Muncie fire stations heading towards one replacement and improvements for others after funding concerns

Fire stations around Muncie are suffering dangerous levels of wear and tear. They’re also not designed for modern firefighting. City officials have said they are committed to fixing the issues, whether that includes new builds or expansions. IPR’s Thomas Ouellette reports on the first fire station to be tackled.

Fire officials say that carcinogens on fire safety equipment is in dangerous proximity to living quarters (Courtesy of Dan Burford)

Constant leaks from the ceiling, unavoidable flooding and tightly packed living quarters are just some of the problems that Muncie firefighters have to deal with at their current facilities.

Station 6 at McCullough Park is over 70 years old. The city is demolishing the current structure and will build a new one.

Muncie Fire Department officials have told the public in community meetings that fire rescue equipment holds deadly carcinogen. At the current stations, its forced close proximity to the living quarters put the firefighters at risk. Chief Dan Burford says that the source of carcinogens is the smoke that the firefighters encounter during their deployments.

“Well, those carcinogens get into our bunker gear that we wear in the fires. They absorb into our skin,” he said.

“Studies and the tests have shown that those carcinogens from that gear will float around in the air.”

Part of a new fire station includes creating a negative pressure environment to ensure that the carcinogens are pushed out of the facility.

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After proposing rebuilding two fire stations in March 2023, Muncie Mayor Dan Ridenour brought a proposal for one station rebuild at a cost of about $8 million to the city council in October of that year.

That council and the one seated in January of 2024 agreed that fire station conditions do need to be addressed, but have questioned the overall cost and the mechanics on how to pay for it.

Ridenour has been reluctant to borrow money for other projects in the city, like paving major roads. For this project, he has said repayment money will come from the EDIT tax fund he controls as mayor and an EMS fund controlled by the fire department.

In May, the Muncie City Council approved using bonds to fund the new facility, at a cost not to exceed $8.7 million. Plans include new equipment and better living amenities.

Burford says other facilities in Muncie will also see additional improvements and modifications in the future.

Stephanie Wiechmann contributed reporting.

Thomas Ouellette is our reporter and producer.  Contact him at thomas.ouellette@bsu.edu.