A fire in northwest Harris County that burned through 27 acres and sent a firefighter to the hospital for heat exhaustion is now 100% contained, according to fire officials. On Thursday at about 12:50 p.m., fire crews received a call about a fire in the 16600 block of Bobcat Trail. Crews arrived at the scene at 1 p.m. and began battling the blaze. A man was found dead near the fire, but officials say his cause of death is unknown. They would not confirm, at this point, if the fire started on his property or not, but say he did live in the area. With the fire contained, most fire crews are leaving, but the Rose Hill Fire department will stay to monitor throughout the night. At least two sheds or outside storage buildings were lost in the fire, but no homes or livestock were lost. As to what sparked the fire, authorities said that remains under investigation.  

Help the City of Sweetwater welcome their new fire chief. Community members are invited to a meet and greet with Chief Dewey Coy in Council Chamber at the Sweetwater City Hall Friday, August 12, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. "Please come help us welcome him and his family," a press release explains. Chief Coy is a Big Country native who has been working as a fire fighter since graduating high school and joining the Zephyr Volunteer Fire Department in 1989. During his 22-year-career, he also served as Battalion Chief for a fire department in Arkansas, before retiring in 2020. He began his official duties in Sweetwater effective August 1.  

A Houston firefighter was hurt after falling through a roof while battling a fire at a private bus company in southeast Houston, the department said. The fire broke out at about 11 p.m. Thursday in the offices of the business in the 8400 block of Hansen Road near Redford. Firefighters began tackling the fire from the roof when the accident happened. "A firefighter lost his footing and had fallen through the roof. A mayday was immediately called," said Deputy Chief Isaac Garcia with the Houston Fire Department. The firefighter was found within minutes and was able to walk on his own before being taken to a hospital for an evaluation, according to Garcia.  

PHOTOS: The Polk County Office of Emergency Management says firefighters have been working for hours to contain an approximately 250 to 260 acre grass and woods fire in southern Polk County. Fire officials say fire behavior is low and forward progression has been stopped at this time. It is 90% to 95% contained tonight, they say. Fire officials say they suspect that lightning started the fire. Alabama-Coushatta Indian Nation Fire Chief Willo Sylestine told us that firefighters got started battling the flames quickly, and used air drops as well as trucks to douse the fire. Polk County, Tyler County, the National Parks Service and Texas Forest Service dispatched dozers and crews. Sylestine also said that no one was injured in the fire. Earlier in the day officials were estimating that the fire was anywhere from 300 to 350 acres, but reassessed that figure later Thursday night.  

On Wednesday, Aug. 3, City officials, staff, fellow firefighters, friends, and family gathered to celebrate Lieutenant Kyle Whitley with the Brownwood Fire Department for over 22 years of service. He was presented a commemorative axe featuring the department's crest. Though Lieutenant Whitley is retiring from the Fire Department, he will remain with the City of Brownwood in his new position as the Airport Foreman at the Brownwood Regional Airport. Whitley's last day to serve with the Fire Department will be Saturday, August 6th. Lieutenant Whitley was hired by the Brownwood Fire Department on April 17, 2000, giving 22 years and 4 months of dedicated service to the community. He was promoted to Fire Driver on October 26, 2006. He was promoted to Lieutenant on October 6, 2011.  

PHOTOS: Fire crews from across the country are focused on an area near Wimberley they call the Hermosa fire. Homes along Bluffview Drive are under a mandatory evacuation and others nearby have been told to prepare in case it becomes necessary. This fire actually started Wednesday night. Officials say it's too early to determine what caused it, but more than 24 hours later we are still at 35% contained and the size of the fire is still about 60 acres. You may heard a larger number of acres earlier but the officials on site tell us because of the rugged terrain it's been difficult for them to go into some areas to see exactly what's burning and what's not. Kimberly Kaschalk, a public information officer with the Texas A&M Forest Service says, "The way the fire moved, there are some fire lines that are fairly defined and some fire lines are spotty like the fire moved erratically so that's why it's taking so long to get a really solid acreage (count.)"  

A fire broke out at a Cabarrus County home after an intense lightning storm Thursday night, authorities said. Paul Lof shared video with Channel 9 of the flames shooting through the roof of the house on Fairmeade Drive. Cabarrus County emergency communications said the call for the fire came in just after 8 p.m. They said nine fire departments controlled the blaze in about an hour. No one was hurt, they said. Channel 9 Meteorologist Keith Monday confirmed there was a significant amount of lightning in that part of the county at around 7:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The fire's cause is still under investigation, communications said.  

VIDEO: On the 10th anniversary of the Sikh Temple shooting, a top Fitchburg firefighter remembers the role he played on that harrowing day. "We were fortunate enough to the point that we had a police department and a fire department of paramedics that worked very well together," current Fitchburg Fire Chief and former Oak Creek Battalion Chief Joe Pulvermacher said after witnessing the aftermath of that unthinkable situation. But he knew from the response that the team needed additional support. So, Pulvermacher decided to find an ‘out of the box' solution. He worked with Green Bay's Graham Medical to conceptualize the ‘Mega Mover.' In place of a stretcher, the Mover's bed frame-like structure allows first responders to pull a person, weighing up to 200 pounds, in an active shooter situation. "So with this, we're able to get the stretcher under the patient and drag them to what amounts to a safer area and use less rescuers," Pulvermacher said.  

VIDEO: A former firefighter has found a creative way to show his appreciation for first responders, and he does all the work from his bed. "I got into it because I was told I physically couldn't do it. And can't is not in my vocabulary." Meet Michael Olson, a former fighter, who suffered a severe back injury. It left him disabled and mostly bedridden. So, he began creating custom knives by hand from his bed. "Rather than sit in bed and vegetate I found something that I could do," Olson said. "It took me a lot of work to get this good. Most people need a vice and a file guide to do what I do freehand and laying in bed." His hobby earned him the name "Mike the Knife." Olson decided to raffle one of his knives for charity 18 months ago and it's grown from there, raising a lot of money for non-profits.  

VIDEO: An eight-passenger private plane took off from Lafayette Regional Airport on the morning of Dec. 28, 2019, at around 9:20 a.m. with six people on board. By 9:21 a.m., the plane had crashed near the U.S. Post Office on Feu Follet Road, killing five of the plane's passengers and sending a total of four people — including the plane crash's sole survivor — to local hospitals. This is the entire story of the crash and the investigation that followed. Six people boarded a twin-engine turboprop Piper Cheyenne on a foggy, December morning. Robert Vaughn Crisp II and Wade Berzas, VPs for Global Data Systems, situated themselves on the left side of the plane, facing each other. Gretchen Vincent, the wife of Global Data Systems owner Charles Vincent, sat on the right side, across from Carley McCord, a reporter with WDSU in New Orleans.  

VIDEO: Emergency crews are rushing to distribute bottled water to flood-ravaged eastern Kentucky. The deadly flooding damaged water systems and the availability of clean drinking water is scarce. To make matters worse, forecasters warn that more rain is coming to the region. Here at home, a Bucks County fire department is doing its part to help first responders in Kentucky. The effort started Sunday afternoon from a Facebook post showing several Kentucky firehouses impacted by the floods. "It's what we do, we gotta answer the call," said Cole Wendling with the Staledale Fire Department. Inside the Ottsville firehouse, dozens of local firefighters and volunteers are packing up their equipment. "Fire gear, self-contained breathing apparatus, hand tools, hoze, a whole pallet of boots," Palisades Regional Fire Rescue Chief William Shick said. But this time, those in need are some of their own.