Local Firefighters Practice with Live Fire

Fire rescue personnel from Clearwater, Largo and Safety Harbor conducted live fire training in Clearwater on Tuesday.

For four hours Tuesday morning, local firefighters conducted fire training exercises at the Clearwater Fire Rescue burn building, according to a post on the Largo Fire Rescue Facebook page. Engine 40 from Largo Fire Rescue joined Clearwater and Safety Harbor firefighters in the exercises. The crews practiced using hoses, thermal image cameras and victim searches, Largo Fire reports. "The real fire that firefighters are challenged with in training evolutions is extremely valuable and can make the difference when we respond to a true fire," Largo Fire reports.

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Woman Lit Boyfriend's Items on Fire While Holding A Child, Police Say

The Largo woman was arrested on child neglect and domestic battery charges.

A Largo woman got involved in a “pushing and shoving” match with her boyfriend and lit some of his belongings on fire while holding a child in her arms, according to an arrest affidavit. Samantha Christine Bley, 26, took some of her boyfriend's belongings and soaked them in lighter fluid before allegedly setting fire to them early Saturday morning, according to an affidavit from the Largo Police Department. Bley admitted to lighting the items on fire while holding the child, according to the report. Bley told police she was upset and that's why she started the fire. But "she did not have an answer and just shrugged," when they asked why she held the child during the incident, according to the affidavit. Bley is in the Pinellas County Jail …

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Three Escape Early Morning Blaze on S Lake Avenue

Three people, including a 4-year-old child, told investigators that they heard a crash just before discovering a fire in the front of the home where they slept on Sunday night.

A loud noise awoke three people, including a child, on South Lake Avenue early Sunday, only for them to discover a fire in the front of the home. The three people inside the home escaped without injuries. Faith Ann Ferry, 20, of Largo and Taylor M. Rafferty, 18, of Pinellas Park were watching Allison J. Cservak, 4, according to Pinellas County Sheriff's Arson and Auto Theft Unit detectives.  The three were sleeping at Ferry's residence when they were awakened by a "crashing noise" at around 2:50 a.m., deputies say.  The cause of the fire is still being determined.  The investigation is ongoing.

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Man Found Dead After Largo Apartment Fire

The unidentified man was found passed out in a chair, and attempts to revive him were unsuccessful, the Tampa Bay Times reports.

A man was found dead following an early morning apartment fire Saturday in Largo, the Tampa Bay Times reports. Firefighters found heavy smoke coming out of the window of a second-floor unit at Laguna Vista Apartments, 555 Belcher Rd. S. when they responded around 6:15 a.m. Inside, they found a man in his late 50s passed out in a chair in the living room, the Times reports, citing Largo Fire Rescue district chief Josh Stefancic. The man was brought outside, where attempts to revive him were unsuccessful, according to the report. He was pronounced dead at 6:50 a.m. The man has not yet been identified. Firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze, the Times reports, and no other apartments were damaged. The fire is under investigation.

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Wildfires Create Smoky Smell This Morning

A total of 97 wildfires are currently burning in the state, but so far the Tampa Bay area is only getting a heavy dose of smoke.

If you awoke to smell of smoke this morning, you’re not alone. From Clearwater and Temple Terrace to Land O' Lakes and many points in between, there’s a heavy smell of smoke in the area. The cause of the smell isn’t a wildfire burning in the Tampa Bay area. Instead, the source is likely a 25,000-acre fire burning near the Florida/Georgia line, said Kristin Bennett, a duty officer with the Florida Forest Service. “We believe it’s the effect of all the fires north of us (and winds) pushing everything our way,” Bennett said. There are currently 97 wildfires burning in the state — none of them in the Tampa Bay area. While the Bay area is in the clear right now, Bennett warns conditions are ripe for that tally of wildfires to go up. “The fire …

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Sunde Farquhar

5:05 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012

Hi Lora, Thanks for reading! Maybe you could now consider Patch your local news source :)   more ›

Small Fire Quickly Put Out at the Pinellas County Jail

Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies quickly fought a small fire in a laundry room off of the jail kitchen on Feb. 10. No one was injured. An electrical problem appeared to be the source of the fire, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Two Fatalities in a Seminole Condominium Fire

Authorities are still investigating the cause of a fire, which claimed two lives Thursday (Feb. 2) night.

An elderly woman and her daughter died in a fire Thursday (Feb. 2) around 6:00 p.m. at the Twin Oaks Condominiums on 102nd Ave North in Seminole, according to deputies. When deputies and firefighters arrived on the scene they found the condominium unit engulfed in flames. One victim, Alice Haker, 97, was found unconscious in the kitchen. An ambulance transported Haker to Largo Medical Center where she died, according to the county sheriff's department. As the firefighters extinguished the blaze they discovered a second person in the building. The adult female was confirmed deceased at the scene. The medical examiner's office has not yet identified the second victim, according to the sheriff's office. Detectives  believe the second victim …

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