He said that Station 7 is at least 60 years old and has exceeded its lifespan. Future plans for the station would house EMS crews with firefighters for the first time.

Firefighters will be housed in temporary facilities while construction is underway.

“It’s very important for the citizens to know that we’re taking the steps to basically locate those companies in the same area,” Nugent said.

The station was finally finished and turned over to the fire-rescue system in April, and began operation on May 30. System Chief Keith H. Johnson said within 27 minutes of going live, the station crews were out on a call, and as of early this week had already responded to 104 calls.  

“Today’s a milestone in the history of our Loudoun County Combined Fire and Rescue,” Johnson said. “For me, it’s quite the honor to be a chief and opening a new fire station. I don’t know how many chiefs around the country get to say that.” He said while some fire-rescue departments are shrinking and laying off staff members, with taxpayer funding from the county Board of Supervisors, Loudoun’s department continues to grow.

A persistent computer problem in Engine 1 may bump the truck to the top of the list as far as replacement goes, taking priority over Engine 2 which is scheduled to be replaced next year. The technical difficulties with Engine 1 - a 2002 apparatus - have been ongoing and irreparable according to fire department staff. Fire Chief Terry Bell presented two options to the board for moving forward with the issues: replace both trucks at the same time, or replace Engine 1 and go about repairing Engine 2 to extend its life.

Replacing both engines at the same time would offer some benefits, according to the outline provided by Bell, such as having two trucks with similar components and features requiring similar training. Buying two engines at the same time could result in a discount, but companies were hesitant to give estimates on what that discount might be. Bell estimated replacing Engine 1 for between the amounts of $675,000 and $790,000 while replacing Engine 2 might fall between $565,000 and $690,000. That option could be funded using the equipment reserve account, which currently has a balance of $354,551 and bonding the remaining balance. Bonding for ten years would give the department time to pay off the units before needing to replace Tower 3 which is due in 2030, Bell explained.