The effects were seen overnight in Southeast Texas from a global technology outage that affected companies and services around the world. By about midnight the effects were being felt at the Beaumont Fire Department, according to Captain Waylon Evan. The issues at the fire department started at its downtown headquarters as one after another computer went down. Then, since all of their systems are tied to each other, all 12 stations around the city lost their computers. The department relies heavily on computer systems to dispatch and keep track of their calls. The outage, which affected the fire department for two to three hours, did not affect phone and radio communications. The department was still able to dispatch stations to calls for service around the city.  

VIDEO: A popular Central Texas travel destination is welcoming in a lot of new homes to the area. Officials in Horseshoe Bay said in the last five years, they've seen fast growth with people moving to the community permanently. It even prompted the fire department to get a new tool to help firefighters escape from tall buildings. Horseshoe Bay Fire Chief Doug Fowler said the new device is called an escape system. It helps firefighters quickly evacuate a tall building through a window. "You've got a belt, which is kind of a part of a harness that the system is connected to. You have it at all times," Chief Fowler said. "You got a hook, and you find an anchor point. It could be a stud in a wall, or it actually could be the actual windowsill." Fowler said they recently ordered some for the firefighters.  

VIDEO: Lubbock Fire Rescue held its grand opening and blessing of the 1st Safe Haven Baby Box brought to the South Plains & 2nd in the State of Texas. This Safe Haven Baby Box is located at Lubbock Fire Station No. 9 at 4810 50th Street. This monumental project would not have been made possible without the generosity and support of Lubbock City Council, Turning Point Community Church, Teinert Construction, and The Lubbock Professional Fire Fighters Association. The Safe Haven Baby Box is a safe, secure, and 100% anonymous way for parents in crisis to surrender their newborns. It's available 24/7, ensuring that the baby will be cared for immediately by our first responders. Additionally, the Safe Haven Baby Box is climate-controlled, providing a safe environment for the baby while they await our immediate care.  

PHOTOS: A huge fire that could be seen from miles away destroyed an antiques warehouse in Columbia, Lancaster County. Firefighters responded to the fire at Tollbooth Antiques on Chestnut and North Second streets in Columbia around 8:30 p.m. on Thursday. The owner, David Doolittle, spoke to WGAL. "It's devastating. It's been a family business for 20 years. We have a family of vendors that have their own businesses inside this building - 50 vendors. We have employees that are very concerned. Vendors are losing inventory. Yeah, we're very upset," he said. The assistant fire chief said one firefighter suffered burns to his hand. It's not yet clear how the fire started.  

A technological meltdown disrupted airlines, banks, hospitals and emergency services on Friday. Thousands of Microsoft users reported being suddenly knocked offline, and the culprit appeared to be cybersecurity company CrowdStrike, which had a routine software update malfunction. "CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts," the company said in a statement. Customers using Mac and Linux operating systems were not affected, according to CrowdStrike. When the botched update crashed computer systems, scores of airport travelers were stranded, hospital appointments were delayed and live news broadcasts were cut short. CrowdStrike said it was not a cyberattack, but rather a software glitch. In some states, including Alaska and Ohio, 911 phone lines were down.  

VIDEO: Newly released video is showing just what happened on the ground the moment multiple vehicles were hit by a crane that suddenly collapsed onto a busy South Florida roadway, and how officers worked to get the bridge clear and victims the help they needed. It happened on April 4 in the heart of downtown Fort Lauderdale. Body camera video shows the moments officers first responded to the catastrophic construction failure on the Southeast Third Avenue Bridge, not knowing at the time what just happened and if anyone was hurt. As officers were seen trying to clear the roadway in the midst of rush hour traffic, they discovered driver Carol Zinser, who was seen remarkably getting out of her car that was destroyed by the crane. While some were unscathed from the impact, others like Gemmalyn Castillo were not.  

VIDEO: A Marin County woman who provides four-legged emotional support for first responders has expanded her nonprofit across the country. When Kerith the golden retriever and her companions come to visit a fire station they bring smiles. Just ask Kerith's human, Heidi Carman. "Kerith lives for this," said Carman. "She's so excited when she sees her firefighter and first responder friends in general." The feeling's mutual for Capt. Mike Lewis and his colleagues at San Rafael Fire Station 51. "It definitely lights up our day as well," Lewis said. "I really feel like we're changing lives and making their mental health a little bit better each visit," added Carman. When we first met Carman and Kerith, Carman had just started First Responder Therapy Dogs in San Rafael.  

VIDEO: Soon you will be able to learn more about the history of the Knoxville Fire Department. That's because the department is working on creating a museum that will feature vintage items and artifacts. Now that the Knoxville Fire Department headquarters has moved to North Knoxville, Mark Wilbanks, the assistant fire chief, has been quietly working on creating a new KFD museum. "We're kind of changing the lobby into our newest fire museum for the fire department," said Wilbanks. "Our goal is to slowly over time transform this into a public space where folks can come in during the week." The Knoxville Fire Department Museum was previously located in downtown Knoxville at the old KFD headquarters. Back in 2022, a drunken driver crashed into it. And now, the department is working on opening a new one.