Fowler Fire Station 88 fully staffed and serving the community

FOWLER, Calif. (KFSN) -- The City of Fowler's new fire department is now fully staffed and ready to serve the community.

"It's exciting to have that resource here. It's been a long time coming, just wrapping up the second phase of our fire department, and having a fire department located here in town means, not only for the city but for the community here as well," explains Assistant City Manager Eric Rocha.

Rocha continues to share that operating Station 88, which was once run by volunteers, is possible through a three-year contract with Fresno County Fire that will cost the city about two million dollars each year.

He believes it's worth the price because local residents will be safer, with some response times going from 8 minutes to as fast as 30 seconds.

And having a fire station within five miles of city limits eases access to fire insurance.

Rocha says, "For a while they were having issues for ISO ratings and insurance, so now the residents, having that here, are able to get that letter for the insurance companies, get better rates, but also just the engagement with the community, showing the resources we do have."

Firefighters officially moved in over the weekend.

The station will be staffed with at least two people at all times.

And in just a few weeks, it will also house a new fire engine.

It's similar to this reserve apparatus.

"This is a type 1 engine with 2,000 gallons per minute pumping capacity. We carry everything like chainsaws, auto-extrication, all the medical emergencies," mentions Deputy Chief at Fresno County Fire, Ryan Michaels.

Michaels calls the new station a win-win not only for the city and the department but also for residents

Especially when time is of the essence, "Seconds can make the difference, whether it's a fire growing in intensity, damaging things; some of those heirlooms can never be replaced. Or whether someone having a life-threatening emergency, arriving within seconds instead of minutes, could make a huge difference," expresses Michaels.

The fire department's nearby networks from Selma and Fresno will still respond for support.

In just a few weeks, there will be an open house for families to tour the station and meet their local firefighters. Updates will be made available on the Fowler Fire Department's social media pages.

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