the children a chance to explore the fire house, check out the fire trucks and try on the gear that the firemen use to protect themselves when they are fighting fires. The culmination of the evening will be the annual bonfire. Everyone is welcome to come at no cost. Be sure to bring your favorite food to put on the grill.”

4-foot deep sinkhole opens on Marin Blvd
by Michaelangelo Conte
Monday July 14, 2008, 1:51 PM

Jersey Journal
http://www.nj.com

A sinkhole more than four feet deep has opened up on Luis Munoz Marin Boulevard, off Sixth Street, in front of the Jersey City Fire Department headquarters.

Fire officials lowered a robotic camera into the hole, whose opening in the blacktop is about eight inches in diameter.

One lane in each direction on Marin is closed.

Youtube video by user: Crosstimeproductions

Bid for new fire truck awarded

By PAULA SCULLY
Staff Writer

Asbury Park Press
http://www.app.com

EAGLESWOOD — The Township Committee awarded a bid for a new fire truck to Marion Body Works of Marion, Wis., in the amount of $449,553.

Marion Body Works is an independent, family-owned manufacturer of truck bodies, including rescue and fire apparatus trucks.

The three-member committee awarded the bid June 23 in a brief meeting after years of planning and research by the Eagleswood Fire Company, followed by finalizing bid specifications.

Committeeman James R. Pine said the fire company worked with other area fire companies in determining which equipment could add to the area’s fire-fighting capabilities.

The fire company decided on a truck with an air-induced foam system and capacity for 3,000 gallons of water. The truck will use a limited amount of water in the foam system and the hoses will be lighter. The foam system will triple the capacity of the fire truck, Fire Chief Ed Nickel Sr. said in February at the introduction of the funding ordinance.

Eagleswood does not have a hydrant where water flows freely but has standpipes where members have to pull water out.

The importance of the foam system is that it allows the fire company to spread foam houses over houses during a forest fire and the foam could save homes.

The new truck will replace one purchased in 1990.

The new truck will have LED lights that will not draw as much energy from the truck as the lights do now. The new truck will carry seven men compared to four men carried by the current fire truck. It also will offer more storage.

The bid came in under the funding ordinance appropriation up to $460,000. The funding ordinance also called for the issuance of $437,000 in bonds or notes.

Fire truck orders traditionally take more than a year to complete.

Pine worked with the fire company members closely for years as it considered and priced various trucks.

“It was a good effort by everyone,” he said.

Hook-and-ladder truck being sought

By SAMETTA M.
THOMPSON

Asbury Park Press
http://www.app.com

For almost three years, the Matawan Fire Department has been calling fire companies in neighboring towns for a hook-and-ladder truck when needed for fires at multi-story buildings.

This can result in up to a 15-minute delay in firefighters reaching people trapped in burning buildings three stories or higher, said Joe Tamburello, the head chief of the volunteer department. He said although firefighters are still able to provide fire protection, a ladder truck is an essential piece of equipment.

Tamburello said the mechanical ladder portion of the company’s aerial truck hasn’t been working for almost three years and firefighters have to use ground ladders that stretch to 40 feet or more in height.

“So, if I had any operation that’s going to involve a three-story building — which of course we do have in town — or a roof operation, I cannot even physically reach the roof,” said Tamburello. “If we were to have an occupant trapped in a third story, I would have to wait until an outside community came in with their ladder truck to be able to rescue that person, and that’s just an unacceptable position.”

The Borough Council’s fire committee has asked the borough’s five fire companies to find ways to consolidate, as one possible way to save money.

“We have given the head chief, Joe Tamburello, until September to come up with a written assessment of how the fire department wants to go forward with these consolidation efforts since the funds aren’t there to purchase a new truck, and maintaining five buildings as far as utility payments go,” said Borough Councilwoman Linda Clifton, who began serving on the governing body’s fire committee in January. “This is a very difficult issue as well, as each firehouse is company-owned.”

