VIDEO: With the fires in western Nebraska over the past few weeks, much attention has been placed on the role of firefighters — both paid and volunteer. But a bill to change how they obtain compensation for job-related cancers stalled in the state’s Unicameral on Monday.

“Those fires are a vivid, painful reminder of what we are actually talking about when we debate this legislation,” said Fremont Sen. Dave Wordekemper, who introduced the legislation. “The men and women who answer the call, no matter the scope of the emergency.”

Nebraska’s 49 state senators spent three hours Monday morning debating LB 400, which would have changed the burden of proof for workers’ compensation when a firefighter gets cancer — presuming any cancer they’re diagnosed with is work-related until proven otherwise.

It wouldn’t have changed any eligibility for those firefighters, but would have moved the burden of proof to the employer. “Right now, a firefighter notifies their employer that they have cancer and has to prove it on their own, while sick, while fighting for their life, that the cancer came from the job,” Wordekemper said. “Right now, the deck is stacked against them.”

KOLN-TV CBS 10/KGIN-TV CBS 11 Lincoln-Grand Island

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PHOTOS: A boathouse fire in Lorton, Virginia, prompted a large response from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department crews early Monday morning.

Firefighters were called to the 10700 block of Old Colchester Road, where they arrived to find a boathouse fully engulfed in flames, according to officials.

The fire had already spread beyond the structure, extending into nearby brush. Video released just before 3 a.m. by the department shows heavy flames and smoke pouring from the boathouse as firefighters worked the scene. No injuries have been reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

WSET-TV ABC 13 Lynchburg

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Firefighting foam containing toxic PFAS chemicals have contaminated drinking water across the country for decades. The so-called “forever chemicals” have been linked to serious health problems, including some cancers.

The state of New Jersey has partnered with the remediation company Revive Environmental to help fire departments and academies remove and destroy 150,000 gallons of the toxic foam. New Jersey is investing $16.6 million in state appropriations to fund the disposal of aqueous film forming foam, which it will ban in 2027.

“We [used to] use it in car accidents on the side of the road, and then it goes into a ditch on the road, which goes into the waterway and we have the potential to contaminate a lot of things — now we don’t have that potential,” said Rob Gancarz, fire chief of the Jacobstown Volunteer Fire Company.

PFAS, widely used in consumer products such as nonstick cookware and waterproof clothing, have been linked to serious health problems, including some cancers, thyroid disease, developmental delays in children and other health conditions.

WHYY-FM 90.9 Philadelphia

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VIDEO: Two firefighters were injured while battling a fast-moving apartment fire that escalated to a second alarm, according to the Houston Fire Department. Crews arrived to find heavy fire and smoke coming from the building. The fire happened at 10501 Holly Springs Drive in Houston.

Footage of the heavy flames was posted to Facebook by Grizzy’s Hood News. As firefighters worked to contain the flames, conditions rapidly worsened, prompting officials to call for additional resources. During the response, a second-floor balcony collapsed, sending a captain and another firefighter to the ground. Both were injured in the fall.

The captain was transported to Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center, while the firefighter was taken to Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center. Their conditions have not been publicly released. One civilian was treated at the scene for minor injuries, officials said.

KPRC-TV NBC 2 Houston

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Four houses were destroyed in a fire in Atascosa County, according to authorities. Multiple agencies responded to the fire around 1:40 p.m. Thursday in the 100 block of Way Cross Road, near Old Pleasanton Road and just south of the Bexar-Atascosa county line.

As of Thursday afternoon, the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office said the was contained. The four homes are considered a “total loss,” the sheriff’s office said. No injuries have been reported. Linda Andrews is one of the people who lost her home in the fire alongside her neighbor Robin Silva. “We have nothing but what we have on our bodies,” Andrews said. “We have alive people and alive dogs. That’s it.”

Atascosa County Fire Marshal Ronald Sanchez said seven vehicles were also destroyed. Sanchez believes the fire started as a grass fire, and he is investigating how it spread. Mark Montgomery, assistant fire chief of Bexar County Emergency Services District No. 2, said an estimated five to 10 acres were involved in the fire.

KSAT-TV ABC 12 San Antonio

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