VIDEO/PHOTOS: A new set of murals is giving the El Paso Fire Department’s downtown station a fresh look — and a public tribute to the firefighters who serve the city.

El Paso muralist Babak Tavakoli painted five murals on 30-foot walls at the fire station on South Florence Street. Tavakoli said the department asked that its special teams be represented throughout the artwork.

“They wanted all of their special teams represented in this mural and various parts. So that’s really what it is, is like each team and what they do and kind of in an artistic way, put it on the wall,” Tavakoli said. “I want to make sure that whenever you’re looking at these scenes, you know, oh, you’re in El Paso.”

Tavakoli said he worked local elements into the murals, including “local wildlife, local scenery, landmarks,” aiming for details that “are not too cliche but definitely clue you in. This is El Paso.”

He also said the project was meant to honor firefighters and their work.

KFOX-TV FOX 14 El Paso View Full Story

The post Muralist paints five 30-foot murals honoring firefighters at Texas fire station appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

A case of arson at a Monroe County cannabis shop is now the subject of a police investigation after two suspects crashed a vehicle through the front door of a business and poured gasoline inside.

Video from Pure Cannabis Outlet, located at 15311 S. Dixie Highway, showed the suspects backed a Jeep into the business, then stole items from inside the business.

The shop is offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the individuals.

At 1:04 a.m. on May 10, the Monroe County Central Dispatch received a report of a vehicle that crashed into the building.

The caller told the dispatch center that the crash appeared intentional. Witnesses also told police that at least two unknown subjects fled the store, running southbound before getting into a dark-colored vehicle that was waiting for them.

Fire alarms soon alerted the dispatch of the blaze building out of the building.

At the business, a maroon-colored Jeep Cherokee was found partially inside the store and suppression sprinklers were extinguishing the fire.

Police say the Jeep was stolen out of Detroit. Evidence was gathered from the escape route.

WJBK-TV FOX 2 Detroit View Full Story

WJBK-TV FOX 2 Detroit

The post VIDEOS: Arson suspect catches fire after targeting Michigan dispensary appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEOS: Helena is home to one of only three airport firefighting training facilities in the western United States, drawing crews from across the country and Canada to learn life-saving skills.

The Rocky Mountain Emergency Services Training Center in Helena has been training airport firefighters since 1996. Firefighters from Pullman, Washington and Victoria, Canada recently came together at the facility to take advantage of its classroom instruction, fire trucks, and hands-on drills.

The center features a specialized aircraft fire trainer that lets firefighters experience what the inside of a burning plane may be like. For exterior fire training, crews use a large spill trainer that burns about 100 gallons of propane every 30 seconds, simulating how a real aircraft fire may behave.

Training Center Coordinator Mike Anderson said the facility stands out among its peers. “This is one of the best engineered and built training facilities in the U.S.,” Anderson said. Crews spent the day training to extinguish engine, wheel brake, and large spill fires, as well as interior fires, which place firefighters in a tight space with near-zero visibility.

KXLF-TV CBS 4 Butte View Full Story

The post Airport firefighting training center in Montana draws crews from across North America appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

A large overnight fire tore through part of a building in Cypress Hills, leaving behind burned bikes, scooters and heavy damage across the property.

FDNY says the fire broke out just after 1:20 a.m. Wednesday at 503 Ridgewood Ave., near Lincoln and Autumn avenues. Firefighters say flames were reported on the first floor of the three-story building.

Video from the Citizen app shows huge flames shooting from the back of the property as sirens echoed through the neighborhood.

FDNY says 21 units and 79 fire and EMS personnel responded to the scene. Hazmat crews were also called in because of the presence of lithium-ion batteries. The fire was brought under control around 2:13 a.m.

Officials say no injuries were reported. A full vacate order has now been posted on the property. Neighbor Jose Mena said the situation could have turned deadly.

