VIDEOS: Firefighters were battling a building fire at a church in north Houston Thursday morning. This started just after 5 a.m. at Hunter Memorial Church of God in Christ on Airline Drive just south of Crosstimbers. People who work next door told KHOU 11 reporter Stephanie Whitfield the church had been abandoned for years. There were people who slept in the building sometimes. We don't know if anyone was here when the fire broke out. Fire officials said they'll give a briefing on what happened when the fire is out. For now, avoid this area because Airline Drive is shut down in both directions. No word on how the fire started.  

PHOTOS: After a nearly two-year wait fueled by pandemic-related supply chain shortages, city officials here had cause to celebrate Wednesday with a ceremony ushering in the arrival of two new firetrucks. "We're extremely excited," Ubaldo "Balde" Perez, deputy chief for the Edinburg Fire Department, said shortly after he and other firefighters gathered to "push in" the two new apparatus. "What represents a firefighter? A firetruck — you know, nice and shiny and red. So, the firefighters are very excited about being able to get this new apparatus," Perez added. To celebrate, the department held a "push-in ceremony" — a tradition that hearkens back to the 1800s, when departments relied upon horse-drawn vehicles to respond to emergencies.  

In less than a month's time, Southeast Texas first responders have dealt with three hazmat emergencies. On Saturday, April 8, 2023, three people were injured in an explosion at AmSpec, LLC near Nederland. On Thursday, April 13, 2023, a tanker truck dumped an 'unknown substance' on a property on Old Highway 90 near Interstate 10 in Vidor. Those tests results came back inconclusive. On Tuesday, April 25, 2023, two people were taken to a hospital after Trimac Transportation employees were washing out trucks carrying hazardous material and opened a valve, which led to a leak on Washington Boulevard in Beaumont. Beaumont Fire Rescue's Hazmat 68 truck is one firefighters use when called to a hazmat emergency. The truck stores life-saving equipment inside, such as a kiddie pool that is used when a person needs to decontaminated from a liquid or powder.  

VIDEO: Over 54 years, at least one member of the Bright family has been on duty at the Waco Fire Department. "Coming up here as a kid, either to see Grandpa or Dad, I just kind of fell in love with it," Corey Bright remembered. Like his grandfather and father before him, Corey Bright is now a firefighter with the department. Their family history there spans over one-third of the fire department's history. Bill Bright, Corey Bright's grandfather, was the first family member to join back in 1969. Over the three generations, he said there's been many changes. "Yes, it's mainly the equipment," Bill Bright said. "The equipment is so much better. Our equipment was not the greatest, we didn't have airpacks. Otherwise you got to the fire just crawling on your belly to get to where you were going, staying low." Luckily some things, such as the family's drive to serve, never change.  

The Gloucester Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad (GVFRS) says crews responded to a large fire in an effort that spanned three hours. Personnel responded to the working structure fire at 11:12 p.m. on Wednesday, April 26. The scene was located off Lord Carrington Drive. When crews arrived, they found heavy flames on the second floor and attic area. The response effort included five engines, a tanker, a rescue truck and a medic unit. The Mathews Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD) also aided in the response and brought a tanker and an engine to help. The response effort included 29 personnel in total. GVFRS Assistant Chief Jon Williams said they requested aid from MVFD because they maxed out their sources. He added that they're currently understaffed.  

The FDNY on Wednesday announced a new effort to prevent fires caused by lithium-ion batteries. The department received a $100,000 donation from Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber. The FDNY says it will use the money to help promote fire safety outreach and support the public education campaign to prevent fires caused by e-bike batteries. FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh says those batteries have been blamed for 67 fires and five deaths so far this year. "We know that we need to work together to help in our safety messaging to ensure that the public is informed of best practices when it comes to using micro-mobility devices. We will continue to work with federal, state and local partners to look for solutions and spread awareness until this is no longer a danger to the city," Kavanagh said. The FDNY says they've been aggressively educating the public on the dangers of these batteries and on how to safely own and operate e-bikes.  

VIDEOS/PHOTOS: The size of a football field, the mammoth theater erected in front of Union Station for this week's NFL Draft is the biggest the league has ever built. But the NFL actually wanted to build an even larger, more elaborate stage. Months ago, the league planned a structure complete with a second story that could house as many as 1,000 people. But fire department officials say those plans were scaled back during conversations with the NFL. Such a grandiose NFL Draft Theater would have faced more scrutiny from city inspectors and driven up the cost substantially because of the need to install a sprinkler system in the temporary structure. "The building process would have taken significantly longer, the inspection process would have been significantly more involved," said Joseph Ragsdale, the city's assistant fire marshal who has worked on the draft preparations.  

PHOTOS: Portland Fire & Rescue is hosting a group of firefighters from Tokyo that is here to learn about how to respond in the event of a volcanic eruption. Mount Fuji is still an active volcano and is located just two hours southwest of Tokyo – similar to the distance between Mt. St. Helens and Portland. Local firefighters shared their experiences with ash mitigation. They also visited Cowlitz County Disaster Management and spoke with first responders about their experiences responding to the 1980 eruption. "With a city of 14 million and a very specific, tight infrastructure, it could be devastating to them," said Rick Graves, a spokesperson with Portland Fire & Rescue. "They wanted to come over here to Portland and learn from our experiences from 1980 along with the changes we've made to allow us to respond to a large-scale natural disaster emergency."  

A 13-year-old is facing charges for allegedly attacking two Gastonia firefighters Tuesday night, police said. The Gastonia Police Department responded to the reported assault of a firefighter around 9 p.m. on Pikes Peak Drive. Gastonia fire officials said one of their firefighters was attacked by a teen who was armed with a knife. The teen then allegedly assaulted a second firefighter. When officers arrived, they saw firefighters were holding the teen, who then assaulted officers who attempted to take her into custody. The 13-year-old was charged with assault and aggravated assault. She is being held at a juvenile detention facility in Concord.