Firedawgs break ground for new stations

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Heather Stanton
  • 49th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  The Holloman fire emergency services flight broke ground for two new fire stations on base Tuesday.

The new fire stations are needed to replace the existing stations which are outdated and beyond economical repair, said Mr. Wayne Mello, 49th Civil Engineer Squadron fire chief. Also, the new stations will be strategically located for optimum response times throughout Holloman.

Col. David Moore, 49th Fighter Wing vice commander, Col. Mark Engeman, 49th Mission Support Group commander, Maj. Nathan Clemmer, 49th Civil Engineer Squadron, Fire Chief Mello and Mr. Howard Moffett, retired deputy base civil engineer, participated in the ceremony.

During the ceremony, Fire Chief Mello recognized all who had a part in getting two new fire stations approved for construction at Holloman.

"This would not have happened if not for those carrying the torch before us," he said. Mr. Moffett and former fire chiefs had this project in the works since the 1990s.

The current fire station one was built in 1956 when the fire trucks were smaller and were only required for structural and aircraft fires, said Senior Master Sgt. Richard Widmark, 49 CES deputy fire chief. Today, Holloman firefighters have more, larger vehicles and new challenges such as hazardous materials spills cleanup, weapons of mass destruction response and confined space rescue.

The second fire station being built, station three, will allow firefighters to respond to emergencies quicker than is currently possible, said Sergeant Widmark.

"The vehicles and crews need to be on scene, fighting the fire, in a required time," said Fire Chief Mello. "The requirements are one minute for in-flight emergencies, three minutes for ground emergencies and five minutes for structural emergencies. These times are based on studies conducted to determine the best approach to extinguishing fires in their incipient stage."

As it is now, station three is in an old Army building in the North Ramp area, said Fire Chief Mello.

Research is being accomplished to include a consolidated dispatch center for Holloman, said Fire Chief Mello. The Holloman fire department is looking at the possibility of dispatching emergencies for not only the firefighters, but also the 49th Security Forces Squadron and medical first responders with a consolidated 9-1-1 dispatch center. This is an Air Combat Command and Air Staff initiative in the works.

With all their efforts, this was not an effort made by just Holloman personnel. The Alamogordo Committee of 50 pushed for a congressional insert, said Mr. Bill Burt, Committee of 50 chairman and Holloman Wingman. The New Mexico congressional delegation garnered support for an insert of nearly $15 million for the new stations.

The fire stations will be built by Urban and Associates, the contractors who built the Base Exchange in 2006 and the Fitness and Sports Center in 2001.

Both stations are anticipated to be completed in May 2008.

Plans have started for fire station two to be rebuilt after the completion of stations one and three.