Peoria Firefighters responded to a house fire near Flora Avenue and Elizabeth Street at approximately 11:30 a.m. Monday. According to a press release, firefighters observed moderate smoke on the second floor of the building and located a small fire in the kitchen that was extinguished. All the home's residents were outside the home upon the fire crew's arrival. One person was injured and suffered non-life-threatening burns to their arm. Peoria fire paramedics provided patient care and transported them to the hospital for further evaluation. The cause was determined to be accidental and caused an estimated $2,000 worth of damages. The home is still able to be occupied by the family.  

Five residents were displaced after a garage fire broke out Sunday, causing $150,000 in damages to their Naperville home. Firefighters were called to the 1200 block of Cromwell just after 11 a.m. and got to the scene to find two vehicles on fire in the driveway and heavy flames in the garage that were spreading to the second floor and attic. The fire was contained within 20 minutes, a news release said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.  

Large flames and plumes of smoke can be seen from Interstate 10 near the Valencia Road exit after a large commercial fire ignited in the area Monday afternoon. According to Rural Metro Fire Department, crews were dispatched to the 5900 block of South Belvedere Avenue near Benson Highway and Valencia Road in reference to a fire at the UCC Recycling facility. Officials say when the crews arrived at the scene, the facility was fully engulfed in flames. As large storage piles of paper recycling materials, windy conditions and low water pressure in the area hampered the responding crews efforts with combatting the blaze, the commercial fire was upgraded to a two-alarm fire. As such, crews with Tucson Fire Department were dispatched to the area to assist with the blaze.  

VIDEO: Raleigh police officers and firefighters will come together Tuesday afternoon to amplify their call for better pay. Firefighters told WRAL News better pay will support the Raleigh Fire Department's work to retain employees and recruit for nearly 60 vacancies. The group of first responders plans to protest outside the municipal building at 228 West Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. There are currently 58 vacant firefighter positions within the Raleigh Fire Department, an increase of 450% in two years. Although Raleigh's living hourly wage is $17.33, a Raleigh firefighter starts their career at $13.42 per hour. The city's new proposed pay plan only increases firefighters' pay to $15.06. Firefighters want the City of Raleigh to raise the starting pay $18.20 per hour and adjust the entire pay scale accordingly. Their proposed rate is $2.30 higher than what the city is currently proposing.  

PHOTOS: It's one of those pivotal news stories in our lives many can remember where they were when hearing the news. At the time, it was the nation's worst single act of domestic terrorism. It was years before the unimaginable tragedies of 9-11/September 11, 2001 occurred. The country was stunned that two Americans, anti-government extremists with white supremacist, extreme right-wing sympathies; Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols had conspired to commit the crime. The blast destroyed or damaged 324 other buildings within a 16-block radius, shattered glass in 258 nearby buildings, and destroyed or burned 86 cars, causing an estimated $652 million worth of damage. Local, state, federal, and worldwide agencies engaged in extensive rescue efforts in the wake of the bombing.  

April is National Donate Life Month, raising awareness about the importance of organ donation. Just last week, the power of community helped a local woman awaiting a transplant get to the hospital to receive her new organs. Right in the middle of severe storms we had last Wednesday, an evening phone call put the O'Daniels family on the clock. Sara O'Daniels had been waiting for 6 1/2 months for a new kidney and a new liver. Now, it was time. "You never knew when the call was coming and they were right," Patrick O'Daniels said. "We didn't know it was coming!" But Sara's life-saving surgery was suddenly at odds with the weather and her watch. "On the phone they said, 'This is so-and-so from University Hospital. We're calling to say we have a pair of organs for you. We have a kidney and liver and you need to be here within an hour,'" Sara recalled.  

Michael Fearing has been a firefighter for more than 30 years. He said a typical fire hose lasts 10-15 years. They get pressure tested each year and if they fail; they have to be replaced. Over the years, Fearing has watched thousands of feet of used fire hose enter landfills. "I've probably disposed of miles and miles of hose. And it was always like, it's kind of heartbreaking," said Fearing, a lieutenant at the Concord Fire Department. "Why are we, you know, we're putting this into landfills and it cost taxpayers a lot of money to begin with and, of course, things wear out right? You can't get around that, but just always brainstorming like what can we use this for?" Being an advocate for the environment, he got creative. Instead of adding to the already full landfills, he works to keep material out. In 2019, he launched Hound Hose. He takes old firehoses and repurposes them into handmade dog and cat toys. He ships worldwide and is always looking for more wholesaler partnerships.