In early March, Chief Scoggins realized it was almost impossible for us to get timely tests of our own members and that we would lose the resiliency of our workforce if we weren’t able to figure out who was sick and who wasn’t. They recognized the need for us to do our own testing. Previously, a nasal swab was not a skill that EMTs or paramedics were allowed to perform in the state of Washington.
- PUB DATE: 5/18/2020 11:37:49 AM - SOURCE: KUOW 94.9FM - Puget Sound Public Radio

An assault on an elderly woman led to a standoff and confrontation with a suspect, and a fire in an apartment unit Saturday evening. Around 5:30PM Kennewick Police and SWAT were called to the Heatherstone Apartments at 1114 West 10th and found a 64-year-old woman had been assaulted and had a significant injury to her head.
- PUB DATE: 5/18/2020 10:44:21 AM - SOURCE: KXRX-FM 97.1

VIDEO: Twelve firefighters were injured in a fire and explosion in the Toy District of downtown Los Angeles on Saturday evening. As of Sunday afternoon, three have been discharged and eight remain hospitalized. The incident began with a fire that was first reported around 6:26 p.m. on Saturday. As firefighters were responding to the blaze inside the building at 327 East Boyd Street, the site of a butane honey oil supplier called Smoke Tokes, there was a “significant explosion,” said LAFD Captain Erik Scott.
- PUB DATE: 5/18/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KCAL-TV CBS 9 Los Angeles

Police and fire investigators launched a criminal probe Sunday into the cause of an explosion at a hash oil manufacturer in downtown Los Angeles that sent firefighters running for their lives. Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department’s major crimes division were working with the city Fire Department’s arson investigators to determine what might have sparked the blast that shot a ball of flames out of the building Saturday night and scorched a fire truck across the street, police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said.
- PUB DATE: 5/18/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTLA-TV 5 CW Los Angeles

Sunday is the beginning of National EMS Week when the U.S. recognizes those who serve in emergency medical services. According to the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT), National EMS Week was started in 1974 by then-President Gerald Ford. This year in particular, the week is a good opportunity to honor the service that EMTs and paramedics provide to society in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, "one of the most daunting and demanding challenges our country has ever faced," a proclamation signed by President Trump on Friday said.
- PUB DATE: 5/18/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fox Business