Once the report is in, Clifton said the committee will know what direction to pursue to deal with the department’s needs.

Tamburello, a firefighter for 22 years, said he supports the possibility of merging the locations of firehouses for the five companies, but is against any plan that would eliminate fire companies.

Councilman Kevin Mendes, chairman of the fire committee, said that panel is looking into the overall needs of the department.

Mendes said a replacement of the ladder truck, and the department’s aging fleet, which dates to the early 1970s and early 1990s, has been an issue for many years. The life span of a typical firetruck is about 25 years, Tamburello said.

The five fire companies serving Matawan are Freneau Fire Company, M.E. Haley Hose Company, Hook and Ladder Fire Company, Midway Hose Company, and Washington Engine Company. Each has its own day-to-day chief. There are five trucks — four engines and one hook and ladder.

The borough owns the firetrucks and pays for the maintenance on the buildings, including utilities.

Tamburello said because the mechanical ladder portion of the aerial truck isn’t working, firefighters have to manage with large ground ladders, which, he said increases the chances of firefighters injuring themselves because they need to physically go up ladders to remove people.

“That just compounds the safety issue that we will be faced with,” he said.

The borough’s engine trucks carry ground ladders that are 28 feet high when fully extended, Tamburello said.

Matawan relies on the Cliffwood Fire Company in Aberdeen and companies in other surrounding towns for help when there is a major fire, such as several structures burning at one time, a fire at a school building, or where a second-, third- or fourth-alarm fire is called.

The ladder truck is a very specialized piece of equipment, making it the most expensive type of firetruck to purchase, Tamburello said. Replacing a ladder truck costs about $800,000, double the amount of a fire engine, he said. That may be a lot of money for a small community but, Tamburello said, a ladder truck is necessary to have.

“The primary function of that is safety, not only to rescue the trapped occupants but also to enable the firefighters to safely do operations on roofs and things like that,” Tamburello said.

“Although we have been able to function as a fire department for these last 2 1/2 to three years, we are putting the safety of the firefighters in jeopardy and the response we would be able to give to the town’s people should they need us in that situation,” he said.

Timothy Clifton, chief of the Washington firehouse for 2 1/2 years, said he hopes the committee is looking to replace the department’s aging fleet and not just consolidate firehouses.

“It’s our obligation to maintain the best possible fire protection for the people of Matawan,” he said. “It’s very unfortunate that the Fire Department has been put in this position.”

Asbury Park Press
http://www.app.com

TOMS RIVER — A former Little Egg Harbor fire commissioner was sentenced Friday to three years in state prison in connection with his theft of money from the sale of raffle tickets that was supposed to benefit the Mystic Island Volunteer Fire Co.

Superior Court Judge Wendel E. Daniels imposed the prison term on Woodrow Nelson under a plea bargain the defendant reached with the state Attorney General’s Office. The deal spared him a potential 10-year prison term.

Nelson, 50, now of Absecon, pleaded guilty Feb. 1 to official misconduct, admitting to Daniels that he kept the proceeds of raffle tickets he sold between June 1, 2006, and Sept. 30, 2006.

Under the plea bargain, Deputy Attorney General Erik Daab said he would not oppose Nelson’s entry into the state Parole Department’s Intensive Supervision Program, in which prisoners are given early release but monitored closely in the community.

In addition, charges of theft and passing a bad check were dismissed.

Nelson already has made restitution to the fire company, officials said.

Nelson had been appointed in 2006 to fill a vacancy on the board of Little Egg Fire District 2, which covers Mystic Island. He was removed later that year, when officials learned he was no longer living in the district. His removal occurred around the same time the theft of the raffle ticket proceeds came to light.

Nelson is one of three onetime Little Egg Harbor fire commissioners from District 2 to be convicted of crimes recently.

