The Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department donated a total of 987 person hours during the first quarter of 2021, according to the Fire Chief Jim Stolpe at the Borough Assembly meeting on Monday. "As always, we stand ready to help the citizens in their hour of need," said Stolpe. "Whether their issue is big or small, we're still here." Between Jan. and March 31, the fire branch of PVFD donated 516 person hours, the EMS branch donated 355 person hours and the search and rescue branch donated 116 person hours.  

VIDEO: Service along multiple Long Island Rail Road lines was suspended Thursday morning between Hicksville and Mineola after a fire ripped through a large Westbury recycling facility overnight. Nassau County Traffic Management and the LIRR confirmed fire department activity on Grand Boulevard between Monitor Street to Broadway just before 9 p.m. Wednesday, with drivers told to expect delays. The massive five-alarm blaze was still burning early Thursday at the 500,000 square-foot plant as firefighters tried to put out all the flames. Westbury Fire Department Chief Kenneth Gass Jr. said the blaze is something that cannot be remedied in a day as far as full extinguishment. Portions of the building have collapsed and parts of the roof have collapsed, according to the fire chief. "The entire building is compromised," he said. Officials confirmed Thursday morning there appeared to be no injuries.  

Clark County Fire District 6 officials say it's the deadliest job in America: towing disabled cars off the side of the freeway. In just the past few months, three tow truck drivers were in serious crashes in southwest Washington. "I think people have been cooped up for so long that they really want to get out and get going and we've noticed it," said David Schmitke, the public information officer and public education coordinator for CCFD6. On Wednesday, people from AAA Washington, WSP, WSDOT, and local towing companies came together to shoot a public service announcement to remind drivers of the law: to slow down and move over. "For me, if people don't do it, we don't get to go home. We've had too many operators hit, a couple struck and killed lately in our local area," said Jake Beals with Triple J Towing. "We want to go home to our families, too. If you don't slow down and move over, there needs to be penalties. And it's not the lives of us that needs to be penalized."  

Governor Ron DeSantis announced one-time pandemic bonuses for about 174,000 first responders in Florida Wednesday. DeSantis says the $1,000 bonuses will be given to law enforcement officers, paramedics, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), and firefighters. "Supporting our law enforcement and first responders has been a top priority for my administration, and it has never been more important than over the last year. As a state, we are grateful for their continued service to our communities," said Governor Ron DeSantis. "This one-time bonus is a small token of appreciation, but we can never go far enough to express our gratitude for their selflessness." "When the coronavirus came to Florida, our first responders worked overtime to protect our communities and get people the care they so desperately needed," said Florida Chief Financial Officer and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis.  

The State Fire Marshal closed 53 cases of arson in 2020, and the office is working to make that number go down. The United States Fire Administration says that over 210,000 fires every year are classified as arson. Those cases also result in 375 civilian deaths, 1,300 civilian injuries, and $1 billion in property damage. Firefighters go through particular training to deal with arson cases. Sometimes fires are set to mask other crimes, according to John High from the University of Illinois Fire Institute. He helps train firefighters to spot other hazards that can come with dealing with arson. The Illinois State Fire Marshal is encouraging departments to revisit their plans for dealing with Arson. "Arson is a serious crime and I encourage communities and fire departments to work together to help raise awareness to prevent these fires that are costing people their lives and needlessly putting firefighters in dangerous situations. If you see something, say something," said Illinois State Fire Marshal Matt Perez.  

With demand for coronavirus vaccines declining in parts of the country, the Biden administration announced a change in strategy this week, adopting a more targeted approach for reaching America's not-yet-vaccinated population. Despite the nation's relatively smooth and speedy rollout, there's still a lot of work to do—and a fair amount of doubt, per the week's reports on herd immunity, that it'll get done. As of May 5, 148.6 million Americans, or 44.7% of the total population, had received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, up from 142.7 million a week ago, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That relatively small change is dwarfed by the increase in the number of fully vaccinated individuals in the past week: 107.3 million Americans, which includes 70.1% of seniors, 41.3% of adults, and 32.3% of the total population have been fully vaccinated, up from 98 million last week.