The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday expanded its list of risk factors that make people more likely to develop severe illness or die from COVID-19. The update comes as the number of confirmed coronavirus infections rises to record levels in the United States, driven by alarming spikes in Florida, Texas and other states across the South and West.
- PUB DATE: 6/29/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CBS News

PHOTOS: A garden style apartment building on Spa Road partially collapsed on firefighters Thursday afternoon in Annapolis as they were battling a blaze that had enveloped all three floors, city fire officials said. One Anne Arundel County firefighter was injured in the fire, Capt. Aaron Edwards, fire department spokesperson, told The Capital.
- PUB DATE: 6/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Capital Gazette - Metered Site

A McDowell County volunteer firefighter was arrested for murder and arson Thursday after authorities say he set a blaze that led to the death of a fellow firefighter. Robert Lee Beckner, 36, of Iaeger, is charged with first-degree murder and three counts of first-degree arson, according to a criminal complaint filed in McDowell County Magistrate Court.
- PUB DATE: 6/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Bluefield Daily Telegraph

Every year on June 30, the mountain community of Yarnell remembers the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots who perished in 2013's Yarnell Hill Fire. Last year, the annual service drew nearly 150 people to a memorial park in the center of town. But this year's 7th anniversary remembrance is taking place virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- PUB DATE: 6/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Arizona Republic

A senior citizen held at gunpoint an Orange County firefighter who’d entered her home to check on her well-being Thursday morning, before releasing him unharmed, according to Fire Rescue spokeswoman Carrie Proudfit. Though shots were fired at first responders during the incident, no one was injured, Proudfit said, adding that the Orange County Sheriff’s Office is not currently planning to pursue criminal charges.
- PUB DATE: 6/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Orlando Sentinel

A handful of Nashville Firefighters and Emergency Medical Services employees have tested positive for COVID-19. The president of the International Association of Firefighters has some concerns. “The ideal situation wouldn’t be to close a station, if you need to quarantine all personnel from that station, then do it," said Mark Young.
- PUB DATE: 6/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WTVF CBS 5 Nashville

City public safety officials and Mayor Bill Peduto on Wednesday showed off a new “silent” alarm system that alerts only the fire and EMS stations that are being dispatched to the call, rather than blasting the call on a radio for every station and first responder on duty to hear. The $2.8 million, decade-in-the-making alarm system will cut down first responders’ stress levels and streamline services, officials said.
- PUB DATE: 6/25/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Pittsburgh Post Gazette

VIDEO: A man working atop the iconic Fresno State water tower had to be rushed to the hospital today after being overcome with heat, eventually going into cardiac arrest. "The extended work period up on top there, the strenuous work that they were doing with the heat and the high humidity today, it just overcame him," said Battalion Chief Mike Gibson of the Fresno Fire Department.
- PUB DATE: 6/25/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KFSN-TV ABC 30 Fresno

There are continued calls to keep two Baltimore City fire units from closing, the closures are proposed as part of city budget cuts. Firefighters and their families held rallies on Wednesday to voice those calls in public. Firefighters, both active and retired, held rallies outside two fire houses in the city, protesting the proposal to take two engine units out of service permanently, due to city budget cuts.
- PUB DATE: 6/25/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WBAL-TV NBC 11 Baltimore

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its latest forecast of expected U.S. coronavirus deaths, predicting that between 130,000 and 150,000 Americans would die of the novel virus by July 18. The updated forecast put out by the CDC Wednesday consists of a combination of data from over 20 national models, which also predict an increase in fatalities in several states over the next four weeks, including Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Hawaii, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah, which the CDC says will exceed the number of reported deaths of the last month.
- PUB DATE: 6/25/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WITI-TV FOX 6 Milwaukee

The state Natural Resources Board has unanimously approved allowing the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to begin drafting regulations to enforce restrictions on firefighting foam that contains chemicals known as PFAS. Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as PFAS, are chemicals that are found in products ranging from firefighting foam to nonstick cookware.
- PUB DATE: 6/25/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Wisconsin Public Radio

Three Houston Fire Department firefighters were taken to the hospital to be treated for the injuries they received while battling a house fire early Wednesday. The fire was reported around 2 a.m. at a home in the 8900 block of Wynmeadow, not far from Monroe and I-45. When firefighters arrived, the one-story home was already engulfed in flames.
- PUB DATE: 6/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KHOU-TV CBS 11 Houston

For the first time in the history of the Pasadena Fire Department, the entire engine crew rolling out of Station 34 was female. On Tuesday, the all-female crew were under the command of Capt. Tricia Rodriguez. "FIRST all-female crew in history of Pasadena Fire Department riding together on Engine 34," a social media post picturing the four of them said.
- PUB DATE: 6/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KABC-TV ABC 7 Los Angeles

COVID-19 has "brought this nation to its knees," Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday. The country is probably going to spend about $7 trillion "because of one little virus," Redfield said during a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing.
- PUB DATE: 6/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CNN

With the 4th of July right around the corner, many people are gearing up to celebrate. In Roswell, however, the holiday is a painful reminder of the loss of one of their own. Last year, a huge explosion injured 12 firefighters and left one dead as they were preparing for the city’s annual fireworks display.
- PUB DATE: 6/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOB-TV NBC 4 Albuquerque

VIDEO: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) announced a task force Tuesday aimed at cracking down on illegal fireworks after city residents have registered thousands of complaints. “We have concerns about this from all over the city, this is a real problem. It is not just a quality of life problem and noise problem, and it is certainly that … but it can also be dangerous,” the mayor said Tuesday at a press conference.
- PUB DATE: 6/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Hill

VIDEO: Nearly one hundred firefighters from 10 companies and two counties rolled into Specialty Tire in Indiana Monday morning. Indiana Fire Association First Assistant Chief Ron Moreau described the scene: “Lots of heavy black smoke.” The picture from Indiana Fire Association shows the issue from the outside.
- PUB DATE: 6/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KDKA-TV CBS 2 Pittsburgh

With half of US states reporting a rise in new cases, one expert warns of ‘danger signs’ in some parts of the US. After weeks of many Americans failing to heed face mask and social distancing guidelines, health officials in some states are reporting an increase in younger populations testing positive — saying those individuals are often asymptomatic but could be infecting others.
- PUB DATE: 6/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTLA-TV 5 CW Los Angeles

Firefighters face occupational hazards on a daily basis. Now, new research shows they face additional risk just by gearing up. Fabric used for firefighter turnout gear tested positive for the presence of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), according to the study published in Environmental Science and Technology Letters, led by Graham Peaslee, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame.
- PUB DATE: 6/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: University of Notre Dame News

Chicago Fire showcases the intense and dangerous situations which firefighters deal with every day, and the crew wants it to be as realistic as possible. They use some fantastic special effects and pyrotechnics, which as amazing as they look, still isn’t real enough. In addition, this drama goes above and beyond by using real life firefighters in the show.
- PUB DATE: 6/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Showbiz CheatSheet