A firefighter was injured and two adults were treated for smoke inhalation Sunday after a fire broke out at an apartment complex in northwest Harris County. Authorities said the two-alarm fire started at a complex in the 6400 block of York Meadows Drive, which is near the intersection of Little York and Highway 6. Crews reported smoke coming from the room when they arrived. Eight units were damaged. Seven of them were occupied. Thirteen people were displaced. Authorities said a firefighter was injured after falling at the scene. The firefighter was treated at the scene. The Harris County Fire Marshals Office is investigating the cause of the fire and the American Red Cross is offering assistance to the displaced residents.  

He's battled raging fires and overseen daring rescues. But nothing prepared Sam Greif for what he went through over the last 16 days in a Plano hospital. Chief Greif was discharged from Medical City Plano on Monday, Jan. 18, thanks for the lifesaving work of doctors and nurses. The staff at Medical City Plano and Plano firefighters lined up to celebrate Sam Greif as he was wheeled out. Doctors said Greif's survival was in serious question when he checked in more than two weeks ago. "His case was potentially life-threatening he ended up with pretty decent pneumonia," said Dr. Brandon Meek. Chief Greif had tears in his eyes as he embraced his wife for the first time in 16 days and left the hospital to cheers that meant everything to him. "I don't have words right now," Greif said. "I want to say I love everybody. Thanks you for giving me my health and sending me home to my wife."  

Major brush fire burns over 1,00 acres of ranch land in Duval County According to the Alice Echo News Journal, there were about 60 firefighters from several different fire departments in the area. A major brush fire in South Texas burned 1,200 acres of ranch land in Duval County on Saturday night. The images below show the major fire, courtesy of the Alice Echo News Journal. According to the Echo, there were about 60 firefighters from several different fire departments in the area battling the fire along highway 359. The Duval County Sheriff says it all started when someone who was burning trash in a barrel left it unattended. When he came back, that fire was out of control. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported.  

Scott Yarnell was "totally shocked" to be named 2020 firefighter of the year at Inter-Community Volunteer Fire Department's annual banquet Jan. 8. "You never think you're up for that kind of award, and then to get picked, it's just..." Yarnell said. "I've got five years experience with other departments, then I moved over here to Panola County about six years ago, and I just got involved last year, and to me there was other people more deserving, in my opinion. But to get picked by my peers, ‘cause from what I understand it was a unanimous vote among my peers for this award. It's an honor, it really is. I was totally blown away by it." Yarnell just finished up an EMT class the first week of January, and in about two weeks he'll take his EMT national registry test.  

For the past year, the people of Hearne have watched the formation of a 27,000 square foot public safety center, which will house both the city's police department and volunteer fire department, as well as council chambers and the municipal court. Construction began in January of 2020, after a bond for the $8.3 million dollar project was voted into action during the summer of 2019. The former Hearne police station was demolished in order to make way for the new building, and city manager John Naron said he anticipates costs will not exceed the original budget drawn. "It's been really smooth," Naron stated. "We've had a few delays due to COVID-19; delayed parts and things like that. But, overall it's been really smooth. We had expected to finish in December [of 2020], but likely we're going to be through in February, with a realistic move in date of March."  

Multiple homes have been evacuated in Weslaco as firefighters continue to battle a grass and brush fire, city spokesperson Cristina Garcia confirmed Monday afternoon. Firefighters responded to the blaze in Las Brisas subdivision near Mac Drive at about 2:45 p.m. Garcia says heavy gusts have caused firefighters to close the roads and evacuate 15 homes in the area. One home has been affected by the fire, Garcia said. No injuries have been reported. Nearby agencies are assisting as the Weslaco Fire Department continues to investigate.  

VIDEO: Harrisburg city's fire department has released video from a firefighter's helmet camera that shows the rescue of a North 15th Street resident from his burning home shortly after first crews arrived. Chief Brian Enterline said the man was seen by firefighters at a second-floor, bedroom window in the 1400 block of North 15th as they were making initial exterior checks of the structure. The man, who has not been named, was successfully pulled out by responding firefighters, and received treatment for smoke inhalation at Holy Spirit Hospital. Enterline said he was in good condition as of Sunday night. Unfortunately, another resident in the residence died in the blaze, which was dispatched at 4:15 p.m. Sunday. Enterline said the city and Dauphin County Coroner's office expect to release more information on the victim and what investigators have learned about the blaze on Tuesday. As of Monday night, however, he could confirm that the fire was accidental in nature.  

Nearly 200 San Diego Fire-Rescue personnel have so far turned down a COVID-19 vaccine, showing reluctance as health officials scramble to protect frontline workers like firefighters from the highly infectious coronavirus. As of Wednesday, 191 personnel had declined to take the vaccine; 895 had gotten the shot, according to department figures. The vaccine is available to all of the department's roughly 1,500 employees, including lifeguards and non-sworn staff, a spokeswoman said. The force includes 943 firefighters, who double as paramedics or emergency medical technicians, placing them on the front lines of the pandemic. As of Wednesday, 99 firefighters had tested positive, according to the department. Department spokeswoman Mónica Muñoz said the vaccination figures may not account for vaccines administered by employees' health care providers, adding that the department is not privy to personal health information.  

As rental and home prices increase throughout the state, some firefighters say they can't afford to live in the communities they work in. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, South Carolina's annual mean wage in 2019 was $36,360, one of the lowest in the country. Bill Pesature, the vice president of the Professional Firefighters Association of SC, says salaries for firefighters have not kept up with the cost of living. "They can't live where they work anymore. It just doesn't happen," Pesature said. "You need to raise your rates for what you pay people and take care of your people. Retention is vital." Pesature also says many firefighters are leaving the state for better pay, and investments aren't being made into the people who have been in fire departments for a long time. Instead, money is being used to train new people. Justin Lenker, the president of Midway Professional Firefighters Association Local 3617 and a firefighter with Midway Fire Rescue, says their salaries tend to be lower, and the cost of living on Pawley's Island is about 11% higher than surrounding areas.  

One-hundred -twenty-six years ago this past week, the city of Butte was rocked by a massive explosion that killed 58 people. On January 15th 1895, the Kenyon-Connell Warehouse explosion not only ended the lives of its innocent victims; it devastated their families and broke the city's heart. For some time now, community leaders, historians and artists have been working on a project to construct a monument to honor the men who died in that explosion. Butte Historical Memorials, a non-profit, has published a book about the explosion and its aftermath called 'Out of the Ashes: The Forgotten Story of the 1895 Butte Explosion.' To begin a retelling of the story, the group's chairman Jim McCarthy and its vice-chairwoman Lindsay Mulcahy took NBC Montana to an industrial section of the city. Home to warehouses and empty fields scattered with old machinery, Lindsay told us "we are at Ground Zero of the Butte Warehouse explosion site."