A plane contracted to assist in battling the wildfires in Polk County crashed into Lake Livingston Tuesday evening. The Texas A&M Forest Service said that a Fire Boss single engine air tanker/scooper went down in the lake around 5 p.m. The pilot was one of several in the area fighting fires in the Corrigan area. The Forest Service says that the pilot was quickly rescued from the lake and taken to shore and was initially treated at the scene. He was then taken to the hospital. He is expected to survive, but his condition is unknown. "When we get aircraft involved in fighting these fires, it's a very hazardous situation for the pilots, for many reasons," Ryan Burns with Texas A&M Forest Service said. "So, if you ever see aircraft involved in fighting fire or hear of a flight restriction, be sure to mind that. Especially with personal drone flights. We encourage folks to keep those grounded and keep the air free for our resources."  

A man accused of threatening two Houston Fire Department paramedics with a gun has been charged. Kingsley Tian, 30, is charged with aggravated assault of a public servant and retaliation, according to Houston police. Two firefighters in an ambulance were coming back from a call just before 6 p.m. on Monday, stopped at a traffic light in the 3200 block of Wilcrest, when Tian came to a stop next to them, HPD said. That's when he reportedly pointed a gun at them, police said. No shots were fired. Officials said the firefighters were able to get a photo of Tian's license plate before he drove away. When officers went to Tian's residence nearby to arrest him, they located a gun, HPD said. The retaliation charge was added because Tian made threatening remarks as he was being arrested, according to police.  

VIDEO: San Angelo Firefighters were dispatched to a structure fire call around 4 a.m. Tuesday morning at the corner of N. Van Burn St. and Martin St. just one block west of Austin Elementary School just days before classes begin. The home was engulfed in flames by the time first responders arrived. The fire destroyed the home on the corner and spread to the residence next door. Firefighters brought in an excavator and tore down the structure as the sun rose Tuesday. It is unknown at this time if anyone was in the residence or the cause of the blaze. Firefighters on the scene say the Red Cross had been called in to help families involved.  

Firefighters are working on a forest fire in Trinity County on Tuesday. A fire at Fountain Creek has reignited after it burned on Monday and is near FM 355 near the old Fountain Creek deer lease, said the Trinity County Sheriff's Office. This fire is close to Groveton and is not getting out of control, said Trinity County Sheriff Woody Wallace. Officials are trying to stay ahead of the fire. He also said the smoke does not appear too bad. Possible fire caused by lightning spreading quickly in Groveton There is also another forest fire near the Woodlake area in Polk County. Trinity firefighters are assisting and trying to make their way to the blaze. The Fountain Creek fire is 90% contained and has burned 480 acres, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service. Authorities said no injuries have been reported and the fires seem to be far away from houses.  

PHOTOS: Multiple agencies responded to a large brush fire in the Elm Mott area on Tuesday afternoon. Elm Mott Volunteer Fire & Rescue posted on social media that they were paged for a grass fire on Shilling Drive. They responded with all available personnel and apparatus. Additional resources were immediately requested from surrounding agencies. When crews arrived, they began immediate structural protection along White Rock Creek. The department was able to protect the residential structures on Shilling Drive, directly East of White Rock Creek, until assistance arrived. Elm Mott VFR says the fire jumped the natural barrier of the creek, and started burning westward on the Meixner Road side of the creek. The Waco Fire Department also posted on Twitter that crews were dispatched to a fire located on 1900 Block of Meixner Road.  

The Wichita Falls Fire Department fought a house fire Sunday night in the 2600 block of Sherman Road. Firefighters reported smoke and fire showing from the home around 10:22 p.m. They first extinguished the fire on the exterior of the home before entering and putting out the fire above a bedroom, according to WFFD officials. A grass fire in the backyard was also put out. Witnesses reportedly told WFFD the fire started as a grass fire in the backyard before it burned the home. Fire department officials said the owners were not home at the time of the fire, and the Red Cross was contacted to help them. No injuries were reported at the scene. WFFD estimates the fire caused about $5,000 in damages to the home and about $500 in damages to contents.  

Two people escaped the burning wreckage of a small plane that crash-landed Tuesday afternoon on the 91 Freeway in Riverside County. The single-engine Piper PA-32 flying to Corona Municipal Airport went down at about midday on the eastbound 91 Freeway in Corona and might have struck at least one vehicle, according to the Corona Fire Department. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire that erupted after the plane crash about 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Two occupants of the single-engine airplane escaped uninjured, City News Service reported, citing the Corona Fire Department. There were no reports of injuries to people on the ground. A pickup at the scene of the crash appeared to have sustained damage to a tail-light.  

A Florence County paramedic and a motorcyclist she was treating at the scene of a crash were killed Tuesday night in a series of events that unfolded in the 2700 block of Pamplico Highway. Paramedic Sara Kinsy Weaver, 32, of Florence, and Cedric Antonio Gregg, 37, also of Florence, died after a vehicle crossed the median at a high rate of speed and hit several first responders who were working at the scene of the initial crash, Coroner Keith von Lutcken said. At least four people, including two law-enforcement officers, were among those who were hit by a car that drove into the crash scene, according to Florence County Emergency Medical Services, which posted about the incident on Facebook. Authorities also have not released any information about the driver of the vehicle that hit the first responders.  

On Tuesday, Aug. 16, Nord will head out on his KTM 890 Adventure R, an on and off-road motorcycle, for a trek across the country – down to Tennessee and North Carolina, then west to Oregon and back. He will follow the TransAmerica Trail, described as "the cross-country adventure ride of a lifetime with mostly off-pavement travel." Reaching Oregon will take about four weeks. Coming home, he'll travel by highways in a week. "I figure I have maybe 10 good years of riding left and now is go time," Nord said. "I want to get out and try some new things while I still can, and adventure riding is one of them." He said he has watched others retire and then have health problems cut short their dreams. When he returns, he plans to teach fire instruction and health and safety training courses in the region and the state.  

PHOTOS: The entrance to Pride Park in Taylor Mill will soon be the home to a special monument honoring Firefighters from three different volunteer departments no longer in existence: Forest Hills, Winston Park and Taylor Mill. Most of the monument is ready. The last thing to go in will be the statue. "At one time, the fire departments were all volunteer, and gradually paid members were added," said Rita Hasler, who is the secretary for the Taylor Mill Volunteer Firefighter Association. "The Taylor Mill Volunteer Firefighter Association was formed to include members of Forest Hills, Winston Park, and Taylor Mill volunteer fire departments. Of course, now we have one fire department, and it is all paid." The yet-unfinished memorial, which Nancy Holian of Erlanger is creating, will have a background of a brick wall, with a special granite memorial for each department of volunteers. Surrounding the memorial will be brick pavers that can be purchased and engraved for a loved one or a group.