The Rockport Volunteer Fire Department mourned the loss of one of their own this weekend. According to Captain Gillian Cox, 30-year-old Harris Baker was found dead at the fire station Saturday morning. Harris served the fire department for two years. During his tenure, he was recognized as the 2020 Firefighter of The Year and the 2020 Rookie of The Year. "He was a wonderful example to the community of someone who gave their time, passion and effort to the fire department," said Cox. Cox says Harris will be missed by all the Rockport departments officers' members and community. "It would be an honor to Harris and the fire department, if people joined a club that treated them like family and joined their local fire department," said Cox.  

VIDEO: An evacuation order has been lifted for residents after an industrial fire at a recycling plant in the Hockley area Saturday, according to the Harris County Fire Marshal's Office. The order was lifted just before 3 p.m. Fire crews are still working on some hot spots. "It was bad. It was smoke and fire and it was black and it was red," Angenettia Jackson, who lives nearby, said. "It was like oh my god." The fire took nine crews over the course of five hours to put out, and forced her from her home. She added that she was in fear for her life. "I'm just concerned because I only have one life and I want to live it to the fullest and I don't want to go before my time," she said. The recycling plant is located at 17360 Premium Drive near Highway 290, which the Waller County Sheriff's Office has identified as the VLS Recovery facility.  

A report detailing the city of Waco's response to February's freeze recommends stockpiling fuel and supplies, developing emergency housing plans with designated shelters, investing in snow plowing equipment and arming more city facilities with backup generators. The report details what happened when the unprecedented nine-day weather event caused havoc with the state's power grid, the erratic and long-lasting power outages that put lives in danger throughout Texas and the ensuing water pipe ruptures that spread throughout the city, putting the water system in jeopardy until a combination of round-the-clock work and water conservation measures helped it recover. Critical infrastructure in the city had not been reported to Oncor, the company that manages power distribution in Waco, something the report suggests correcting as soon as possible.  

Construction is causing delays on I-10 near Boerne to work on a project that has already been held up three times. Kendall County crews received the green light to demolish the US 87 bridge nearly four months later. It's part of the I-10 Kendall Extension Project, which will replace the overpass bridge at Main Street and Bandera Road. With crews projecting the demolition to take 56 hours, the Boerne Fire Department had to think of a different place to serve their residents from. So, a small crew of three firefighters parked their fire engine in front of some empty office suites. It's a big change from life at the fire station. "Probably should have brought a few more things. I forgot my chair, and maybe a cot would have been nice," BFD Cpt. Lyle Mattick said.  

The family of a fallen firefighter held their first charity event Saturday night in honor and celebration of their loved one. Jose Negrete, a Copperas Cove firefighter and paramedic, passed away in January 2020 from Stage 4 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. His family created the Negrete Firefighter Foundation in his honor. "We're here today to try and fulfill a legacy for him," Maria Negrete, his mother, said. "I don't want him to be remembered by his death, I want something positive to come out of his death." They held an event at Camp Caylor on Saturday in Copperas Cove as a way to raise money, which will be used to give scholarships out to men and women hoping to join the fire academy. "I want to be able to help a family financially and to have the same passion and desire that my son had, " said Maria.  

It's been nearly four years since Hurricane Harvey hit the Coastal Bend. The Category 4 storm is blamed for 125 billion dollars worth of damages to Texas and Louisiana. One of the buildings that was severely damaged by the storm was the Refugio Volunteer Fire Department. Last week, the department got a brand new building and on Sunday we took a tour of the facility. "It is where the original station was, it's the exact same footprint, it's just the design is different. The original station had 10 bay doors on it so we have spaces to park 10 trucks, when we redesigned we gave up two of the bay doors and we took in the two north doors so we only have eight bays for the trucks now," said Refugio Volunteer Fire Department Chief Ronnie Williams.  

Multiple houses under construction were damaged or destroyed after Phoenix firefighters battled a second-alarm fire Sunday morning. Arizona's Family cameras show several structures went up in flames near Bell Road and Tatum Boulevard. Phoenix fire crews responded to the area around 9:30 a.m. for reports of a house fire. When crews showed up, they found multiple houses under construction on fire and called a first-alarm. Crews later upgraded the fire to a second-alarm because of the number of houses on the lot. Four houses were declared a total loss. Five houses also had significant smoke damage, according to Capt. Todd Keller. Crews are on scene clearing up the hotspots. No people were hurt as a result of the fire. The property owners are cooperating with fire investigators as they work to determine the cause.  

Without the remains of the mangled cab in the middle of the photo, it may have been hard to even realize that a fire truck was involved in the Saturday night collision. Even harder to believe is the fact that there were no injuries among the many first responders who were on the scene that night. Nonetheless, the Flint Hill Fire Department wanted to share the image of destruction, not only to remind drivers to use caution but to show how dangerous a firefighter's job can be. The crash apparently happened while the Flint Hill fire engine was on the scene of another accident. A semi-truck ultimately hit the fire truck. Firefighters, emergency medical services, and law enforcement were all on the scene at the time but somehow walked away unscathed. The truck driver was taken to an area hospital for treatment.  

A report detailing the city of Waco's response to February's freeze recommends stockpiling fuel and supplies, developing emergency housing plans with designated shelters, investing in snow plowing equipment and arming more city facilities with backup generators. The report details what happened when the unprecedented nine-day weather event caused havoc with the state's power grid, the erratic and long-lasting power outages that put lives in danger throughout Texas and the ensuing water pipe ruptures that spread throughout the city, putting the water system in jeopardy until a combination of round-the-clock work and water conservation measures helped it recover. Critical infrastructure in the city had not been reported to Oncor, the company that manages power distribution in Waco, something the report suggests correcting as soon as possible.  

Firefighters already provide lifesaving services to people in Volusia County. Now, they're adding another service: scanning for microchips when people find pets they believe are lost. The county's animal services and fire department have launched a program to train firefighters in the use of microchip scanners. Microchips for pets have been around for years, but the firefighters' involvement in such a program is new. All 20 county fire stations will have staff trained in the use of microchip scanners. Beginning on Sept. 1, residents who find pets that seem lost can bring them to fire stations for microchip scanning. "As many people know, microchipping is the only permanent method for identifying pets in our community," said Volusia County spokesman Gary Davidson in a press release.  

PHOTO: Donnie Speer owns and operates The Big Hole Pizza Company in Wise River, Montana. What started as a creative dream a couple years ago led him to purchasing a retired fire truck with roots in Daviess County — nearly 1,800 miles away. The fire truck, which still reads "Thruston-Philpot Fire Department," dates back to 1978. "Originally, a man bought it from someone at that station (in Daviess County), put a new set of tires on it and drove it out here," Speer said. "He was going to start a volunteer fire department in his town, but he passed away and the truck just sat in a yard for 15 years rotting out." When Speer had the idea of starting a business a couple years ago, he began to look for the perfect opportunity to offer customers a unique place to gather. "I had built a pizza oven the winter before and was trying to think where to put it," Speer said.