The second of three Osceola County fire stations planned to begin construction within the next year got off to a very public start last week.
A ceremonial groundbreaking was held for Fire Station 45 Thursday. The new station, located near the intersection of West U.S. 192 and S.R. 535 just off of Calypso Cay Way, will bring the County’s fire station count to 17.
It will serve the areas of Vineland Road, West 192 and the Indian Wells subdivision,
Station 45, a $9.5 million project, will continue to utilize a version of the now-standard station design template in use since 2016. It is designed to withstand severe weather events, including wind speeds up to 150 mph, allowing responders to stay in place rather than having to evacuate if a major hurricane came through the area at that intensity. It will be built with space for community meetings, big enough to potentially be used as an Election Day polling location.
Station 45 is slated for completion by summer 2023. It will be staffed by 16 firefighters and house an engine, ladder, rescue, and Battalion Chief unit. The new station will improve the local safety rating, “Resulting in a significant decrease in both the physical and financial risk to nearby residents and businesses,” the county said.
Osceola Fire Chief Larry Collier presided over the ceremony.
“In the last three years, Osceola County Fire Rescue & EMS has added more than 50 additional first responders, both through added funding in the County budget process and through millions of Federal SAFER Grant dollars the department has earned,” he said. “Adding fire stations is a critical and necessary part of keeping pace with the levels of service Osceola County’s growing population deserves. In 2021, our agency exceeded 40,000 calls for service – an increase of more than 10,000 calls over the previous year. These added staff and stations will mean better service for residents and visitors, and a more manageable workload for our amazing first responders.”
“Station 45 is the second time this year that we’ve started work on a new station, which is a tremendous commitment to public safety,” said County Commissioner Peggy Choudhry, whose district 1 includes Station 45 in the bustling West 192 tourist corridor. “The bottom line is that this station allows us to be more responsive – and to increase the service we provide to the community. It will help us respond as quickly as possible when someone calls 9-1-1, which can save lives.”
Earlier this year, Osceola County broke ground on Station 67 near the Austin Tindal Sports Complex on eas Boggy Creek Road.
