That risk was paramount for the Harrisburg Fire Department when it built its newest fire station on Rocky River Road.

It has a special room for firefighters to store their gear, complete with a separate ventilation system. That means the rest of the fire station isn't breathing in the chemicals lingering in the gear.

"We're being very aggressive with our training to our firefighters about cancer awareness,” Chief Bryan Dunn, with the Harrisburg Fire Department, said. “We want to be very proactive in what we do to protect our firefighters as well, 'cause they're our greatest asset, our community's greatest asset.”

Assistant Chief Elisha Snider says the boat was a much needed addition since it is the only one in Marshall County among the fire departments. Snider said, in the past, the fire department used their personal boats or relied on boats from other counties.

"We needed a boat that had the capability, not only to just get out there and put out a fire on the water or next to the water, but a boat that we could get people on that are injured and have room to work on them," Snider said.

The flames broke out in a rear dorm room on the second floor adjacent to a furnace in the wall, said Oceanside Fire Department Battalion Chief Scott Stein.  

People driving by saw the fire at 3101 Oceanside Blvd. and reported it, said Stein.Twenty-seven firefighters from Carlsbad and other stations in Oceanside responded to the scene to put out the fire. The five Oceanside firefighters who were on duty with Station 3 were not available at the time the flames broke out.

The committee decided that with the “intense growth” in the Bluffton area-- they believe that will bring additional impact fees that offer additional funds to complete the entire project without county assistance.  

As of May 29, no contract has been signed, so the estimate is subject to change, but officials are hoping to have a contractor officially hired and the preliminary work can begin within the next 60 days.