“I came out and by the time I came out, the fire was spreading already,” Mena said. “One of the guys who lives there, he was trying to wake everybody up. This could’ve been worse — a lot worse. People were sleeping.”

News 12 Brooklyn View Full Story

The post VIDEO: Fire rips through part of New York building; lithium-ion batteries found on scene appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: A fast-moving fire forced dozens of residents from their homes at a North Attleboro condominium complex Monday afternoon.

North Attleboro Fire Chief Chris Coleman told 12 News a 911 call came in around 2 p.m. reporting a fire in an air conditioning unit at the Hawthorne Village Condominiums on Juniper Road.

Heavy flames and thick smoke were seen pouring from the top of the 34-unit building, which sustained significant damage and a collapsed roof.

At 3:30 p.m., officials upgraded the fire to seven alarms, prompting departments from surrounding communities, including some from as far as Norwood, to respond. The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency also assisted.

According to Coleman, mutual aid was needed not only for additional manpower, but also because crews faced challenges with the water supply.

He said their primary concerns were ensuring all residents evacuated safely and preventing the fire from spreading to an adjacent 20-unit building.

WPRI-TV CBS/MyNetworkTV 12 Providence View Full Story

The post VIDEO: Dozens displaced by fire at Massachusetts condo complex appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO: New research could soon change emergency medicine and make it easier for first responders to stop bleeding anywhere in the world. Researchers in Pittsburgh and Cleveland have developed the first-ever freeze dried artificial platelets.

“One of the most frustrating things are the patients that we don’t ever get a chance to take care of. The patients who don’t have access to the lifesaving resources that we have in the hospital,” said Matthew Neal, M.D., a trauma surgeon and professor at University of Pittsburgh.

Blood platelets help stop the bleeding when people get injured but in traumatic situations, the body doesn’t always have enough or they cannot work fast enough. Currently donated blood platelets can only be given to a patient inside a hospital setting or within close proximity.

But one little vial could soon change that and field medicine as first responders know it. Neal and Anirban Sen Gupta, Ph.D., a professor of biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University, spent nearly 10 years researching blood platelets and how to make artificial platelets.

The result is a small vial of powder — freeze-dried artificial platelets. One vial is the equivalent of one donated unit of platelets that would be given to a bleeding patient. They said the powder only has to be combined with 10 mL of sterile water which first responders already carry.

WTAJ-TV CBS 10 Altoona View Full Story

The post Researchers create freeze-dried artificial platelets for emergency care appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO: The screams. The bodies lying across the freeway. The people trying to run away from a toxic cloud before collapsing to the ground. Fifty years later, retired Houston firefighters say they still remember every detail from one of the deadliest disasters in Houston history. “It looked like a war zone,” retired Houston firefighter Brad Rilay said.

On May 11, 1976, a tanker carrying more than 7,000 gallons of anhydrous ammonia plunged off the 610 West Loop ramp and crashed onto the Southwest Freeway below. The impact ripped open the tanker, sending a massive cloud of toxic ammonia into the air during the middle of the morning rush.

Seven people died. Dozens more were injured. And the disaster changed the Houston Fire Department forever. Rilay was only 20 years old when he responded to the scene. That morning had started like any other shift.

Rilay said he and a district chief had just finished another call farther down the Southwest Freeway when dispatchers warned crews about a tanker crash involving ammonia near the West Loop interchange. As they drove toward the area, traffic completely locked up.

Rilay said he ended up driving against traffic on the freeway shoulder just to reach the scene. When they arrived, he said the destruction was overwhelming.

“Man, it looked like a war zone, you know, the parts of the truck scattered everywhere, and the truck driver’s body was lying in the middle of the road,” Rilay said.

The crash scene stretched across the freeway. Pieces of the tanker and destroyed vehicles were scattered throughout the interchange. Victims were already dying from exposure to the fumes.

Rilay remembers immediately finding several people on the ground struggling to breathe. “We immediately came across three people, one man who had already died, and there were two who were struggling to breathe,” he said.

