BRISTOL, Tenn. — Bristol, Tennessee, is opening a new fire station near Holston View Elementary in hopes of helping more residents.
The station has been in operation since July, but fire department representatives gave News 5 a tour of the new facility and showed them its new features.
Fire Chief Mike Carrier of the Bristol, Tennessee, Fire Department said the new facility features numerous improvements, including safety measures that protect firefighters from deadly cancer-causing substances.
“This station has an exhaust removal system, an air scrubber system that captures and scrubs out all the carcinogens from the oils and fuels and exhaust from these trucks,” Carrier said.
The new station replaces the old station 2, which was built in the 1960s.
Carrier told News 5 that longevity was an important consideration when construction began on the new facility.
“These features built into this station make it a station that can serve the people of Bristol and this special region for the next 50 years or so,” he said.
One of the firefighters working at the station says he is grateful for the new job.
“Definitely a big improvement over what we had. Our station was small. Some of our rooms were more or less open spaces. At this station, you have your own room. If you have the opportunity to do that, you can sleep better,” said firefighter Preston Cox.
The station even has a communal shelter designed to be a safe space for people who need it in any situation.
Those who need the room simply lock the door and use the telephone that connects them to the operations center.
Firefighters also hope that the station’s location will enable faster response times.
“Our goal is to have the first unit and first crew on scene within four minutes of the first structure fire call. At previous locations, it has been quite difficult to meet these timelines,” said Carrier.
To officially open the station, a hose disconnection ceremony, similar to a ceremonial ribbon cutting, will take place on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m.
