Homegrown heroes

Odessa High senior Garrett Fuquay has wanted to be a firefighter since the moment he realized there weren't enough to go around.

He was a little boy then.

Now, he is taking advantage of the new fire station on the Odessa College campus. The station is a collaborative effort between the city and the local community college to recruit and train firefighters.

Fuquay was one of 14 ECISD and 16 OC Fire Academy cadets present on Wednesday morning at the grand opening of the new Fire Station 4 on the corner of Golder Avenue and University Boulevard.

Mayor Pro Tem Royce Bodiford, City Manager Richard Morton, parks director Steve Patton and other city officials lined the station with firefighters and cadets to admire the new facility and trucks.

Odessa firefighters Bob Ryan and Michael Marquez joked that the old station could have fit inside their new firetruck. Not only is the new building bigger, but drivers no longer have to back out into a busy street blocking traffic, Ryan and Marquez pointed out.

Odessa Fire Chief Rick Dietz said there were safety issues with the old Fire Station 4 because it was nearly impossible getting the trucks in and out. Dietz said the new building allows the trucks to drive through with ease.

The trucks are what drew Permian senior Miguel Reyes to firefighting since he was a little boy. He said he has enjoyed training in the new firetrucks because of the "state-of-the-art technology."

Reyes will graduate from high school in May with a certificate ready to fight fires in Odessa.

And the new structure was built with these students in mind. There are extra rooms for the cadets.

Odessa College President Gregory Williams described the project as a "neat incubation thing going on at the station." 

It will serve as a lab for students as well as a source of motivation, he said.

"The location is no geographic accident," said Clayton Alred, the OC vice president for instruction.

OC donated the land for the new building.

OC fire academy coordinator Dave Parker said there is always a supply-and-demand issue when it comes to fire service, and this project is an incentive to address that issue.

LeeDon Martin, department chair of emergency services and fire technology, said he is awaiting the approval of an Internet-based fire academy to entice even more firefighters.

"It is about protecting and serving our community," Williams said.

NO. 4 FACT FILE

>> The city paid for the trucks and building, and OC donated the land.

>> The total cost of the station construction was $1.5 million.

>> The city paid $690,000 for a ladder truck and $325,000 for an engine.

>> Original Station Four was built in 1963 (46 years old) and had 4,195 square feet.

>> The new station has 7,847 square feet (3,652 square feet larger).

Source: City of Odessa