The state Fire Marshal’s Office and the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency are trying to make the public more aware of the threat of people using fire as a weapon. Both agencies released a Fire as a Weapon Guide, which describes people using fire as a weapon as setting fires or firebombs to hurt people and property.
- PUB DATE: 5/3/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: MetroNews

VIDEO: A firefighter was injured and hundreds of people were evacuated after a massive fire at Manor Chemicals plant Thursday afternoon. The Affton plant, located in the 6900 block of Heege Road near Tower Tee, had a fire break out around 2:30, and it quickly grew until smoke could be seen for miles.
- PUB DATE: 4/30/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KMOV-TV CBS 4 St. Louis

PHOTOS: In looking over the burned district with the fire still raging fiercely on Bay Street, in the most important retail business portion of the city it’s sad. The entire length of Beaver Street from Davis to the creek, over Liberty Street, have been totally destroyed. This is fourteen solid blocks of residences east and west.
- PUB DATE: 4/30/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Florida Times-Union - Metered Site

VIDEO: A fire at a Tempe duplex that left a nine-year-old boy dead is highlighting the need for mental health services for firefighters. "How do you prepare for someone to see something -- a child that's dead or dying or that's been injured," said Tempe Fire Medical Rescue Deputy Chief Mark Manor. Manor says fire departments have to be reactive when caring for a firefighter's mental health.
- PUB DATE: 4/30/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KASW-CW6 & KTVK-3TV (azfamily.com)

A bill strengthening penalties for drivers endangering first responders working on Montana roadways was signed into law Thursday by Gov. Greg Gianforte. House Bill 264 was driven in part by testimony in both the House and Senate from family of Casie Allen and Nick Visser, two Hanser's Automotive tow truck operators who were hit and killed by a truck while clearing a crash on I-90 between Park City and Columbus on an icy morning in October.
- PUB DATE: 4/30/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KPVI-DT NBC 6 Pocatello

Millions of Americans are receiving their COVID-19 vaccines, and in a world of over-sharing on social media, that means Instagram and Twitter feeds are also being flooded with shots. People are not only sharing when they receive their vaccine, but also which vaccine they receive, often using hashtags like #PfizerGang or #TeamModerna.
- PUB DATE: 4/30/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CBS News

VIDEO: Houston Fire Department crews are working to control a three-alarm fire that continues to burn at a shopping center early Thursday. The fire was first reported around 1 a.m. at the Jensen Square complex, located on Jensen near Hurley. The shopping center has multiple shops and businesses. At this time, there are no reports of injuries.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KHOU-TV CBS 11 Houston

Over the years, materials used to build houses and other buildings have changed, with some of those materials containing carcinogens that firefighters and first responders inhale when responding to calls and cleaning up after the fire is out. The result, officials say, has been higher rates of certain types of cancer and death rates for firefighters and first responders.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WLOS-TV ABC 13 Asheville

VIDEO: The Rosenbauer RT is the first all-electric fire truck to hit the streets here in America. Its creators are currently on a cross-country tour showing off their eco-friendly fire fighting machine. On Wednesday, they stopped in Howard County on their way to Washington D.C. “It certainly has some great safety features on it,” said Howard County Fire Chief Bill Anuszewski.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJZ-TV CBS 13 Baltimore

VIDEO: It’s said your destiny is forged in the fires of your determination. A local man has made that saying a reality, his family history and Capital Region history helping him come out on top in a fiery national competition. Over the sounds of clanging metal in his backyard, Adam Coonradt told NEWS10’s Lydia Kulbida, “I’ve always considered myself a maker.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTEN-TV ABC 10 Albany

The Tennessee Senate passed a bill that would aid volunteer firefighters in the state. Senate Bill 778 would provide volunteer firefighters with an annual payment of $600 upon completion of at least 30 hours of training. “Our volunteer firefighters put their lives on the line and give up their time to keep our communities safe,” said Bell, a former volunteer firefighter in Tennessee.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WYMT-TV CBS 57 Hazard

A deck fire at a historic home in Downtown Concord kept Concord firefighters busy on Wednesday and eventually led to four alarms and — and fire crews from around the capital region assisting city firefighters. Around 12:30 a.m., firefighters were sent to 32 Merrimack St., a four-unit building, for a report of flames seen from a deck.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Concord Patch

This year, the Austin Fire Department said it has gotten a 10% increase in interested African Americans compared to 2019. Its largest demographic group is Hispanic candidates — a more than 21% increase. Overall, nearly 75% of people who submitted a cadet interest card are diversity targets, which means they belong to a minority group.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KXAN-TV NBC 36 Austin

VIDEO: A church in Vermont's Orange County spent Tuesday working to salvage what it could following a massive overnight fire. One of the artifacts pulled from the rubble of the Williamstown Federated Church is linked to a famous name in American history. "That's an incredible historic artifact," Stephen Morse, a church organist and historian, said of the bell that was removed from the site and stored for safe-keeping.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WPTZ-TV NBC 5 Plattsburgh

PHOTOS: Two inches of water filled what was once the poker space in the old Bonita Springs Greyhound Racing building off Bonita Beach Road. "We're going straight into the room on the left," one Estero firefighter said into his mask radio. An ominous orange glow bled from a back office. "Moving in," another replied.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Naples Daily News

PHOTOS: There's not much left. There's one less McLaren 765LT in the world after one went up in flames in Upper Gwynedd Township, Pennsylvania, which is just north of Philadelphia. The fire took place while the car was filling up at a gas station. There were no injuries, except for the owner's broken heart from losing this limited-run machine.
- PUB DATE: 4/27/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Motor1.com

Firefighters didn’t worry about getting cancer when Tim Downes joined the Syracuse Fire Department in 1985. He’d wear a helmet and other gear caked in soot, carbon and other toxic residue from fires and think nothing of it. “You were supposed to be salty,” he says. But in 2008 Downes was diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system, part of the body’s germ fighting network.
- PUB DATE: 4/27/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Syracuse.com

VIDEO: An ambulance ride, when you don't really need one, can be expensive for you. It also ties up crews that could be responding to life threatening emergencies. As part of our Show Me Your Bill project, Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila demonstrates how the San Antonio Fire Department is trying to reduce unnecessary ambulance runs.
- PUB DATE: 4/27/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WOAI-TV NBC 4 San Antonio

A La Crosse fire station is now a historical landmark, throwing a wrench into the La Crosse Fire Department’s redevelopment plans. Fire Station No. 4 has been standing at the corner of Gillette and Liberty Streets since 1940. It’s the oldest active fire station in La Crosse, but demolition and reconstruction plans put it at risk until a historic preservation group stepped in.
- PUB DATE: 4/27/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WEAU-TV NBC 13 Eau Claire

States across the country are reporting large numbers of people getting their coronavirus shots, and according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 95 million doses have been administered over the last month alone. Regardless, the number of newly reported COVID-19 cases in the U.
- PUB DATE: 4/27/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: ABC News