VIDEO: A firefighter was hospitalized after a driver blew through a freeway blockade and crashed into a Ventura County fire engine early Sunday in Simi Valley, authorities said.

The crash happened shortly after 2:30 a.m. on the 118 Freeway and Tapo Canyon Road, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP officers and firefighters were at the location investigating an earlier traffic collision involving a wrong-way driver when the second crash occurred.

Authorities said emergency crews had established a blockade at the scene when the driver of a red Tesla drove through it and struck a Ventura County fire engine and a firefighter.

The firefighter was taken to a hospital. CHP did not release the firefighter’s condition, though the injury was described as major.

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An outside fire spread to multiple structures in Los Angeles’ Westlake neighborhood Saturday afternoon, injuring a firefighter and prompting a large response from the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The fire was reported at 12:58 p.m. near 525 S. Union Ave., according to LAFD. Flames from the outside fire extended into a two-story apartment building, a single-family home and a recreational vehicle, officials said.

Video from the scene showed towering flames and thick black smoke rising from an area filled with debris, with an RV and nearby structures immediately surrounding the fire.

One person was rescued from a structure and evaluated at the scene. An LAFD firefighter suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital.

Additional resources were called to the scene as crews worked to contain the flames. The fire was knocked down at 1:42 p.m., 44 minutes after the initial 911 call. About 60 firefighters remained at the scene afterward for overhaul operations.

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VIDEO: Fire crews from all over the state made their way to Springfield on Friday for a unique training.

The focus wasn’t necessarily on how to stay safe when running into a blazing building; it was all about self-defense. Crews took part in a jiu-jitsu course designed for first responders.

Now, when emergency crews get sent to mental health situations without a police escort, they’ll have the tools they need to protect not only themselves, but others as well.

“We’re hoping that everybody is safer, because there has been problems in the community where there’s excessive force being used,” said Mark Commean of Gracie Humaita Jiu-jitsu. “And it’s not because people are malicious, it’s because they just don’t know. What I’m hoping to do, I’m hoping to educate our community of first responders.”

Studies have shown this type of training was effective more than 99 percent of the time, and it caused zero injuries during the period the study was conducted.

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PHOTOS: A plume of thick, black smoke rose from a fire at a plastics plant on the south side of South Haven for hours Friday, the massive fire also resulted in a citywide power outage that lasted most of the day.

All workers evacuated safely and no one was hurt, South Haven Area Emergency Services said.

The fire broke out around 3:45 p.m. at East Jordan Plastics on Stieve Drive off Blue Star Highway. Photos from SHAES show firefighters dumping water on bright orange flames leaping from the building in front of a huge plume of smoke.

About 2 million gallons of water were used to extinguish the fire, with SHAES Executive Director and Fire Chief Brandon Hinz saying that no other buildings or businesses were impacted by the fire.

“We were able to contain it just to the building and just to the fire load on the outside of the building,” he said.

A spokesperson for the agency said there were tens of thousands of pallets of plastic waste on site, which the plant converted into containers.

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PHOTOS: Eight Seattle firefighters hurt while fighting a house fire Thursday morning are back on the job, while their colleagues plead with city leaders to avoid potential cuts to the department’s budget.

The firefighters suffered minor injuries after an awning fell on them on Sand Point Way NE near Matthews Beach, and a 57-year-old man inside the home remained at Harborview Medical Center in stable condition as of Thursday afternoon.

Officials confirmed the blaze first sparked outside, but investigators are still looking into what exactly caused it. A man living across the street who reported the fire before 3 a.m. told KOMO News this was a tragedy for the neighborhood.

“This is something that’s not in the norm for us. It’s scary, and it really shows how dangerous the job of a firefighter can be,” SFD spokesperson Kaila Lafferty explained, adding the firefighters were following protocol and were connecting a hose line to a hydrant when an awning or carport collapsed on top of them.

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VIDEO: Electric bikes have become a way of transportation for some students and community members, as their popularity has led to concerns about the number of crashes first responders are being called to.

