VIDEO: As 6 News celebrates 150 years of the Waco Fire Department, we take time to shine light on the four women who represent the only women firefighters in its history. Unique Barnett, from Austin, was sworn in at WFD in 2021, alongside Mary Duarte, from the DFW area. Both Barnett and Duarte were a part of the WFD 2021 rookie class known as the "most diverse" class in the department's history. The class included one Asian American and two women, one of whom is the department's first African American woman. That woman just so happens to be Barnett. "I originally went to school to be a lawyer," Barnett explained. Then, I realized that I didn't want to sit behind a desk my whole life. So I started looking into jobs and public safety. Then looked into fire and it was everything that I loved."  

Heavy rainfall in the forecast could bring about flash flooding this weekend, and with the potentially severe storm, Austin-Travis County EMS has deployed a boat team to south Texas. Around 6 a.m. Friday, a crew consisting of five special rescue operations personnel towed off two boats from the ATCEMS Station 1 in south Austin. In Austin, two other fully staffed MS boats would stay in town to help locally, while a third boat is on standby. Their deployment is part of a partnership with a state and FEMA rescue task force based in College Station. In the past, they've been sent off to save lives during hurricanes Ian, Harvey and even Katrina. Keep in mind, these boats are used for any type of emergency incident, with their primary objective including water rescues, such as pulling people out of flooded lakes and rivers.  

The San Angelo Fire Department was called to the scene of a vehicle fire in a granite and marble business parking lot on East 14th and Bryant. According to first responders on the scene, the initial response for the vehicle fire was increased to a full response after receiving information that the truck engulfed in flames, was near a standing structure. The fire fully engulfed the cab of the truck, destroying it, but the nearby structure remained unharmed. The fire has been completely put out and the vehicle is being moved a safe distance away as a safety precaution. The investigation into what started the fire is still currently underway.  

PHOTOS: On May 10, Wednesday morning, the Station 1 crew of the Mount Pleasant, Texas Fire Department received a call regarding a lost puppy and they headed out to the scene. There are few things more adorable than a newborn puppy. There's something about these precious little animals that stirs the human heart to act with compassion. Even some who struggle with interacting with their fellow human beings can turn to marshmallows when it comes to baby animals. And that's never more true than when a dog or a puppy is in danger. And because of this, and because it's the right thing to do, hearing that the Station 1 crew of the Mount Pleasant, Texas Fire Department intervened and used their "trenching skills" to save the life of this tiny, newborn puppy who was trapped under the deck of a home in the area is warming the hearts of people all over East Texas.  

An armed man barricaded himself inside of a Fort Lauderdale house then set it on fire before coming outside and killing himself in an apparent murder-suicide Thursday night. Fort Lauderdale Police officials said officers responded to a shooting call around 8:24 p.m. near the intersection of Northwest 27th Terrace and Northwest 17th Street. When officers arrived, they found the armed suspect had barricaded himself inside a nearby home. SWAT and negotiators responded to try to resolve the situation. Investigators said the already tense situation took a disturbing turn when the house went up in flames and smoke, a fire they believe was set by the suspect. Police later said the man came outside the home and shot himself to death. The body of another person was later found inside the home.  

Thursday, International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) President and Board Chair, Chief Donna Black, testified before the Research & Technology Subcommittee of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology to support the reauthorization of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program, the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program, and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). In her testimony, Black highlighted the importance of these programs in providing essential resources to fire departments and emergency responders across the country. She specifically requested that the AFG and SAFER programs be authorized through Fiscal Year (FY) 2030 and that the USFA be authorized through FY 2030 with an increased authorization of $95 million per year.  

VIDEO/PHOTOS: Flames poured out of the second and third windows of an abandoned rowhome, lighting the early morning sky. Crews from multiple fire engines rushed inside, but within minutes the interior of the building collapsed, killing three firefighters and badly wounding a fourth. It was the Baltimore City Fire Department's worst on-duty loss of life since the mid 1950s. "It was really heartbreaking for everybody there," Councilwoman Odette Ramos told Fox News. "We just have to do more. We just can't let something like that happen again." The house on Stricker Street had been vacant for more than 10 years and experienced two previous fires, according to BCFD. The first fire, in 2015, resulted in a partial collapse that injured three firefighters and left the building compromised.  

VIDEO: Police agencies across central Ohio are looking for thieves who have been busting into cars owned by firefighters while they are on duty keeping communities safe. Two suspects were captured on security camera outside Concord Township Fire Station No. 341 on Dublin Road shortly before midnight on Wednesday. Fire officials say the two suspects can be seen trying to break-into cars parked behind the station before eventually busting the window of a pick-up truck owned by a firefighter. Those suspects took the truck owner's personal computer that was inside a backpack. Three hours later, Worthington City Officials say four cars parked outside the city's fire department and in a nearby municipal building lot were broken into.  

VIDEO: With the variety of accident-avoidance technology now available on passenger cars, there is growing interest in making it mandatory on the big rig trucks that travel the highways each day. It's the kind of thing that could have made a difference in a tragic accident more than 40 years ago that changed California's rules of the road. Most of us drive to work every day, never really knowing what kind of danger may be rolling alongside us. Federal highway safety officials are looking for ways to cut down on the number of truck accidents, especially those that involve hazardous materials. "There's over two million shipments of hazmat every day in the United States of America," said former U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Administrator Bob Richard.