VIDEO: A North Texas fire department has partnered with a video game maker to create something that could help save lives and property. It's a first-of-its-kind simulator that helps firefighters do their jobs better. A battalion of Allen firefighters entered a burning home. They work as a team, communicating over radios to coordinate the best approach to put out intense flames. "Currently, I'm outside the fire," said John Harris, an Allen firefighter. "I just got air in my bottle." Harris is one of the very few firefighters anywhere training on a multi-player video simulator with a battalion chief in another room calling the shots. "We're the only ones that I know of who have developed a full virtual environment," said Harris. Allen Fire Chief Jonathan Boyd developed this virtual training center called Aries with the help of a video game maker.  

One firefighter was injured as crews battled a large fire at a home being built on Houston's westside Thursday morning. The fire was reported around 6:30 a.m. in the 6100 block of Crab Orchard Road in the Tanglewood area, just south of the Houston Country Club. ABC13 first spotted the smoke rising on Houston Transtar cameras. It was visible from several miles away. By the time SkyEye flew over the scene around 7 a.m., the home was fully engulfed in flames. SkyEye spotted a dumpster and small excavator in the front yard. Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña told ABC13 the home has been under construction for three years and was just about six weeks away from being finished. The fire started somewhere in the back of the home and appeared very large because the house had a lot of ventilation and lumber, Peña said.  

The city council has created a new "Safe Haven" for babies being surrendered in Lubbock. In a unanimous vote Tuesday, the Lubbock City Council authorized Safe Haven Baby Boxes, Inc. to install a device at a Lubbock fire station, with Lubbock Fire Chief Shaun Fogerson saying the program allows those who decide to surrender their baby to do so "safely and anonymously." Protected under the "Baby Moses Law," parents can safely surrender their baby without fear of legal repercussions if they do not feel capable of caring for the child. Parents can do so at a hospital, free-standing emergency center, EMS station, and now — after the 88th Texas Legislature — fire and police stations. The same legislation authorized the use of baby boxes and similar devices in the state.  

The San Angelo Police Department and San Angelo Fire Department recently joined forces to begin their Active Attack Integrated Response training as a continuation of the state-mandated ALERRT training. Through this training officers, firefighters, EMS and telecommunications worked through a course designed to improve their integration during a shooter or active attack event, a social media post by SAPD stated. This course is designed to increase the "effectiveness, coordination and resource integration" between the groups and improve the survivability and safety of victims in this situation. SAPD shared local law enforcement learned key medical skills based on tactical emergency care guidelines. This can be used to increase the survivability of victims where they are injured.  

Two paramedics in Massachusetts avoided a catastrophe while transporting a patient in an ambulance on Interstate 95 during Tuesday's nor'easter. Cataldo Ambulance Service paramedic Tim Crosbie was driving the Atlantic Ambulance Service vehicle on I-95 south in Peabody shortly before 1 p.m. when a car that was traveling on the northbound side of the highway came across the median and rolled over across multiple lanes on the southbound side. "I just happened to glance over and I actually could see the car coming off the road into our lanes of traffic," said Cataldo Ambulance Service paramedic Timothy Wareham, who was treating the patient in the back of the ambulance.  

VIDEO: A North Texas fire department has partnered with a video game maker to create something that could help save lives and property. It's a first-of-its-kind simulator that helps firefighters do their jobs better. A battalion of Allen firefighters entered a burning home. They work as a team, communicating over radios to coordinate the best approach to put out intense flames. "Currently, I'm outside the fire," said John Harris, an Allen firefighter. "I just got air in my bottle." Harris is one of the very few firefighters anywhere training on a multi-player video simulator with a battalion chief in another room calling the shots. "We're the only ones that I know of who have developed a full virtual environment," said Harris. Allen Fire Chief Jonathan Boyd developed this virtual training center called Aries with the help of a video game maker.  

VIDEO/PHOTOS: The mass shooting that erupted at the end of the Chiefs' Super Bowl celebration in Kansas City, Missouri, appeared to stem from a dispute, according to police. The shooting, in which one person was killed and 22 were hurt, unfolded outside Union Station as Chiefs fans were leaving a parade and rally on Wednesday. More than 800 law enforcement officers were on duty in the area, as 1 million paradegoers were expected to attend the celebration, according to Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas. Three suspects -- including two juveniles -- have been detained, according to Kansas City police. Charges have not been filed yet, police said. Several guns were recovered, police said. The victims' ages range from 8 years old to 47 years old, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said Thursday.  

VIDEO: Zack Lessner loves being a Detroit firefighter, but on January 13, 2023, his world was upended after he was hit by a car on a fire scene. "I ended up having a traumatic brain injury. And I… had two bulged discs," He revealed. But after the physical wounds healed, he struggled with PTSD and depression. "It was like just being a zombie. That was the best way to put it. And, and you didn't see the sun. You didn't see flowers. It was just, it was horrible," Lessner said. Lessner says he began to experience suicidal ideation. "I had a plan," he said. "There was no question about it." Zack had been on leave for almost a year, taking Xanax every day to function. Then in December, he decided to try a new approach — psychedelic integration at the Drake Center for Transformative Healing in Franklin.  

VIDEO: An antique fire truck from 1943 that once served the community of Follansbee has found itself back in Follansbee once again. The vehicle was purchased by Follansbee Fire Chief Larry Rea for his own collection. The truck is a rare vehicle that was built during World War II when vehicle production was extremely limited. It was in use by the department until the late 1970s. The plan is to restore it for parades and a showcase for the community. "It is a 1943 Seagrave," Rea said. "It was ordered new for the Follansbee Fire Department. This truck was actually originally housed before our fire department, as it exists today, was built in 1957." The truck's connection to the community is why Rea wanted to purchase and preserve it so it can be appreciated now.