
Kelby Hutchison
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Ga.
(TNS)
Jan. 28—Columbus will soon have a new firehouse to help serve its citizens.
Fire Station 5, 6700 Lynch Road, will be replaced by a new building next to it, Columbus Fire & EMS division chief John Shull told the Ledger-Enquirer.
Fire department officials conducted a groundbreaking ceremony at the site Jan. 17.
The current Fire Station 5 was built in 1985 and has “required a lot of work recently,” Shull said.
“It really is time to get a new station built at Station 5,” Shull said.
The current station has three bays and will continue to have three bays when the new station is built, according to Shull.
The station houses Engine 5 (fire truck) and Medic 2 (ambulance).
The last fire station built in Columbus was Station 9 in 2014, Shull said.
Shull said it feels good to be getting a new fire station. “I can tell you that for the firefighters that are assigned to that station, it’s a real morale boost,” he said.
“We really want to thank the mayor and the council for allowing the funding that is going to make this new station possible,” Shull said.
Columbus has 14 fire stations, according to Shull.
Shull said there’s an emphasis on building new fire stations more conducive to protecting firefighters.
“The station will provide a room for extractors (washing machines) that can clean the protective equipment that firefighters wear,” he said. “The ice makers for the water our firefighters put on the trucks will not be in the apparatus bays, and rooms will be built for protective equipment to be stored away from living spaces.”
Shull said a new and improved fire station is not only good for the firefighters, but also the community they serve.
“An efficiently and safer built station allows for firefighters to do their job safely and provide an optimum service to the community,” Shull said.
Cost of new fire station in Columbus
Fire department officials said the new station has an estimated cost of $4.5 million and will be funded through SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax).
They said the goal is to finish building the new station by the end of the year.
This story was originally published January 28, 2025 at 11:02 AM.
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