FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. — The Nassau County Fire Rescue Station 70 is getting a much needed makeover. The station's crew has outgrown the current building, and is using a double-wide trailer to accommodate firefighters.
"Our living quarters are a temporary portable that was brought in, it was an old FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] trailer that FEMA didn't even want anymore," said Station 70 Captain Adam Salzbarg.
According to Fire Chief Rigdon, housing wasn't a part of the original fire station's plans.
"One building was the initial building, and then we had to add on our living quarters and our sleeping quarters," Rigdon told First Coast News.
With the Fernandina Beach area expanding, Nassau County Fire Rescue has outgrown station 70.
"This is where they [firefighters] live for 24 hours and they come back to it every third day for 24 hours," Nassau County Commissioners Chair John Martin said. "And sometimes, they're there for two shifts straight," he said. "Sleepless nights where we are up all night, where we might have seen multiple fatalities including a child or two, come back home somewhere comfortable," added Nassau County Fire Rescue Captain Salzbarg.
Station 70 will move from its original location along State Road 200, to filling a vacant lot on the corner of Old Nassauville and Hardy Allen roads.
"Out of the total number of calls, about 12% of total county calls came in from this territory here where this station will respond to," Rigdon said.
The investment of moving to a new location, isn't limited to the fire station just changing into a new facility, but something that'll change the well-being of the station's firefighters, too.
"We want them to be ready to respond and we want them to have a nice place to come back to because our folks see bad things," said Rigdon.
The fire chief says firefighters will be working out of the new station starting in January 2025.