The Olds Fire Department hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday at the site for the new $3.2-million hall, immediately south of the RCMP detachment.
Mayor Judy Dahl said since the department moved to the current location in 1975, the volume of calls the department responds to has grown substantially, with 32 members now responding to more than 300 calls for service per year. The new hall will boast 17,000 square feet of space for the fire department, Alberta Health Services, municipal enforcement and the emergency operations centre
“Prior to 2000, an addition was added to the fire hall to accommodate the need for a training room, offices and answering services,” Dahl said, noting that an additional bay was added in 2003 to accommodate new equipment and the ambulance service.
Dahl also acknowledged the cooperation the town has received from Mountain View County in helping to secure new equipment.
Bruce Beattie, reeve of Mountain View County, said the county is proud to support all the urban municipalities within its borders with funding equipment. Beattie alluded to his involvement in helping to get the Sundre Rural Fire Protection Association going in the early 1970s.
Beattie also paid tribute to the volunteers who attend calls whenever and wherever they are needed. As a volunteer firefighter himself for several years, he said municipalities need to support the volunteers as much as possible to make their jobs easier.
“The least we can do at the municipal level is to make sure we provide equipment, buildings and the training for our members who put their time forward,” he said.
Initial plans were to build the hall in 2003, but Lorne Thompson, fire chief, said financial constraints at that point meant the department had to make do with the current hall until now.
“We've been waiting patiently since 2003 to finish the emergency services area here,” he said.
One advantage to the new hall is that most of the department's members live on the west side of the tracks and can get to the hall much more quickly.
“The majority of my firefighters live on the west side of town, so what this is going to allow for is a better response time. If the train's going through town, right now firefighters have to wait in their personal vehicles for the train to get by, then get to the hall. Whereas now, with the hall set up in this location (west of the tracks) the trucks will actually be sitting at the tracks (full of firefighters) waiting for the train. It actually speeds things up,” he said.
Another advantage to the new hall is that the bays will be 100 feet deep, allowing for two fire trucks to be parked in one bay, with doors at either end of the building to allow the trucks to drive straight through the building.
"The least we can do at the municipal level is to make sure we provide equipment, buildings and the training for our members who put their time forward."Bruce Beattie, reeve, Mountain View County