“We’re, you know, probably once a week at least we’re running on somebody that’s been either hit or had an injury on an E-bike for sure,” said Tim Griffin with the Carmel Fire Department.

Griffin said he isn’t against E-bikes, but wants parents to know that more and more kids are getting hurt.

“The issue is when we’re putting a young rider especially on one, you have to know what you’re putting them on, right? They can go up to excess speeds of 30, 40 miles an hour, and it’s the acceleration that they can do,” said Griffin.

“We’re seeing it in intersections where a child or somebody that’s inexperienced is coming up to that intersection much faster than the cars are thinking. So, it’s also obviously always on the drivers too, but we just want parents and individuals that ride E-bikes just to have an understanding for their safety.”

The department is working with Carmel-Clay schools to reduce the risks of injuries.

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PHOTOS: More than 160 new and used golf carts were damaged in a fire Thursday that sent black smoke billowing into the air in Brandywine, Maryland.

Prince George’s County Fire and EMS units responded to the 15200 block of Crain Highway around 6:30 a.m. after flames broke out at a commercial golf cart repair business. Nearly 60 firefighters battled the flames.

The fire extended to an additional vehicle and trailer on the property before crews brought it under control.

Officials said some of the golf carts that were damaged or destroyed were gas-powered while others were electric. The fire spread from one vehicle to another fueled by burning rubber, plastics and other materials.

No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The shop, Metro Golf Cart Sales and Rentals, has been in business at the location for more than 30 years. The owner, who did not wish to speak on camera, shared on social media that they hope to be back up and running soon.

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Five homes in East Newark were destroyed or badly damaged in a morning fire along President Street.

Multiple neighbors told News 12 New Jersey that the fire started when a motorcycle exploded while being repaired inside of a garage. Witnesses say the man working on the motorbike suffered serious burns before taken away by ambulance.

People evacuated their homes along President Street at around 11:15 a.m. as the fire grew in size. Residents in this section on East Newark live in row homes. They are three story structures with a family on each floor, making it possible that as many as 15 families will be touched by this.

News 12 spoke with one man who lives next door to the home where the fire started. Ricky Zhao heard that initial explosion. He heard people yelling for help and quickly got out of his home and out onto the street.

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PHOTOS: A piece of original artwork honoring firefighters who died in the Sept. 11 attacks now has a permanent home at Ashland Fire Station 1.

The Ashland Firefighters Local 1269 said the union and Ashland Fire & Rescue received the original painting “A Prayer for My Brother” from renowned artist and former Ashland firefighter William S. Phillips. The union said Phillips donated the artwork to Ashland Fire & Rescue.

Local 1269 called the painting “a powerful tribute to the courage and sacrifice of the firefighters who gave their lives on September 11, 2001, and to the brotherhood that continues to connect firefighters across generations.” The artwork is now on permanent display in the lobby of Fire Station 1, the union said.

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A Pasadena Independent School District school bus caught fire while the football team was returning from a game on Tuesday evening. The Queens Intermediate School football team’s bus experienced a mechanical issue near Winkler Drive, just northwest of Hobby Airport.

According to the school district, a coach driving the bus from their football game smelled something burning and immediately started the evacuation process. Five coaches were able to get all the student athletes safely off the bus and were moved away from danger.

At some point, the bus went up in flames.

The students were taken from the scene by a METRO bus and the coaches stayed with them until every student was safely reconnected with their family.

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VIDEO/PHOTOS: A vacant house exploded early Wednesday morning on Cleveland’s East Side, according to the Cleveland Division of Fire.

The explosion happened at approximately 4:49 a.m. near East 160th Street, north of Miles Avenue, Cleveland Fire said in a post on X at 6:18 a.m.

Firefighters responded to the scene and the fire was later brought under control. No injuries were reported.

