The 40-by-44 structure will house a pumper and a brush truck. With several Chewelah firefighters living up at the golf course, they could respond to a fire within minutes and won’t have to navigate Sand Canyon Road in their fire truck.

 

Mayor Dorothy Knauss and Stevens County Commissioner Wes McCart cut the ribbons to officially welcome the fire station into service. A brush truck, engine and the department’s new ladder truck were also parked by the new station.

The 27,000-square-foot multi-purpose building will combine four facilities in one – including a police and fire regional dispatch center, police and fire training center, emergency operations center and a fire station – all of which will be open for the public to tour after the ribbon cutting from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 26. During the tour, guests can view the center and witness training demonstrations on the three-story training tower.  

The building was designed by Lemay, Erickson, Willcox Architects of Reston, Va., and cost more than $14 million, which includes the land purchase and building.

Acting Monument Superintendent Patrick Walsh and Fire Management Officer Steve Heppner announced the donation of an extra fire engine from the monument to the town of Dinosaur, making the transfer Friday, Aug. 17. Artesia Fire Chief Troy Zufelt received the truck on behalf of the department.

 

The donated fire engine is a Type 6 engine, designed for use in rural settings. It includes equipment to conduct an initial attack on wildland fires and has room for three firefighters.  

The engine was originally purchased in 1997 for $68,956 and was used in fire suppression activities at Black Canyon, in Gunnison National Park, and Curecanti National Recreation Area. Fire suppression at those locations is now coordinated through an agreement with the Bureau of Land Management Office in Montrose. 

The Ellis County Commissioners earlier this month approved the $113,049 purchase, which is part of a 25-year capital replacement plan for the fire district. The chassis is being ordered from the low-bid vendor, Lewis Ford in Hays, and will come with a cab, a V-10 gas motor and custom-built bed.  

From there it will go to Hays Fire and Rescue’s factory, where they bend, shape, weld and paint the red aluminum body, install it on the chassis, and then add a 500-gallon water tank, fire pump, plumbing to hook together the pump and hoses, and emergency lights.

 

Besides Company Six in Ellis, the Ellis County Fire Department has stations in Hays, Schoenchen, Catharine, Munjor and Victoria, covering 900 square miles of Ellis County. The department’s 85 part-time firefighters are paid per call to respond to wildfires, vehicle fires and farm fires, as well as assist with emergency medical calls, and respond to rescue calls and any other hazardous emergencies.