CHARLES OWENS
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, W.Va.
(TNS)

TAZEWELL, Va. — Emergency responders across Tazewell County will soon have access to new lifesaving equipment.

Tazewell County officials announced Wednesday that the county’s ambulance fleet will be equipped with new Lifepak 35 monitors that will provide accurate vital-sign monitoring and improved communication during emergency calls.

The new equipment will be purchased with a $35,000 grant from the Appalachian Power Foundation.

“This investment strengthens our emergency response system in a meaningful way,” Tazewell County Administrator Eric Young said. “Lifesaving care begins with the right tools in the hands of trained professionals, and this grant ensures our EMS teams have the equipment they need to respond with confidence and precision.”

Charles “Chuck” Presley, the board’s Eastern District supervisor and a member of the county’s emergency services committee, said the upgrade will ensure that EMS crews are properly equipped to respond to all emergency calls.

In addition to the county, Presley said EMS crews serving the towns of Bluefield, Va., Tazewell, Richlands, Pocahontas and Cedar Bluff, also will benefit from the new equipment.

“I think everyone is pleased that we are able to do this,” Presley said during a stop at the Daily Telegraph Wednesday. “This just provides better service for every EMS (crew) in Tazewell County.”

Presley said the funding award will ensure that every ambulance carries the same advanced monitors. That means every resident will receive high-quality care regardless of whether an emergency happens on the road, at a ball field, or in the most rural part of the county.

“We appreciate the Appalachian Power Foundation for its ongoing support of our community,” Presley said.

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Appalachian Power realized the need for local EMS crews to be equipped with modern technology during last year’s impact from the remnants of Hurricane Helene, according to Appalachian Power’s External Affairs Manager Jake Holmes.

“We are proud to partner with Tazewell County in providing this resource to the citizens of the county,” Holmes said in a prepared statement. “After the impact we saw across the region from Hurricane Helene, our foundation wanted to ensure that our first responders had the equipment necessary to serve their communities. We appreciate Tazewell County for allowing us to play a small part in helping prepare for emergency situations.”

Young said the new devices will assist paramedics and EMTs with CPR style life support while the patient is in transit.

“It also records patients’ vital statistics while en ro

Matt Kyle, Suryatapa Chakraborty
The Dallas Morning News
(TNS)

A woman was arrested and faces felony charges after she allegedly poked holes in a fire hose as Dallas Fire-Rescue firefighters battled a house fire.

According to Dallas-Fire Rescue spokesperson Jason Evans, multiple units responded just before 1 a.m. Friday to a house fire in the 2900 block of Prosperity Avenue. Evans said crews were able to get the fire put out by 1:35 a.m., but that someone attempted to stab a fire hose as crews worked to extinguish the blaze.

As the fire crews were extinguishing the fire, Jermecia Denise Murphy, of Dallas, allegedly took a knife to one of the fire hoses in an attempt to prevent their efforts, according to a statement issued later by the DFR.

A Dallas police spokesperson said officers responded at about 1:25 a.m. after firefighters called for help and said a suspect intentionally damaged firefighting equipment.

The investigators determined that the fire began in a front room of the house, and was “incendiary in nature,” the DFR statement said.

The statement said the investigation shows that someone used a heat source to ignite combustibles in the room where the fire originated.

Authorities determined that Murphy, 32, was the person who started the fire, after multiple people on the scene witnessed her admitting to starting the fire while she was stabbing the fire hose.

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Dallas police said Murphy was arrested and faces charges of felony criminal mischief between $30,000 to $150,000 and interference with public duties, a class B misdemeanor, in addition to drug possession charges.

“A charge of first-degree Arson will be added to that,” the DFR statement said.

Jail records show Murphy was booked into the Dallas County jail early Friday.

©2025 The Dallas Morning News. Visit dallasnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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