Edward “Tony” Kluver, 49, onetime commissioner and longtime chief of the Mystic Island company, was sentenced in January to three years in prison for official misconduct. He had served as a commissioner from 1996 until his sentencing.

Leroy Kaufman, 66, was sentenced in February to three years on probation for theft. Kaufman was first elected a fire commissioner in 1988 and served until his sentencing.

Kluver and Kaufman had admitted taking part in a scheme in which they transferred the titles of fire district vehicles to each other. An indictment charging the pair accused Kluver of signing over the title to the district’s 1993 Chevrolet Blazer to Kaufman in 2002, and Kaufman of signing over the title of the district’s 1996 Dodge pickup truck to Kaufman the same year.

Kaufman’s attorney has said that his client went along unwittingly, believing that the vehicles were being traded in to Ocean Chevrolet, and that they were going to buy them back from the dealership.

2 people, fire engine shot in Trenton
by Kevin Shea/The Times
http://www.nj.com
http://www.nj.com/centraljersey/index.ssf/2008/06/2_people_fire_engine_shot_in_t.html
Friday June 27, 2008, 8:16 PM

TRENTON — Two people were shot during unrelated robberies early Friday, and hours earlier a fire engine’s window was shattered by a gunshot as it drove through a neighborhood, all in the North Ward, police said.

No firefighters were injured when Engine 9 was hit with a projectile, possibly from a BB gun, at about 11 p.m. Thursday on West Hanover Street. (Read earlier story)

After the fire engine incident, two people were shot during stick-ups. Police on Friday said they have no evidence that any of the incidents are related.

At 1:25 a.m. Friday in the 600 block of Brunswick Avenue, a 16-year-old male was shot in the arm as he ran from an attempted robbery.

Police said the victim was sitting on the front porch of a residence when he saw the same male walk by four times. The victim ended up approaching the suspicious male and was accosted by the male and a second robber, and one of them had a gun, according to police.

One of the robbers said, “Give it up,” the teen ran, and the robber fired, striking the teen once in the left forearm, police said.

The victim, who was not identified, was taken to Capital Health System at Fuld hospital in Trenton for treatment.

One of the robbers was described as a black male, about 16 to 17 years old, who was wearing a T-shirt, black jeans and a green bandanna at the time. Police did not have a complete description of the second robber.

The second shooting occurred at about 3:20 a.m. in the 1300 block of Princeton Avenue.

The victim, a 21-year-old male, was sitting on the porch of a residence when a robber approached on foot and demanded he hand over his valuables, police said.

The victim ran, and the robber fired one shot, hitting the victim in the right leg, police said.

The victim, who was not identified, was also treated at Fuld hospital.

Police described the robber as a black male, 19 to 21 years old, who wore all black and had a bandanna over his face.

The shooting of Engine 9 occurred as the firefighters were traveling back to the station at West State Street and Lee Avenue after covering for an engine company that was at a fire.

The engine’s supervisor, Capt. Steve Amiott, said Friday that he and his crew definitely felt under fire when the window shattered as they drove down West Hanover Street near Camden Street.

When the firefighters pulled over a block away, on Calhoun Street, they saw a small divot on the window where an American flag decal had been placed. “It was definitely not a rock,” said Amiott, a combat veteran of the current Iraq war who is familiar with firearms.

A firefighter who was sitting a few inches from the window, Kristie J. Jones, was not hurt. The other two windows on the passenger side of the truck were open, Amiott said.

Detectives interviewed the firefighters and Jones said she saw three males as they drove by and one made a motion like he was raising a weapon, but she did not see a firearm and she and other firefighters never heard any gunshots.

Police believe the weapon was a pellet or BB gun, a police spokesman said Friday.

The joint Shooting Response Team is investigating all of the incidents. Anyone with information about the shootings can contact the following detectives: Detective Robert Toth at (609) 989-4017 or rtoth@trentonpolice.net, or Detective Luis Vega at (609) 989-4093 or lvega@trentonpolice.net.

