Amesbury's historic Elm Street fire station, closed since 2018 due to structural issues, aims to reopen by fall after repairs funded by insurance and city council reallocations.

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Researchers have found evidence showing first responders who were dispatched during the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in New York City, and suffer from PTSD, are aging faster.

Researchers at Stony Brook University tested blood samples from 393 responders that were collected 18 years after the terror attack, according to a university press release.

Out of the sampled responders, 232 were diagnosed with PTSD and 161 were not. Between the two groups, 114 proteins and seven metabolites were significantly different.

In particular, the researchers detected changes in blood markers linked to brain function, immune activity, energy metabolism, protection against cell damage and how cells communicate and repair tissues.

Also reported were signs of accelerated biological aging in multiple organs — including the heart, kidneys, liver and lungs — among responders with PTSD.

WOFL-TV FOX 35 Orlando

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VIDEO: A training center is enabling Polk County firefighters to prepare for emergencies while supporting the area’s rapid growth.

Fire Captain Jon Hall is part of 1,000 men and women who make up Polk County Fire Rescue. He said the department is one of the busiest in Florida, but did not have a dedicated training space.

“We’ve had to borrow places from different organizations to train. Even something as simple as finding a fire hydrant to hook up to, sometimes we just had to find a field on the side of the road in order to do that training,” Hall said.

A new $16 million, state-of-the-art Polk County Fire Rescue training center is officially open in Winter Haven. The 30,000-square-foot facility sits on 15 acres and gives firefighters the ability to train entirely in-house.

“We now have a place that we can all come together. We can train repeatedly until you don’t get it wrong, until you get it perfect. And then when you transfer that to the field for the real emergencies, that’s where the fruits of your labor really show,” Hall said.

WFTS-TV ABC 28 Tampa

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“Go Now” evacuation orders are in effect due to a wildfire in Walla Walla County. The fire, dubbed the Lambdin Fire, started at approximately 10:30 a.m. Monday along Highway 12 near the Wallula Junction before quickly growing to more than 1,000 acres and threatening several buildings, including Cameo Heights Mansion, a luxury bed and breakfast. By Monday night, fire crews confirmed it had grown to 13,300 acres, according to Watch Duty.

As of Monday evening, the fire had burned all the way north of Touchet and was still growing. Level 2 “Be Set” evacuations have also been established for areas east of Touchet North to Highway 124. According to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR), multiple rural roads were closed due to the fire, including stretches of Nine Mile Road, Byrnes Road, Ash Hollow Road, and Touchet N. Road.

Additionally, multiple crashes occurred along Highway 12, shutting down the thoroughfare. According to KEPR TV, smoke from the Lambdin Fire is believed to have caused some of the crashes. No serious injuries were reported. Highway 12 reopened late Monday night. WSDOT is asking both drivers and residents in evacuation zones to avoid the area as fire crews work to contain the fire. Red Cross shelters have opened in both Touchet and Prescott.

KIRO-TV CBS 7 Seattle

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VIDEO: Washington state is experiencing an early and aggressive fire season, with more than 2,500 acres burned since late May, according to the Washington Department of Natural Resources. That’s an area larger than the entire city of Deer Park.

While hundreds of firefighters work the ground, a Spokane-based aerial firefighting company is playing a critical role from above — and now teaming up with a local brewery to support the people doing that dangerous work.

Aero-Flite, headquartered at Spokane International Airport, operates a fleet of nearly 20 aircraft that drop water and fire retardant on wildfires across the United States and Canada. When the Upriver fires broke out weeks ago, Aeroflight’s planes were already in the air.

KXLY-TV ABC 4 Spokane

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