Williamson County and Travis County fire departments are getting closer to getting people help faster during an emergency. City leaders and local jurisdictions are working on an automatic aid agreement between the two counties. Automatic aid is when the closest firefighters would respond, regardless of city limits, when it seems like the most viable solution. Austin's fire chief is ready to give the green light, but the Austin City Council decided Thursday to wait a couple of more weeks before giving it a vote. "Firefighting means everything to me," said Pflugerville Fire Chief Ron Mullenberg. "I live this business." For decades, Ron Mullenberg has lived in Plugerville and has worked as a firefighter. He's seen the city rapidly grown into a metropolitan community. "We've gone from an all volunteer fire department to an all career department," said Mullenberg.  

The friend of a plumber who died Wednesday in a trench collapse tried to rescue him, according to officials. The incident was reported about 7:30 p.m. behind a shopping center off the North Freeway near Parker Road. According to Houston firefighters, the plumber and his friend were installing pipes when the nearly 7-foot-deep trench collapsed on the plumber. Officials said the man's friend tried to use a backhoe to save him but could not get him free. The soil gave way under the backhoe and the machine tilted into the trench, officials said. Firefighters said that by the time they arrived, the man was dead. According to firefighters, there was no shoring of the trench that was visible. Officials said crews will be on the scene for several hours while police, the medical examiner and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration conduct investigations.  

The city of Pearland has had to contend with a rapidly growing population as well as a limited budget, while still needing to maintain a fire department capable of responding to emergencies quickly. To achieve this, the Pearland Fire Department has transformed from a volunteer department to a fully staffed and growing department over the course of 12 years, and the city is still preparing for more changes. At its meeting on Oct. 14, Pearland City Council approved a design contract for a new Fire Station 4 off Cullen Parkway and accepted a federal grant that will assist in staffing costs for the fire department in the upcoming year. Both of these are the most recent council decisions in a long-term plan to support the Pearland Fire Department as it looks to improve response times and station accommodations for full-time firefighters.  

A church dinner ended with 10 people sent to the hospital Wednesday night with carbon monoxide poisoning. A propane gas grill was being used inside the Calvary Philadelphia Missionary Baptist Church. With all the windows and doors closed to keep out the cold, there was nowhere to vent the fumes from the small neighborhood church in South Dallas. "Carbon monoxide, unfortunately it's something you cannot see. You cannot smell it, and it is very toxic," Dallas Fire and Rescue Senior Fire Prevention Officer Daisy Castaneda said. "It will kill someone." No one died in the Wednesday night incident, but 2 of the 10 people treated for carbon monoxide poisoning had to be admitted to the hospital. The symptoms to exposure can set in in a matter of minutes.  

The nearby Comal River is closed as fire crews continue to work on extinguishing a fire that reignited at the Wurstfest grounds this morning. An eyewitness sent in a photo of the reignited fire just after 6:30 a.m. Friday. Thursday night, fire crews were called out to the Wurstfest grounds in response to a fire in the food court area. The fire was contained to that area and extinguished. Around 6 a.m. this morning, a flare-up of the fire from Thursday night occurred, according to fire officials at the scene. While the fire affected the historic Wursthalle and the marktplatz area, it has been contained to just the marktplatz area at this time. Multiple agencies are at the scene helping to fight the flames.  

Two city departments are trying to shake up their staffs. Asheville police and fire officials said they are lacking diversity. Both are actively working to recruit more diverse applicants. "We've not been able to keep up with our community," Asheville Fire Battalion Chief Patrick Crudup said. Interim Police Chief Robert White said there are a number of reasons. "It's more challenging to get individuals of color," White said. It's something some community members said is important. "We need the diversity to take place," Asheville resident Raymond Neal said. Asheville is below the national average for fire departments when it comes to minority representation. African-Americans and Latinos each make up 4 percent of the staff. Women make up 5 percent. "Over the course of the department, it has been not just our department in the fire service in general," Crudup said.  

On Wednesday, The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) and the American Heart Association unveiled a new hands-only CPR kiosk that has the ability to train and test travelers in bystander CPR in about five minutes. The kiosk, located in the Central Terminal, includes a touch screen display with video instruction and tutorials, followed by an interactive practice session and test. It even features a rubber practice mannequin to simulate CPR and give users feedback on the strength of their check compression and hand placement. Users can choose to take the course in English and Spanish. Sea-Tac is the first location in Washington to feature the hands-only CPR training kiosk. Randy Krause, Port of Seattle Fire Chief, hopes it will encourage more people to learn the lifesaving technique.  

Californians who lost their home insurance because of the threat of wildfires will be able to buy comprehensive policies next year through a state-mandated plan under an order issued Thursday by the state insurance commissioner. Devastating wildfires have plagued the state in recent years, destroying thousands of homes. Those claims have cost insurance companies, who have responded by dropping fire insurance policies for many homeowners who live in fire-prone areas. Most of those people turn to the California Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan, an insurance pool mandated by state law that is required to issue policies to people who can't buy them through no fault of their own. But FAIR Plan policies are often limited to fire damage, forcing homeowners to purchase separate plans to get coverage for things other than fires, like theft, water damage, falling objects and liability.  

At an age many Milwaukee Firefighters are retiring from the department Hernan Galarza just got sworn in as a Milwaukee Firefighter Thursday evening. At age 51, he is the oldest recruit to successfully make it through the program. "I have always wanted to serve. I always wanted to do something for the community," said Galarza. The 51-year-old went through the Milwaukee Fire Department recruit training program with men and women who are the same ages as his daughters. He is not the oldest to try, but he is the oldest to succeed. Hernan had no experience in firefighting. He spent his career in sales and as a small business owner. But he is very into fitness. He completed four Wisconsin Ironman competitions before he decided to try to become a firefighter.  

In 2017, Police Chief Michael Spellman said that it's not a matter of "if" an officer will come in contact with a citizen on the autism spectrum, but rather, a matter of "when." Indeed, one out of every 59 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, the Centers for Disease Control said in 2018. City of Groton Police officer Bobby Harris, who has two decades of training in working with people on the autism spectrum and is himself a trainer in the field, noted that first responders should know how to approach a person with autism and, "Not just barge in here if I have a problem and expect my son to act like a normal kid would act," he told local media last year. His son has Asperger's. Now, the city has signed a formal agreement to begin using a specialized software in its emergency dispatch center that was designed to better help officers and first responders know how a person with autism communicates, might react, and identifies special sensitivities, like flashing lights, and very loud noises, police and fire sirens, for example.