As the coronavirus pandemic continues to unfold, Iowa's first responders say the state should no longer hold off on declaring Emergency Medical Services an essential service. That status is something EMS workers in Iowa have sought long before COVID-19. Being declared "essential" would require ambulance service across the state, instead of relying on a patchwork of volunteers, agencies and providers.
- PUB DATE: 5/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Public News Service

VIDEO: A fire truck, adorned with a large American flag, tipped over shortly before 11:30 a.m. Monday in Plumstead Township, Bucks County. The view from Chopper 6 showed the truck on its side in a parking lot. The extended ladder was on the ground, stretched across the roadway in the area 4040 Ferry Road.
- PUB DATE: 5/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WPVI-TV ABC 6 Philadelphia

The spread of the novel coronavirus has not slowed in 24 states, according to a new model by Imperial College London that forecasts infection spikes as more people travel and leave their homes in the coming weeks. Why it matters: Nearly every state across the U.S. has taken steps to reopen their economies partially or completely, including some regions and industries that are deemed "low-risk" for spreading the virus, per a New York Times analysis.
- PUB DATE: 5/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: AXIOS

A "cluster outbreak" is responsible for Spokane County seeing double-digit increases in cases for five days in a row, according to the Spokane Regional Health District. According to SRHD spokesperson Kelli Hawkins, the outbreak was among a specific group of people and health officials aren't worried about seeing community spread from the cluster.
- PUB DATE: 5/26/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KREM-TV CBS 2 Spokane

Centralia College East offered its wildland firefighter certification program for the first-time this spring. Adjustments had to be made before its first students could even get started. With the restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Centralia College East was forced to scrap the face-to-face portion in the beginning of the course and move even more content into online modules provided by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group.
- PUB DATE: 5/25/2020 3:44:57 PM - SOURCE: Centralia Chronicle