A wheelchair bound woman died in an early morning house fire. Around 4:20 a.m., the Amarillo Fire Department responded to a fire at 1616 NW 15th Ave. The first unit on scene noticed a front bedroom was on fire. They also found 72-year-old Betty Moore dead on the front lawn. The fire department said two neighbors were getting ready for work when they smelled smoke and went to the house to help. They opened the bedroom window and found Moore, who was wheelchair bound, and pulled her out. But she was already dead. Firefighters made entry and found the fire was contained to the bedroom. The fire was under control in less than 15 minutes. APD's Crime Scene Unit was called to the scene. The Fire Marshal's Office determined the fire was "unintentional," but could not determine the exact cause.  

VIDEO: A Houston firefighter is facing a long road to recovery after a roof that he was on collapsed as he fought a fire over the weekend. Around 10:30 a.m. on February 4th, Houston Fire Ladder 26 responded to an apartment complex fire on Telephone Road. Among those working the fire was Firefighter Donovan Apiag, 26. Senior Captain Joseph Flores says he was on the roof with Apiag, ventilating the building, a method which requires sawing holes in the roof to help relieve heat and smoke. They were preparing to leave the roof because conditions became too dangerous when part of it collapsed under Apiag, causing him to fall through. Video taken from the scene shows Flores jumping into action. "To look down in that hole," Flores remembered, "It was just a sea of red. That's all… it was just a sea of red and just super-hot."  

Equipment that volunteer firefighters in Central Texas used over the summer was pushed to the max throughout the extreme drought conditions and numerous wildfires. One Central Texas volunteer firefighter department has received some much-needed funding to get new equipment. Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation presented the Wortham Volunteer Fire Department with a grant going toward new bunker gear this week. "All what we had is getting old falling apart," Wortham Volunteer Fire Department Chief Kelly Craig said. "The huge thing now in the fire service on protective gear is after a fire being able to wash it." The protective equipment must be washed after every major call to get rid of cancer-causing agents on the bunkers. The wear and tear can cost volunteer departments more than $3,600 to replace its gear.  

Young County Commissioners debated the purchase of a new bulldozer to help with fire suppression after an active wildfire season that was driven by a drought in 2021 and most of 2022. Texas A&M Forest Service forecast a "normal to below normal 2023 dormant fire season" for most of the state because of "the reduced amount of grass on the landscape this year." County fire crews had a scare on Jan. 11 when a hay truck caught fire on State Highway 16 and burned more than 50 acres in high wind conditions. The commissioners pushed the vote about whether to purchase a used Komatsu bulldozer for approximately $215,220 to its Feb. 13 meeting. "I honestly think we need one before fire season starts," Precinct 1 Commissioner Stacy Creswell said. "If the fire department needs our help, we need to support them."  

Dozens of Fort Hood and Central Texas community first responders joined forces Feb. 6-8 for an active-shooter joint training exercise here. The exercise brought together local municipal first-responders along with Fort Hood Directorate of Emergency Services soldiers and civilians who partnered for a three-day training event inside an on-post building formerly known as Duncan Elementary School. The Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training was centered on "Active Attack Integrated Response" training and was used to test the combined ability of the Fort Hood community in response to an active-shooter incident. Members of Fort Hood's DES police and fire departments, 64th Military Police Company, 178th Military Police Company and 411th Military Police Company along with Killeen's police and fire departments, Temple's police department, and Harker Heights' police department participated in the three-day exercise.  

A fire in Harker Heights forced three people out of their home and killed a family pet, according to the Harker Heights Fire Department. The Department stated that they responded to a possible structure fire at 406 Tomahawk Drive on Wednesday, Feb. 8. One Engine, one Quint, two ALS Medic units and a Battalion Chief reportedly responded to the fire, along with an engine from the Killeen Fire Department. Harker Heights FD said that they found heavy smoke and fire coming from the garage area of the residence when they arrived. Though the fire was reportedly extinguished within around 15 minutes, the department stated that the garage was heavily damaged. According to the department, the fire was contained to the garage area of the home, and none of the occupants of the residence were home at the time of the fire.  

Nine cars were destroyed after a massive fire ripped through a carport in Hollywood overnight. The fire was reported around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday on Laurel Canyon near Hollywood Boulevard, authorities said. Firefighters rushed to the scene to extinguish the inferno. Video shows the flames engulfing the structure and vehicles, though they were confined to the carport and did not spread. They did, however, reach the power lines above the carport. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire unknown. This comes after another carport fire that broke out less than a mile away on Fountain Avenue in West Hollywood Tuesday night. Three cars were burned in that incident. It's unclear if the two are related in any way.  

VIDEO: The Pikeville Fire Department received its newest addition to the fire and rescue fleet this week, as firefighters work to learn the new tech of a $1.2 million investment in community safety. Tower 1, the new fire and rescue truck with a 100-foot ladder, is a custom-built truck which pushes out around 2,000 gallons of water per minute. According to Lt. Nicholas Fleming, PIO for the department, the truck is built to the city's needs and will be the perfect addition to the station. "We want to keep our ISO rating as low as possible, so it is an investment in that as well as the ability for us to do the job that we're required to do," he said. "So, if we need to get to someone- if we need to extinguish a fire- this truck is essential for that." The truck, built from the ground up by Sutphen Corporation, was delivered this week to the Appalachian Wireless Arena.  

PHOTOS: At one point you're mowing your lawn and the next you're unconscious, on the ground, suffering a heart attack. That's what happened to 63-year-old Jack Fong. But due to Germantown Fire Department's implementation of Neuroprotective CPR, Fong survived his March 2022 heart attack with little to no neurological issues. Fong awoke in the hospital where doctors discovered he had an artery block. "I didn't realize they had specialized equipment that can do (CPR) now," Fong said at a media event Wednesday inside Germantown Fire Station #4. "They prop you up and have these compression things... and they (started) it in 2020. If (my heart attack) was anytime before that, I would've been done." Dr. Joe Holley, Tennessee EMS medical director, said Germantown Fire Department is the first in the state to use Neuroprotective CPR — which consists of a mechanical compression machine, an elevation machine for the head and a breathing tube.  

VIDEO: As Fred lifted his pants leg he winced in pain. His jeans, damp from the freshly fallen snow, stuck to the open scab that stretched from his knee to his ankle, peeling away bits of skin as he revealed his wound. "It's amazing how fast it spreads. My leg actually looks like I got eaten by a zombie," he said. Fred knew this was the result of something he took. He struggles with drug addiction and turns to opioids to make life on the streets of Lowell a little easier to bear. He had no idea what caused the weeping and bloody wound on his shin until he went to the hospital. There he learned the substance he took was laced with Xylazine, a sedative used by veterinarians to sedate large animals and livestock. In humans, the drug can cause abscesses, ulcers, and prolonged periods of sedation. "From what I've seen and what I experienced myself, it's definitely a totally different drug," he said.