The Fairbanks International Airport Police and Fire Department is unique in that their employees are 'cross trained' -- meaning every police officer is a firefighter, and every firefighter is a police officer. "We are both a police and fire department, along with EMS as well. So we are a true public safety, kind of all hazards approach," Chief Aaron Danielson said. The officers have to perform different duties on different days. "Even though an officer is assigned to a fire engine on Monday, on Tuesday he could be out doing drug and alcohol interventions on the East Ramp, or DUI patrol on Wednesday, and Thursday he could be back on a fire engine responding to aircraft emergencies and medical emergencies," said Deputy Chief Roger Stevener. "If the situation evolved fast enough and to a great enough degree, he could even do both things in the same day."  

A changing climate is forcing fire managers to reevaluate their approach to battling disasters — according to a group of local, state and federal agency representatives gathered on Wednesday in Soldotna to discuss agencies' response to the Swan Lake Fire. Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Kenai/Soldotna, called the meeting to discuss management strategies in the wake of the fire, which burned more than 160,000 acres and threatened the communities of Sterling and Cooper Landing. Micciche said the purpose of the meeting was to learn more about how decisions were made in managing the fire and whether those decisions were based on outdated strategies that hadn't taken into account the unprecedented hot and dry conditions of the summer.  

VIDEO: The Fairbanks International Airport Police and Fire Department is unique in that their employees are 'cross trained' -- meaning every police officer is a firefighter, and every firefighter is a police officer. "We are both a police and fire department, along as EMS as well. So we are a true public safety, kind of all hazards approach," Chief Aaron Danielson said. The officers have to perform different duties on different days. "Even though an officer is assigned to a fire engine on Monday, on Tuesday he could be out doing drug and alcohol interventions on the East Ramp, or DUI patrol on Wednesday, and Thursday he could be back on a fire engine responding to aircraft emergencies and medical emergencies," said Deputy Chief Roger Stevener. "If the situation evolved fast enough and to a great enough degree, he could even do both things in the same day." Because the station has to have officers doing both jobs every day, they have equipment that allows them to fight fires with minimal staff.  

The City of Cleveland Fire Department has been charged with discrimination by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after an investigation uncovered evidence that it discriminated against black, Hispanic and female applicants, violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The U.S. EEOC determined that since at least 2009, the Cleveland Fire Department has displayed a pattern of failing or refusing to hire and promote black, Hispanic and female applicants through the use of discriminatory hiring tests and procedures. The EECO found that the majority of Cleveland's firehouses do not have female restrooms, locker and shower room facilities, a Title VII violation. The Cleveland Fire Department denied the allegations, according to the EEOC.  

VIDEO: The victim of a car fire punched two firefighters because he thought they were taking too long to put out the fire. The incident happened near the intersection of Shreve and Natural Bridge Friday evening. Firefighters said they were trying to put the fire out when the car's owner thought they were working too slowly, so he started punching two of them. Firefighters said the man had crashed his car into another. A video shot by a witness captured part of the incident and showed firefighters holding down the man before letting go. He then lunged toward one of the firefighters. The video also shows the man punch one firefighter and that firefighter defends himself, dodges the punch and drops the attacker to the ground.  

The local fire union wants to know why a multi-million dollar surplus, found by Metro government from last year's budget, can't be used to reverse cuts made this year. The city found an extra $4 million in an audit of the last fiscal year, which ended this past June. Now, it's up to Metro Council to decide where that money will go. "We're cut to the bones and we're sawing through bone and we're starting to lose limbs and if we don't have those to function, we can't provide the service that the community deserves," International Association of Fire Fighters 345 President Brian O'Neill said. Just four days after an entire LFD Engine Company was shut down, O'Neill says there was a deadly fire within their alarm district. "Rather than having eight firefighters on two pieces of equipment, you now only have four firefighters on one piece of equipment that is much slower, much less maneuverable, so it arrived on the scene much later in the game," O'Neill said.  

VIDEO: Roanoke's Fire Station 7 was recently demolished after nearly a century of serving Grandin Village, but people got to take a piece of its history home for free this weekend. Roanoke Fire EMS gave away more than 1,000 bricks salvaged from the historic structure, which had stood since 1922. The fire department tore down the firehouse to make way for a new, larger fire station on the same site. Many people sought after the free bricks to complement their own memories and experiences of the "Old No. 7." John Hall, who was among the first to receive a brick, had spent more than 20 years serving as a firefighter out of Fire Station 7 after returning to Roanoke from his Army service in Vietnam. Roanoke resident Mary Beth Crowgey picked up a brick because of how important she believed the building was to Grandin Village.