At the time, Houston firefighters had little training on hazardous material incidents and almost no specialized equipment to handle a chemical release that large. Firefighters grabbed an air pack from the chief’s car and tried helping victims breathe through the mask.

“But I don’t know how much good that did,” Rilay said quietly. What stayed with him most was the helplessness. “You know, have a brown mucus coming out of their mouth and their nose, and the feeling of not being able to help them,” Rilay said.

KPRC-TV NBC 2 Houston View Full Story

The post 50 years later: Ammonia disaster still haunts Texas firefighters, reshaped hazmat response appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

A firefighter was hurt Sunday morning while responding to a quick-moving fire at an office supply store in downtown Los Angeles.

The blaze was reported at about 4:40 a.m. near the intersection of Hope Street and Pico Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Upon arrival, firefighters were met with heavy smoke and flames coming from the roof of the building. Due to the fire, a shelter-in-place was issued for surrounding residents and businesses.

No one was inside the building at the time of the fire, LAFD said. One firefighter reported minor injuries and was treated for those wounds. He is expected to be OK. Arson investigators are investigating what could have caused the fire.

KNBC-TV NBC 4 Los Angeles View Full Story

The post VIDEOS: Quick-moving fire rips through downtown Los Angeles office supply store appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: Alan “Gus” Gustafson was on a mission.

The energetic 80-year-old strode through Kalispell’s Public Safety Building on a damp April morning, looking for the 2,200-pound bell that once hung from the Fire Department’s hose tower, ready to summon firefighters in an emergency.

The retired firefighter’s first stop was the first floor offices of the Kalispell Police Department. When that proved fruitless, he headed across the lobby, where he said the bell was once put on display, to question the staff at Kalispell Municipal Court. They couldn’t remember a bell either.

A few minutes and one flight of stairs later, Gustafson was in Fire Chief Jay Hagen’s office, asking if he knew of the bell’s whereabouts. Hagan shook his head. He did not.

“OK, I’m going to find it,” Gustafson replied. Hagen agreed that he would. “When he sets his mind to it, it’s going to happen,” Hagen said from behind his desk.

Gustafson, who still serves as the department’s historian, more than 20 years into his retirement, had a personal connection to the bell (he later located it around the corner at the Northwest Montana History Museum). Firefighters were still ringing it when he joined the department in 1971, just not for its original purpose.

“After I started, the bell was used to call curfew,” he said. “Every night at a certain time we would ring the bell.” The bell isn’t the only piece of the department’s history that Gustafson enjoys a personal connection with. The crown jewel of its historical collection, a 1925 American LaFrance fire engine, was still in service when he first donned turnout gear.

Daily Inter Lake View Full Story

The post Keeper of the flame: Retired firefighter preserves history at a Montana fire department appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: An apartment fire at a student housing complex in East Lansing has left nearly 50 people without homes. On May 9, around 8:20 p.m., a building at The Village at Chandler Crossings caught fire and quickly spread across the entire roof.

When 6 news arrived on scene, over one hundred people were standing in the parking lot watching firefighters work to put out the flames. Will Dryer, the project manager for the Choice Group, says the fire started from a grill on the third floor.

“Received a phone call from our fire alarm system at about 8:24. Fire department responded probably about 10-15 minutes later,” he says. “I showed up for the fire department along with our maintenance tech or our maintenance supervisor to clear out the building, get crews on site.”

While firefighters worked to clear flames and smoke, staff set up a table to help displaced residents find temporary housing.

“I have a crew over by building 8 here at the village making sure that these kids have a home to go to tonight, or hotels, whatever the situation might be, or what we need to do, just trying to resolve anybody that needs a house, their apartment to get into. We’re here for them. We’ll be here all night until we find everybody an apartment.”

WLNS-TV CBS 6 Lansing View Full Story

The post VIDEOS: Apartment fire in Michigan leaves nearly 50 students displaced appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

Two firefighters were injured — one critically — after a fire truck crashed in Muskingum County on Thursday. It happened near 910 Dresden-Adamsville Road on State Route 208.

