Vance Fire Protection District

07/18/2026

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He's had the same passion for the last 39 years, serving his community. Billy Doss is an original Duncanville volunteer firefighter who joined the department when it was founded in

07/11/2026

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As most of you have already heard we lost an icon last night. We lost an inspiration to millions, we lost our beloved Johnny Gage. We lost a friend Randy. Last night we received word of Randy’s passing and out of respect to Randy’s family we waited until they had an opportunity to release a statement before we did so. Many of us at the Museum have called Randy our friend since 1998. He has been an amazing friend to our organization and a steadfast champion for our mission. We were honored by his support and friendship. We treated Randy like one of the guys because that’s who he was to us. We all grew up watching Johnny and Roy saving the day across the largest first in district in the world and it was an incredible experience to have him in our lives. Randy was always willing to work with the Museum and participate in the fan based events we hosted. He loved you all, his fans. He always marveled at how so many still cherished what he called “the little show that just won’t die”. He would expressly make clear that during events he wanted to be able to spend some time with each fan and not have them rushed through. This made for some terrible lines but surely enhanced the fan experience. He did that because he cared. He cared about each and everyone of you. He truly gave of himself and he and that little show that just won’t die had a massive positive impact on the world that few probably realize.
How many people today can even remember a time when there weren’t Paramedics within a few minutes of most metropolitan and suburban communities? How many Paramedic programs got their start because of the example seen on “Emergency!”? I can’t even imagine how many lives have been saved because of Paramedics across our country and even across the world. And of course how many individuals became firefighters and or Paramedics because Johnny and Roy and crew of Engine 51? What an impact!

So today we mourn our friend while celebrating his life and marveling at the amazing impact on society in which he played such an integral role. We will miss him. We treated him like one of the guys. Like one of the crew. We treated him like a brother firefighter and I know he enjoyed that as much as we did.

Randy was not only a spokesman for our Museum he was a spokesman for the LA County Fire Department. He was County through and through and he let everyone know it. He learned about being a Firefighter Paramedic from the pioneers of that position within our Department. He had some great stories. I’ll share one with you right now.

Randy was riding along on Squad 36 with Bob Bellevue and one of our other early Paramedics whose name escapes me right now. They got called out to an assault call. They pull up, get out of the Rescue Squad and retrieve their gear. As they turn to walk to the house a man walks up and the man has a hatchet stuck in his forehead! Not something you see everyday. As the men move to start treating the victim the victim tells them that his girlfriend is in the house and she was in rough shape since he had just beat her up after she planted the hatched in his skull. Bob Bellevue tells Randy to stay with the man with the hatchet in his head and he and the other Paramedic rush to check on the woman
So there’s poor Randy standing with the man and he has no idea what to do and the man asks Randy for a cigarette. Randy happened to have a pack so he gave the man a cigarette and lit it for him and decided he needed one for himself. So there they stood shooting the breeze while having a smoke with Randy trying to not look at the hatchet in the man’s head.

I’ll never forget Randy telling me that story and his expressions and body language. It was hilarious and it was a great example of the unbelievable things we first responders sometimes encounter.

Thank you Randy for your friendship! You will be sorely missed.

To Randy’s wife Kristen and Randy’s family. We are here for you all and want to thank you for sharing Randy with us and the world.
We are so very sorry for your loss.

The Museum will be accepting condolence cards for the family. If you would like to send a card please send to the Museum’s shop address at:

LA County Fire Museum
9834 Flora Vista St
Bellflower Calif 90706

KMG 365

07/04/2026

04/28/2026

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04/26/2026

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The Vance, Alabama Volunteer Fire District needs volunteer firefighters.

04/13/2026

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📢With worsening drought conditions across the state and low relative humidity, State Forester Rick Oates has issued a statewide Fire Alert effective immediately.

Over the past weekend, 50 wildfires burned more than 2,300 acres of forestland across the state. This includes a 500-acre wildfire in Mobile County, one for 412 acres in Coosa County, one for 382 acres in Choctaw County, one for 260 acres in Washington County, and another one for 105 acres in Escambia County.

In the last 30 days, 387 wildfires have burned approximately 15,850 acres of forestland across the state.

“With no measurable rain in sight, the continued extremely dry conditions create dangerous wildfire behavior,” said Oates. “These conditions create the potential for fires to escape easily and spread rapidly, taking longer and more of the agency’s firefighting resources to contain. Fast-moving wildfires not only destroy property and forests but also threaten the lives of citizens and endanger firefighters.”

This Fire Alert will remain in effect until rescinded by the State Forester, at least through Monday, April 20. Conditions will be reevaluated at that time. Permits for outdoor burning will be restricted only to Certified Prescribed Burn Managers. Anyone who burns a field, grassland, or woodland without a burn permit may be subject to prosecution for committing a Class B misdemeanor.

The Alabama Forestry Commission is the state agency committed to protecting Alabama’s invaluable forest assets and its citizens. To report a wildfire, call (800) 392-5679. For more information on the current wildfire situation in the state or any other forestry-related issues, contact your local AFC office or visit the agency website at www.forestry.alabama.gov