Contact Kevin Shea

Gunfire shatters window of Trenton fire engine
by Michael Ratcliffe/The Times
Friday June 27, 2008, 12:18 AM
http://www.nj.com/centraljersey/index.ssf/2008/06/gunfire_shatters_window_of_tre.html
http://www.nj.com
TRENTON — Police are searching for the gunman who shot one of the windows on a city fire engine late Thursday night, authorities confirmed.
The shot — which is thought to have been a small-caliber projectile — shattered a window on the captain’s, or passenger’s, side of Engine 9’s crew cab.

A firefighter who was sitting a few inches from the window was not hurt.

The shooting occurred about 11 p.m. on West Hanover Street as Engine 9 was headed back to its station at West State Street and Lee Avenue.

Earlier in the evening, Engine 9 was relocated to a more strategic position at fire headquarters on Perry Street in order to better protect the city while other fire companies were busy battling a house fire on Lamberton Street in South Trenton. (Read that story)

Firefighters, immediately realizing they had been shot at, radioed for police assistance. After getting a safe distance away from when the shooting had taken place, Engine 9’s crew stopped on Calhoun Street to assess the damage to their apparatus and to await the arrival of police.

Numerous police cars, both marked and unmarked, patrolled the West Hanover Street area in search of the gunman.

No suspect description is available at this time.

Contact Michael Ratcliffe

‘LAST RESORT?’
N. Hudson firehouses face closings
Monday, June 23, 2008
CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Jersey Journal

The regional fire department that covers five North Hudson towns is considering closing some firehouses over the summer to save on overtime and sick pay, officials said last week.

Officials estimate overtime and sick costs for North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue - which covers Guttenberg, North Bergen, Union City, Weehawken and West New York - could soar to $1 million this year. That’s double the $500,000 that’s earmarked in the agency’s $30 million budget, officials said.

Rotating firehouse closures is a “last resort,” said Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner, adding both vacation and sick time increase in the summer. “It is a very brutal combination when people are taking vacations and others are out sick,” he said.

But Capt. Brian McGorty, a member of the executive board of the North Hudson Fire Officers Association, argued there must be a better way to cut costs.

“We find any thought of closing firehouses very disturbing, because it puts the safety of the firefighters in jeopardy as well as the citizens we are sworn to protect,” McGorty said.

Turner and other officials said the department normally allocates $500,000 to $600,000 for overtime and sick pay. But sick time numbers have been creeping up all year - and being down two firefighters hasn’t helped, Turner said.

And with the onset of June, July and August vacation schedules, “We are trying to keep it from exploding,” Turner added. “We know we are going to be in the $700,000 to $800,000 range.”

As an example of the exploding costs, Turner said two weekends ago - the hottest weekend of the summer so far - six firefighters called in sick. The replacement firefighters cost taxpayers $10,000 since they had to be paid overtime, he said.

Mayors of the five affected municipalities are also considering replacing firefighters in administrative positions with civilians, reducing manpower, and negotiating with unions to spread vacations over the year.

“We are looking to the unions to help control costs,” Turner said. “We are sure they share the same concern about helping the taxpayer.”

McGorty said officers in his union had already backed off demands for pay parity for his members when an agreement was struck with management in May.

“If we were any more flexible we would be Gumbys,” McGorty quipped, referring to the animated character.

SP Council hears plans for firehouse upgrades
Friday, June 20, 2008
By GREG MARX
The Record Press, http://www.nj.com

SCOTCH PLAINS — The Township Committee this week heard plans for substantial renovations of both local firehouses.

The plans, presented by members of the volunteer fire department and Mike Giambalvo of MD Architecture at the council’s conference meeting Tuesday night, came without either timelines or cost estimates attached. The proposals call for a wholesale refurbishing of the two aging facilities to make them safer, more comfortable and better-equipped.

