PHOTOS: Bartow city officials said the Bartow Fire Department and Polk County Fire Rescue were working a structure fire at Sonny’s BBQ Restaurant, located at 595 N. Broadway Ave.

A fire that started early Wednesday morning has completely destroyed the Sonny’s BBQ restaurant in Bartow, leaving a community staple that has served the area since 1992 in ruins.

The Bartow Fire Department received a call just after 6 a.m. from an employee who discovered the fire. Officials said the employee noticed it when he heard a loud popping sound coming from above.

“Our pitmaster shows up first thing in the morning to unload meat and get out of there and noticed that obviously that there was a fire,” said Scott Frantz, president of ACG Barbecue, which oversees 30 Sonny’s BBQ franchises.

The fire started in the attic and quickly spread to the roof. Deputy Fire Chief Byron Moore said the flames burned so intensely that the roof eventually collapsed, forcing crews to switch to defensive tactics.

WFTS-TV ABC 28 Tampa

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VIDEO: When someone overdoses, paramedics and EMS are usually the first people arriving to help. That’s why a new law in Pennsylvania is helping first responders and EMS with combating overdoses in the Commonwealth.

The goal of the legislation is to provide more accurate and detailed information to responders on the scene faster. First responders see what’s happening where and how often overdoses occur around Pa. They will also not be required to upload the information onto the Overdose Information Network Dashboard.

“In 2025, we at First Capital EMS responded to 126 opioid overdoses,” executive director of First Capital EMS Benjamin Kirkpatrick said.

The data matters because when officials know where overdoses are spiking, they can move faster to the scene and help people before it’s too late. “Over 5,000 Pennsylvanians die from accidental drug poisoning every year. I mean, that’s a plague,” Senator Doug Mastriano said at a Tuesday afternoon press conference highlighting Act 18 of 2025.

WPMT-TV FOX 43 York

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VIDEO: Maryland firefighters no longer have to pay out-of-pocket for cancer health screenings thanks to a new law that went into effect this year.

House Bill 459 and Senate Bill 374 also known as the James “Jimmy” Malone Act, named after a former Maryland state delegate and lifelong firefighter who died of cancer in 2024, eliminates co-pays for cancer prevention screenings for career firefighters covered by county self-insured health benefit plans.

“The law allows for people that have county covered self insured health benefits plans to have free access without co-pays to cancer preventing screenings so we think that early detection is the best prevention so we fully support that legislation,” Deputy Fire Chief Gordon Wallace of Howard County said.

Firefighters face higher cancer risks than the average person due to repeated exposure to toxins during fires. The carcinogenic byproducts of combustion put first responders at significant health risk throughout their careers.

WMAR-TV ABC 2 Baltimore

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A pregnant woman and her children were able to escape a house fire early last Tuesday in Moses Lake and were taken to the hospital as a precaution, according to emergency dispatch records. Crews were dispatched around 5:54 a.m. to a reported structure fire in the area of West Pheasant Street. During the incident, the woman—who was approximately seven months pregnant—fell onto her stomach while escaping the home and had smoke exposure to her face and mouth. Her children were also exposed to smoke during the incident.

Emergency responders assisted at the scene, and the woman and her children were transported to Samaritan Hospital for medical evaluation. No further information on their conditions was released. Fire officials said the blaze originated in an area of the home where a phone and phone charger were located, though the official cause of the fire remains undetermined. The residence is approximately 1,500 square feet. A damage estimate was not available at the time of the report.

The incident remains under review, and officials have not released additional details.

Source One News

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PHOTOS: The Union Gap Police Department confirmed Wednesday they have arrested a man in connection with a spree of fires in the city. The first call for help came in just before midnight. Witnesses reported seeing a warehouse on fire in the area near Rudkin Road and Lilac Lane. This fire destroyed the warehouse, three semi trucks and two trailers.

While firefighters were responding to this call, another fire was reported at a building in the 1800 block of Rainer Place. Firefighters were able to put the fire out quickly, but it severely damaged the building.

Officers with the Union Gap Police Department said they began searching for suspicious people in the area after it was determined the fires seemed suspicious in nature. While looking for potential suspects, officers came upon a third fire just before 2 a.m. in a dumpster behind a grocery store in the 1400 block of East Washington Avenue. A Yakima police officer was able to put the fire out quickly.

Apple Valley News Now

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