VIDEO: A dozen firefighters from Owensboro’s sister city of Olomouc, in the Czech Republic, are in town this week for training.

The visit is part of a firefighter exchange program established in 2024. Owensboro crews trained in Olomouc two years ago, and a delegation from Olomouc visited last year to plan this week’s return trip.

“The main purpose was to exchange knowledge, the differences between the systems of fire protection and also differences and similarities between our communities,” Lenka Gräsleová, head of crisis management and civil protection for Olomouc, said.

Gräsleová said Czech crews use less water and nozzles, use a single-rope system for rescues compared with Owensboro’s two-rope system, and do not pair firefighters with police on active shooter calls, as is done in the U.S.

“It’s really great to see how things work here,” Śimon Slavíček, an Olomouc firefighter, said. “The houses are completely different, the amount of water you use, the approaches.”

WFIE-TV NBC 14 Evansville

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VIDEO: The City of Miami is rolling out its pink fire rescue truck for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Artist Romero Britto helped transform the truck with a custom design for its annual October campaign.

The design honors Kristin Jordahl, who worked with Miami Fire Rescue for nearly 20 years. She lost her battle with breast cancer in 2020.

Jordahl discovered the cancer through a self-exam and fought for 12 years before she passed away at age 48.

With this truck rolling through the city for the next 30 days, city officials hope to share her story to help save lives.

“We’re out to encourage everyone: make sure you get screened early. If you feel anything weird, see a doctor, get your mammograms. Make sure that you are doing preventative care to make sure that you can hopefully avoid this; if not, get the care that you need,” said Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Pete Sanchez.

WSVN-TV FOX 7 Miami

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VIDEO: One person died and another was critically hurt after police say a driver ran a red light and flipped his Jeep into two people in a crosswalk Monday night. The crash happened around 9:45 p.m. Oct. 5 at Northeast Andresen Road and Northeast Van Mall Drive, according to the Vancouver Police Department.

Police say a Toyota RAV4 was headed west on Northeast Van Mall Drive with a green light when it was hit by a southbound Jeep on Northeast Andresen Road that ran the red light. The impact caused the Jeep to roll over and hit two people who were in the south crosswalk on Northeast Van Mall Drive crossing with the signal, police said.

A 34-year-old woman died and a 43-year-old man was critically hurt after police say a Jeep ran a red light in Vancouver and flipped into a crosswalk. The driver faces DUI charges.(KPTV)
A 34-year-old woman died at the scene. A 43-year-old man was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition.

Police arrested the Jeep driver, 26-year-old Noah Merchant, on suspicion of DUI, vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and reckless driving. He was booked into the Clark County Jail. A 20-year-old woman riding with Merchant was arrested on suspicion of minor in possession, police said. The Vancouver Police Department Traffic Unit is continuing to investigate.

KPTV FOX 12 Portland

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VIDEO: Spokane Fire Department (SFD) says crews worked to put out a kitchen fire Monday night. KREM 2 sent a crew to the scene, where officials confirmed the fire started in Sweet Tooth, a donut shop located on S. Grand Blvd. Crews closed down S. Grand Blvd. to put the fire. SFD says an investigation into what caused the fire will begin shortly. No injuries were reported.

KREM-TV CBS 2 Spokane

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Washington State University and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) are partnering on new wildfire research. WSU says this new initiative “pairs university research with industry expertise to address wildfire-related challenges across the Pacific Northwest.”

The university already has extensive research into things like wildfire behavior and ecosystem recovery from a wildfire, health impacts of wildfire smoke, and using AI to detect fires quickly. Washington State says SEL complements its research strengths through decades of global leadership in electric power system protection, automation, and communications.

“Wildfire is a complex challenge that touches virtually every sector of our economy and every community in our region,” said Kim Christen, vice president for research at Washington State University. “This partnership reflects the best of what WSU and SEL have accomplished together over many years. By bringing together WSU’s multidisciplinary research expertise and SEL’s industry leadership, we are building a model for collaboration that can generate practical solutions, strengthen resilience, and create lasting impact for Washington and the Pacific Northwest.”

KREM-TV CBS 2 Spokane

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