Thousands of firefighters are getting ready to suit up and climb all 69 floors of Seattle's Columbia Center Tower next month for the 27th Annual Scott Firefighter Stairclimb. But they have to earn $300 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society first. Firefighters from Benton County Fire Districts 2 and 4 suited up and spent Sunday raising the funds one step at a time.
- PUB DATE: 2/4/2018 8:46:34 PM - SOURCE: KEPR-TV CBS 19

Private pilots will provide a lifeline to the North Olympic Peninsula after a catastrophic earthquake destroys the region’s bridges and highways, emergency planners say. Clallam County has become the first county in the state to gear up for the big one by adding a disaster airlift response plan to its comprehensive emergency management plan, officials said.
- PUB DATE: 2/4/2018 7:08:04 AM - SOURCE: Port Angeles Peninsula Daily News

Four-year-old Sadie Wehling loves to pretend to put out fires and rescue relatives. When her family drives by a fire station, she asks “What’s in there?” That curiosity led her and many other hopeful firefighters to Vancouver Fire Department’s Fire Station 2 on Saturday, blipping around a crowd of more than 50 who attended its grand opening.
- PUB DATE: 2/3/2018 10:33:56 PM - SOURCE: Vancouver Columbian

Benton County firefighters say they need more resources to keep up with a growing population, and they're asking for the public's help. West Richland has grown by almost 25 percent since 2010, and call times have increased by about 60 percent. Firefighters say response times on the western side average about 16 minutes, and they'd like to get those down to around 6.
- PUB DATE: 2/2/2018 11:41:22 PM - SOURCE: YakTriNews