He was supposed to be trained as a seeing eye dog, there was just one problem: he couldn't turn off his nose. For the past five years, Mako put that nose to work for the Spokane Valley Fire Department as an arson dog. Now, instead of sniffing for accelerants, he's sniffing through retirement. "When I first came up with the idea and presented it to the department I knew it was going to be a lot of work and I knew it was going to be rewarding," Rick Freier, Mako's handler, said.
- PUB DATE: 9/26/2015 6:44:21 PM - SOURCE: KXLY-TV ABC 4

He was supposed to be trained as a seeing eye dog, there was just one problem: he couldn't turn off his nose. For the past five years, Mako put that nose to work for the Spokane Valley Fire Department as an arson dog. Now, instead of sniffing for accelerants, he's sniffing through retirement. "When I first came up with the idea and presented it to the department I knew it was going to be a lot of work and I knew it was going to be rewarding," Rick Freier, Mako's handler, said.
- PUB DATE: 9/26/2015 6:44:21 PM - SOURCE: KXLY-TV ABC 4

Too much of a good thing; that's what Stevens County is dealing with: a surplus of donations left over from this historic wildfire season. When the fires swept through Stevens County, the community came out in a big way by donating to the firefighters and families affected by fire. But now there are too many donations left over, and volunteers at the Stevens County Fairgrounds are left to figure out what to do with a warehouse filled with piles of clothes, toiletries and other items.
- PUB DATE: 9/25/2015 7:17:57 PM - SOURCE: KXLY-TV ABC 4

Too much of a good thing; that's what Stevens County is dealing with: a surplus of donations left over from this historic wildfire season. When the fires swept through Stevens County, the community came out in a big way by donating to the firefighters and families affected by fire. But now there are too many donations left over, and volunteers at the Stevens County Fairgrounds are left to figure out what to do with a warehouse filled with piles of clothes, toiletries and other items.
- PUB DATE: 9/25/2015 7:17:57 PM - SOURCE: KXLY-TV ABC 4

Friday, firefighters didn't stop their day of training when we arrived - but they did let us join in. It took me a while to get outfitted in my 30-40 pounds of gear, but for firefighters, it's usually a lot faster. Then, we loaded up the truck, and made it into the training building - flames and all.
- PUB DATE: 9/25/2015 6:18:08 PM - SOURCE: KHQ-TV NBC 6