Fire/Rescue

Five St. Joseph County-based departments played a critical role in helping extinguish a large-scale fire Friday morning in Vicksburg. A 4 a.m. blaze at a former paper mill required the services of 10 fire agencies to douse an intentionally-set blaze at the 435,000-square-foot building. The facility, which has been dormant and used only for storage, served for years as the …

The 18th Great Lakes Burn Camp in Kalamazoo County had the support of a number of St. Joseph County fire departments Sunday. Some of the 64 children attending the five-day camp at Pretty Lake in Texas Township were driven to the location by personnel from five departments in the county, as well as a team from the Marcellus Fire Department. …

The city of Three Rivers this week recognized Captain Mark Ankney for his 30 years of service to the Three Rivers Fire Department. Mayor Tom Lowry on Monday read a proclamation detailing Ankney’s longevity and accomplishments with the department. Afterward, Lowry presented Ankney a copy of the proclamation while the audience gave a standing-ovation to acknowledge Ankney.

Two county millage renewal requests and an additional renewal request in White Pigeon Township were approved during Tuesday’s primary election. The countywide votes saw the St. Joseph County Commission on Aging earn a six-year renewal of three-quarters of a mill. In addition, three-quarters of a mill renewal for six years was granted to the county E-911 central dispatch. Both renewals, …

Personnel from fire departments in Sturgis and across the county are in mourning after learning Monday about the weekend passing of Ladd Carpenter, Sturgis assistant fire chief. A 45-person search for Carpenter’s body was staged Sunday morning after the 55-year-old Sturgis Fire Department veteran failed to show up for an early shift Sunday. Undersheriff Mark Lillywhite said searchers focused their …

A 74-year-old Elkhart County man was charged with arson following an incident Friday evening in White Pigeon Township. According to the Michigan State Police, the man allegedly set fire to a rental unit in which he was residing, in the 71000 block of Aldrich Lake Road. There were no injuries and no other adjacent structures were damaged by fire, heat, …

Divers from the Michigan State Police recovery unit had no success in a search Thursday for locating the remains of Venus Stewart. Acting on a tip, divers spent the morning searching a stretch of the St. Joseph River in Colon Township, adjacent to her parents’ residence on Driftwood Drive. A cadaver K-9 helped pinpoint an area to search, but divers …

The process aimed at sustainable and more equitable funding for the Three Rivers Fire Department (TRFD) Ambulance Service continued to move forward Thursday evening (July 26) with the latest ‘Community Development Meeting’ (CDM) of officials from the City of Three Rivers and Fabius, Lockport and Park townships. City officials presented draft agreements between the city and each of the townships …

The City of Three Rivers has rescinded the burn ban declared on June 27. That’s the word from Fire Chief Dan Tomlinson of the Three Rivers Fire Department (TRFD) who said, “Surface weather data has finally fallen below high-risk levels.” In announcing the lifting of the ban on burning, Tomlinson noted the city’s household burning ordinance and said the fine …

The Colon Community Fire and Rescue Department has announced a new fire chief and rescue captain. Board members of the fire-and-rescue agency said Matt Overholt will serve as chief. He succeeds Tim Doenges, who resigned after a 13-year tenure due to family reasons. Overholt was selected last week from a field of three applicants. Meanwhile, Todd Wadsworth was named the …