Héctor Chaves, director of the Bomberos, said that they attend these incidents in the company of police because it is not the first time that the vandals have stoned the units.

But, on Saturday night, they had 16 calls, five of them in Parrita, three in Alajuela, seven in Heredia and one in San Jose. During one of the calls, the crowd started stoning the fire trucks when the firemen tried to put out the flames.

The 8,800-square-foot building wasn’t built on the location of the previous hall, but rather at a site with easy access to Highway 15. The dirt work for the building project and placement of water lines was completed already last year.

The building itself was finished this February with room for the department’s five fire trucks and two ambulances. In addition to space for vehicles, the facility also boasts a kitchen, meeting room, EMS storage rooms, office and work rooms, with a second-story mezzanine for storage.