PHOTOS: The Fayette County Sheriff's Office Thursday morning shared photos showing a dramatic fire at the Queen of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Hostyn, Texas. Officials first reported the fire around 7:30 a.m., stating that FM 2436 was completely shut down. They were asking the public to avoid the area so first responders could work. Officials later reported that the initial 911 call came in at 6:30 a.m. for reports of an explosion. The initial cause appears to be a gas leak, but multiple agencies will be investigating to rule out any potential criminal activity. An elderly woman was at the church and was burned. She was taken by Fayette County EMS to Dell-Seton Hospital in Austin. The LaGrange Fire Department, Schulenburg Fire Department, Muldoon Fire Department and Fayetteville Fire Department are assisting.  

VIDEO: An El Paso fire station was vandalized and some firefighters' vehicles were damaged, according to a police report filed in February. The vandalism listed on the Feb. 11 report happened at Fire Station #6 on Firehouse Drive near Montwood High School. The incident was reported as criminal mischief, police stated. The report shows the station's back wall was graffitied and two vehicles were damaged by rocks. "It is very rare that any fire station gets vandalized," said Assistant Fire Chief Gustavo Tavarez. "We have had cases in the past, but it's not very common situation. Most of the time, you know, fire stations are well lit, well protected, and people usually don't vandalize fire stations." According to the report, one of the firefighters stated this is not the first time firefighters have had their vehicles vandalized overnight while on duty.  

PHOTOS: The City of Glenn Heights Fire Department further committed itself to the importance of safety last week by outfitting its fire fighters with new SCBA masks that contain built in thermal cameras. Issued to all fire fighters, the thermal imaging cameras built into the SCBA masks are the latest technology, which offers important hands-free imaging capabilities as fire fighters enter a burning structure. "The mask allows every fire fighter to have their own thermal imaging camera that is built in, thus making it easier to use other tools because it is hands-free, and they are not being hampered by having to hold on to a traditional thermal imaging camera." said Glenn Heights Deputy Fire Chief Nicholas Williams. "This is important because now every firefighter in a building can see the dangerous atmospheres around them and when they are in a search and rescue situation, they can see a victim which cuts down on search time – in the past this has been done by feel."  

When fire broke out at a vacant South Side home early Wednesday morning, they also ignited a bit of fear inside Sam Perales, who owns a business next door. The back side of Perales' fitness center sits adjacent to the area where the fire broke out, on Vincent Street near Palo Alto Road. For a while, he was worried the flames might spread to his business. "Thank God it didn't get—nobody got hurt and our business didn't get hurt," he said, while examining the building several hours later. San Antonio firefighters say they were able to make quick work of putting out the flames. They answered the call around 4 a.m. and found the fire at what was supposed to be a vacant house. "It appeared that somebody started a fire on the outside and it got into the walls and into the attic a little bit," said Battalion Chief Russell Johnson with SAFD.  

During Tuesday's Killeen City Council workshop, council members considered a plan to purchase land at 9132 Trimmier Drive for a new training facility and fire station. Fire Chief James Kubinski detailed in his presentation the essential building location and proposed plan for future use. In his presentation, Kubinski stated that the property will allow the city to "co-locate" Killeen's Fire Station No. 9 and an EOC/Support/Training Complex. "By doing so," Kubinski said, "there will be significant construction savings created by building both projects at the same time." He stated that he had been in meetings with members of the Texas Fire Chiefs Association and fire station contractors to confirm the cost savings of nearly $250,000. Cost for the training complex is $11.9 million and will come from American Rescue Plan Act funding.  

Quintana Island near Freeport remains closed to visitors after an explosion rocked a natural gas plant Wednesday morning. Fortunately, no one was injured and all of the employees at the plant are accounted for. Although the beach has been evacuated as a precaution, there is no shelter in place or evacuation measures in place for nearby residents. This happened at about 11:40 a.m. at the Freeport LNG plant in Quintana, which is about 10 minutes away from Freeport. What exactly caused the explosion is unknown, but the incident has since been contained and an investigation is underway. Surfside residents who live nearby said they heard and felt the explosion. "We were in our home. We felt the ground shake and it was like rolling thunder. That's what it sounded like. My husband flew out the door and said 'there's an explosion over at the LNG,'" said Maribel Hill.  

