The driver of the truck, Billy Hurley, was shaken up and taken to Tug Valley ARH Regional Medical Center for minor injuries.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the driver," said a spokesman for the MVFD. Hurley had minor injuries to his right leg.

The accident happened on State Rt. 65 near the Matewan Little League Baseball Field. The truck went through the guardrails and over the hillside, eventually landing on the tracks below.

The new fire station, which will replace Fire Station 5 on Wellington Avenue and Fire Station 6 on Carolina Beach Road, sustained water and mold damage, and half of the drywall that had been installed needed to be ripped out. Emails obtained by WECT indicate the process to remove the the mold and damaged materials began around Oct. 11.  

Station 5 also sustained damage during the storm, causing the firefighters and staff to be relocated to Station 6.

Additional emails indicate the original plan was to forego sending staff back to the station after the storm and wait for the new station to open. However, those emails say conditions with so many staff at one station are “cramped,” and Assistant Fire Chief Frank Blackley requested that Station 5 be repaired to allow staff to return to that location, as the new station may not be complete until January.

The council in January authorized the $379,000 purchase of land at 4795 Kimball Bridge for the new fire station, intended to improve response times and service delivery in the northwest section of the city.  

The architect is to design the station while ensuring construction costs fall within the budget approved by the council. When the design reaches 60 percent, the city will hire a construction manager at risk or complete the design and bid for construction in 2019, Hogan said.