VIDEOS/PHOTOS: A contractor had quite the unexpected happen to him while on the job – becoming trapped on top of the Frankfort Grainery tower with a "severely broken arm." Frankfort fire and police were called just after 2:30 p.m. Thursday after the contractor, who was servicing an antenna, fell 15 feet and broke his arm. After the injury, he wasn't able to get back to the ground level on his own, according to officials. When emergency crews arrived, they made contact with the contractor by phone. The contractor told fire officials about his injury and how he wasn't able to get down due to his "severely fractured arm." Firefighters then began to ascend using a ladder to reach the contractor. Once they were able to get to the injured man, they warmed him with blankets and hot packs before treating his injuries, according to officials.  

An existing federal tax deduction for health care expenses can now be used by more first responders nationwide, including in Illinois, and may help to reduce taxable earnings by up to $3,000. The Illinois Public Pension Fund Association (IPPFA) encourages retired public safety officers to take advantage of the Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Safety Retirees Act, or the "HELPS" Retiree Act. This act allows retired law enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency services personnel across the United States to lower their taxable pension income by excluding premiums for health insurance. These retirees may reduce their taxable earnings by up to $3,000 for medical insurance premiums paid during a calendar year.  

Edwardsville firefighter/paramedic Mark Vann recently completed his first year with the department and he is being featured as a Difference Maker in that community. Vann was appointed to the Edwardsville Fire Department in 2023. "He brought a great deal of fire service and emergency medical service experience to the job," Edwardsville Fire Chief James Whiteford said. Vann previously had volunteered with the Rosewood Heights and Bethalto fire departments. Along with that, he had been employed by Alton Memorial EMS. He also had been a member of the Edwardsville Fire Department Explorer Post. Vann said he enjoys training alongside and the knowledge he gains from the other Edwardsville firefighters. "I really enjoy working in a busy and fast-paced department," he said.  

Two mayday calls were issued Thursday night as two firefighters fell through a hole on the second floor of a Goshen home engulfed in flames. Their fellow firefighters executed a swift rescue, bringing them to safety, miraculously unharmed. Flames and smoke billowed from the residence at 5 Middle St. around 9 p.m. Thursday night. According to Goshen Fire Chief Peter Easop, the fire originated in the living room and quickly spread upstairs, reaching three alarms. Approximately 80 firefighters from eight departments across Orange County responded to the scene. After the two firefighters were rescued, Chief Easop ordered the remaining firefighters to evacuate the building and focus on an exterior attack. It took more than an hour to extinguish the fire, with the Chief Easop declaring the house a total loss.  

VIDEO: Serving San Francisco for decades, a "last of its kind" fire truck has been restored and is being returned to the city by the bay. Rising to its former glory, the 1939 apparatus featured in the World's Fair spent decades serving the city of San Francisco. The truck was one of only two ever built and specially designed to navigate the Bay Area's steep hills and very tall buildings. After serving the city for decades, the truck was retired and bought by a private entity. Through a series of donations, the city of Plymouth, with the help of Folsom inmates, worked over 18,000 hours to restore the truck to showroom quality. "It makes me happy to see that it's going to be taken care of," said Jon Colburn, a member of the Ahrens-Fox Restoration Society and former mayor of Plymouth.  

To soften the potential blow of tax season, first responder retirees in Illinois now have an increased opportunity to reduce their taxable earnings with a health care deduction. While this is a nationwide opportunity for retired law enforcement, firefighter and emergency services workers, the Illinois Public Pension Fund Association is making a special effort to spread the news to those who could benefit in Illinois. "We're just trying to get as many people as we can to know about it and take advantage of it," Dan Ryan, the nonprofit's project coordinator, said. Ryan told The Center Square these changes could put extra money in the pockets of at least 35,000 retirees in Illinois who pay medical insurance premiums. "They can exclude up to $3,000 in their pension income for money that they used to pay for health insurance," Ryan said.  

PHOTOS: It was a terrifying moment for two people and a child after their car left the road and crashed into a ditch filled with water. The Flagler County Sheriff's Office (FCSO) said on Friday, January 5, deputies responded to a crash with injuries involving two people and a small child. Body camera video captures the moment deputies arrived at the harrowing scene. When they arrived, deputies said they found a dazed and bleeding man outside of the car. When deputies approached the vehicle, they found a bleeding woman and a little girl, still strapped in her car seat, trapped inside the vehicle. "I see a lot of blood on her," one deputy said when they found the injured woman. Deputies shattered the window to get to the woman and child, the little girl's head can be seen briefly in the video.  

PHOTOS: An unprecedented number of billion-dollar disasters — 28 in total — struck the U.S. in 2023, as the remarkably warm year wrapped up with a record-warm December. "For millions of Americans impacted by a seemingly endless onslaught of weather and climate disasters, 2023 has hit a new record for many extremes," said NOAA Chief Scientist Sarah Kapnick. "Record warm U.S. temperatures in December, a record-setting number of U.S. billion-dollar disasters in 2023 and potentially the warmest year on record for the planet are just the latest examples of the extremes we now face that will continue to worsen due to climate change." The average annual temperature across the contiguous U.S. was 54.4 degrees F — 2.4 degrees above the 20th-century average — ranking as the nation's fifth-warmest year in NOAA's 129-year climate record.