The Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal (OSFM) announced today the recipients of the 2023 Small Equipment Grant Program. A total of $1.5 million was awarded to 64 fire departments/districts and EMS providers across the state. The program was established to provide grants of up to $26,000 each for the purchase of small firefighting and ambulance equipment. This program is an innovative approach to a problem that has long caused difficulties for fire departments and not-for profit ambulance services in Illinois, particularly those that have hardships in generating the necessary revenue for small equipment. The purpose is to allow eligible applicants the opportunity to purchase small equipment that they may otherwise not be able to purchase. The OSFM received 296 applications, requesting around $4.5 million in funding for this grant period.  

A house was destroyed by fire in Bartlett early Thursday. The fire broke out just after 1 a.m. in a house in the 29-W-200 block of Old Lake Street in Bartlett. Firefighters from the Bartlett Fire Protection District arrived to find the front of the house on fire. They fought the blaze from both inside and outside the house. Fire crews from Streamwood, Hanover Park, Elgin, South Elgin, and West Chicago were also called to the scene. Several pets were rescued from the house. No one was injured. The fire was under control by 1:45 a.m., the fire protection district said. Firefighters remained at the scene afterward to ventilate smoke and fire gases and to salvage and investigate. Photos from the scene showed the front of the house was left charred and burned.  

Fire crews were back out at the scene of a fire overnight almost 24 hours after it first broke out Thursday morning. The fire happened at White Star Cleaners at Montrose and Long. Officials didn't provide any updates about the fire. The massive fire left part of the roof collapsed. It also caused some traffic delays during the Thursday morning commute. At the time, the business wasn't open. No injuries were reported. Still no word on what caused the fire.  

PHOTOS: Firefighters extricated a seriously injured driver from their vehicle and a medical helicopter flew them to the hospital following a crash on Interstate 90 near Huntley. The Huntley Fire Protection District, Hampshire Fire Protection District and Illinois State Police responded around 12:40 p.m. Thursday to Interstate 90 near milepost 42 in Hampshire Township. Illinois State Police said Troop 15 units received a call for a single-vehicle crash in the westbound lanes. It was learned that a vehicle left the roadway to the right and struck a light pole, state police said. The Hampshire Fire Protection District said crews arrived to find the vehicle with heavy damage. The crash was on the off-ramp from Interstate 90 at Route 20.  

Ten people were hospitalized after a Spirit Airlines plane bound for Orlando, Florida, made an emergency landing in Jacksonville due to a fire onboard, according to officials. Spirit Airlines Flight 259 landed at Jacksonville International Airport around 2 p.m. on Wednesday, after the crew reported a battery on fire in an overhead bin. The plane landed without incident and pulled up to the terminal before fire rescue teams went aboard the flight, Jacksonville Fire Rescue Capt. Eric Prosswimmer told reporters. When emergency responders were able to board the plane, they discovered the fire in the overhead compartment had been caused by a battery. The flight crew on the plane had been able to put out the fire, but there was still smoke in the cockpit, according to Prosswimmer.  

PHOTOS/VIDEO: It seemed like the fire engine made by American LaFrance in 1970 was completely finished with its life. After serving a fire department in Greeley, Colorado, it was sold off to a tiny mountain enclave and then again to the Frontier Refinery operation in Cheyenne. When the operation no longer had a need for the aging machine, it was moved to a field outside of town, where it sat for more than a decade. A few years ago, former Wyoming State Fire Marshal Mark Young and the Wyoming Local Assistance State Team, or LAST, started looking for an engine that could be used as a procession vehicle to carry a casket of a fallen firefighter. Young put out word he was looking for an engine, and eventually he found the 1970 American LaFrance.  

VIDEO: The opioid epidemic continues to take a toll across the country and here in Northeast Ohio. Fentanyl has become a top killer. It is now the most commonly used drug involved in overdoses. The powerful synthetic opioid is 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine. Exposure to the drug has become another risk first responders face on the job. Now some senators and congress members are trying a new approach to protect first responders. 19 Investigates recently spoke with Sen. Sherrod Brown (D- OH) from his office in Washington D.C. "This is a serious public health problem that we kind of put aside during the pandemic. It's got to be front and center when it comes to mental health and addiction and death," Sen. Brown said. Sen. Brown is working across the aisle to protect first responders from exposure to fentanyl.  

PHOTOS: A volunteer firefighter and 9/11 hero is taking a very long hike for a very worthy cause. Rob Weisberg, of Nesconset, New York, is setting off to walk the Appalachian Trail on March 11, 2023, he told Fox News Digital in an interview. The 2,200-mile stretch of trail from Georgia to Maine will take Weisberg some six months to complete, he said. Weisberg has been a volunteer firefighter with the Commack Fire Department in New York for 29 years. He's taking the trip not only to check off an item on his bucket list, but to give back to others. Weisberg thought it would be a "great idea" to turn the journey into a fundraiser for New York-based nonprofit Paws of War, he said. That organization helps rescue animals found overseas by deployed military personnel and brings them to U.S., and also provides service dog training for soldiers and first responders.