The Kenai Peninsula has been getting more rain than sunshine the last week, and whether it's a hiatus in the wildfire season or the end of it, now is a good chance to make sure your property is firewise. Jeff Bouschor, Fire Management Officer for the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, said fires on the peninsula are becoming more of a challenge as time goes on. "Some of the things we've been seeing, right, is that our fire seasons are becoming longer. Climate change is a, is a real thing here on the Kenai peninsula. And we're seeing, you know, longer summer longer seasons. One of our biggest challenges with that is that you as a community are, are a part of that. And that's what we're tasked with protecting is, is the community," Bouschor said.  

Warmer temperatures and sunshine allowed the Munson Creek fire to become more active over the weekend as unburned pockets of spruce trees within the perimeter burned. More smoke was produced, but the perimeter of the fire did not expand significantly. Cool temperatures and higher humidity reduced fire activity overnight. Incident Commander Kiel Nairns said the 18-member Yukon Crew assigned to the fire is monitoring it but will not be conducting suppression activities to extinguish it. Fire managers don't anticipate the fire threatening the resort or cabins at the end of Chena Hot Springs Road but if the fire comes close, firefighters will conduct point protection efforts to protect structures. The Munson Creek Fire south of Chena Hot Springs became more active with warm, dry weather this weekend.  

VIDEOS/PHOTOS: A woman has been taken into custody as a person of interest after several homes and construction site in Ogden were destroyed in a fire Monday night. Fire officials believe the fire was human-caused, but did not provide any details as to why the woman is considering a person of interest. A total of five nearby houses are considered a complete loss following the fire as the American Red Cross of Utah provides assistance to those affected. Five businesses close by were also damaged. Two people were originally unaccounted for following the fire at 28th Street and Grant Avenue, but Ogden police later said that no one was believed to be missing. No one was seriously injured in the fire. The fire was first reported around 10:30 p.m. at the three-story, wood-framed complex under construction.  

PHOTOS: The town of Daytona organized its volunteer fire department in 1909. It took some work, though. "Daytona needs a fire department; Daytona wants a fire department and Daytona will have a fire department. But the citizens must awake to the fact that the matter needs their cooperation. 'Tis time to get busy," The Daytona Daily News exhorted on Dec. 7, 1909. The department bought a LaFrance hose truck in 1913 that was the pride of the city. "Pictures of it include nearly all the prominent men of that time. It was housed in the former railroad freight house between the old City Hall and the river," wrote local historian Ianthe Bond Hebel. This was superseded by a 1,000-gallon pumper bought in 1919. By 1925, the department was housed in the stucco Fire Station No. 1, still in use on South Beach Street.  

The stress and trauma that first responders experience can build up if it isn't addressed. The city of Huntington, West Virginia, is focusing on this concern with COMPASS, a wellness program that provides first responders and their families with mental and physical health services. It began with a grant of a million dollars through the Bloomberg Philanthropies' 2018 U.S. Mayors Challenge. The city also received additional funding from private organizations such as AT&T and non-profits like the Pallottine Foundation and the Tri-State Foundation. The COMPASS Wellness center was established on the 5th floor of the Jean Dean Public Safety Building, the same building housing the Huntington Police Department. Today, the program provides first responders a gym, lounge, sauna, meditation room, and a robust kitchen.  

A city of Pharr Firefighter, and author, is hoping the subject of his latest children's book will help make a difference in the perception of law enforcement officers. Many Valley residents are familiar with the questionable but sometimes effective form of discipline that inspired Santos Vallejo's, 32, new children's book titled ‘Protect and Serve'. Oftentimes, many well-meaning parents will tell their children that they will turn them into the police if they do not behave. While many can laugh at the empty threat in retrospect, Vallejo is using this example to teach children the lesson that police do not need to be feared. Vallejo often uses children's books to communicate messages to his own children. "It's an easy way to start developing their minds because a lot of the times they like to play video games, watch cartoons, and I feel like we're straying away from reading," said Vallejo.  

The face mask that you wear in the future could alert you of a coronavirus diagnosis, thanks to researchers at Harvard University and MIT. Researchers have created wearable biosensors that can detect the presence of the virus in a person's breath. These button-activated masks give COVID results within 90 minutes in a simple-to-read format similar to an at-home pregnancy test. The mask can diagnose COVID at accuracy levels comparable to standard diagnostic tests, according to the researchers from the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and MIT. The sky's the limit for this technology. It can be customized to detect a wide variety of other viruses, bacteria and toxins. "