Harker Heights Firefighter and EMT Cole Hagen Simmons, of West, Texas, was killed in an early-morning wreck involving three vehicles and a driver who claimed her visibility was impaired by the rising sun, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. DPS Troopers responded to the scene of the wreck on SH 9 at about 7:30 a.m. An investigation revealed the driver of a 2021 Toyota RAV SUV, a 24-year-old woman from Harker Heights, was travelling east on SH 9. DPS said the woman claimed her visibility was impaired by the rising sun, resulting in her crossing into the westbound lane and colliding with a westbound 2014 Chevrolet sedan driven by the 23-year-old Simmons. The impact caused Simmons to lose control of the Chevrolet sedan and side-skid into oncoming traffic, DPS said.  

VIDEO: People who dial 911 from a cell phone in San Antonio may video chat with an emergency dispatcher. To connect, callers must only click on the link the dispatcher sends, sometimes seconds after they pick up the phone. This 'GoodSAM' technology allows trained paramedics to coach bystanders through life-saving procedures while first responders are en route. "It's a wild success," SAFD spokesperson Joe Arrington said. "This is the future of 9-1-1, of medicine, and of pre-hospital care." San Antonio's fire department was among the first agencies in the U.S. to use the technology, which experts developed in the United Kingdom. The special computer program allows dispatchers, who are all trained paramedics, to assess situations before sending an emergency response unit.  

Southeast Texas officials are revealing more information about the Tuesday morning house fire that claimed the lives of a Hardin County couple. Firefighters did everything they could, but the flames were too intense when they got there. Silsbee fire chief Chief Robin Jones said they're still working to determine what caused the fire, but so far the investigation has revealed the home did not have smoke detectors. In a tragic scene, a married couple could not escape an early morning fire just north of Silsbee. The Silsbee fire chief confirmed 59-year-old Billy Wayne Rose and 62-year-old Carolyn Rose died in that fire. Jones said firefighters got the call just before 4 a.m. and when they arrived, most of the house was engulfed in flames. Another house on the property caught fire but it's vacant so no one was injured.  

The city of Austin and the Austin EMS Association kicked off labor negotiations Nov. 30. The meeting was the first of several in a series of talks to renegotiate three public safety labor contracts with emergency medical, police and fire departments. Talks with the fire and police departments are set to start in 2022. The city's current agreements with all three services will each expire in September 2022. "We look forward to working cooperatively with each of the fire, police and EMS associations to reach agreements that benefit both Austin residents and our public safety employees," said Deven Desai, chief labor relations officer for the city of Austin, in a press release. "While this will be a challenging time to negotiate from both a fiscal and COVID-19 standpoint, we remain committed to transparency and fairness."  

Firefighters responded to the scene of a major fire at an apartment complex on the northwest side. The call came in at 5:41 a.m. on Tuesday for the Sugar Hill Apartments, located at 8303 Greatview Street, near Callaghan Road and east of I-10. By 6:15 a.m., most of the fire was contained. People were evacuated from the apartments while 30 units fought the flames. Some fire trucks could be seen gathering at a shopping complex down the street from the fire. The complex was blocked off while firefighters worked to keep the fire from spreading and continue their investigation. The damage to some of the units is visible with the roof missing on several areas. According to the San Antonio Fire Department, six units on the third floor were impacted. A total of 18 people were evacuated and the fire was contained to the third floor.  

Three people and two animals were rescued from a house fire in southwest Amarillo on Friday night, according to Amarillo Fire officials. Amarillo Fire Department officials say the department responded to a structure fire in the 4600 block of Cherokee Trail at about 11:27 p.m. When units arrived, they found a single-story house with an attached garage fully involved with fire. The Randall County Sheriff's Office was at the scene and had rescued two occupants evacuating the house. Fire crews started extinguishing the fire and continued searching for people inside. One person was found inside and rescued by firefighters, then immediately treated by fire and AMS crews. Firefighters continued searching the home and were able to also get a cat and a dog out of the house.  

VIDEO:An explosion blew through the lower levels of a home in the Cypress Hills section of Brooklyn, injuring six and leaving dozens homeless. The blast, which was caught on camera, collapsed the first floor of the Vermont Street home into the cellar just after midnight. Six residents were treated for remarkably minor injuries, two of them taken to Brookdale University Hospital. The other four were treated at the scene. Some 54 residents of adjoining buildings were left temporarily homeless as firefighters battled the flames. "It was extending to the exposures 2 and 4 of the adjoining buildings, and also it was wrapping around," said FDNY Deputy Chief Patrick Sherian. "We had a building on Jamaica Avenue. It was running up the rear of that building, so we had to do searches, evacuate."  

Hall County plans to spend up to $300,000 for rebranding the fire department to Hall County Fire and Rescue. In a video announcing the changes, Hall County Fire Chief Chris Armstrong said the impetus to transition from Hall County Fire Services was a $10,000 pay incentive for paramedics adopted in March. Previously, paramedics received a 7.5% pay bump over the firefighter salary. "That was all part of us trying to change our culture and really heighten the importance of the EMS part of what we do," Armstrong said. "… Hall County Fire Services has been the name of the department, but, in my opinion, didn't really reflect all the other services that we provided." County spokeswoman Katie Crumley said $138,000 of the budgeted funds would go toward uniforms while the rest is for branding on the vehicles. While going through this rebranding process, Armstrong said he wanted to "dig a little deeper into our mission statement and really get to the root cause of why we do what we do."  

PHOTO: A 1954 fire truck that was used by the Chippewa Falls Fire Department until it was sold in 1987 is returning to the city, and when the public gets a chance to see it, the antique vehicle will look shiny new. The fire truck has been restored and will be on display at the new Chippewa Area History Center that is under construction along Bridgewater Avenue. The building is slated to open next spring or early summer. Jack Running, Township Fire Department chief, is in the group of area firefighters who acquired the aging truck in 2010 and spent the past decade restoring it. "We found it sitting in a field in Durand," Running said. The non-profit group, a chapter of the Society for the Preservation & Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus in America (SPAAMFAA), purchased the machine for $1,500 and began the process of restoring it.  

Millions of financial support for North Carolina firefighters fighting cancers will be available at the start of 2022 as part of the newly approved state budget. Studies show firefighters are 9% more likely to get cancer compared to everyone else, and 14% more likely to die from cancer. With the use of $15 million, the goal is to save firefighters' lives by helping to cover the cost of the cancer treatments that are necessary. Families could expect a $25,000 lump-sum payment for each diagnosis, along with $12,000 for out-of-pocket medical expenses, and 75% of a firefighter's pay for disability if they are too sick to work. "We deserve it, we deserve to have something to help us," Drowning Creek volunteer firefighter Melissa Stevenson said.  

VIDEO: People who dial 911 from a cell phone in San Antonio may video chat with an emergency dispatcher. To connect, callers must only click on the link the dispatcher sends, sometimes seconds after they pick up the phone. This 'GoodSAM' technology allows trained paramedics to coach bystanders through life-saving procedures while first responders are en route. "It's a wild success," SAFD spokesperson Joe Arrington said. "This is the future of 9-1-1, of medicine, and of pre-hospital care." San Antonio's fire department was among the first agencies in the U.S. to use the technology, which experts developed in the United Kingdom. The special computer program allows dispatchers, who are all trained paramedics, to assess situations before sending an emergency response unit.