“The house had collapsed down. It’s what we call a pancake collapse, which is just the roof had fallen down. The walls were blown out, the roof had fallen down, but there was a considerable amount of fire here,” said Cleveland Fire Lt. Mike Norman in an interview with 3News’ David Greenberg.

The cause of the explosion remains under investigation, according to Cleveland Fire.

Cleveland Fire says that the loss is estimated at $200,000. In addition, a neighboring home also sustained exterior damage.

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Wildfire smoke is linked to greater cardiopulmonary and cancer health risks than other fine particulate pollution. Two large U.S. studies indicate that the source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) may influence its health effects, with wildfire related PM2.5 showing greater toxicity per unit of exposure than pollution from other sources.

The findings raise clinically relevant concerns as wildfire smoke reaches communities well beyond traditionally fire prone regions. The first study examined long term exposure and survival among 414,016 adults aged 65 years and older with lung cancer. Researchers combined residential information from the SEER Medicare database with estimates of wildfire related and non-wildfire PM2.5 exposure.

Both exposure types were associated with increased mortality following lung cancer diagnosis. However, equivalent increases in wildfire related PM2.5 were associated with substantially greater toxicity. Although wildfire smoke accounted for approximately 4% of total PM2.5, it contributed an estimated 17% of mortality associated with total PM2.5 exposure.

Hundreds of deaths annually were estimated to be attributable to wildfire related PM2.5. More smoky days and longer periods of exposure were also associated with poorer survival, suggesting that environmental exposure could warrant consideration in cancer care and survivorship planning.

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VIDEO: Four first responders were injured Monday night after they were reportedly struck by a vehicle while responding to crashes on Interstate 26 in Kingsport.

According to the Kingsport Fire Department (KFD), its members were on I-26 westbound near Exit 6 at around 10 p.m. Monday, working a crash when a secondary crash took place behind the first incident. The KFD said its members, along with personnel from Sullivan County EMS, immediately went to the second crash to provide first aid.

“While emergency personnel were loading a patient into an ambulance, a vehicle traveling westbound struck three Kingsport firefighters and one Sullivan County EMS EMT, injuring all four emergency responders,” a news release from the KFD states.

The department said all four first responders were taken to a hospital for treatment, and two have since been released. The other two remained hospitalized as of Tuesday morning with what the fire department called non-life-threatening injuries.

“We are extremely thankful that the injuries sustained by our firefighters and our partner from Sullivan County EMS were not more serious,” the KFD states. “Our thoughts and prayers remain with all four responders, their families, and everyone involved in this incident as they recover.”

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Two Fly Precision crew members died after their helicopter crashed while fighting the Dome Fire in Yosemite, officials said Monday.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the Eurocopter AS32 crashed around 2:55 p.m. Sunday during firefighter operations. The two men killed in the crash were identified by Fly Precision as Greg King and Ryan Cutter.

“It is with unimaginable sadness and broken hearts that we share the loss of two beloved members of our team,” Fly Precision said in a social media post. “We are devastated by this loss and are struggling to find the words. We ask for privacy and compassion for their families and our team as we grieve this tremendous loss. Please keep their families, loved ones, and our entire team in your thoughts and prayers during this incredibly difficult time.”

The Super Puma helicopter was using a water bucket to help suppress the fire when it went down southeast of Ostrander Lake, said Benjamin Cossel, a spokesperson with the Federal Complex Incident Management Team overseeing the firefighting response.

The Dome Fire has burned at least 3,047 acres as of 9:18 p.m. Sunday. The number of reported acres burned has slowed recently, with the last update being 3,016 acres at 1:47 p.m. Sunday.

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VIDEO: Fire departments across the country are dealing with lower volunteer numbers, but the Brockport Volunteer Fire District says it’s seeing the exact opposite.

The Brockport Fire District was dealing with staffing issues up until about three years ago. Then it began turning things around, going from 17 interior firefighters in 2023 to 44 now.

One of the reasons for the gain is a state-funded bunkhouse. College students interested in a career in firefighting can apply to live in the bunkhouse in exchange for 20 hours of duty time each week.

