Fire Station 62 in Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 4 serves the residents of Sleepy Hollow, Tamina, White Oak Estates and Chateau Woods. Fire Station 62 in Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 4 serves the residents of Sleepy Hollow, Tamina, White Oak Estates and Chateau Woods.[/caption]

Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 4 officials opened a new fire station Sept. 24 to serve communities on the east side of I-45. Fire Station 62 is located at 11831 Sleepy Hollow Road, Conroe.

Kevin Hosler, fire chief of Montgomery County ESD No. 4, said building Station 62 was necessary because railroad tracks near the service area were delaying first responders trying to reach homes in the Tamina, Sleepy Hollow, White Oaks Estates and Chateau Woods communities.

“There’s a lot of development that’s going in that way,” Hosler said. “The other problem that we had over there is that area is isolated by the railroad tracks. There [are] areas over there that is both ours and South Montgomery County’s fire departments, but if a train crosses those tracks it puts that on an island basically.”

Previously, it took first responders 8-12 minutes to get to the communities east of the railroad tracks without a train interfering with the drive time, Hosler said. Now, it takes first responders 3-5 minutes to arrive.

Station 62 houses three full-time, 24/7 fire fighters, one part-time fire fighter and two volunteers at all times.

In addition to being a fully operational fire station, Station 62 features a multistory facility for training and simulations, said Brian Arceneaux, Montgomery County ESD No. 4 president.

“They’ve got places in the structure that they can cut holes in with chainsaws and walk up on it with ladders,” Arceneaux said.

There is also a 34-foot tower onsite to simulate using sprinkler systems, high-rise systems and rappelling, Hosler said.

The 5,360-square-foot station cost $1.7 million to build and contains three fire trucks. With the addition of Station 62, Montgomery County ESD No. 4 now operates three fire stations that are open 24/7.

Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 4 Station 62
11831 Sleepy Hollow, Conroe
932-321-0999
www.needhamfirerescue.com