One firefighter was flown by helicopter to Grant Medical Center in Columbus in critical condition. The second firefighter was rushed to Genesis Hospital in Zanesville and was said to be stable.

The crash involved a lengthy extraction to get the driver out, a spokesman for Muskingum County said. He added that the fire truck dropped off the edge of the road while coming down a hill, and when the driver tried to correct, the tanker “flipped over before striking a tree and ending up back on its wheels.”

WSYX-TV ABC Columbus View Full Story

The post PHOTOS: 2 firefighters injured, 1 critically, when fire truck crashes in Ohio appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO/PHOTOS: What some might see as rust, dust and worn out machinery, Lincoln County’s own Dylan McCool sees as opportunity.

With a YouTube following of more than 640,000 subscribers, McCool has built a national reputation for rescuing forgotten cars, trucks and what he jokingly calls “plenty of junk.” But to him, every abandoned machine carries a story worth saving.

Through nearly 400 videos, McCool has documented the process of finding vehicles tucked away in fields, barns and overgrown lots, then methodically bringing them back to life.

Now, that passion has found its way to Fayetteville. Through a partnership with the Fayetteville-Lincoln County Museum and the Fayetteville Fire Department, McCool has taken on one of the community’s most recognizable historic artifacts: a 1953 Mack fire truck affectionately known as “Maude.”

For decades, Maude served the citizens of Fayetteville, responding to emergencies from the old fire station on what many locals still remember as Fire Hall Hill.

Photographs from the 1950s show the truck sitting proudly in front of the station alongside the firefighters who operated it which you can see in McCool’s YouTube video.

After being retired from service in the mid-1990s, the truck sat largely untouched. In recent years, it rested behind the museum in a chain-link enclosure, weathered, faded and uncertain if it would ever run again.

Elk Valley Times – Metered Site View Full Story

The post Historic fire truck ‘Maude’ roars back to life in Tennessee appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: The occupants of a home that caught fire in South Haven were evacuated, South Haven Area Emergency Services (SHAES) says.

SHAES was dispatched to a structure fire at 849 Phillips Street around 8:45 a.m. Thursday. When firefighters arrived at the scene, they found the home fully engulfed in flames.

Neighbors of the home said they heard a series of explosions. Michigan Gas Utilities was needed to turn off the gas supply to the home. All of the six occupants of the home were evacuated safely, SHAES said.

One person was taken to the hospital for burns and smoke inhalation. SHAES said mutual aid was requested from the Bangor Community and Covert Township fire departments. The Hartford and Watervliet fire departments was also dispatched to the scene later.

Firefighters remained on the scene until after 12:00 p.m., SHAES said. The nearby St. Paul Lutheran Church and School was placed in a soft lockdown, which has since been lifted, as first responders addressed the structure fire.

WZZM-TV ABC 13 Grand Rapids View Full Story

The post VIDEO: First responders evacuate residents from house fire in Michigan, 1 person taken to hospital appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: A former firehouse in Aurora, Illinois hides a remarkable slice of history behind its brick walls. Built in 1894, this Victorian-era station still stands along North Broadway, now serving a very different purpose.

Inside, visitors step into more than a century of firefighting history, where vintage engines, detailed artifacts, and interactive exhibits bring the past to life. One moment you’re looking at hand-powered equipment, the next you’re exploring how early crews responded to emergencies long before modern tools existed.

The building itself adds to the experience, with its restored architectural details offering a glimpse into the city’s past. It’s an unexpectedly engaging stop that blends local heritage with hands-on discovery, making it just as appealing for curious adults as it is for younger visitors.

For 86 consecutive years, this building was not a museum or a landmark. It was a fully operational fire station, housing the Aurora Fire Department and sending crews out to protect the city from 1894 all the way through 1980.

