ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — Five years and $49 million later, St. Johns County is looking to stock up for a safer tomorrow, with a plan approved during Tuesday’s Board of County Commissioners meeting to bring four new fire stations to the county.
St. Johns County Fire Chief Sean McGee, who called the move unprecedented, told Action News Jax the plan would significantly cut down response times in times of crisis.
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“It will allow us to get resources to those areas a lot faster,” McGee said. “Travel times will be reduced, and will also allow us to keep other stations in-house to cover their zones, not having to fill in these gaps that we have right now in the county.”
The five-year plan also includes a brand new, first-of-its-kind training facility for St. Johns County Fire Rescue, something McGee said promises to help with the recruitment of the 105 new firefighters needed to fill those new stations.
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“People that want to come in, will see a multimillion-dollar facility that they’ll be able to train in and hone their skills and continue to face the challenges in this job,” McGee said.
The five-year plan will also include expansions to the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office headquarters and a brand new medical examiner’s office, all to meet the public safety needs of a county with a booming population.
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