The more substantial changes are proposed for the main firehouse on Senger Place, behind the municipal building. There, Giambalvo proposed a new faade made from a material known as Dryvit, which resembles brick but is more energy-efficient and produced with less environmental impact.

“I’m going to try to introduce things that are earth-friendly and also save energy,” said Giambalvo, noting the use of recycled materials and high-efficiency equipment throughout the plans.

The building’s exterior would also feature a faux limestone trim, new roof shingles and a standing-seam metal roof over the entrance, as well as two cupolas and a decorative clock.

On the interior, Giambalvo said he would remove the columns in the garage bays, which currently make it a tricky task to get fire trucks in and out of the building. New paint and finish would be applied throughout the building, and the upstairs offices and general quarters would be fully renovated. Exercise equipment would be segregated into a dedicated weight room, and Murphy beds would be installed in the chief’s office and the large multi-purpose room.

Giambalvo also proposed the construction of a small two-story addition, to be used for first-floor storage and a second-floor kitchen area. The plans include a natural gas generator, a keyless entry system, new exterior lighting and fire alarms, an intercom wired to the emergency radio system and, importantly, zoned central air-conditioning.

Currently, said volunteer fireman Mike Cuccurullo, “It’s a mess — the building doesn’t breathe.” In the summer, the facility is cooled by window air-conditioning units that were purchased by volunteers. “If you stand in front of it, it cools you,” he said.

At the south side firehouse, located at Raritan Road and Martine Avenue, the plans are similar, though smaller in scale. The proposal includes a new boiler to replace the 1959 original, as well as replacement of fixtures and finishes; new flooring, lighting and appliances; a new concrete apron and drain in front of the garage; and upgraded air-conditioning, intercom and keyless entry systems.

Giambalvo also proposes to install three Murphy beds in the multi-purpose room and a washer/dryer to clean the firefighters’ turnout gear, which currently has to be shipped off to a private company.

The plans generally met approval from the council, though Kevin Glover asked Giambalvo to do more research into faade options at the north side site and to look into the possibility of solar power there, at least as a back-up. Given the emphasis on energy efficiency, Glover said, the project could present an opportunity for the council to “be on the leading edge.”

Giambalvo said he would report back on those issues and added he should have cost estimates for the council within the next one to two weeks, after his subcontractors have had a chance to review the plans.

Ultimately, the project will be put out for competitive bidding, though the council has not decided whether the two facilities will be packaged into one bid or separated as two. The project’s timetable is also still to be determined. Fire Chief Jon Ellis said he expects to be able to deploy fire-fighting apparatus from the main building for nearly the entire duration of the project; still, “I don’t think we want to mess with both of them at the same time,” he said.

Deputy Mayor Nancy Malool asked the firefighters when they would like to see the project start. “Yesterday,” Cuccurullo quipped.

More feasibly, officials said, work could begin this fall, assuming the funds are in place. Given that schedule, work may begin at the south side site, where most of the planned renovations are interior, so the project will not be disrupted by winter weather.

Greg Marx is the editor of the Record-Press. He can be reached at (732) 396-4219 or gmarx@njnpublishing.com.

Older You Tube of a truck fire with exposure in Union City.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Motorcylist, 55, in stable condition after crash

New Jersey Herald
http://www.njherald.com

BRANCHVILLE — A 55 year-old man suffered a head injury Friday afternoon when his Harley Davidson motorcycle collided with a Mercedes on Route 206, state police said.

Ivan Noe, of Passaic Park, was listed in stable condition by evening after he was ejected from his 2008 Harley Davidson near Lakeview Point Avenue at 3:50 p.m., state police said.

According to police, Kristina Nicos, 25, of Branchville was driving westbound on County Route 630 in a 2005 Mercedes and stopped at the road’s intersection with Route 206. She attempted to cross Route 206 to travel on Lakeview Point Avenue and pulled into the path of Noe’s motorcycle, striking the rear wheel of the bike with her front bumper, state police said.

