Salem-News.com Fire-fighters articles Page 55

Commercial Truck Carrying Glass Crashes and Closes Interstate 5

Motorists traveling south on Interstate 5 on Monday evening received an unexpected delay following a commercial truck crash north of Grants Pass.

(GRANTS PASS, Ore.) - Police say that around 6:50 PM Monday, a 1999 Freightliner truck owned by Sherman Bros. of Coburg Oregon, was traveling northbound on Interstate 5 near milepost 74 when the operator, 28-year old Wayland Brent Rumble of Grants Pass, lost control as he entered into a right hand curve. The truck struck the center concrete barrier which separates the north and southbound lanes.

The force of the impact caused the loaded glass to detach from the trailer and travel over the center median into the southbound lanes, investigators said. The truck came to rest against the center median, blocking the left lane of travel for northbound traffic. The large load of glass covered both southbound lanes of Interstate 5 making it impassable to traffic.

LifeFlight Called in For Oregon Motorcycle Crash

Police say highway conditions were wet at the time of the crash.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Two motorcyclists were injured, one seriously, after they lost control while trying to stop for slowing traffic Friday morning eastbound on Interstate 84 near Rooster Rock.

Police say the crash happened just after 11:00 AM, a group of about eight motorcycles traveling together eastbound on Interstate 84 near milepost 23 had to slow quickly for stopping traffic. Two motorcycle operators braked hard and lost control as their motorcycles went down onto the pavement.

Tualatin Swears In 24 Volunteer Firefighters Monday

The Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue and Clackamas County Fire District are two of the largest groups of volunteer firefighters in Oregon.

(Tualatin, Ore.) - Twenty-four local men and women will be sworn-in as Volunteer Firefighters at a Graduation Ceremony hosted by Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue and Clackamas County Fire District No. 1. This event follows their passage of a rigorous, ten week, 150-hour Volunteer Recruit Academy that began last July.

The Academy was a joint venture between Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue and Clackamas County Fire District Number 1. Karen Eubanks, Public Information Officer for Tualitan Fire, says Karen Eubanks with Tualitan Fire.

Fiery Crash on Sauvie Island Affects Natural Gas Customers

The driver escaped from the vehicle before it caught fire, but he was injured in the crash.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Witnesses called 911 last night around 6:10 PM to report that a pick-up truck had crashed in the 14400 block of NW Gillahan Rd on Sauvie Island. The callers told police that the pick-up had crashed into a power pole knocking it over, bringing down power lines. The vehicle came to rest on a series of high pressure natural gas pipelines that service Sauvie Island.

Lt. Jason Gates with the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office says at least one of the high pressure lines was breached, leaking natural gas into the air. The pick-up caught fire and according to witnesses "exploded" into flames.

Salem Building in Danger of Collapsing

Friday AM Update: The northbound lanes of Front Street between Commercial St. and Court St. will be closed throughout the day. The closure includes Beal's parking structure.

(SALEM, Ore.) - A large crack in an old abandoned building in Salem has a street closed down and firefighters on scene keeping people at bay. They have also evacuated a nearby building which could also be in danger.

Salem Fire's Public Information Officer Bill Holmstrom, says that around 6:00 PM, they were notified by a contractor from a construction site at the corner of Front Street NE and Court Street NE, who stated that the vacant building next to them had large cracks in it.

Teams Seeks Donations‏ for Sheriff Search and Rescue

The Marion County Sheriff's Office relies almost exclusively on volunteers to provide Search and Rescue services in Marion County.

(SALEM, Ore.) - For the last several years, seven volunteer Search and Rescue Teams in Marion County have asked a local firm to raise funds to benefit Search and Rescue operations in Marion County.

The majority of these Search and Rescue Teams are Non-Profit organizations, and rely heavily on donations from the public to fund necessary equipment and training. Private donations help them to complete their mission in finding lost or injured people in the outdoors, and saving lives.

Gas Leak Closes Road in West Salem

Traffic on Glen Creek Road was closed from Wallace Marine Park to Wallace Road for nearly an hour while NW Natural Gas workers located and sealed the leaking gas line.

(WEST SALEM, Ore.) - Salem Fire Department crews were dispatched to a report of a natural gas odor in the area of Glen Creek Road and Cornucopia Street NW that was called in by a passing motorist.

Oregon Teen Saves Neighbor From Fire

"If Tyler hadn't noticed the fire and alerted us to get out of the house, who knows how far and how quickly it might have spread" - neighbor Janet Alley

(MILWAUKIE, Ore.) - Bruce and Janet Alley didn't know what was going on when their doorbell rang early Thursday morning. Then, over the barking of their four dogs, they heard someone urgently pounding on the front door.

They opened the front door to find their neighbor, Milwaukie High student Tyler Baird, telling them there was a fire in their garage. The Alley family rushed out of the house and called the fire department.

Train Strikes and Kills Person in Oregon City

The person killed was a 34-year old man, his identity has not been released.

(OREGON CITY) - Police say a man was struck and killed by a Union Pacific freight train early this morning in Oregon City. Lt Lisa Nunes with Oregon City Police says it happened a few minutes after 3:00 AM.

She says officers were called out to 7th and Railroad in Oregon City, over the report of a subject hit by a train on the railroad tracks. Nunes says the operators of the Union Pacific train reported that a subject was on the tracks and failed to leave the tracks when the train came through.

Oregon Soldiers Participate in Aviation Accident Exercise‏

In the scenario, the planes collided while on approach for landing. During the two hour exercise, the first responders faced numerous simulated fatalities and victims with different injuries.

(SALEM, Ore.) - Oregon National Guard soldiers participated in a large-scale aviation accident exercise with the Salem Fire Department Friday at the Salem Regional Airport.

Major Mike Braibish with the Oregon Guard says a total of eleven agencies participated in the exercise. Sixty local students from McKay and North Salem High Schools, as well as Soldiers from the Oregon National Guard's A Company, 641 Aviation unit played injured victims.