The Department of Natural Resources will be turning over 15 surplus wildfire engines to fire districts in wildfire-prone rural communities across Washington state this spring, part of the agency’s annual effort to help strengthen fire response at the local level, the department said in a press release.

“Local fire districts are a critical first line of defense against wildfire,” said George Geissler, DNR’s State Forester and Deputy Supervisor responsible for Wildland Fire Management. “They’re an invaluable initial attack resource, able to reach ignitions early and keep them small. That rapid response time in turn benefits DNR by reducing the potential for larger, more severe wildfires that require multi-jurisdictional response. It is truly a win-win situation.”

These engines were made available through one of DNR’s Fire District Assistance Programs, which offer a variety of ways fire service members in high-risk areas can obtain wildfire-specific engines and other equipment. In 2017, the state Legislature authorized DNR to transfer ownership of surplus engines to qualifying districts in need at no cost to them. This gets vital resources into the right hands to build and maintain a strong first line of defense.

Meanwhile, the Federal Excess Property Program – which DNR facilitates – is a similar program on the federal side that allows fire districts serving frontline communities to acquire Forest Service engines and equipment on loan, again at no cost. DNR then uses House Bill 1168 funding to customize those federal resources to the specifications of the local fire department, making the equipment better suited their specific needs.

“Strong working partnerships across the local, state and federal levels are so critical when it comes to fighting wildfire,” Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove said. “Suppression efforts are interconnected, often in ways many people aren’t aware of. I’m committed to ensuring Washington’s towns continue to have the tools they need to be prepared to defend against wildfire.”

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Livonia — Livonia plans to put a $150 million bond issue before voters in August to build a new police station, renovate the city’s five fire stations and hopefully pave the way to create a downtown in the city.

The Livonia City Council is set to weigh ballot language later this month for a 1.43 millage that voters would decide on during the Aug. 5 primary to pay for the bonds. The measure would cost a homeowner $1.43 per $1,000 of taxable value of property.

City officials say their public safety facilities need to be updated and don’t meet the modern needs of both agencies.

Tours of Livonia’s current police and fire headquarters, both of which were built in the 1960s, reveal aging, cramped facilities. Fire trucks are taller and longer than they were when the stations were built, leaving about an inch of clearance in the garages for the current trucks equipped with ladders to pull in.

“We have just been trying to pack more and more and more into the space that we’ve had for 50, 60 years,” said said Fire Chief Robert Jennison. “And I can’t see where we can make it any more efficient that we have. We’re busting at the seams.”

The fire stations, which would stay in their current locations but be renovated if the millage is approved, also don’t have facilities specifically designed to accommodate women firefighters since the department had none until about 17 years ago, said Jennison. And there aren’t enough showers for a whole crew to use at once, meaning some firefighters have to wait to rinse off hazardous materials when they come back from a fire or EMS call.

Livonia Councilmember Rob Donovic, who chairs the council’s capital outlay and infrastructure Committee, said the city intends to build new municipal buildings that will last well into the future. He believes the council has worked hard to make the planning process for a new city center transparent and responsible with taxpayer money.

The buildings “need to do their job,” he said. “…We need to make sure we’re doing a good, efficient job on something that’s going to last 100 years into our future,” he said.

At the Livonia Police Department at Farmington Road, south of Five Mile, Capt. Eric Marcotte with the Livonia Police Department said the department’s disjointed layout has been a function of just putting things where they fit as the department has grown.

The current police department complex is 55,000 square feet, according to Marcotte. It includes one part that originally housed the city’s water department and another segment added on to connect it with the original police headquarters.

Records for major cases are housed in a dingy room in the building’s basement, with a crumbling ceiling and dangling electrical wires. A few of the department’s special teams have large lockers to fit their gear, including the honor guard members and officers who are part of the regional Western Wayne County SWAT. But rank-and-file offices have narrow metal lockers, reminiscent of a high school.

“There just comes a point in time where the men and women that work here deserve better. They’re out there risking their lives; they’re out there for 12 hours a day,” said Capt. Eric Marcotte.

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Washington — U.S. Air Force airmen with the 62nd Aerial Port Squadron (APS), 446th APS, and the 709th Airlift Squadron from Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, loaded a pumper onto a C-5M Super Galaxy at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, April 8, 2025, according to a story in mcchord.af.mil.

A donated pumper arrived at JBLM via flatbed truck to be shipped to Guatemala in support of the Denton Humanitarian Assistance Program.

The Denton Program is managed by U.S. Transportation Command and allows U.S.-based donors to send humanitarian aid at little or no cost using available space on U.S. military aircraft.

The air shipment demonstrates how Team McChord executes today’s global airlift mission by enabling rapid support to humanitarian efforts.

The post Air Force Readies Pumper for Airlift, Supporting Swift Humanitarian Aid appeared first on Fire Apparatus: Fire trucks, fire engines, emergency vehicles, and firefighting equipment.

Check out the rigs on display at FDIC International 2025. Fire apparatus will be on display at the Indianapolis Convention Center and in Lucas Oil Stadium. Photos by Jonathan Miller.

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