Lee County approved seven new fire trucks for five volunteer fire departments and two new strike teams, with delivery expected in December, officials said.

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Voters in nine Oregon counties will weigh 16 ballot measures to fund rural fire districts and departments.

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PHOTOS: A Learjet believed to be carrying nine people crashed on Sunday afternoon in Palm Beach County, Florida, after making a rapid dive of about 350 feet per second, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

The plane, a 22-year-old twin-engine Learjet 60, crashed after taking off from Austin, Texas, and was headed to North Eleuthera in the Bahamas, according to the FAA.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash, the FAA said. Photos and videos online showed a jet hitting the ground nose-first and bursting into a fireball. The impact of the crash left a crater near a shopping center.

The jet crashed near Military Trail, between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue, in the Greenacres community of Palm Beach County, authorities said. There was no immediate word from authorities on deaths and injuries.

The plane went from 35,250 feet to 8,750 feet in a little over a minute, or roughly 350 feet per second, before it slammed into the ground, according to the FAA.

ABC News

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VIDEO: The St. Louis Fire Department will test drone technology to see how it could be incorporated into its operations. According to officials, the department will conduct a 30-day evaluation to determine how the technology can support emergency response efforts.

Officials hope to gain a better understanding of the technology’s capabilities, limitations and potential impact on decision-making. During the trial, the department will evaluate how aerial data could assist firefighters at various incidents, including fires, hazardous materials incidents and rescue operations.

St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said the aerial imagery provides vital real-time information to responding fire companies before they arrive at a scene. “Watch the drone go to the scene. Most of the times, the drone beats the firetrucks there,” Jenkerson said.

The department currently operates four drones, which are controlled by four pilots. Two drones are stationed at firehouse number 4, and two are located at Kennerly Avenue and Whittier Street.

Jenkerson said the heated and cooled automated units deploy across the city depending on the incident, including structure fires and responses along the river. “The information we have gotten from these drones prior to the companies arriving on the scene, it’s been more than we thought it would be,” Jenkerson said.

KTVI-TV FOX 2 St. Louis

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A massive fire in the south suburbs ended with no reported deaths or injuries on Saturday. The fire broke out at a business and residential building near 127th Street and Western Avenue in Blue Island.

“All of a sudden, you just seen the fire and you just seen a whoosh, and [then] big flames just start shooting out of the top,” neighbor Sidney Brown said.

Brown and others said the brick building at the corner of Western Avenue and Union Street housed several businesses, including a locksmith and a pet groomer, with four apartments above. Much of the building is now destroyed.

“By the time the fire department came, that’s when it got really bad, and they couldn’t get to the dog,” neighbor Catrina Robinson said.Robinson said her friends were some of the residents. They were not inside, but their dog was in its cage.

WLS-TV ABC 7 Chicago

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