The motorcycle overturned and Noe was ejected, state police said. He was flown to Morristown Memorial Hospital for treatment.

Nicos, who was not injured, stopped on Lakeview Point Avenue after the accident, state police said. Police did not list any charges stemming from the incident.

The Blue Ridge First Aid Squad and Frankford Fire Department assisted on scene.

Fire company offers view on new Rocky Hill fire truck
By Greg Forester, Staff Writer
http://packetonline.com
Posted: Friday, May 23, 2008 7:17 AM EDT
ROCKY HILL — Members of the Rocky Hill Hook and Ladder Co. made their recommendation to Borough Council on Monday about which bid to select in the borough’s pursuit of a new fire truck.

The bid from Pierce Manufacturing is the favored plan, according to borough officials, who said they found problems with the two other bids that came in for the truck, which was estimated to cost around $360,000.

With all three bids coming in around the $350,000 range, fire officials recommended one bid be thrown out because of a lengthy delivery time provided by the firm. Another was not supported because of vague size specifications, which could result in major problems for a fire company that uses a relatively small firehouse, Mayor Ed Zimmerman said.

”In Rocky Hill, size matters,” he said.

The next step in the process will be a determination by borough officials on how to pay for the new truck.

Mayor Zimmerman said the hope was to use some surplus to pay for part of the truck, while bonding the rest.
But new state regulations on tax levies and municipal finances would mean the borough would suffer negative tax consequences by using surplus funds.

Tax levy increases are capped at 4 percent, under state law, and last year the borough collected $420,000 in taxes. That means this year’s levy — despite state aid cuts and other budget problems — could only increase by 4 percent of last year’s total, and a expenditure of surplus would result in a smaller cap, at a time when the borough needs revenue.

”We may need to borrow and pay it off in smaller chunks,” Mayor Zimmerman said.
In other business, Borough Council moved to increase fees for cat and dog licenses, and institute a schedule of late fees for the same licenses.

Dog and cat licenses are now up to $12 each, following Monday’s deliberations.

The council also continued the process of updating the municipal code.

Older ordinances from Rocky Hill’s past are being updated, Mayor Zimmerman said.

”Like the ones that say you can’t ride a horse down Main Street,” he said.

Honoring the protectors
http://www.nj.com The Star Ledger
Sunday, May 25, 2008
BY ROBERT E. MISSECK
Star-Ledger Staff
Roselle Fire Capt. Patrick Kelleher had to retreat from the burning second-floor bedroom into the hallway because of the rapidly spreading inferno, but knew he had to go back because of the man trapped inside.

“I looked into the room and I could see that the whole back half of it was a wall of flames,” said the 21-year department veteran. “I got down on my hands and knees and started to crawl inside, but the heat and smoke were too intense,” he said.

With the conditions worsening by the second, Kelleher remembers saying to himself, “If this guy is going to have any kind of a shot I, have to go back in and get him.”

Kelleher said he managed to summon an inner strength and crawled back inside the smoke-filled room, groping in front of him as he went, and was startled when his hand touched the 51-year-old man who had collapsed over the rear of a chair.

“I looked through the smoke and saw his silhouette ahead of me. I grabbed him, stood him up, hugged him to me and somehow managed to carry him out of the room,” Kelleher said.

The unidentified victim survived, but was hospitalized with third-degree burns to his hands and second-degree burns to his face and legs as a result of the flames that had engulfed his three-story Third Avenue home on the cold evening of Jan. 14, 2007.

For his Herculean efforts to rescue the man from his Third Street home, Kelleher was among 15 law enforcement and firefighting personnel awarded the Union County 200 Club’s Medal of Valor earlier this month for their bravery on the job.

The prestigious award is bestowed annually by the non-profit community group.

“Split seconds and instant decisions separate acts of valor and heroism from tragedy and mourning,” said Brian Gallagher, club president.

