A divided council voted this week to approve a $9.8 million construction contract for a new fire station at 65th Street in Ocean City (MD), mdcoastdispatch.com reported.

In a work session Tuesday, the council voted 4-3, with Councilmen Matt James, Peter Buas and John Gehrig opposed, to approve a contract with Delmarva Veteran Builders totaling $9,821,637 for the construction of Station 3, the report said.

While officials agreed something needed to be done to improve living and working conditions, those in opposition questioned the need for a new facility and the impacts it would have on the town’s budget, according to the report.

Last November, the mayor and council approved moving forward with the construction of a new fire station at a total cost of $10.5 million, with $10 million dedicated to construction and contingencies and nearly $500,000 dedicated to design, the report said. The new, 23,500-square-foot facility will be relocated from its current location at 74th Street to the parking lot of the town’s public safety building on 65th Street, the report said.

In a presentation this week, a fire department official said the current facility at 74th Street has fallen into disrepair and no longer meets the needs of the department. He said the building lacked space, parking and adequate bedrooms and bathrooms, among other things, according to the report.

The city of Chilton held a groundbreaking ceremony Friday for the new fire station, the fire department said in Facebook post.

Mayor Thomas Reinl lead city officials in the groundbreaking ceremony, along with representatives from the Chilton Fire Department, McMahon and Bayland Buildings, Inc.

The 8,648-square-foot, $2.7 million facility is scheduled to be completed by September.

This facility will house all of the fire department vehicles and apparatus. The new fire station will allow the Chilton Police Department to expand its outgrown facilities, utilizing space previously used for the fire department equipment.

Some features of the new fire station include: larger vehicles bays that are able to accommodate modern fire apparatus, improvements in lighting and aesthetics via windows and glass doors, along with energy efficient HVAC and electrical systems.

Fire crews will continue to operate out of the existing station until construction is complete, ensuring no disruption to service or reduction in response capability.

The New Bern Fire Department is getting new equipment to replace outdated gear thanks to a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), wcti12.com reported.

The grant is worth $304,451 and has been used to update the Self-Contained Breathing Apparatuses (SCBAs), the report said.

Cumberland Times-News, Md.
(TNS)

Mar. 4—CUMBERLAND — Strong winds that moved through the region early Saturday downed trees and power lines and left thousands without electricity. The winds also toppled a section of the Frostburg Fire Department’s South Water Street station.

By 3:30 p.m., according to Potomac Edison, outages in Allegany County were down to about 3,300 from a high of more than 7,500 earlier in the day. Most of the remaining outages were in the Frostburg area.

There were about 800 without electricity in Garrett County and 1,825 in Mineral County, West Virginia, after more than 3,300 had been without power earlier Saturday. Most of those were in the Keyser and New Creek areas. Another 1,000 were reportedly without power in Grant County, West Virginia.

In a statement, Potomac Edison said it hoped to have service restored to those remaining without electricity by Monday evening. “With additional crews on the way to assist in the restoration effort, we hope to have many areas restored sooner,” the statement said.

Volunteer firefighters across both counties were busy clearing trees and checking electrical hazards. Numerous roads were blocked prompting the Allegany County 911 center to activate its Emergency Call Mode just after 8 a.m. Firefighters at all stations in the county were called to staff their stations due to the large number of emergency calls dispatchers were receiving.

The Frostburg Fire Department Station No. 1 suffered damage. The south end of the structure was damaged. Firefighters, including the county structural collapse team, were called there at 8:50 a.m.

A high wind warning issued by the National Weather Service remained in effect until 4 p.m. Gusts of 30 to 40 mph were reported with some reaching more than 50 mph.

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