Kalamazoo/Battle Creek Airport in Portage conducts emergency preparedness exercise

The Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport conducted a full-scale emergency preparedness exercise Thursday morning. After closing briefly at the beginning of the drill, the airport simulated a 90-seat aircraft crash with 50 victims, some of which were volunteers. These exercises are done once every three years and provide invaluable training for airport crews. "It’s big for our team here at the airport to understand exactly what to expect in the event of a large full-scale exercise or full-scale disaster here at the airport," said Anton Bjorkman, Deputy Director of Operations and Maintenance. "So not just for our team, but everybody else, mutual aid agencies in the community. It’s huge deal for everybody," he added. Emergency responders and volunteers assisted with the exercise, while evaluators gave performance feedback.
WWMT-TV CBS 3 Kalamazoo

Northville Township breaks ground on $44M ’Essential Services Complex’ at old hospital site

PHOTOS: Construction of the township's new $44 million "Essential Services Complex" is officially underway following a groundbreaking ceremony May 14 at the site of the former state psychiatric hospital on Seven Mile Road. Under construction west of Haggerty Road, the complex will include a second fire station for the township, which officials say is needed to reduce response times to the northeast quadrant of the community, along with a new police department facility with a garage and expanded dispatch center. Costs for the project were originally estimated at $36 million, but did not include the technology budget, furniture, fixtures and equipment or apparatus for the fire station, Northville Township Manager Todd Mutchler said.
Hometown Life - Metered Site

Diver recovering after two vehicles were removed from the Saginaw River in Bay City

VIDEO: A diver trying to remove a couple of vehicles from the Saginaw River on Tuesday suffered a medical emergency. The man and several other emergency responders were in the process of removing two vehicles from the water. The vehicles were a Lexus and a newer Ford pick-up truck. Investigators are trying to determine who last owned them. The diver continues to recover from quite a scare on the river. "It was great news today to get a text from him," says Bay County Sheriff Troy Cunningham. He got that text from Don Middleton, a Marine Division Sergeant and Essexville Fire Chief. It was Middleton who suffered an apparent heart attack while he and other divers and first responders were in the process of recovering a vehicle from the river. He was given CPR.
WJRT-TV ABC 12 Flint

Highland Park Fire Department fully staffed for the first time in 40 years

For the first time in 40 years, the city of Highland Park’s Fire Department is fully staffed. That’s a significant milestone for the city as it’s faced a lot of financial challenges. Until recently, the Highland Park Fire Department was operating using part-time firefighters, Chief Erik Hollowell says. “Nothing against the part-time personnel whatsoever. I promise you on that. Majority of the guys I’ve hired full-time from the part time program,” Hollowell told WDET. “So it’s not picking on the part-time program, but in order for you to control what you’re doing, especially for an emergency service, you need to know who’s going to be there. Not have to look at the schedule, who’s coming in today at this time, that time. Now I know who’s there for the rest of the year.”
WDET-FM 101.9 Detroit

Lansing superheroes try to recoup losses after trailer catches fire

VIDEO/PHOTOS: You may have heard of the local superheroes from Michigan’s League of Enchantment. It’s a group of about 20 people who wear superhero costumes and go to local hospitals, spreading smiles to sick children in Mid-Michigan. The organization was moving when a trailer carrying more than $40,000 worth of items blew a tire and caught fire. Costumes, computers, and toys for hospital care packages were destroyed. Now, the league needs some help of their own as they try to get back to bringing joy to kids. The non-profit is made up of people who live and work in Lansing, like President Shamus Smith. On Wednesday, Smith told News 10 how the fire started. “We were moving all of our items from our storage area in Dewitt to our new office in Leslie.”
WILX-TV NBC 10 Onondaga