“These award recipients are ordinary people doing the extraordinary,” he said. “God holds a special place in his heart for our uniformed protectors, both living and passed, active and fallen, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters,” Gallagher said.

The club also presented a posthumous Valor Award to Elizabeth “Bette” Bernoskie, widow of Rahway Police Officer Charles Bernoskie, who was fatally shot while on duty in 1958.

The presentation took place May 9 at L’Affaire Restaurant in Mountainside.

In making the presentation, Gallagher said that “for 39 years, this organization has come together to honor those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. Most times, those brave heroes are with us, but tragically sometimes we must honor them with only their families present.”

The other 2008 award recipients include Linden police officer David Manganiello, who was shot at point-blank range after responding to a call on Nov. 2, 2007, at a check-cashing outlet on Edgar Road, on a report that an individual was attempting to cash a check using fake identification.

Manganiello attempted to detain a suspect for questioning, but the man suddenly pulled out a silver handgun and shot him in the chest, then fired a second round that missed.

Manganiello was wearing body armor, but the force of the bullet caused him to be thrown backward against a wall. Despite being in pain, he managed to broadcast a description of the suspect, who was caught a short time later by other officers.

Also honored was Springfield Firefighter Walter Heckel, Jr. , who pulled a motorist from a burning car on Nov. 7, 2007. Heckel was off-duty and driving in his hometown of Mountainside when he came upon a motor vehicle that had struck a tree and caught fire.

Realizing that Mountainside rescue personnel had not arrived on the scene, Heckel stopped and saw a disoriented elderly man still in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, with flames already starting to overtake the passenger compartment. The driver’s side of the vehicle was inaccessible due to the fire, so Heckel opened the passenger-side door, climbed into the vehicle and the pulled the man from the inferno.

The club also honored Elizabeth police officers Officer Paul McRae and William DiLollo for their efforts to quell a large crowd that had gathered on Center Street during a dispute around 1 a.m. on Sept. 9, 2007.

The officers attempted to separate the parties and de-escalate the situation, during which members of the crowd attacked the officers, biting McRae on the finger and punching DiLollo in the face. One of the combatants managed to grab one of the officer’s service revolvers and fire the weapon twice before the officers could regain control of the weapon and eventually the crowd.

Also honored were Elizabeth police officers Angelo Fiorillo and Peter Panuthos for helping evacuate children, infants, the handicapped and the elderly from a building fire on Spring Street on Jan. 20, 2007.

Elizabeth Fire Department acting Capt. Perry Carreras, along with firefighters Billy Ramos, Claude Davis and Louis Vollero, were also honored for their heroic actions at the same fire scene, fighting the blaze under extremely hazardous conditions as well as evacuating residents from the building.

Valor Awards also went to Plainfield Fire Department Acting Lt. Richard Campanelli and Firefighter Pietro Martino for saving a 64-year-old man from his burning residence during the April 16, 2007, nor’easter that would eventually dump 6 inches of rain in 24 hours.

It was one of 29 calls the firefighters’ Platoon One would respond to on that stormy day.

Plainfield fire Lt. David W. Jackson and firefighter John Pellegrino were honored for risking their lives on January 24, 2007, to rescue a panicked teenager who was clinging to an outside patio enveloped by smoke on the third floor of a burning building.

Reliving their heroic efforts often brings back memories of undertakings that had less fortunate endings, they said.

The lifesaving event for which Kelleher of the Roselle Fire Department was honored was a better result, he said, than the outcome of the departments’ unsuccessful efforts to save three people from their burning home on Locust Street back in 1994.

“It (the fire) was too far advanced by the time we got there. It had a good head start and we lost them despite our every effort,” Kelleher said. “That one will always haunt me, but this recent save is one I will also always remember.”

Part 1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0zBuMoobZc&feature=related

Part 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSAggAVxQew&feature=related

Go to this link to see a 3rd alarm fire in Newark, NJ

Part 3:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnEsjo3Opp0