"Rich Etheridge"

Following direction from the State Fire Marshal’s office, all fireworks are prohibited from sale and use in the Juneau area. But Wednesday night’s big public fireworks show is still scheduled to start at 11:59 p.m.

The program provides space at Bartlett Regional Hospital for intoxicated people to rest until they sober up. But the hospital wants to focus more on recovery programs and has plans for a drug treatment unit.

The volume or overall number of 911 calls increased dramatically, as much as 40 percent over the past eight years, a recent study says. Experts say there aren’t enough firefighters and EMTs to respond to simultaneous or overlapping calls for medical emergencies and structures.

Assistant Fire Chief Ed Quinto said construction underway in the building could have facilitated the fire’s spread, but firefighters quickly contained it.

Juneau’s fire department is battling a near 12 percent increase in emergency calls. The higher volume has stretched the department thin and the Fire Chief says additional personnel is the only real solution.

There was at least $100,000 in estimated damage. The cause remains under investigation.

“There’s never enough training,” says Assistant Chief Ed Quinto. “Especially when your life and other people’s lives depend on it.”

Up to 12 times a year, search and rescue agencies send crews out to the West Glacier trail area to find lost and stranded hikers. An Eagle Scout is trying to fix that problem, and teach about the glacier’s history at the same time.

In 2004, an awning patch-job went bad and led to a fire that razed a historic commercial building in the heart of downtown Juneau.

The accident occurred near Glacier Highway and Alaway Avenue just after 10 p.m. Saturday