Firemen sacked for using fire engines to meet women

Nineteen
firefighters in Sacramento, California have been disciplined for using city fire engines to meet women, including at a local event in which people dressed as porn stars, an official said today.

Six firefighters have been fired and 13 others have been suspended or reprimanded following the largest internal probe ever by the Sacramento Fire Department, said Captain Niko King, the department's spokesman.

The misconduct investigation began in early July after reports of firefighters using city vehicles to cruise bars in the often sleepy state capital.

Later six firefighters were caught taking three city vehicles to a "Porn Star Costume Ball".

A woman at the event accused one of the firefighters of sexual assault aboard a fire engine.

Prosecutors dropped the charges after determining the sexual encounter was consensual, King said.

"It's an inappropriate use of city equipment, obviously," King said.