Calypso Cay, Poinciana stations also under construction or on drawing board
Residents along Boggy Creek Road and those who use Austin-Tindall Sports Complex can now feel confident that a call for urgent help will now only be a few minutes away.
Osceola County Fire Rescue Station 67, right outside the sports complex's gates, held its official grand opening Tuesday morning, in front of a crowd that included county officials and local residents, who are invited to visit now that the station is up and running.
The site is nearly equidistant, about seven miles, from existing stations in Narcoossee and Buenaventura Lakes. By adding a station, the fire department's Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating of how it's capable of serving the community in the area drops from 10 to 3 — a very good thing as lower numbers are better — meaning nearby residents could see a small reduction in their property insurance rates.
"This station represents an increased level of service, a huge impact for our response times to emergencies in this Boggy Creek corridor," Osceola County Fire Rescue Chief Larry Collier said. "Having more responders and more apparatus to respond helps the entire system."
County Commissioner Ricky Booth, whose district 5 includes communities along Boggy Creek Road, said that adding another station to the county, wherever it is, benefits everyone.
"Station 67 is evidence of our commitment to expand the system to better serve the public," he said. "As all of you know, there's been a ton of growth that's happened in this community. Investments like these ensure our residents get quicker responses. We've allocated millions of dollars for new stations, equipment and positions. We have plans to improve the level of service to our residents."
The build process took a year, and the station is fundamentally and technologically state of the art. It has four bays, can house a ladder truck, and has its own generator and fueling system to be hardier in hurricanes. The bunk area, kitchen and lounge areas are spacious.
Staffing for the 20 or so responders who will work at — and live a third of their lives in — Station 67 was initially paid for through federal SAFER pandemic recovery funds, but is now part of the county's budget as those federal funds will run out this year.
The county has plans for two more new stations to be built. Station 45 on Calypso Cay Way near U.S. Highway 192 also broke ground last year and should open later this summer. Plans are in the works for stations in Poinciana and on West 192 between Disney and State Road 429.
