VIDEO: The Abilene Fire Department said an early morning fire at an apartment complex was intentionally set. Kevin Earl Spurlock, 31, is charged with arson and terror threat of family or household. His bond has not yet been set. The fire at the Briarwood Apartments started around 6:15 a.m. Sunday.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTXS-TV ABC 12 Abiline

About 10 p.m. on the night of Feb. 8, 1933, guests staying on the fourth floor of the Millard Hotel in downtown Omaha began to notice flames licking out of windows on floors below. Minutes later, the hotel’s lights went dark. By 10:04 p.m., the first alarms were called into Omaha fire stations, according to World-Herald archives.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Omaha World-Herald

The newest Franklin firefighter is the second female firefighter in the city’s history, and the first in a while. Diversity is a priority of the Franklin Fire Department, and one that is starting to come to fruition. Casey Whitaker is not new to Franklin or public safety. She worked for Seals Ambulance Service since 2016, and was an EMT for nine years.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Daily Journal

The mutant coronavirus strain first identified in the United Kingdom remains at low levels in the United States but is doubling its reach approximately every 10 days, according to a study published by researchers on Sunday. The study bolstered modeling done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which predicted last month that the more contagious variant could be the dominant strain in the U.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: CNBC

PHOTOS: Investigators are trying to determine what sparked a fire that gutted a home in Tacoma early Monday morning. Crews responded to the scene, in the area of South 92nd Street and South Yakima Avenue at about 3 a.m. after receiving reports of a heavily involved fire. Smoke and flames were billowing from the home when the first firefighters arrived on scene.
- PUB DATE: 2/8/2021 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOMO-TV ABC 4 Seattle