If pilots cannot see, they cannot fly. Visibility for all aerial operations is crucial to mission success and safety. Due to more than 200 wildland fires burning across Alaska, smoky conditions are becoming more and more of a hindrance for pilots. "Visibility is dominating our decision making. It's telling us what we can and cannot do." said Dave Bloemkr, a Wildfire Operations Technician for the BLM Alaska Fire Service Tanana Zone. The smoke from the fires, assisted by weather conditions in central and eastern Alaska have created an added obstacle for state and federal agencies' suppression efforts. When smoky conditions worsen, aircraft are unable to fly daily missions to make water drops, transport firefighters and supply crews in the field. With a landmass roughly one-fifth of the entire contiguous U.S., Alaska depends mostly on helicopters and airplanes to support wildland fire suppression and resource management.  

The Clear Fire in Interior Alaska jumped into a rural subdivision late Wednesday near Anderson as crews work to keep it from reaching the Parks Highway, according to fire officials in charge of extinguishing the blaze. A community meeting to discuss updated information is planned tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Anderson Fire Hall, located at 911 D Street. The meeting is also planned to be streamed on the Alaska Division of Forestry Facebook page. In a Thursday morning update, fire officials with multiple agencies said winds that blew in from the southwest fanned the flames in the southeast corner of the fire, which grew by over 8,500 acres since Wednesday morning to a new total of 61,589 acres. The fire breached a dozer line that had been set in place by crews earlier in the week that runs east to west, near Diane Avenue.  

The US Coast Guard's Toledo Marine Safety Unit responded to a massive fire at the Son Rise Marina in Sandusky on Thursday. According to the Coast Guard's Great Lakes division, they responded to a pollution threat caused by the fire. Officials said multiple boats went up in flames. The Coast Guard said it is working with port partners to mitigate environmental impacts and to oversee the removal of the boats. It's unclear what sparked the fire.  

A report of a bomb threat Thursday afternoon at Dodge City Community College is the latest among similar threats made to campuses across the U.S., investigators confirmed. On the all reporting a bomb in the Arts classroom at Dodge City Community College, no suspicious device was located. The Dodge City Police Department said the call said the bomb was located at the back of a classroom and that it would detonate in a little more than one hour. "Police Fire and EMS responded and coordinated with campus security to evacuate the area and sweep the stated location," the Dodge City PD said. This followed college administration and security requesting the area be swept by a police K-9 specialized in detecting explosives.  

VIDEO: What better way to say 'thank you' than with a bottle of bourbon? That's what Old Forester is doing to commemorate the Firefighters who saved Whiskey Row seven years ago. The historic block in Downtown Louisville caught fire on July 7, 2015, and was nearly destroyed. Firefighters managed to safely put out the fire while also preserving the historic façade. As Louisville Fire Chief Gregory Frederick remembers, it was not an easy task. "It was a huge challenge for us," Frederick said. "Not to mention that it was such a large area, it was almost like having two separate fires. One on Washington Street, and one on Main Street." It took several hours for the firefighter to extinguish the blaze. Nearby business the Troll Pub went without damage. "We were extremely lucky," operating partner Ben Barker said.  

First responders must handle various disaster response situations, ranging from simple fire extinguishing drills or minor accidents to huge disasters such as terrorist attacks. While the job of all first responders, including firefighters, police and medics, is to prepare for often dangerous scenarios, there is always a risk of the first responders getting into the same trouble as those they attempt to rescue every day. This is where the robots come into play. The number of catastrophic global disasters continues to increase. Whenever it comes to emergency aid, it logically follows that more assistance is preferable to less. Fire Detectors. Fire is very dangerous and can cause a building to collapse within minutes if not attended to. Unfortunately, firefighters may not always be able to realize fires that have spread up to the ceiling or inside the walls.  

PHOTOS: At 25 years old, Destin firefighter and EMT Holly Heidenreich loves the extreme life. Most recently paddling 80 miles from Bimini, Bahamas to mainland Florida with her bare hands. With her teammate, Megan Scully from Lake Worth, Fla., the women made up the only prone board paddling team for the 2022 Crossing For Cystic Fibrosis challenge. The pair completed the 80 miles in 15 hours, 38 minutes and 41 seconds. Prone paddling is different than paddleboard or kayaking. Heidenreich said the paddler is on their stomach or knees using only their arms to propel them forward. "I went on my knees and it's definitely faster, but it will wear yourself out a bit more," said Heidenreich. "I laid on my stomach for most of it just hoping for the best and kept going"