Fire officials are asking the public to help keep watch over firefighters’ vehicles at the stations after a rash of break-ins.

In the most recent case, a firefighter returned from a seven-hour stint working a fire to discover his vehicle had been broken into and some of his personal belongings stolen.

The new $2.3 million fire station in Horry County, SC, is expected to be open by Summer despite some material shortages that have caused delays, according to a report published by WMBFNEWS.

The television station reported that Horry County Fire Rescue Station 13 is state-of-the-art and designed to allow growth of the community.

Ground was broken on the new fire station in February 2020 and, when finished, it will feature 8,000 feet of space and three drive-through bays, according to the report.

The new station, located on Highway 9, will be home to volunteer and career firefighters, according to the television station.

The California Highway Patrol suspects alcohol was a factor in a crash involving a CAL FIRE engine Monday night.

The accident happened in Madera County around 10 on Road 36 and Avenue 33. Police say a car ran through a stop sign and struck the fire engine, causing the engine to overturn.

The fire engine was not responding to a call at the time and firefighters were not seriously injured. The driver of the car was taken to the hospital.

Police said the car matched the description of a vehicle that had already been reported to them as operating erratically. They suspect the driver of the car was under the influence of alcohol.

More than $25,000 worth of equipment was recently taken from the fire station in Whatcom County (WA) Fire District 16 in Acme, according to a report published by KOMONEWS.

The television station reported firefighters discovered the theft when they arrived at the fire station on Saturday night to respond to a call. They found generators, saws, tools, flood lights, and a new battery-powered extrication tool, according to the report.

It was the second fire station in the district to get hit by thieves recently, according to the television station, that reported Oso was burglarized earlier in January.

Investigators believe the thief forced a door to gain entry into the fire station and then checked every compartment on the apparatus in the station, the television station reported. The tools match other equipment taken from neighboring stations over the past year, according to the report. Firefighters in District 16 sought backup equipment and borrowed tools from other departments to fill in the gap created by the theft, according to the report, that commented it might take the tiny volunteer department years to replace the stolen equipment. Police say the theft is under investigation and they could not comment, the television station reported.