Nov 19, 2017 4 min read

More than a decade ago, members of West Alexander Volunteer Fire Company started working on plans to construct a new fire station more suited to accommodate its changing needs.

The 10 years paid off this weekend as the firefighters opened the doors to the new station on Main Street to residents, business owners and supporters at an open house Saturday. The new station is connected to the old, refurbished fire hall by a breezeway.

Fire Chief Eric Graham said in 2006 the members started working on a long range plan, making needed purchases of equipment in anticipation of focusing on a new station.

“By the late 1990s, early 2000s, we realized we needed more space, especially as the fire trucks got bigger,” Graham said. “We had five trucks wedged in the old station, all exiting through two doors. That made it very challenging.”

Initially, they started looking to purchase property in another location. But they were able to purchase the property adjacent to the building that once housed the Grimes garage. The garage was torn down in March.

The cost to build at that location, including purchase price of the property and to renovate the existing station cost about $343,000, Graham said, compared to the $650,000 if they built at a different spot.

“It was very important for us to stay in town,” he said. “We have a very successful junior firefighter program and having it in town makes it easier for them to get here.”

The location also makes it easier to access Interstate 70. Crashes account for about 35 percent of the department’s 330 emergency responses each year.

The new station features five spacious bays to house the trucks parked on an epoxy-coated floor.

“We actually have enough room to get in and out of the trucks,” the chief said, adding there is also more room to hang firefighters’ protective gear.

The department relied on grants and donations to finance the project. Graham said local residents also helped out. Two members of the community helped, donating time and equipment to raze the building. Other local contractors did carpentry, electrical, plumbing and heating work. The signs on the front of the building were made and painted by a local resident.

Curtis Helsley, president of the fire department, said the whole department came together to complete the project.

“We tried to follow our predecessors’ footsteps, who did an outstanding job,” Helsley said. “They worked together to get the job done.”

Years of penny-pinching by the department paid off, he added.

“The community was overwhelmingly supportive,” Graham said. “People would pop in throughout the building process and see how things were going.”

As members of the community toured the new station, they also got a chance to see how much it costs to outfit a firefighter, from bunker gear to self-contained breathing apparatus as well as to equip the trucks.

“I think some people will be surprised,” Graham said. “They probably don’t realize how much it costs.”

A complete set of bunker gear including coat, pants, boots and hood costs about $3,000. While the National Fire Protection Association suggests replacing the set every 10 years, Graham said it may only last four years for firefighters who are very active in going into burning buildings. Self-contained breathing apparatuses, donned by firefighters to enter burning buildings or go into a hazardous situation, also cost thousands.

This is the third fire station for the department since it was founded in 1931. The first station was in the basement of the former First National Bank. In 1951, the West Alexander American Legion donated the property on Main Street for the station. The truck bays were moved to the lower level and the upper floor was closed in and used for meetings and training in the late 1970s.

A building is not the only new thing for the department. In September, the department took delivery of a 2016 Ford F550 rescue truck to replace a 1994 Chevrolet. Next month, they will take delivery of a new brush truck to replace a 1998 model that is no longer serviceable.