The West Point Fire Department’s budget will be increased from $96,000 to $1.8 million for the 2023 fiscal year, according to Conor Miller, the president of Local F-7 of the International Association of Firefighters, recordonline.com reported.

With the restored budget, the department plans to repair and replace fire trucks and purchase thermal imaging cameras that will allow firefighters to see through smoke, the report said.

The change comes shortly after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer held a press conference Jan. 11 at the United States Military Academy, where he noted the department’s budget has been slashed nearly 92% since 2014. Schumer said the budget cuts could threaten the safety of both firefighters and Hudson Valley residents, and he asked Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth to restore the department’s budget.

In a Jan. 20 letter to Schumer, Wormuth said her office considered the safety of both firefighters and the Hudson Valley community when they decided to reverse their previous decision, the report said. The Army, she said, would also accelerate the delivery of three repaired fire trucks in February and the completion of the $4.6 million renovation of the Washington Road fire station by September, according to the report.

Effingham County Fire Rescue’s new Station 13, just south of the roundabout on GA Hwy 119 in Guyton, is almost ready for occupancy, the department announced on Facebook Jan. 20. The department is waiting for a signal from the contractor. It has hopes of a February move-in date.

Capt. Hannah Jenkins said, “We are excited for the relocation of the Guyton area station, from the old elementary school on Sixth Avenue to a new, purpose-built station on Hwy 119 South. This new location places the station close to the Guyton roundabout, providing easy response capabilities in all directions.”

Effingham County Fire Rescue’s Hodgeville Station, across from Belmont Glen on Hodgeville Road, took a step closer to opening as paving was conducted, the department announced on Facebook Jan. 17.

Chief Clint Hodges said the station will be a key addition for the Hodgeville community as some areas will see their ISO rating drop from 10 to 3, which will produce a major insurance cost savings in addition to providing a much-improved response time to the entire community.

Hodges is eyeing a move-in date in late March.

The Grand Junction Fire Department officially opened the city’s seventh fire station Monday, Fire Station 8, also known as “Two Pony Station,” gjsentinel.com reported.

The 10,500-square-foot station, located at 441 31 Road, gets its name from two ponies, named Cookies and Cream, whose owners sold the land to Grand Junction, and who still live nearby, the report said.

Station 8 is the second of three fire stations funded by 2019’s First Responder Tax, the report said. Station 6, which opened in 2020, was the first.

A Grand Junction fire official said the construction came in on time and under budget. FCI Constructors broke ground on the $6 million project in April 2022, the report said.

The station will serve an area of about 5,000 homes and 181 business parcels across six square miles, with a population of about 13,000-15,000, the report said. The city anticipates a call volume of about 2,500 calls a year in an area that is also served in part by the Grand Junction Rural Fire Protection District and Clifton Fire Protection District.

The Marbury Volunteer Fire Department is recovering after a tornado ripped down walls and bent garage doors Jan. 12, wsfa.com reported.

The storm caused the ceiling in the fire station to collapse, the report said.

The station says it needs help loading hoses, organizing gear, and more. It is those day-to-day tasks that can make a volunteer fire department more efficient at responding to disasters.

Those interested in volunteering with the Marbury Volunteer Fire Department can call or text (334) 380-6800.

The fire department will be temporarily in their old station along County Road 20 and County Road 143 because of the storm, according to the report.

SUN PRAIRIE, WI – Fire houses across the country are preparing to handle a different kind of flame in 2023. Celebration candles. 20 different fire departments are celebrating the 20^th year of having their Fire Facilities training towers in 2023.

Since 1989 Fire Facilities has manufactured all-steel training structures for fire stations and training programs. The first tower was placed in Traverse City, Michigan, more than 30 years ago. Now, in 2023, fire stations from Alaska to North Carolina are celebrating two decades of hard work and service with their Fire Facilities training towers.

“The Lieutenant is very durable and has withstood our abuse in training for the past 20 years,” says Fire Chief Greg Ray, with the Ashland Fire Department in Ashland, Kentucky. “The tower has been very beneficial to our overall training. We’ve incorporated it into a multitude of training scenarios. The structure has held up pretty good over the years and we haven’t had any major repairs we need to address.”

The Lieutenant is a 34-foot tall training building with a burn room annex. Atop the four-story fire training building is a parapet roof guard with a chain opening for easy rappelling and roof exercises. Other locations with The Lieutenant training facilities marking their 20^th anniversary in 2023 include North River Fire District in Palmetto, Florida; Pleasant Hills Volunteer Fire Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Jacksonville Fire Department in North Carolina; Wellsville Fire Department in New York; Jasper Fire Department in Indiana; Maysville Public Works in Kentucky; and, Palominas Fire Department in Hereford, Arizona.

U. S. Air Force bases obtaining The Lieutenant in 2003 for training include McChord Air Force Base in Washington; Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota; Creech Air Force Base Fire Department in Indian Springs, Nevada; Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland; and, Scott Air Force Base in Illinois.

Celebrating in Connecticut

For the historic town of Glastonbury, Connecticut, this is a double anniversary year. The town was incorporated in 1693, so this is its 330-year anniversary. It’s also the 20^th anniversary of the town’s Assistant Fire Chief training tower. This four-story structure includes a burn room annex, residential section and fire training tower.

“We use the building about 25 times a year,” says Fire Chief Michael Thurz with the Glastonbury Fire Department. “It’s an important aspect of our overall training program because we are limited in doing the required training on your typical commercial or residential building.

“In addition to live fire, we use the building for laddering, search and rescue, and standpipe evolutions. This structure allows my department to stay in town for annual live burns. Overall I’ve been satisfied with the tower.

“If someone is looking to get a Fire Facilities structure, my advice is to design a building tha