Heavy rain combined with the saturated ground were factors that led to the death of a Lufkin woman who died when a tree fell on her home. Understandably, the elderly woman's son did not want to go on camera. He did describe waking up to a nightmare. By the light of day, Dan Rawls' mind was only beginning to process the death of his mother, 80-year-old Dorothy Davenport. Around 2:45 this morning, he badly needed help at their Lufkin home on Lafayette Street. "A tree had fallen on his home and he believed his elderly mother was deceased in her bedroom due to the tree that fell through their roof. It had fallen because of the wetness," explained Jessica Pebsworth, Lufkin communications director. Officers and firefighters spent an hour removing the large oak from the home. They found Davenport on her bed.  

Up to 115 Austin firefighters were potentially exposed to asbestos during a three-alarm warehouse blaze in the St. John's neighborhood of north Austin on May 6, according to Austin Fire Department spokesperson Michelle Tanzola. The property, located at 7309 N. Interstate-35 at the corner of the service road and Blackson Avenue, is owned by the City of Austin, according to Travis Central Appraisal District records. The burned warehouse sits next door to a former Home Depot property the city also owns. "We're sending approximately 115 individuals for X-rays as a precautionary measure. Should they develop some sort of medical issue later as a result that needed treatment, establishing a baseline record and paperwork now ensures less red tape later for them to get care, even though it would be covered under the presumptive law regardless," Tanzola said in an email.  

May has historically been an active severe weather month, especially 68 years ago on May 11, 1953 where a tornado ripped through the heart of Waco. The F5 tornado touched down southwest of the city's center from high precipitation supercell and barreled right through downtown Waco. Due to the heavy rain it was hard to see the tornado coming and 114 people were killed and 597 people injured. In 1953, people relied mainly on eyewitness reports to know when severe weather was coming. In many situations this did not give people enough time or warning to get to safety. In a situation like the rain-wrapped tornado that hit Waco in 1953, relying on just vision for warning was deadly. This catastrophe prompted a change in how people were made aware of severe weather. Texas A&M University partnered up with the United States Weather Bureau (now known as the National Weather Service) in the Texas Tornado Warning Conference to come up with a better warning system.  

Home security camera footage shows that the owner of a Tesla got into the driver's seat of the car shortly before a deadly crash in suburban Houston, according to a government report Monday. But the preliminary report on the crash that killed two men doesn't explain the mystery of why authorities found no one behind the wheel of the car, which burst into flames after crashing about 550 feet from the owner's home. Nor does it conclusively say whether Tesla's "Autopilot" partially automated driver-assist system was operating at the time of the crash, although it appears unlikely. The National Transportation Safety Board said it's still investigating all aspects of the crash. An onboard data storage device in the console, however, was destroyed by fire. A computer that records air bag and seat belt status as well as speed and acceleration was damaged and is being examined at an NTSB lab.  

Three cats were treated for smoke inhalation after a window AC unit caught fire Monday evening. The San Antonio Fire Department responded to a fire in the 200 block of Mulberry, near McCullough Ave., after a neighbor saw flames coming out of a second-story window. Although the department says it suspects the AC unit was left on and overheated causing the fire, it will still investigate. No person was in the home during the fire, but three cats were found and were treated for smoke inhalation. They suffered no other injuries.  

KXAN is keeping track of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, by aggregating data from the Texas Department of State Health Services and local and county health departments. The state's first case of COVID-19 was reported March 4, 2020, in Fort Bend County. Texas reports totals for two kinds of cases: confirmed and probable. A confirmed case is a person who has tested positive on a molecular test. A probable case is a person who has tested positive on an antigen test, or someone who has a combination of symptoms and known exposure to someone with COVID-19. Harris County has the most confirmed cases of COVID-19. When adjusted for population though, other counties rise to the top, notably Dimmit, Childress, Hale, Maverick and Lamb Counties.  

A massive fire destroyed a barn late Monday night in Dickerson, Maryland. Approximately $1.5 million in damages was caused by the fire, according to Montgomery County Fire officials. Fire officials say no one was injured in the fire and 65 firefighters responded to the scene to battle the blaze. The incident occurred at 511 Peach Tree Road near Barnesville Road and firefighters extinguished the fire. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time but fire officials say there was a lot of hay inside the barn.  

VIDEO: Up to 115 Austin firefighters were potentially exposed to asbestos during a three-alarm warehouse blaze in the St. John's neighborhood of north Austin on May 6, according to Austin Fire Department spokesperson Michelle Tanzola. The property, located at 7309 N. Interstate-35 at the corner of the service road and Blackson Avenue, is owned by the City of Austin, according to Travis Central Appraisal District records. The burned warehouse sits next door to a former Home Depot property the city also owns. "We're sending approximately 115 individuals for X-rays as a precautionary measure. Should they develop some sort of medical issue later as a result that needed treatment, establishing a baseline record and paperwork now ensures less red tape later for them to get care, even though it would be covered under the presumptive law regardless," Tanzola said in an email.  

VIDEO: The Cumberland Trail Fire District needs to make upgrades to its building and is having a difficult time doing so without ownership. "It would enable us to apply for some grants to make some modifications and upgrades to the facility without going through the city, or in the event that we need a low-interest loan," Fire Chief Tim Hall said. Hall says the district doesn't qualify for many grants and loans to make critical infrastructure improvements, as the city of St. Clairsville has the title. The fire station used to connect to the city building before moving to its current location. "When the fire district was formed in 1989, the city retained ownership of the building, and for whatever reason I can't speak of, the building always remained in the ownership of the city," Hall said. The pandemic has emphasized the need for building upgrades. All firefighters share a bunk room, and social distancing is a challenge.  

VIDEO: Today marks 25 years since ValuJet Flight 592 crashed in the Everglades, killing all 110 people on board. The plane took off from Miami to Atlanta on May 11, 1996. But about 10 minutes later, it plunged into the Everglades after oxygen canisters ignited a fire in the cargo. Lives were forever changed and the pain of the tragic day remains. "It's a trauma that I think we all carry," said former Miami-Dade firefighter Willi Alvarez. Alvarez vividly remembers the moment first responders halted their work. "…They were standing at attention as the families drove by paying their respects," Alvarez said while fighting back tears. "What I hope to do on this May 11, on the 25th anniversary, is once again have our people come out here and pay our respects for the families." Michael Gast and Danny Llano were divers for the Miami-Dade Police Department at the time. "It's depressing. It's depressing when you realize 110 people were on that airplane and their lives just ended," Gast told NBC 6.  

A man has been charged after allegedly biting a firefighter during a structure fire in Adrian. On May 6, during a structure fire in Adrian, officers with the Buckhannon Police Department observed an individual in the rear bed of a pick-up truck "fighting with pedestrians as they were yelling for assistance," according to a criminal complaint. Prior to deputies' arrival, Tylor Arbogast, 28, of Buckhannon, jumped onto the hood of the truck, and "smashed the front windshield out and busted the driver's side window with a large rock," deputies said. Deputies then "tried to gain control of [Arbogast] and he was refusing to comply and resisted arrest," and during that time, Arbogast "unlawfully and intentionally bit a fireman" … "while assisting in [Arbogast's] apprehension," according to the complaint. While attempting to apprehend Abrogast, he "was instructed numerous times to comply and continued to kick, headbutt and bite," deputies said.