The bunk-in program began during the 2025-26 school year. There’s one student living in the bunkhouse right now, and the district received another two applicants in the last month.

The district also began a social media campaign to recruit younger members back in 2024.

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A fire blasted through an apartment building in Chicago’s Roseland neighborhood Sunday night.

Firefighters were called around 11 p.m. to the building at 113th Street and Perry Avenue. Flames were seen shooting through the roof.

Firefighters entered the building and used flashlights to survey the area.

No injuries or displacements were reported. Officials said the cause of the fire appeared to be accidental, but remained under investigation early Monday.

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Fire Rescue crews on Sunday worked to put out a sailboat fire in Fort Lauderdale. According to Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue, at around 6 a.m., crews received several 911 calls about a boat that was on fire near the 100 block of Hendricks Isle.

Once at the scene, crews found a 60-foot catamaran sailboat that was on fire. Fire rescue said that the fire quickly spread around the boat, and it took them about 30 minutes to control the fire and another hour to fully knock it down.

No one was on board the vessel. “You know, the adrenaline is always pumping on the way to a job like this,” said Jonathan LaPadula, a captain at Sea Tow. LaPadula told NBC6 he saw the flames roaring from the boat as he arrived.

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VIDEO: The New Haven Fire Department made a historic find last week as a waterproof container from the 1800s was just discovered fully intact. The item, a cistern, is what the fire department used before fire hydrants were around.

“We get a phone call from city engineer who said, ‘Chief you got to come down to City Hall, we found an old fire cistern,’” New Haven Fire Chief Daniel Coughlin said.

The cistern — more than 160 years old — was found still intact. The 19,000-gallon water tank was sitting underground from when firefighters used cisterns before fire hydrants were in use.

“There had to have been some calculations as to, ‘Hey, how much water do we need or potentially need.’ These guys were ahead of their time,” Chief Coughlin said.

Chief Coughlin said this tank was on the annual report for 1862 — the same year the New Haven Fire Department was founded.

“Probably used by the volunteers before we had an official fire department in 1862,” Chief Coughlin said. “The fire department would take the old steam engine, pull up with the horses and pump out of it to get the water.”

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A fast-moving, four-alarm fire raced through a building in Rockport on Sunday, destroying the Rockport House of Pizza and leaving several people displaced.

Crews responding to a reported structure fire on Broadway Avenue around 10 a.m. found heavy smoke and flames coming from the restaurant. Two families living in the apartments next to the pizza shop had to evacuate.

Jennis Heal says he was home with his wife and daughter when the fire broke out. “Fortunately enough, the people in the pizza shop, where the fire originated from, yelled all around to the building,” Heal said.

“So we heard that on the third floor. We realized smoke was starting to come up our area, and we got out as fast as we could. We took whatever we could take. We have two cats — we lost two cats in the fire — but overall we are healthy. We are happy we are alive.”

Fire officials say crews from several neighboring communities, including Gloucester, Manchester, and Essex assisted at the scene. The fire was brought under control in about three hours. There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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A fire on a rooftop deck Thursday afternoon sent flames and heavy smoke into the air above a building on the Bowery, forcing restaurant workers to evacuate and causing damage to at least one business.

Citizen App video showed flames and thick smoke coming from the top of the building between Bleecker and East 2nd streets. Workers inside first-floor restaurants said they quickly evacuated after learning about the fire. One worker described the chaotic scene as firefighters arrived.

“It was crazy. I was not expecting that. When I got out, I saw all the firefighters come in here and everything happened so fast,” the worker said. The fire broke out on a deck on the roof around noon and took about an hour for crews to bring under control. Authorities said propane tanks were recovered from the scene.

Alejandro Arce, a restaurant worker, said he believed the fire may have started with a propane tank. “For what I know, everything started with a propane tank. And I don’t know how it spread, but there was a wooden deck on the rooftop, and that’s why we got a fire on our rooftop,” he said.

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