Wash. fire station reopens with grant funds

By Paul Suarez
The Columbian

BATTLE GROUND, Wash. — Thirteen of Vancouver's soon-to-be newest firefighters ventured north on Monday morning to torch an uninhabited home near the intersection of Southwest Scotton Way and state Highway 503.

It was one of the final training exercises for the recruits, who were hired with money from a $2.3 million federal grant to replace firefighters lost due to budget cuts. The extra bodies will make it possible for the Vancouver Fire Department to reopen Station 6 on Northeast 112th Avenue on Nov. 7. The station has been closed since Jan. 1.

"It's a morale booster just to have a station back open that closed. It's a morale booster to have new firefighters in the system," Vancouver Fire Chief Joe Molina said.

Full story: Fire Station 6 rises from the ashes