Emergency station gets improvements
Upon one of the hills in Queen City’s business district, the Emergency Service District No. 2 volunteer station is taking on a first-class appearance.
At night, the tall American flag gleams. In daytime, one can see the building is being extended outward in back.
And recently, on a Saturday morning, young fire cadets and their leader were making headway out front, building a stone wall for signage and a more striking, solid appearance.
The effort has been slow and steady, reports volunteer leader Eric White, yet is the result of a personal philosophy of both himself and the department.
“First, everyone is helping. Then we believe that a volunteer fire department is not something you should be able to drive past and not know what it is. It should stand out as something to be proud of, not something you don’t know anything about until the moment you need it and make a call,” White said.
First, there’s got to be the flag, he said. Then, the buildings and grounds have to be well-attended, as if someone were concerned.
“There’s a reason volunteers are spending their Saturdays pouring concrete, painting poles and making improvements,” he said. “This is paid for by public, the public’s needs are to be recognized and it’s something to be proud of.”
At the moment, the station is being expanded because inside the current building, all space is taken up by equipment.
“We have a lot of equipment and it is all kept in good condition. That’s not the problem,” White said. “We just need more room. Right now, both the chief and I have trucks at our homes. The new addition will add bays in front and three rooms at the back for the laundry, air-pack, equipment and a workshop.”
The volunteers have done the concrete and other construction themselves while the heavy steel work was contracted out.
“We have a lot of people who can do a lot of things, so we do it ourselves even if it takes time. We have about 40 cadets as well, and we work them in small groups. We don’t have much costs as a department and the voters in their wisdom voted a small tax to fund the district as well as a recent small sales tax. All money goes for equipment and upgrades. We have a lot, but we also do a lot.”
Out at the district’s training grounds near the old Queen City baseball fields, the volunteers are building a training center, he said.
“We do a little at a time. We are making progress.”
White said the emergency district’s area goes from O’Farrell to Red Hill and on up almost to Graphic Packaging International Inc., and then almost to Bloomburg. The district has stations at Antioch and Domino, and they, too, are scheduled for improvements.
Cadets helping recently have included D. J. Stagner, Connor Alexander, Drake Moore, Dylan Noble, Hunter Brannon, Dalton Croley, Cirus Garfee and Ryan Kennedy. The men include Lucas Owens, Kendall Collier, David Jackson, Sammy Dotson and fire chief Chuck Weerts.
In the future, the entire fire station will be painted a dark gray with red trim. The public can expect to see continuous activity at the facility.
One of the planned additions will be an area left open in the ground for installation of brick pavers that can be inscribed with memorials to honor citizens and families.
This area will reside at the base of the tall flag pole and will deepen the connection of EMS No. 2 and its public, White said.