Marion Body Works, a leading national manufacturer of commercial truck bodies, fire & emergency apparatus, custom cabs, custom engineered vehicles, and defense bodies, will celebrate the grand opening of its new manufacturing facility with an official ribbon cutting ceremony Friday, October 21. This event will be held from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. (CST) at 105 Plank Road in Shawano (WI).  

“The opening of our new Shawano manufacturing facility is a momentous occasion worth celebrating,” said Curt Ignacio, president and CEO of Marion Body Works. “This ceremony will not only commemorate the continued success and growth of Marion’s presence in the industry, but also the emergence of new jobs in the Shawano and surrounding northeastern Wisconsin communities.”  

The new Shawano facility is Marion’s second operating plant in Wisconsin, just 22 miles east of its main headquarters. Over the past five months, the Marion Body Works team has been transitioning the commercial truck body line into the new facility. Covering 113,000 square feet of manufacturing space and 7,000 square feet of office space, this expansion carries a goal of enhancing throughout and acting as a catalyst for continued growth of the product line.  

With over 100 years of expertise, Marion Body Works has worked diligently to develop high quality solutions that are tested and trusted—from commercial truck bodies and custom engineer vehicles and cabs to defense and fire & emergency vehicles. With a focus on excellent workmanship and honest value, Marion Body Works is always looking for creative, passionate, and dedicated people to join their team.  

For additional information about Marion Body Works, including a list of current job openings, visit https://www.marionbody.com/ or https://www.marionbody.com/about/careers.  

iDriveArkansas reported an Interstate 40 crash Wednesday involving two fire trucks and a tractor-trailer near Conway (AR), KATV.com reported.

According to iDriveArkansas, the westbound right lane of I-40 remains blocked due to an accident involving two Conway Fire Department fire trucks and a tractor-trailer at mile marker 122, the report said.

Traffic is being to Highway 65 at exit 125. Currently, no injuries were reported.

Faulkner Co: (UPDATE) I-40 WB left shoulder remains blocked to remove fire trucks & tractor trailer that were involved in an accident near Conway (mm 122). Travel lanes are open. Monitor at https://t.co/cV0NdpEKer. #artraffic #cnatraffic #arnews
https://t.co/5zalpqSiTJ

— IDrive Arkansas (@IDriveArkansas) October 5, 2022

Firefighters at the Douglas A. Melton Fire Station on Midtown’s Lafayette Street in Mobile recently sounded their own alarm when they noticed ceiling tiles were falling and they were covered in what appeared to be mold and mildew, MyNBC15.com reported.

Turns out it was worse than that.

Asbestos, used to prevent fire but later deemed to be cancer causing, was a construction staple when the station was built. Working with the city of Mobile’s Architectural Engineering team, crews are now in the process of clearing all of that out, the report said.

According to a fire official, they have replaced the fiberglass insulation, cleaned out the duct work, they’ve done deep cleans and anti-microbial treatments of the ducts and vents, the walls and everything, according to the report.

And if everything continues on schedule, the inside work should be done by the end of this month, followed by a few cosmetic touches, the report said.

Cheyenne marked the official beginning of a construction project Wednesday that will bring three fire stations to new locations, WyomingNews.com reported.

The ceremonial groundbreaking at the site of the new Station No. 5, 4200 Converse Avenue, was the culmination of a multi-year mission to expand Cheyenne Fire Rescue’s footprint, reduce response times and make residents safer, the report said.

The construction of all three stations is made possible by voters’ approval of a sixth-penny sales tax extension in November 2021. The total cost of building the three stations is expected to be about $21 million, a city official said Wednesday, according to the report.

Station No. 5 – which was built in 1963, according to Cheyenne Fire and Rescue’s website – will be relocated from 2014 Dell Range Boulevard. Station No. 3, located at 1720 Cleveland Avenue, was built in 1981. These two are the oldest operating fire stations in the city, the report said.

The relocated Station No. 3 will be located off Nationway, near the Ashley HomeStore. The completely new station, No. 7, will be on the west side of Whitney Road at Countryside Avenue, near the Sinclair gas station and U-Haul Moving and Storage of east Cheyenne, the report said.

Once construction begins, it will take about 11 months to complete each new station, according to the report.

Oglethorpe Power donated land to Monroe County so they could build a new fire station in place of the one that burned down last year, 41NBC.com reported.

Monroe County Commissioners approved by a 3-0 vote October 4 to accept the donation of four acres of land on Ray Hartley Road from Oglethorpe Power for the location of a new Smarr fire station, according to a Monroe County Board of Commissioners Facebook post.

The new station, which is slated to open in 2023, will replace the former one on Evans Road that burned down in November 2021, according to the Facebook post.

A fire official said the land the old fire station sits on in Smarr isn’t big enough for what they want to build, according to the report.

The fire official said the donated lot is level with quick access to the freeway. They want a station big enough for the fire truck, rescue truck and ambulances, the report said.

A city official said the new fire station will be state-of-the-art with an engine, ladder, sleeping quarters and more, according to the report.

The county is starting the bidding process and hopes to break ground within the next month, the report said. It will take about a year to build the new fire station.