13-year-old boy dead, several in critical condition after crash on I-17 in Phoenix

VIDEO: A 13-year-old boy has died and several others, including two kids, are in critical condition after a serious crash on Interstate 17 near Union Hills Drive in Phoenix on Thursday night. The Department of Public Safety says two SUVs were involved in the wreck just before 9 p.m. when one of the drivers lost control and struck the other SUV. Both SUVs rolled over, ejecting three out of four people. That includes the 13-year-old, who was riding in the front passenger seat. Two people were in the SUV that was hit, and the passenger in vehicle was also ejected, according to DPS. The Phoenix Fire Dept. says one child and two women were rushed to the hospital in extremely critical condition, while another man and child were also seriously hurt. During the investigation, the southbound lanes of I-17 were closed and traffic was being diverted to Loop 101. The on-ramps from Loop 101 to I-17 were also shut down. All southbound lanes of I-17 reopened around 4 a.m. Friday.
KTVK-TV 3 & KPHO-TV CBS 5 Phoenix (AZ Family)

Detention basin project aims to mitigate Pipeline Fire flooding in west Flagstaff

PHOTO: The City of Flagstaff has secured $2.4 million from a federal grant to begin flood mitigation work in west Flagstaff. The area has been inundated several times in recent weeks as a result of heavy rain over the Pipeline Fire scar. Three large detention basins will be built at the intersection of Elden Lookout Road and Schultz Pass Road on a 20-acre city parcel commonly known as the Y. The tiered earthen basins will be designed to temporarily hold and gradually release water that flows down the Schultz Creek drainage and have a capacity of more than 50 acre-feet, or about 16.3 million gallons. "So essentially instead of one giant catastrophic flood, you should see several hours of flow going through the channel. But it’s flow that the downstream system can accommodate," says City of Flagstaff stormwater manager Ed Schenk.
KNAU-FM 88.7 Flagstaff

Northern Arizona Fire District: ‘Suspicious’ fire destroys doublewide in Kingman

PHOTO: Northern Arizona Fire District firefighters responded to a structure fire that resulted in the total loss of an abandoned building. According to an NAFD news release, firefighters from NAFD and Kingman responded at 1:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 11 to a fire in the 2100 block of E. Packard Avenue in Kingman. Although firefighters “aggressively attacked” the fire and protected surrounding structures, the abandoned house was lost. Upon arrival, firefighters found a heavily involved attached garage/carport with fire extending to the doublewide manufactured home. A second alarm was requested due to the exposures of the adjacent structures. There were no reported injuries and no utilities inside the building. According to law enforcement, the house has recently had criminal activity that is under investigation by the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office. NAFD said the fire is suspicious and the cause is under investigation.
The Miner

Water Safety Expo in Tucson to promote Drowning Impact Awareness Month

Pima County Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation is partnering with Safe Kids Pima County and the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona to host a Water Safety Expo at Manzanita Pool in Tucson on Saturday, August 20. The event, which will feature fire trucks, safety information and giveaways, will coincide with Drowning Impact Awareness Month. According to the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner, drowning was the cause of 12 accidental deaths in 2021. The event is free to attend and will begin at 10 a.m. and conclude at noon. Manzanita Pool is located at 5110 S. San Joaquin Ave.
KGUN-TV ABC 9 Tucson

‘Getting harder and hotter’: Phoenix fire crews race to save lives in America’s hottest city

PHOTOS: The 911 call came in about an elderly man who had fallen outside a storage facility in central Phoenix. The fire crew, who are also paramedics, found 80-year-old Noel laid on his back on the concrete ramp under direct sunlight; he was weak, thirsty and very hot. Noel, an Englishman with diabetes and hypertension, had been moving furniture when his legs gave way. His core temperature was 104F – dangerously hot. (The typical range for a healthy older adult is 97 to 99F.) His blood pressure was also very high at 242/110, and his pulse was racing. Noel had been lying on the piercing hot concrete ramp for about 45 minutes. A firefighter wrapped an ice cold towel around his neck and inserted IV lines into both arms. It was 3.30pm and the outside temperature hovered above 100F – below the average for the time of year in Phoenix, but several degrees hotter than the previous week when monsoon rains cooled the city. This was not an isolated incident.
The Guardian

Northern Arizona first responders help reunite only survivor in deadly crash with beloved toy

VIDEO: In Northern Arizona, first responders went above and beyond their job to comfort a 6-year-old boy after both his parents and brother were killed in a car crash west of Flagstaff. The crash happened on July 26, and volunteers with the Kaibab Estates West Volunteer Fire Department responded to the scene. "When we pulled up, it was just devastation," said volunteer EMT Laurie Granger. "We were kind of amazed. It was a true miracle that there was a survivor in this accident." The crash involved the Stone family. They were driving through Arizona as they returned home from a family reunion in Colorado. The family car reportedly crossed the median, rolled, and collided head-on with a semi that was travelling east on the I-40. Alexander was the only person who survived the crash. His parents, Brian and Alison, and his eight-year-old brother, Oliver, died at the scene.
KSAZ-TV FOX 10 Phoenix

Lake Havasu City Fire Department could receive equipment donation

County emergency management officials are seeking to aid Community Emergency Response Teams in Bullhead City and Lake Havasu City, as both programs continue to develop disaster relief efforts in two of Mohave County’s largest municipalities. Since 2005, the Mohave County Department of Emergency Management has maintained equipment trailers in each city, to be used by community CERT teams under a grant from the Arizona Department of Homeland Security. According to Emergency Management Director Byron Steward, each community’s CERT disaster preparedness program has become more fully developed, with more direct management over those programs. Now, the cities could further improve their efforts next week, under a proposal to transfer ownership of those trailers to the cities themselves.
Havasu News - Metered Site

Car crashes through garage door into house in Marana

PHOTO: The Northwest Fire District responded to a call for a car that crashed into a home. They say the car drove through the garage door into a house located at Desert Paint Brush and Blue Crossing Way. Firefighters confirm the driver was taken to a hospital for injuries sustained in the accident. It is unknown if the driver was the owner of the house. Please stay with KGUN 9 for continuing updates.
KGUN-TV ABC 9 Tucson

First-responders appreciation breakfast held in Mesa

PHOTO: More than 100 fire, medical and police staff attended an Aug. 10 appreciation breakfast for Mesa first-responders hosted by The Summit at Sunland Springs Assisted Living and Memory Care. The breakfast was meant to thank the people who tirelessly serve Mesa residents, according to a release. Also in attendance at the breakfast were Mesa Mayor John Giles, Fire Chief Mary Cameli, Assistant Chief Ed Wessing and Mesa Councilmember Kevin Thompson. Each addressed the gathered crowd and thanked them for their service and sacrifice. “Thank you for your support of public safety,” Mayor Giles said to the attending crowd. “That’s our top priority in city government. We’re looked at as a national leader in this space.” “We care,” said Fire Chief Cameli.
Daily Independent