Several firefighters were overcome while battling a fire in New Jersey that spread to several homes. Four homes were burned and two were destroyed when a fire started in a basement on Passaic Street around 2 p.m. At least nine firefighters were hospitalized and needed assistance after suffering from heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation.
- PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WABC-TV ABC 7 New York

Firefighters in Hingham said they won’t comply with an order from the police and fire chiefs to take “thin blue line” flags off firetrucks, and have asked them to reconsider the decision. Fire Chief Steve Murphy and Police Chief Glenn Olsson explained in a letter to personnel that the blue and black flags, which are black-and-white versions of the American flag with a single blue line in the center, will have to be removed from where they’ve flown atop Hingham fire trucks after a citizen complaint.
- PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: The Patriot Ledger

When a large battery used to power a neighborhood in Surprise failed and began smoking last year, firefighters didn't have a response plan for how to deal with the problem, which contributed to an explosion that injured several first responders. That is one of the conclusions of a report released on Monday about the April 2019 explosion at the McMicken Energy Storage facility near Grand Avenue and Deer Valley Road, owned by Arizona Public Service Co.
- PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: AZ Central - Metered Site

COVID-19 is continuing to fill U.S. hospital beds. As of July 20, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 was over 58,000, or about as high as it was in April, when hospitals in the New York City area were scouring the world for ventilators. Surges in hospitalization rates are now showing up in every state in the South and Southwest other than New Mexico.
- PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Think Advisor

For the last 18 years, family members of 9/11 loved ones have descended on Lower Manhattan in a tradition that is as comforting as it is familiar in its ritual. The names of nearly 3,000 victims read aloud, often with personal messages that have changed over the almost two decades that have passed - heartfelt and sad.
- PUB DATE: 7/28/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Spectrum News NY1