Sky’s the limit for Auburn’s singing firefighter Ducote Talmage after ’The Voice’

Whether or not Auburn’s singing firefighter has a hit to rise up the charts one day, look up in the sky. You might see him soaring another way. “I like to have realistic goals for myself, and one of those is to become a pilot,” said Ducote Talmage, who until recently was a contestant on NBC’s singing competition “The Voice.” The 20-year-old country and Southern rock singer is attending community college in Opelika and plans to attend Auburn University. Between fire training and a journey to Los Angeles for the show, Talmage admits that he’s somewhat behind but plans to study aviation management — the business side of aviation. “I’m actually planning on attending flight school in Montgomery in the next couple of months,” Talmage said. Most people coming off of a music competition show like this would be looking to release a new project or start their own tour, while the fame fire is still hot. That’s not necessarily true for Talmage. In fact, he’s not sure he truly considers himself a singer.
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Norfolk Southern offers railroad safety training to first responders in Tuscaloosa

VIDEO: First responders in west Alabama are getting more training to keep you safe around railroad crossings. Norfolk Southern offered a safety training class on Wednesday for Tuscaloosa police and firefighters. A 600-foot rolling classroom with empty tankers was brought in for a hands-on approach about what type of emergency Tuscaloosa firefighters and police may deal with some day. The whole idea is to give first responders the tools they need, an understanding of how to deal with a train emergency should that call come in. “In the last three years, the railcar business has increased, crude oil by rail has really increased. They’re trying to get production up and they’ll get oil in any way they can and the crude oil that comes by rail is a big part of it because we have two major lines that run through Tuscaloosa,” said Capt. Bryant Thompson with the Tuscaloosa Fire Department.
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Orange Beach names its new fire chief

VIDEO: The city of Orange Beach named a new fire chief during Tuesday’s city council meeting. “Join us in congratulating Jeff Smith, the new Fire Chief for the City of Orange Beach,” the city posted on Facebook. Smith was promoted after a unanimous vote by the Orange Beach City Council and Mayor Tony Kennon in the April 16 City Council Meeting, according to the post. The promotion comes after Smith served as the interim chief since September 2023, following the retirement of former Chief Mike Kimmerling. Smith has been with the Orange Beach Fire Department since June 1996. He was promoted to lieutenant within three years into the job before being promoted to battalion chief in 2005. Finally, he was promoted to deputy chief in 2019.
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