The new $2.3 million fire station in Horry County, SC, is expected to be open by Summer despite some material shortages that have caused delays, according to a report published by WMBFNEWS.

The television station reported that Horry County Fire Rescue Station 13 is state-of-the-art and designed to allow growth of the community.

Ground was broken on the new fire station in February 2020 and, when finished, it will feature 8,000 feet of space and three drive-through bays, according to the report.

The new station, located on Highway 9, will be home to volunteer and career firefighters, according to the television station.

The California Highway Patrol suspects alcohol was a factor in a crash involving a CAL FIRE engine Monday night.

The accident happened in Madera County around 10 on Road 36 and Avenue 33. Police say a car ran through a stop sign and struck the fire engine, causing the engine to overturn.

The fire engine was not responding to a call at the time and firefighters were not seriously injured. The driver of the car was taken to the hospital.

Police said the car matched the description of a vehicle that had already been reported to them as operating erratically. They suspect the driver of the car was under the influence of alcohol.

More than $25,000 worth of equipment was recently taken from the fire station in Whatcom County (WA) Fire District 16 in Acme, according to a report published by KOMONEWS.

The television station reported firefighters discovered the theft when they arrived at the fire station on Saturday night to respond to a call. They found generators, saws, tools, flood lights, and a new battery-powered extrication tool, according to the report.

It was the second fire station in the district to get hit by thieves recently, according to the television station, that reported Oso was burglarized earlier in January.

Investigators believe the thief forced a door to gain entry into the fire station and then checked every compartment on the apparatus in the station, the television station reported. The tools match other equipment taken from neighboring stations over the past year, according to the report. Firefighters in District 16 sought backup equipment and borrowed tools from other departments to fill in the gap created by the theft, according to the report, that commented it might take the tiny volunteer department years to replace the stolen equipment. Police say the theft is under investigation and they could not comment, the television station reported.

According to a report from WPDE, a new fire station is expected to be built at the intersection of Highway 90 and Highway 22 in Horry County, South Carolina, that will house career firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics, said Horry County Councilman, Bill Howard.

There are currently two volunteer firehouses along Highway 90, a station in Nixonville and another in Wampee, which are currently serving residents living along the Highway 90 corridor, but more help is on the way.

Howard said that Horry County Fire Rescue is applying for the FEMA SAFER grant which, if awarded the money, will add more than $6.7 million to the county’s fund for the new fire station, which he expects to be built sometime this year.

Howard also said that adding this station will improve ISO ratings for homeowners, saving them money. This rating is used by insurance companies to reflect how close or serviced communities are for emergencies, like fires.

Howard said the county will be able to adequately fund the new career first responders with or without the FEMA grant, and they have already made budget provisions for it.

Horry County Council is expected to discuss the FEMA grants again Tuesday night at their meeting.

Fall River (MA) firefighters were hampered by illegally parked cars as they fought a house fire during a raging blizzard on Saturday night, according to a report published by 10WJAR.

The television station reported that the first firefighters to arrive had to run up the street to get to the scene as the fire truck they were on was blocked by cars on both sides of the road and one in particular that was parked too close to the intersection.

About 80 percent of the building collapsed due to the fire which displaced 11 people, according the report.

A total of 510 cars were ticketed and 30 were towed by tow truck operators who had to shovel snow to hook chains on the cars for removal, the television station reported.

City officials are talking about increasing parking fines to prevent similar issues from happening in the future, according to the report.