The City of Kodiak Fire Department responded to a fire at a commercial building on Mill Bay Road on Sept. 16. No injuries were reported. According to a press release from the department, the initial call was made at about 7:50 p.m., saying "black smoke" was coming out the garage door of a metal building. Firefighters were on the scene within minutes of the report and requested support from the Bayside Fire Department, just north of city limits. The Kodiak Police Department also assisted to block off the road and redirect traffic. Crews were on the scene until 9:45 p.m. Steel McNeil, a deputy fire chief with the city, said in a phone call the building is still standing, but there was some damage to the metal structure and interior. The building is owned by Highmark Marine Fabrication, a marine repair and industrial supplies company in Kodiak.  

A luxury yacht carrying nearly 1,000 rounds of ammunition and fireworks caught fire shortly before capsizing in the Marina del Rey harbor on Wednesday evening. Two people were on board the 100-foot yacht when the fire ignited, but both were able to get off safely. The U.S. Coast Guard continued environmental cleanup efforts Thursday morning as the yacht bobbed on its side, testing air quality and remediating water contamination from fuel spillage. At around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, firefighters rushed to the docks at Basin A, where the boat, named "The Admiral," was heavily involved in flames, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Crews tried to fight the fire both by ground and by water, but it proved difficult to contain.  

Senator Michelle Hinchey announced that two of her bills to improve emergency care and support EMS providers statewide have been signed into law, including legislation creating three new reimbursement sources for EMS (S8486C) and expanding the ability of motor vehicle ambulance services to administer life-saving blood transfusions (S6226A). Previously, EMS was only reimbursed for transporting patients to hospital ERs. Senator Hinchey's bill, S8486C, expands this to include reimbursement for on-scene treatment, transport to approved healthcare facilities like urgent care and mental health clinics, and telemedicine consultations. This change, effective October 1, 2024, comes on the heels of a rally led by Hinchey, EMS, and Fire leaders urging for the signing of this bill. A second Hinchey bill, S6226A, allows ambulances to carry and transfuse blood during all emergency transports, not just between hospitals.  

A respiratory virus that sometimes paralyzes children is spreading across the U.S., raising concerns about another possible rise in polio-like illnesses. Wastewater samples have detected a significant escalation in an enterovirus called D68, which, in rare cases, has been linked to acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. The illness affects the nervous system and causes severe weakness in the arms and legs. This most often occurs in young children. "We are detecting EV-D68 nucleic acids in wastewater across the country now, and the levels are increasing," said Alexandria Boehm, program director of WastewaterSCAN, a nonprofit monitoring network and a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University. That's the first clue to suggest that the nation might see an increase in AFM this year, said Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and author of "Crisis Averted: The Hidden Science of Fighting Outbreaks."