According to a press release from the City of Lufkin, twenty-six year Lufkin Fire veteran Jesse Moody has been chosen as the department's new fire chief. Moody had his final interview with city officials yesterday, impressing them with his extensive knowledge of Lufkin Fire Department's inner workings, forward thinking and vision for the future. "In the application and interview process, we felt that Jesse Moody's level of experience and internal knowledge was unbeatable," City Manager Keith Wright said. "He can hit the ground running and give us the best opportunity to build upon our past successes while taking the department to the next level." The search for a new chief began in July with more than 40 candidates from around the U.S. and beyond including New York, California, Minnesota – even Antarctica.  

Two people, including a firefighter, were hospitalized in Plano after a crash involving a fire truck early Sunday morning. Plano Fire-Rescue said in a news release a ladder truck was blocking traffic at a crash scene along U.S. 75 when a vehicle crashed into it shortly after 2 a.m. One firefighter was injured and taken to Medical City Plano for treatment. The firefighter was not seriously hurt and was later released from the hospital, the statement read. The driver who crashed into the ladder truck had to be rescued from their vehicle, authorities said. The driver, who hasn't been identified, was hospitalized at Medical City Plano with serious injuries. The driver in the original crash was also hospitalized at Medical City Plano with serious injuries.  

PHOTOS: Weldon J. Hill remembers the exact spot where his bed sat overlooking North 11th Street and the sound of the still functional Gamewell fire alarm filling West End Station No. 2 decades ago. The Waco Fire Department has plans to move out of the 87-year-old building at 1016 Columbus Avenue, which has been known as the Central Fire Station for almost 20 years, and it is unclear what will become of the structure. But it still feels like home to Hill, who retired as a lieutenant in 1993 after 40 years of service. At 90, he is three years better than the station where he spent much of his career, and is believed to be the oldest living Waco firefighter. "My bed was right here," Hill said as he walked through the second-floor dormitory last week.  

The Longview Economic Development Corp. board voted Friday to donate 11.5 acres of land in its North Business Park to the city where a new Fire Station 8 will be built. LEDCO also agreed to give $25,000 to Arts! Longview for street wayfinding signs and other capital expenses. Friday's meeting was the first of the 2019-20 fiscal year for LEDCO directors, who also chose the agency's officers. John Martin was selected LEDCO board chairman. Other officers this year are Natalie Lynch as vice chair, Claire Henry as treasurer and David Cowley as secretary. A year ago, voters approved a bond package that included an estimated $4.945 million to replace the existing Fire Station 8. Its location on McCann Road north of the U.S. Post Office has a response area that overlaps response areas for other stations, said Longview Public Works Director Rolin McPhee.  

VIDEO: A man is now charged with arson in the fire that destroyed the Wilde Collection Oddities and Curiosities store in the Heights on Friday afternoon. Jonathan Jindra was charged with arson in the case, court documents show. Jindra was charged Saturday. The Harris County District Attorney's Office is asking for a $35,000 bond. Court documents also indicated that Jindra may have a mental health issue. A Twitter account with Jindra's first and last name posted Friday, writing, "The Wilde Collection is dead. By my own hand and wrath I say this." That account has since been suspended. Loyal customers and fans of the Wilde Collection Oddities and Curiosities store in the Heights gathered at the store Saturday to see the damage and offer support to the owners who lost a valuable collection.  

Firefighters were called to a three-story house fire in Gibbs Hollow Cove, west of Austin, Sunday morning around 6 a.m. Photos tweeted by Austin Fire Department show large flames and thick black smoke coming from the home. AFD Battalion Chief Thayer Smith said that crews were able to establish pretty early on that the residents of the house were not at home. Smith said it was not easy to get crews in like they normally would because the house backs up into a cul-de-sac next to the Greenbelt. It took AFD an hour to get the fire under control. Smith said it will take several hours before they completely leave the scene because they are working on hot spots. No other houses were affected by the fire. "This house is fairly isolated," Smith said. "There was not enough time to put any other structures in danger."  

Brian Serdynski was a reliable and dedicated public servant, father and friend. Those who he leaves behind remember him as selfless, never complaining and for his commitment of a large chunk of his life to serving on the Union Grove-Yorkville Fire Department. The Fire Department has a hole in its roster as the department's members are mourning the loss of one of their own. Serdynski died early Saturday morning at his Union Grove home, about two weeks after suffering a heart attack during an emergency call. He was 38. Serdynski suffered the heart attack Oct. 19, was released from the hospital Oct. 21, saw his cardiologist last Wednesday and was cleared to return to duty, Fire Chief Tim Allen said Sunday. The death was a sudden and huge blow to the department, Allen said.  

The head of the city's firefighter union wants to know the long-term plan for retaining a crop of new hires when the temporary funding used to bring them on board expires. The problem is — just as it has been in the past — there does not appear to be one, and the union president is concerned the fire department will, once again, be targeted for budget cuts through staffing reductions when it comes time to pay up. Atlantic City was awarded $4.3 million in federal grant funding that is to be used for hiring roughly 25 new firefighters. The new hires will increase the department's total numbers to about 200, a move necessitated by nearly a dozen retirements earlier this year that dropped staffing levels below a judge's order for a minimum of 180 city firefighters.  

"Level Zero" is the phrase at the heart of a legal fight between Albuquerque Fire and Rescue and privately owned Albuquerque Ambulance Service over the city's proposed expansion of its authority to have AFR rescue units transport patients to the hospital. In most cases, AFR rescue units stabilize patients on scene and Albuquerque Ambulance then takes them to the emergency room – allowing the Fire and Rescue units to return to service for new 911 calls. When Albuquerque Ambulance has no units able to respond immediately to 911 calls, its dispatchers announce "Level Zero" over the radio. The sharp uptick in "Level Zero," the city says, shows the ambulance service doesn't have enough staffed units deployed and translates into AFR rescue units spending too much time waiting at a scene for Albuquerque Ambulance to show up and transport a patient.  

VIDEO: It was a beautiful memorial for Goodyear firefighter engineer Austin Peck, who died in August. Some of Peck's family skydived to remember him, and they say it was a healing moment as they released his ashes into the skies. "I'm sure he would have loved it. He was an adrenaline junkie himself," said Mark Peck, Austin's father. It was a moment of healing for the family of Peck, who passed away from occupational cancer. 10 family members skydived into the Arizona skies, releasing Peck's ashes as they glided through the American and Arizona flag, more than 10,000 feet in the air. Down below, sirens were sounding off, and eyes were trained to the sky. For those who jumped and watched from below - this was more than just skydiving. It was to remember the man they grew to love.  

In a recent Facebook post, the Portsmouth Professional Fire Fighters & Paramedics Association the public on a staffing shortage. "Today is a scary day to be a citizen, guest, or business owner in Portsmouth." According to the Association, EMS2, a unit that responds to major medical calls, is down due to lack of staffing. EMS2 is responsible for cardiac arrests, car accidents, shootings, stabbings and fires. In their Facebook post, the Association adds that they believe this is due to city leaders needing to ‘allocate proper funding' to the fire department. In the closing statement for the post, the group states that they will continue to try and provide effective emergency services with ‘less and less'.