Dallas Interim City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert announced the City of Dallas' first Chief of Public Safety position, and the appointment of Dallas Fire-Rescue Dominique Artis as its Interim. Assistant Chief Justin Ball has been appointed to serve as Interim Fire Chief. "Transitioning from a Deputy City Manager to a Chief of Public Safety on my executive leadership team is in alignment with our new foundational structure and continuing efforts to becoming the safest large city in the country," said Tolbert, adding, "It will also serve to create continuity and a path for succession planning." The Safe Portfolio currently includes Dallas Fire-Rescue, Dallas Police, Court & Detention Services, Office of Emergency Management, the Marshal's Office, and the Office of Integrated Public Safety Solutions.  

The Austin Fire Department was responding to what it called a "hazardous spill" in west Austin Tuesday morning. AFD later said the chemical released in the spill was ferric sulphate, but the agency couldn't identify what it's used for. AFD posted on X at 9:55 a.m. that it was on the scene of the spill in the 1000 block of Forest View Drive. The department asked drivers to avoid the area. In an update at 10:08 a.m., the department said the leak had been stopped and crews were working to clean the spill. The Albert H. Ullrich Water Treatment Plant is located at 1000 Forest View Drive, but it's not clear if the spill is related to the treatment facility. AFD noted in its post that Austin Water was also on the scene. Austin Water told KXAN that plant operations and water service have not been affected.  

A man was rescued from high water at the bottom of a 60-foot embankment in northeast Dallas on Wednesday morning, officials said. The incident started around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, as heavy rainstorms rolled through North Texas. A 911 caller reported hearing a man yelling for help in the area of 9301 Whistle Stop Place, which is along the Jackson Branch of White Rock Creek in Lake Highlands, according to a Dallas Fire-Rescue news release. Dallas Fire-Rescue crews responded and found that the man had somehow ended up at the bottom of a 50-60-foot embankment on the creek. Crews were able to rescue the man by going over a bridge with harnesses and pulling him up to safety after placing him on a backboard.  

VIDEO: Odessa Fire Rescue (OFR) has been fighting two huge fires in a matter of days. "The apartment fire, the RV's that caught fire, the four RV's, the five vehicles and the storage building, those are a little bit out of the ordinary," says Odessa Fire Rescue Chief Jason Cotton. Many homes have been set ablaze in Odessa lately, but we're not seeing more fires, we're seeing bigger fires. OFR said the battle against the fires is getting a little more difficult. "Our biggest challenge is the size of department we are," Cotton said. "If we have a large fire like the apartment complex, it taxes our resources." Thankfully, no injuries came from either the Fairgreen Apartment fire or the West Odessa RV fire.  

Mike Hersom's three-year-old son is a big fan of monster trucks. Typically, when they get the chance to go see the real thing in person, he jumps at it. That's precisely what Hersom did this past weekend when he bought tickets to the Renegade Monster Truck tour, hosted at Topsham Fairgrounds. "We had gone to the event last year and my son loved it, so obviously we were thinking, let's go again this year," Hersom said. He was hoping for an experience similar to years past, but things took a turn at the end of the show. "It was the last monster truck round they were going to do, so I asked my son, 'Do you want to get a little bit closer?'" That's when Hersom and his son left the grandstand and made their way to an open area near the field, joining a crowd of other people hoping to do the same. Shortly after, all of them ended up seeing more than they bargained for.  

VIDEO: Firefighters with the Columbus Division of Fire will receive a nearly 18% raise between now and October 2025 as part of a new three-year contract. The contract will allow city firefighters to receive retroactive pay, in the amount of a 7.5% increase, dating back to their Nov. 1, 2023 pay period. The second pay raise would be 5% at the start of Nov. 1, 2024, and a 5% increase starting Nov. 1, 2025. A spokesperson with Columbus City Council said the contract will go into effect on Wednesday. The 17.5% pay raise will cost the city $103 million over the next three years. "It's one of the largest pay increases we've received in the last couple decades," said Steven Stein President of Columbus Firefighters Local 167. The fire department is the largest in the state. According to the city, 1,712 members will get the pay raise.  

PHOTOS: The season's first heat wave is already baking the Southwest with triple-digit temperatures as firefighters in Phoenix — America's hottest big city — employ new tactics in hopes of saving more lives in a county that saw 645 heat-related deaths last year. Starting this season, the Phoenix Fire Department is immersing heatstroke victims in ice on the way to area hospitals. The medical technique, known as cold water immersion, is familiar to marathon runners and military service members and has also recently been adopted by Phoenix hospitals as a go-to protocol, said Fire Capt. John Prato. Prato demonstrated the method earlier this week outside the emergency department of Valleywise Health Medical Center in Phoenix, packing ice cubes inside an impermeable blue bag around a medical dummy representing a patient.  

New video has been released by the California Highway Patrol of the pursuit of a stolen Sacramento Fire Department truck from East Sacramento in North Sacramento. At 8:39 p.m. on May 18, reports came in that a Sacramento Fire Battalion Chief's truck had been stolen, according to the Sacramento Police Department. Air resources from the Sacramento Police Department and the California Highway Patrol Valley Division Air Operations allowed police to locate the stolen truck near R and 30th streets. The video shows infrared footage of the stolen vehicle being pursued by at least two police vehicles on the ground in what looks like a residential area. During the chase, ground units deployed spike strips and attempted multiple pit maneuvers to stop the vehicle.