District 11 station nears completion
Howell "Howie" Dennis is the news editor for The Crowley Post-Signal. He can be reached at howie.dennis@crowleytoday.com or 337-783-3450.
Chief Chad Monceaux, who will be leading Fire Protection District 11 once the new station is operational, has found himself looking at the skies recently.
“The weather hasn’t been cooperating,” he said during a Friday interview. “We are hoping to have it finished by the end of August. I’m definitely ready.”
Monceaux said that the station already has the equipment lined up aside “from a few small things we can use.”
“We can use some more fire fighters, too,” he said. “We have 28 already signed up but we need more.”
Until the station opens, the Crowley Fire Department will continue to respond to calls in the District 11 area.
“We have been averaging five to eight calls a month,” said Monceaux. “They cost anywhere from $3,500 to $5,000. Hopefully, it won’t be much longer and the people of Acadia Parish won’t have to help pay that cost.”
The funding for the new station was made possible by a 50-50 matching Volunteer Firefighter Assistance Grant. Despite the help the grant provided, Monceaux is still hoping the community helps out with some donations “to help us move towards completion.”
“We are a non-profit organization so any donations we receive are tax deductible,” he said.