Custom chassis maker SPARTAN MOTORS, INC. of Charlotte, Michigan, has agreed to acquire LUVERNE

Custom chassis maker SPARTAN MOTORS, INC. of Charlotte, Michigan, has agreed to acquire LUVERNE FIRE APPARATUS of Brandon, South Dakota; QUALITY MANUFACTURING INC. of Talladega, Alabama; and SMEAL FIRE APPARATUS of Snyder, Nebraska, for $19.6 million. All three privately held companies manufacture and market fire apparatus bodies and will be merged into Spartan as separate subsidiaries.

Four Firefighters Hurt in Fire in Abandoned Harlem (NY) Building

Four firefighters were injured battling a massive fire that tore through an abandoned Harlem building where jazz icon Billie Holiday reportedly once lived.