St. Joseph Police and Fire merging

ST. JOSEPH, Mich.-- Police squad cars will look a little different starting Wednesday.

The words "public safety" will be put on each car.

This week, the city's common council approved a plan to merge the city's police and fire departments into one safety department.

About half of the police officers on staff will be cross trained as firefighters.

The officers who are cross-trained will be called public safety officers, the first ones will hit the streets in a couple of weeks.

St. Joe's City Manager, Frank Walsh, told ABC 57 News the move will save the city about $700,000 a year.