Last year, local voters approved $3,750,000 to construct the new, four-bay station on town-owned property next to the town offices.

“All of the fire department’s equipment can now be housed under one roof,” said Fraitzl. “This facility is much more centrally located within the community, which means quicker response times to a larger population of the community.”

Crews left the new station responding to their first medical call about 10 a.m. on Monday, according to Fraitzl, who said the feedback he is receiving about the 11,000-square-feet facility has been positive.

The station will be the seventh fire station for the Awendaw-McClellanville Fire District, and it’s going to be at 1477 Guerins Bridge Road, which is near Charleston Zipline Adventures.  

The purpose of this fire station is to provide better coverage to people living on or near Paradise Island, Woodville, and Guerins Bridge Road, according to Michael Bowers, a battalion chief with the fire department.

“It’s important to give equal protection to everyone in the district,” Bowers said.

About five years ago, the fire department received a report from the Insurance Services Office (ISO). In it, they found out the insurance rating for the Paradise Island area came in at a class ten, while the rest of the department's coverage was at a four, according to Bowers.

Funding for volunteer fire departments is one of the biggest challenges besides managing calls. Marthasville, for example runs off a $300,000 budget, fire chief Jeff Backhaus said. Maintaining a fire truck costs about $35,000 alone, he said.

Luckily, the department’s funding is about to change. The department will receive extra funding through a ballot initiative that passed on April 2 that grants the department a $1.75 million bond. With it, they will build a new fire station and update their equipment. Backhaus said while other departments in the area have less funding, they try to help them out. For example, Marthasville lent its fire truck to the neighboring department, Augusta, when its fire truck was out of service.

Elenbaas said the entire expansion footprint consists of 15,000 square feet and comes with two options: adding onto the existing fire station or constructing a new building on property the township currently owns.  

Officials say the fire department is currently equipped to serve the approximately 25,000 people in Allendale Township. However, the number of residents is projected to grow over the years, and Elenbaas said the township needs to be ready.