That kind of longevity in a single structure is genuinely rare, and it gives the building a lived-in energy that no amount of decorating could manufacture.

Generations of Aurora firefighters reported to duty here, trained within these walls, and answered calls from this very address at 53 N Broadway, Aurora, IL 60505.

The rhythms of shift work, the clang of alarm bells, and the rumble of engines rolling out through those garage doors were part of daily life in this neighborhood for nearly a century.

Ever After in the Woods View Full Story

The post Peek Inside Illinois’ Historic Fire Museum From 1894 appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

Fort Worth firefighters launched a rescue Wednesday night after a man became trapped atop a construction crane just south of downtown.

Crews were called around 7:30 p.m. to the 1300 block of South Main Street, directly across from JPS Hospital, where the crane operator could be seen stranded high above the ground.

Fire units arrived and began setting up a technical rescue operation, using specialized equipment to reach the worker.

Fort Worth Fire Capt. Jason Bryant told CBS News Texas that one patient was involved – the crane operator.

According to Bryant, two rescuers were sent up the crane to assess and treat the man. Based on his condition, they decided to perform a controlled lowering of the crane’s counterweight side.

Two rescue teams were positioned on the crane, and another was staged on top of a nearby parking garage, Bryant said. Crews then rotated the crane so the patient only needed to be lowered to the top of the garage, rather than all the way to the ground.

The cause of the medical issue or entrapment wasn’t immediately known.

KTVT-TV CBS 11 Fort Worth View Full Story

The post VIDEO: Man trapped atop construction crane triggers dramatic rescue in Texas appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO: A major investment in water safety is now in service for the Virginia Beach Fire Department as officials prepare for a busy summer boating season.

The department recently added a new, state-of-the-art fire boat that will be stationed at Rudee Inlet.

Officials say the vessel will significantly reduce response times to emergencies on the water and improve life-saving capabilities.

Fire Capt. Alexander Wazlak III said the department has been seeking an upgrade to its water response fleet for years. Until now, crews had been using a 1974 patrol boat provided by the U.S. Coast Guard.

“We’ve been operating on that for the past 15 years or so,” Wazlak said.

The new vessel, a 38-foot Metal Shark Defiant, is valued at more than $1.5 million. Wazlak noted that rising costs mean the same boat could now approach $2 million.

The upgrade brings a significant boost in speed. The new boat can reach up to 46 knots, or about 53 mph, compared with the previous vessel’s top speed of about 34 mph.

WVEC-TV ABC 13 Hampton View Full Story

The post New fire boat could help save lives in Virginia appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO: The Springfield Fire Department collaborated with students from Putnam Vocational Technical Academy on Wednesday for a training demonstration.

The students constructed essential props for firefighter training, including window escape props and structures to aid crews trapped in burning homes. These props were built in just three weeks by a small group of students.

The students utilized wood, screws and sheet metal to build multiple structures for the department. Firefighters showcased the critical nature of this carpentry work during the demonstration.

Springfield Fire Commissioner B.J. Calvi emphasized the importance of the student-built equipment for enhancing safety. “It’s important to utilize these props to enhance firefighter safety and survivability. We’ve been using them pretty heavily and wanted to say thank you and show them how we’re using the equipment,” Calvi said.

The demonstration event was attended by various officials, including Mayor Domenic Sarno, Superintendent of Springfield Schools, Putnam staff, and members of the fire department. During the event, the group also highlighted Putnam alumni who now work at the fire department.

Carpentry students at Putnam Vocational Technical Academy have a history of building for the city, having previously completed projects for the Springfield Police Department and elementary schools.

WWLP-TV NBC/CW+ 22 Springfield View Full Story

The post Student-built props enhance firefighter safety in one Massachusetts city appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: Los Angeles Fire Department crews responded to a fire burning inside an access portal beneath the 110 Freeway in Wilmington on the evening of May 4, 2026, triggering a freeway closure and a multi-agency response that stretched into the following days.

