WPAFB, Ohio --
Firefighters at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base took on the Department of Defense and won a two-year battle.
Firefighters said the DOD was wanting to cut firefighters at the base, resulting in possibly putting lives in danger.
News Center 7 has been following this story for two years when the DOD took a look at the Air Force budget and decided to cut firefighters across the country.
As a result, 902 firefighter positions were lost, and 29 of them were at Wright-Patterson.
Since the cuts were made, firefighters at the base have been fighting the decision. They first created billboards to get the attention of the public and took their fight to Washington, D.C. and Congress.
The local firefighters then filed a grievance with the Air Force Material Command, calling the cuts unsafe for everyone at the base and the public in general.
An arbitration hearing was held and a decision was reached. The ruling was made in favor of the firefighters, citing their staffing should immediately be restored to minimum standards, which means Wright-Patterson would get the 29 firefighting positions back.
Roy Colbrunn who is a firefighter at Wright-Patterson AFB said, ??This is providing more protection for pilots, air crew and everyone else at the base.
He also said their objective was to return the safety level back to where it needed to be.
The arbitration ruling is being reviewed and the Air Force Material Command has 30 days to appeal the ruling.
Copyright 2008 by . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
