Alabama fire station reopens months after fatal shooting

Patrick Hilsman
·1 min read

Dec. 13 (UPI) -- The Birmingham, Ala., fire station where a firefighter was fatally shot in July reopened Wednesday.

Jordan Melton was fatally shot at Birmingham Fire Station 9 on July 12. The shooting also wounded firefighter Jamal Jones.

Authorities said the shooting occurred at about 8:30 a.m. and that there were indications it was "targeted."

"We don't know why it would be a targeted attack; that's one of the things we're trying to determine," said Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond in July.

"As you are aware, this station has been closed since the tragedy we had happen on July 12. This is the first shift change we have had since that incident occurred" Battalion Chief Clay Hendon told reporters Wednesday. "As you can tell from the exterior of the building, there's been several renovations done. There was a lot of damage done during that incident."

ABC News reports that investigators have not yet identified a suspect in the killing.

Crimestoppers is offering a $15,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest, and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has offered an additional reward of $5,000 for information.