The township's new Central Fire Station is fully functional. Firefighters and paramedics began working out of the new building at 5000 Okemos Road at 7 a.m. Thursday.

The new building was authorized through a $3.5 million millage passed in November 2012. Construction began in spring 2015, following a lengthy delay caused by legal action from neighboring condominium owners. The finished building's cost, including legal, design and engineering fees, came in at around $3.44 million. The new facility replaces a building at 2150 Clinton Street that closed in February 2013 due to extensive water damage and mold.

The three equipment bays house various fire vehicles and other equipment, including one very specialized money saver. An industrial-sized machine is for washing turnout gear, the personal protective equipment firefighters wear to fight fires.

Cowper said the new machine and a companion dryer should pay for themselves in a couple of years, since taking the gear to Detroit and back twice a year for cleaning cost around $3,000.

Other features of the new building include a spacious community room with a television, write-on whiteboards and a projector. Cowper said the room will serve many functions, including weekly meeting space for the Haslett-Okemos Rotary Club, which donated $10,000. Homeowner groups and other organizations will also be able to hold meetings there, and fire personnel will use it as a training room.

For more information, view www.lansingstatejournal.com

The speeches marking the grand opening of a state-of-the-art fire station in East San Jose on Saturday touched on common themes about its central location and the goals of reducing response times and galvanizing residents with a new community hub.

And, almost as if on cue, with the fanfare of Station 21's re-dedication in full swing, companies from the San Jose Fire Department hustled to a morning two-alarm attic fire about a mile away.

While those firefighters went to work, more than 200 people packed the three-engine bay of the new facility on South White Road next to Lake Cunningham Park and celebrated a long-overdue upgrade. The previous station, on Mt. Pleasant Road in the east foothills, was a single-family home converted in 1958 and meant to be a "temporary" location.

The 8,750-square-foot building, funded in large part by a 2002 bond package, actually opened in December to fire personnel. Fire and city officials say it's designed to grow by 3,000 square feet if it ever has to be expanded.

Besides a clean, modern aesthetic that incorporates a traditional brick façade -- think Mayberry R.F.D. meets Apple Store -- the new station was designed with green eyes. It has skylights that hold down heating costs and an in-house treatment system to clean water before it goes into the city's storm drains.

It's also the first fire station in the city to have an elevator.

In a city that in recent years has been plagued by staffing cuts and even some station closures, the expansion was a welcome one to fire administrators.

For more information, view www.mercurynews.com

FDNY Ladder 128 pulled Engine 325 out of the intersection of Skillman Avenue and 50th Street in Sunnyside, Queens.

Using a chain that was first connected to the front of the engine, the ladder truck tried, in reverse, to pull the engine free of the area where it was stuck and its wheels where spinning.

When that didn't work, the firefighters connected a chain to the back of the engine and used the ladder to pull it down Skillman Avenue.

For more information, view www.newsday.com

With a little help from our friends. @ACFDPIO @VaNationalGuard pic.twitter.com/Di8ogHaTvo

— OEM Arlington Co.Gov (@ReadyArlington) January 23, 2016

A Virginia National Guard "tank hauler" recovery vehicle towed a fire engine that was stuck in the snow on the 1200 block of North Veitch Street around 3 p.m. this afternoon.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe called 535 National Guard personnel to active duty when he declared a state of emergency ahead of the snowstorm on Thursday.

According to scanner traffic, several emergency vehicles have asked for help digging out of the snow throughout the afternoon.

For more information, view www.arlnow.com

A fire truck and an ambulance got stuck on the ice in Wake Forest Sunday morning.

Emergency crews responding to a call at the Ardmore Heritage Apartments got stuck on the ice in the parking lot.

Backup crews were called to the scene and tow trucks were needed to get the vehicles off the ice.

For more information, view wncn.com