VIDEOS: Three young teens were arrested Wednesday evening for the ""suspicious" fires that destroyed three historic buildings in Morrow over the weekend. A 15-year-old boy and two 14-year-old boys were taken into custody at their Clayton County home. All three were charged with arson, burglary, criminal interference with government property, criminal damage to property, and criminal trespass. Morrow Interim Police Chief David Snively said vandals have previously targeted Morrow's historic downtown, known as "The District." "This is a case solved by old-fashioned police work and close community partnerships" said Chief Snively. "After confirming the fire was arson, investigators from the Morrow Police Department, Morrow Fire Department, and our state and federal partners painstakingly walked the community to meet with witnesses and review digital evidence; those efforts ultimately led to the arrest of these three offenders."  

A Lowcountry firefighter's initiative and construction skills have led her to create a new tool that could save lives. In 2021, the Burton Fire District responded to a 35% increase in motor vehicle collisions causing injury, and a 175% increase (4 to 11) in the number of trapped occupants that required rescue. So Brittany came up with her own. She had some help from her husband, a welding instructor at Battery Creek High School to create the metal brace. But she welded the entire apparatus herself. The tool she made helps to lock the hydraulic in place and allow quicker access to patients. "It allows us to gain access to the patient because when you are pinned with the dash rolled down on your legs there is no way to pull you out," said Brittany. "We have to get the dash off of you to pull you out and start medical procedures on you."  

VIDEO/PHOTOS: A historical fire engine used in rescue efforts during the 1972 Black Hills Flood visited the Journey Museum on Wednesday. Engine 6 is an eight cylinder Detroit diesel with a manual transmission and a 500 gallon tank. During the night of June 8-9, 1972, Shift 1 — consisting of firefighters Brassfield, Tish, McGinnis, Nordstrom and Houska — manned the 1971 American LaFrance. While in operation, Engine 6 was housed at the fire department's Central Station at 610 Main Street. The engine has changed hands a few times. Division Chief of Fire Operations Brian Povandra currently owns it. Tessa Jaeger, spokesperson for the Rapid City Fire Department, said records from 1972 make it difficult to find the first names of the firefighters. According to a RCFD press release, Engine 6 played a key role in the rescue efforts during the first night of the 1972 flood. It spent most of its time that night in the area of West Boulevard and West Omaha Street.  

Members of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department were caught in the line of fire during what they described as a deadly drive-by shooting that happened Tuesday afternoon on the Westside. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said two people are in custody after a man in a wheelchair was found shot and killed in a driveway off Barracuda Road. No arrests have been announced by JSO. While a rescue crew was responding to an unrelated medical call, bullets started flying, putting them and the entire community in danger. JFRD spokesman Captain Eric Prosswimmer said the crew was dodging bullets from the shooting just inches away, but no one was hit. He described JFRD running into the house where they were responding and Army crawling to dodge the bullets hitting the screen door.  

According to Hawaii County officials, a tourism helicopter reportedly crashed in a lava field near South Point on Wednesday. K&S Helicopters who operates Paradise Helicopters said the incident happened at about 5:29 p.m. while their aircraft, a Bell 407, was operating a tour. Preliminary information said that five passengers and one crew member were onboard. Officials claimed a 50-year-old male pilot and an 18-year-old female were in serious condition. Four passengers were reported to be ambulatory. Initial reports said the pilot was potentially trapped. The Hawaii Fire Department stated that ground units were unable to access the crash site which was located a mile from the nearest roadway. A chopper was then sent to the scene to extricate three ambulatory patients from the crash site and take them to ground medic units.