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Ocala Fire Stations closes due to MOLD
Firehouse shut due to moldy conditions
Move is only temporary
Published July 16. 2003 8:30AM
BY LASHONDA STINSON
STAFF WRITER
OCALA - Ocala Fire-Rescue Station No. 5 is temporarily out of commission.
Since late last week, the fire station's three to four-member crew has been working out of the Fire-Rescue headquarters on Northeast Third Street after city officials received preliminary results of an environmental assessment of fire station No. 5, located at 2340 N.E. 25th Ave. The fire truck remains in the bay.
Preliminary findings showed issues with the air conditioning system such as mold and mildew build-up, possible water accumulation in the base of the walls, loose and missing insulation as well as ventilation problems.
The firefighters are expected to move into a manufactured home that has been placed next to the firehouse by Thursday or Friday. But until then, they will continue to respond to calls from the headquarters - a decision fire officials said has not significantly altered response times.
"Right now we're concentrating on response times in that area," Fire Chief Dan Gentry said. "We are working as fast as we can to get them back out there near the station. The level of service will remain the same."
The average response time from Jan. 1 to July 11 was 5 minutes and 58 seconds, but from last Friday to Monday night, the average time was 6:29, an additional 32 seconds to the average response, according to Deputy Chief Bill Mallory said.
"We've been lucky that the majority of calls for the station since Friday have been in the south and west parts of the response zone, where they are housed now," Mallory said. "We haven't had to drive past the station to respond to a call. The calls have been pointing them in the right direction."
The workers were moved out of the fire station last Thursday, right after Johnson, Peoples Architects, P.A. submitted a summary inspection report to City Engineer Bruce Phillips. Indoor Environmental Technologies performed the inspection July 3.
In addition to the other findings, the summary also noted the indoor humidity "seems to correlate with seasonal outdoor conditions," and that "ambient unconditioned outside air" was being drawn into the building through the ceiling and vents.
Phillips said air, mold and carpet samples inside the station's living quarters were taken to a lab for testing. The final results and recommendations from IET are expected this week, he said.
City officials said moving the firefighters out of the building was a precautionary safety measure and was not based on health risks.
"The levels were nowhere near posing a health hazard, but we wanted to be overly cautious and eliminate the possibility," Mallory said.
"The building is 11 years old. We've been dealing with issues with the building over the years and it kept getting more intensive as far as fixing it," Gentry said. "We're were just being proactive and moved our people out there."
In the last couple of years, the station has undergone some repairs to its roof, ceiling tiles and insulation. Mallory said squirrels had begun eating into the insulation and forming nests in the attic.
"It's get to the point where you keep doing repairs, but the problems just compound," he said. "We've tried doing some things to address the problems, but it's time for a permanent fix."
City officials estimate it will take about six months to renovate the building.
City Manager Susan Miller said she will probably present a recommendation to City Council by early August. "We'll have a ballpark figure once we know what actions and strategies we need to take to improve the building," Miller said. "We don't have the money currently in the budget, that's why the city has reserve for these unexpected conditions. We have adequate reserves for these kinds of unplanned events."
Lashonda Stinson covers city government. She can be reached at lashonda.stinson@
starbanner.com or 867-4129.
Move is only temporary
Published July 16. 2003 8:30AM
BY LASHONDA STINSON
STAFF WRITER
OCALA - Ocala Fire-Rescue Station No. 5 is temporarily out of commission.
Since late last week, the fire station's three to four-member crew has been working out of the Fire-Rescue headquarters on Northeast Third Street after city officials received preliminary results of an environmental assessment of fire station No. 5, located at 2340 N.E. 25th Ave. The fire truck remains in the bay.
Preliminary findings showed issues with the air conditioning system such as mold and mildew build-up, possible water accumulation in the base of the walls, loose and missing insulation as well as ventilation problems.
The firefighters are expected to move into a manufactured home that has been placed next to the firehouse by Thursday or Friday. But until then, they will continue to respond to calls from the headquarters - a decision fire officials said has not significantly altered response times.
"Right now we're concentrating on response times in that area," Fire Chief Dan Gentry said. "We are working as fast as we can to get them back out there near the station. The level of service will remain the same."
The average response time from Jan. 1 to July 11 was 5 minutes and 58 seconds, but from last Friday to Monday night, the average time was 6:29, an additional 32 seconds to the average response, according to Deputy Chief Bill Mallory said.
"We've been lucky that the majority of calls for the station since Friday have been in the south and west parts of the response zone, where they are housed now," Mallory said. "We haven't had to drive past the station to respond to a call. The calls have been pointing them in the right direction."
The workers were moved out of the fire station last Thursday, right after Johnson, Peoples Architects, P.A. submitted a summary inspection report to City Engineer Bruce Phillips. Indoor Environmental Technologies performed the inspection July 3.
In addition to the other findings, the summary also noted the indoor humidity "seems to correlate with seasonal outdoor conditions," and that "ambient unconditioned outside air" was being drawn into the building through the ceiling and vents.
Phillips said air, mold and carpet samples inside the station's living quarters were taken to a lab for testing. The final results and recommendations from IET are expected this week, he said.
City officials said moving the firefighters out of the building was a precautionary safety measure and was not based on health risks.
"The levels were nowhere near posing a health hazard, but we wanted to be overly cautious and eliminate the possibility," Mallory said.
"The building is 11 years old. We've been dealing with issues with the building over the years and it kept getting more intensive as far as fixing it," Gentry said. "We're were just being proactive and moved our people out there."
In the last couple of years, the station has undergone some repairs to its roof, ceiling tiles and insulation. Mallory said squirrels had begun eating into the insulation and forming nests in the attic.
"It's get to the point where you keep doing repairs, but the problems just compound," he said. "We've tried doing some things to address the problems, but it's time for a permanent fix."
City officials estimate it will take about six months to renovate the building.
City Manager Susan Miller said she will probably present a recommendation to City Council by early August. "We'll have a ballpark figure once we know what actions and strategies we need to take to improve the building," Miller said. "We don't have the money currently in the budget, that's why the city has reserve for these unexpected conditions. We have adequate reserves for these kinds of unplanned events."
Lashonda Stinson covers city government. She can be reached at lashonda.stinson@
starbanner.com or 867-4129.
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