Fire officials say no one was badly hurt. Four adults were taken to Rhode Island Hospital and two children were transported to Hasbro Hospital. The youngest victim was a six-month-old.

The project is set to move forward soon, as the City of Cullman has already purchased land to build on. In January, the city agreed to purchase 3.97 acres from Merchant's Bank, at a cost of $325,000. The property is located on Alabama Highway 157, beside the Merchant's Bank branch at 4855 Alabama Highway 157, just east of Piggly Wiggly. Officials have been eyeing the highway corridor due to its easy access and close proximity to the new retail and industrial growth on the north side of the city.

Earlier this year, the city set aside $163,000 to finalize a design for the station, and engineers worked with Cullman Fire Rescue to ensure the final plans fit the needs of the growing department. The new station will feature additional bays for vehicles, and officials believe the location is an optimum base to serve the economic and construction growth on the north side of the city.

The award of a new $1.1 million grant set to fund a dozen new fire fighters served as a major catalyst to get the project off the ground. The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant will be used to hire a total of 12 new firefighters, and the grant will fund those new hires for two years.

Cullman Mayor Max Townson said the project is a long time coming, and though construction is in north Cullman, noted it will improve response time across the city.

The council, which received an update about the fire station project from Brooks at its Monday night meeting, probably won't make any final decisions about the project until at least the winter, when it begins putting together next year's budget.

In the budget it approved last spring, the council declined to approve a $127,000 down payment on a roughly $2.2. million fire station, which has been under discussion for almost a decade, but set aside the same amount for design and construction work for the station. That work is now underway at a town-owned lot on U.S. Route 202, next to the former Carleton Woolen Mills building, which is the department's preference for a new site.

That amount, $127,000, was equal to the annual payments the town had been making on an unrelated 10-year loan, which was repaid last year. Because that $127,000 was freed up, Brooks has argued the project would not increase the town budget.

"I got a quote for $428,000," Schabert said. "Typically we replace our trucks every 15 years but we've let it go a little longer in the past. This one is 20 years-old."

The city has $176,000 saved for a new fire truck so far, and will add another $20,000 to the fund before the end of the year. Revenue from the city's gambling fund has also gone toward new fire trucks in the past, and usually has about $40,000 available each year.

Schabert said that the contract for the new fire truck must be signed by Oct. 25 and paid for within four months, giving the city until this winter to come up with the remaining $196,000. Schabert said he might be able to get another $30,000 by selling the old truck.

The council discussed waiting a few more years to raise more money before replacing the fire truck, but McCabe pointed out that the interest from a bank would be cheaper than the rising costs of a new truck. Schabert said truck prices could go up between 11 to 13 percent by next year, whereas the bank has a 3 percent interest rate.

Council member Tyler Miller asked how much the fire department spends for repairs each year. Schabert said it was about $15,000, but that money is budgeted separately from the funds for a new truck.