From Rockport, Texas: A first responder's experience is recalled, including time spent at a notable tragedy. This individual had a long career with a fire department, eventually retiring after 34 years. The recovery efforts following a major event are part of this person's background.
Further details about this experience are available, including the location where the person now resides. A move was made to a new area after retirement in 2012.
The event in question had a significant impact on the nation, and this person's role in the aftermath is part of their story.
(FOX 44) - Born to retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel John Penney, high flying and heroism are in Heather Penney's blood. Penney got her pilot's license at 18 and headed to Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas, where she earned her nickname "Lucky". She was the only woman in her Fi...
(FOX 44) - September 11, 2026 marks 25 years since the the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history. What was the president doing at the time of the attacks? On September 11th, 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush, a Texan in the White House, was visiting a school in Sarasota, F...
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (FOX 44) - A Texas Task Force 1 member who was deployed to Ground Zero, who is now the director of the Texas Department of Emergency Management, recalls his experience. Nim Kidd was a member of the San Antonio Fire Department when he got the call to go to G...
TEXAS (FOX 44) - The last surviving Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Search & Rescue Canine from September 11 was laid to rest on June 6, 2016. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Bretagne (pronounced Brit-nee) was an invaluable partner to members of Tex...
WACO, Texas (FOX 44) - Texas remembers 25 years after 9/11 - and for one Central Texan, he not only remembers, but he's a 9/11 survivor. J.D. Ressetar is a Waco attorney who was in the South Tower of the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11th, 2001 - the tragic day o...
NEW YORK, N.Y. (FOX 44) - The Honorable Brian Birdwell was serving on the Department of the Army staff at the Pentagon 25 years ago - when the September 11th terrorist attacks nearly took his life. Now he's back at the Pentagon carrying the memories of those who never made it out...
KILLEEN, Texas (FOX 44) - If your four-legged bestie has been feeling the Texas heat, we have some doggone good news! The City of Killeen is opening up the pool just for the pups this weekend for the annual Bow Wow Luau! For more information, you can watch our interview above....
WACO, Texas (FOX 44) - Fashion, community and a good cause are coming together in Waco! Mission Waco is hosting its annual "Fashion with a Passion" event. This brings local leaders, boutiques, and designers together for an evening on the runway all to support creative opportuniti...
BELTON, Texas (FOX 44) - A Temple teenager has been arrested in connection with a Belton shooting death in 2025. The Belton Police Department says 18-year-old Jesse Hernandez III has been arrested on a charge of Criminally Negligent Homicide. A Bell County Grand Jury indicted Her...
JARRELL, Texas (FOX 44) - UPDATE: The structure fire on Alsace Avenue in Jarrell has been contained and the evacuation order has been lifted, according to the Williamson County Sheriff's Office. Multiple agencies responded to this commercial structure fire in Jarrell on Thursday ...
SAN SABA COUNTY, Texas (FOX 44) - UPDATE: As of Thursday afternoon, the Kurk Fire in San Saba County is at 822 acres and is 75 percent contained, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service. According to San Saba County Judge Jody Fauley, the fire ignited between Highway 16 and FM-...
Temple, Tx (FOX44) - A downstairs fire in a unit of Temple's The Hilltop apartment complex was confined to one unit with other units receiving smoke damage. Firefighters were dispatched to the complex in the 2400 block of South 61st Street at 10:54 a.m. Thursday and found light s...
