A woman died and two cars and homes were destroyed in a fire in Washington Park, Illinois, Friday. Washington Park Battalion Chief Greg Stevens said they were called to a car fire on North 59th Street at around noon. When they arrived, firefighters found the fire had spread to a home and another car. Firefighters worked for more than eight hours to put out the fire. The fire spread to a nearby vacant house before it could be extinguished. Stevens said a woman died in the fire. The fire is being investigated by the Illinois State Fire Marshall.  

Two pets were killed and a Machesney Park family is left without a home after a fire last Friday night. Harlem-Roscoe Fire Chief Don Shoevlin says crews were first called to the home on Dorothea Ave. at around 9:45 p.m. Friday. As first responders got to the scene, they found a single-family home engulfed in flames. Fire officials say the residents of the home were not home when the fire broke out, but found the fire raging as they returned. Fire officials say additional crews from fire departments across the area were called to fight the blaze as the neighborhood did not have fire hydrants. Firefighters say the fire took around an hour to put out. Two family pets did not survive the blaze. The house is considered a total loss. The cause of the fire remains under investigation Saturday.  

A vision 30 years in the making is coming to fruition. East Peoria's city officials and first responders, along with Illinois' representatives, broke ground Friday for the city's upcoming fire station near Illinois Central College. The ceremony was held at 2001 Centennial Drive. "ICC donated the land and kept this dream alive for almost 30 years and we're finally here," Bobby Zimmerman, East Peoria's Fire Chief, said. East Peoria's Mayor John Kahl said there have been two different studies done over the past three decades which highlighted the need for a fire station at this location. Kahl also credited Senator Dave Koehler, former state representative Mike Unes, and ICC's president Dr. Sheila Quirk-Bailey for their contributions to the project.  

Lincoln Rural Fire Protection District responded to a house fire at the 100 block of Main Street in Lawndale on Sunday. Fire crews arrived at the scene and found heavy smoke and fire conditions throughout the home. Crews requested to bring additional tankers for water. Due to the advanced fire conditions found on arrival, the district said the home is considered a total loss. The two occupants were not home at the time of the fire and no civilians or firefighters sustained any injury. Responding agencies included Lincoln Rural, Lincoln City, Atlanta, Armington, Beason, Chestnut, Emden, Hartsburg, LCPA, and ISP on scene and Middletown to backfill our station.  

Five workers were injured, one critically, in an explosion and fire at a hemp product manufacturing plant in Grass Valley Sunday afternoon, prompting a day-long evacuation of the entire Sherman County community and hours-long closure of U.S. Highway 97, authorities said. The blast and blaze were reported around 2:30 p.m. at Grass Valley Bio Farm, 212 NW North Street, according to Dana Pursley-Haner, Sherman County's director of emergency services. The facility makes products such as hemp oils, lip balms and salves, the official said. "Initially, there was a first explosion in one of their side rooms, the extraction room" at the facility, roughly 80-by-100 feet in size, located in the former Grass Valley School, Pursley-Haner said.  

VIDEO/PHOTOS: First responders who raced to the scene after a plane carrying more than 50 shelter dogs crash-landed onto a Wisconsin golf course this week have helped rescue the pets in more ways than one. The large twin-engine aircraft, which was transporting the dogs to shelters in southeastern Wisconsin from Louisiana, crashed on the golf course at the Western Lakes Golf Club in Pewaukee on Tuesday. Three people and 53 dogs on board all survived, with some of the animals suffering minor injuries like bumps and scrapes. The three people were transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said. In the days following the crash, several first responders who worked the scene have adopted the dogs they helped rescue. "As soon as I found out all of them were okay, my first thought was that, one of them is coming home with me. So this is my little Lucky," Elle Steitzer, a firefighter and EMT at Lake Country Fire Rescue said.  

In seconds, a tragedy unfolded early Sunday morning, Nov. 20 at Club Q in Colorado Springs. The overnight shooting left several dead and many others injured, with a suspect now in custody. "The initial call for service was received at 11:56 p.m. [Saturday] night. The initial officer was dispatched at 11:57 p.m.," said Lt. Pamela Castro, Colorado Springs Police Department. Within minutes the shooting was stopped by the quick action of heroes, both in uniform and not. At least two people inside Club Q fought and subdued the suspect, according to police. "The first officer arrived in the area at 12:00 a.m. and the suspect was detained and subsequently taken into custody at 12:02 a.m.," said Lt. Castro. Officers from all four patrol divisions in Colorado Springs responded and within minutes, dozens were on the scene to assist.  

PHOTOS: Firefighters from across 17 Massachusetts fire departments were recognized for their actions on and off the job during the 33rd annual Firefighter of the Year Award Ceremony held at Mechanics Hall in Worcester on Friday. Awards were given to about 110 firefighters across those departments, including the Norman Knight Award For Excellence in Community Service, Citation for Meritorious Conduct and the Medal of Valor. The Stephen D. Coan Fire Marshal Award went to Dr. Christine Kannler, a dermatologist who works with firefighters battling cancer. Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Public Safety and Security secretary Terrence M. Reidy each spoke to the award recipients in the seats behind them. Baker presented recipients with their awards, some going to teams of firefighters within one department.  

Training to be a firefighter is difficult, so imagine doing that and studying to become an American citizen at the same time. A new firefighter with Hillsborough County Fire Rescue did exactly that – fulfilling some of his lifelong dreams. HCFR says firefighter Anthony Torres grew up in Havana, Cuba. He dreamed of being a firefighter when he was a kid but was discouraged from pursuing that career because firefighters in Cuba don't have access to many resources. When Torres was a teenager, HCFR says his grandfather sponsored him and his mother to move to the U.S. Torres moved here when he was 15, attending high school in Tampa and sparking that passion for fire service. Just a few weeks ago, Torres completed quite the feat: earning his U.S. citizenship all while finishing his training to be a Hillsborough County firefighter. He's the first to do so in the county.