PHOTO: Authorities responded to a fire in south Odessa on Thursday morning. According to the City of Odessa, firefighters were called out to a mobile home fire in the 500 block of Drury Lane around 5 a.m. When firefighters arrived, they found a single wide mobile home that was completely engulfed. Firefighters made a forced entry into the home and found that it was vacant. No one was hurt in the fire. The Fire Marshal's Office will be investigating the cause of the fire.  

Port Neches' newest fire chief took the oath of office Thursday in a room with firefighters, well-wishers and more. Eloy Vega, 51, addressed the room saying it is an honor and privilege to be selected as the next fire chief. He alluded to the oath of office where he swore to the best of his ability to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the U.S. and of the state of Texas, saying he gives his word to be a good steward of the city's resources. Port Neches City Manager Andre Wimer said Vega brings a wealth of knowledge and operational experience. Mayor Glenn Johnson thanked the fire fighters, some of who were in the audience, for their work during the interim; and also gave thanks to Assistant Chief Mike Stegall, who assumed the role of interim chief.  

Human remains were found Thursday in the rubble of a house fire near Lytle where firefighters were searching for a missing 84-year-old man. Tom Peine, an assistant public information officer for Bexar County, said that remains were found at the home in the 15400 block of Old Frio City Road but couldn't confirm whether they were the remains of the man they were looking for. The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office will make that determination. When firefighters arrived at the home shortly before 4 a.m., they found the home engulfed in flames. According to a spokesman for the Bexar County Fire Department, a woman and her teenage daughter were able to escape the flames with minor injuries. An 84-year-old man who also lives with the women however was unaccounted for, fire officials said.  

Abilene Fire Department units responded to a structure fire at approximately, 3:30 p.m. Thursday, April 8, in the 4400 block of State Street. According to an AFD press release, crews arrived to find smoke coming out the attic vents. The first crews quickly extinguished the fire. The resident was home but was able to leave without incident or injury, according to the release. The fire was contained to the attic, however, it caused significant structural and water damage to the interior. The Red Cross is helping the residents. The fire caused an estimated $30,000 in damages and its cause remains under investigation.  

This month marks the 50th anniversary of what was deemed the largest blaze in the town's history — the 1971 burning of the Texas and Pacific Railway shops. "The evening will go down in history as the saddest and most depressing day for the Texas & Pacific Railway family in Marshall, a day that sealed the fate for what remained of Marshall's massive and proud shops," said Daryl Ware, a retired train conductor, Marshall Depot board member and member of Harrison County Historical Society. It was April Fool's Day, April 1, 1971, when the blaze erupted, causing $5 million worth of damages, destroying the machine shop, freight car shop and coupler shop. The fire was so massive it could be spotted from as far away as Elysian Fields. "It was huge," Ware, who was a little boy at the time, recalled. "It was seen from Elysian Fields and probably seen from Caddo Lake, Harleton and Hallsville."  

Lubbock Fire Rescue and the Woodrow Volunteer Fire Department extinguished a blaze in Southwest Lubbock on Thursday. Just after 2:00 p.m., LFR responded to reports of a grass fire in the 5500 block of 138th Street, LFR Captain Phillip Grandon said. An LFR fire engine arrived on-scene to a large grass fire threatening a trailer house, Grandon said. LFR requested extra units, as well as Woodrow VFD to respond. LFR was able to keep flames from reaching the trailer house, Grandon said. Just before 3:30 p.m., LFR sent out a tweet saying the fire was extinguished. No injuries were reported. It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze, which remained under investigation Thursday.  

One person was killed and eight people were hurt in an explosion and second-alarm fire at an Ohio paint plant early Thursday. About 40 employees were working just after midnight when the blast occurred in one of five buildings on Yenkin-Majestic Paint's campus in Columbus, officials said. While most of the employees came out of the building as firefighters arrived on the scene, authorities learned two were trapped, according to Columbus Division of Fire Battalion Chief Steve Martin. They were eventually rescued and taken to Ohio State University Hospital with critical injuries, he said. Six others were stable. The body of a person who was missing for at least five hours after the fire was discovered at about 9:15 a.m., Martin told NBC News Thursday afternoon. He was identified as Wendell Light, 44, a press room supervisor. Crews found his body partially covered in rubble, Martin said.  

PHOTOS: An 18-wheeler pulled up in front of Coker Volunteer Fire Department on Thursday laden with a mountain of firefighting gear donated by departments in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. The gear represents a windfall of equipment that many of the volunteer departments in West Alabama never would have been able to afford to purchase. The National Fire Protection Association rules stipulate fire equipment cannot have more than a 10-year shelf life. Coker Fire Chief Robert Bowers said the strict adherence to the rule by northeastern fire departments has benefitted Tuscaloosa County departments. "Up north, they follow the NFPA 10-year shelf life rule to the 'T.' They have to give up their equipment after 10 years, and it has to be replaced. It's not a rule followed in every state. We try to follow it as best we can, but volunteer departments here struggle so much," Bowers said.  

John Capozzoli Jr. of Freeport remembers the moment he knew he was destined to join the fire service. He was 12 years old and riding shotgun in his father's pickup when the Freeport Fire Department sounded its air horn. As he and his father pulled into the firehouse, he recalled the excitement he felt as he watched his father, a volunteer firefighter, don a thick bunker coat and helmet and climb aboard the fire truck. "At that point," he said, "I knew I wanted to do that, too." He signed up with the Freeport Fire Department in 1958 at 18, following not only his father, but two uncles and two older brothers into the fire service. Now, 63 years later, the 80-year-old great-grandfather, who rose to the rank of chief, still serves Freeport Village, battling house and commercial blazes. He has no plans to retire. "I get mad when the younger guys [firefighters] want to take care of me," said Capozzoli, who fitness walks more than 20 miles a week and is the catcher for the fire department's softball team.  

VIDEOS: For Kimberly Pillman and Ryle Olsen it is about helping others during an emergency and serving the community they call home. Pillman and Olsen are two of the 10 female firefighters/paramedics who currently work for the Lake Geneva Fire Department. Pillman said she considers it an honor to be a member of the fire department, as she is able to help people during a difficult situation. "I enjoy serving the community and being there for people who need help and being the calm person that comes to help take care of what is going on in their life at that moment," Pillman said. Olsen said she also enjoys the community service aspect of working as a firefighter. "I like helping out the community," Olsen said. "I also love that with this job there is something new every day. Captain Mark Moeller-Gunderson said the Lake Geneva Fire Department is above the national average when it come to hiring female firefighters and paramedics— like Olsen and Pillman.