The incident was reported at approximately 8:50 p.m., with crews arriving to find fire burning inside a confined space beneath the freeway. Given the complexity of the location, Incident Command prioritized firefighter safety from the outset, calling in Heavy Rescue and USAR companies to assist with access and suppression.

A Caltrans highway engineer was also brought to the scene to support tactical planning. LAFD’s firefighting robot, RS3, was staged at the scene, though conditions inside the access portal prevented its deployment.

While firefighters removed a significant amount of debris from the access portal, burning construction timber and other unmovable materials required sustained suppression efforts. Incident Command prepared for an extended operation, rotating in fresh crews from across the city to maintain an unbroken firefighting effort and give relief to firefighters working in the demanding conditions.

As part of that extended operational coordination, Unified Command was established with the California Highway Patrol and Caltrans. Unified Command declared a knockdown of all fire in the access portal at 3:27 p.m. on May 5. Crews worked through the night utilizing vacuum trucks to remove water that accumulated during firefighting operations.

Unified Command oversaw a comprehensive search of the confined space and a structural stability assessment of the freeway. Drones, robots, hazardous materials teams, and Urban Search and Rescue teams were all employed as part of that effort.

Los Angeles Fire Department View Full Story

The post VIDEO: Fire in access portal beneath California freeway prompts extended closure appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

PHOTOS: Six buildings caught fire in Lowell, Massachusetts, after embers from one home were blown to others amid high winds on Tuesday, the city’s fire chief said. Two firefighters were taken to the hospital.

They were being treated for for smoke inhalation and heat exhaustion, Lowell Fire Chief Phil Charron said. Firefighters from around the region came to help, from Burlington, Massachusetts, to Salem, New Hampshire.

The fire was first reported at a Bridge Street home about 2:51 p.m., and crews who arrived saw heavy flames. And the strong wind “carried fire up over the three-story building and two adjacent streets, Wachusett Street and also May Street,” Charron said, prompting some of the first crews to split up and battle new fires in Lowell’s Centralville neighborhood.

Charron called it “a very bad day, a dry day with the wind moving up the hill.” But he also noted that the wind could have carried more burning embers onto more homes.

“We’re very lucky,” Charron said. “It could have been 12, 15 buildings.” “I didn’t even have time to think, and I just ran out the back door, jumped over the fence,” said Ritaj Fadil, a resident of one of the homes.

“It’s a lot to process, because everything we own is in there,” said Shantell Nganga. Carmen Ortiz left the Bridge Street home where she has lived for 15 years minutes before the flames started.

WBTS-CD NBC 10 Boston View Full Story

The post VIDEOS: Heavy house fire in Massachusetts spreads to 5 other buildings appeared first on Daily Dispatch.

VIDEO: This week, Aurora Fire Rescue launched a new program that places naloxone kits directly in the hands of overdose survivors and their loved ones.

It’s a move department officials say could mean the difference between life and death in a city where opioid overdoses have become an almost daily emergency.

The Narcan Leave-Behind Program equips every fire truck with an initial supply of five naloxone kits, funded through a state grant that provided the department with 950 kits in total.

Narcan is the brand name of naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal drug. First responders will distribute the kits to individuals who have experienced or witnessed an opioid-related overdose, along with instructions and QR codes linking to treatment resources and guidance on how to use the medication.

Dr. Eric Hill, medical director for Aurora Fire Rescue, said the program was born out of a sobering reality. In 2025, the department administered naloxone more than 500 times and responded to more than 300 suspected opioid-related overdoses.

“When you look at the, you know, the number one cause of death, certainly the preventable causes of death that we have really in our city, it’s really tied to the opioid epidemic,” Hill said. “Every single month, almost every single day, we run on these types of calls and we administer Narcan.”

KUSA-TV NBC 9 Denver View Full Story

The post Firefighters in one Colorado city now leaving naloxone kits behind after overdose calls appeared first on Daily Dispatch.