Winfield volunteers adding Moontowns Road fire station

The Winfield Volunteer Fire Department soon will be adding another fire station to its department to serve the growing Moontown Road area.

The station will be on Moontown Road on a half-acre donated by Carelock Thomas, a volunteer for the department since it began in 1983.

"All I can say is, (I did it) because (the donation) is helping the community here," Thomas said.

The land was approved for rezoning in a recent Columbia County Planning Commission meeting and will move to the Board of Commissioners meeting Nov. 5 for final approval.

"I used to think that things were accomplished overnight," Sparks said. "But nothing happens overnight. It takes time to get all your ducks in a row."

After final rezoning approval, the department will apply for a building permit. Site plans already have been drawn, but they still need to get a survey to show exactly where buildings will be located before the plans can be submitted.

A local company has donated the installation of the buildings, and Sparks donated $4,000 toward the station's building.

"I said, 'Well, if that gentleman (Carelock Thomas) can do that, I have got $4,000 sitting in a bank that I have nothing to do with.' I just gave it to the fire department to help build the building. I am not doing it for personal recognition. I am doing it for the community."

Sparks was hoping to get the station built before cold weather arrived, he said. Construction can begin as soon as the necessary approvals are in hand.

The station will be used to park a fire truck and for the firefighters living nearby to get to a fire quicker without having to go to headquarters, the nearest station, to get a truck.

"We have firemen that live in that (Moontown) area," said Gordon Sparks, a volunteer and president of the Volunteer Fire Service Board. "In the event of a fire, they just run by, pick it up and bring it straight to the fire."

The department's headquarters is on Cobbham Road, and smaller stations are near the lake and in Cottonwood Estates. All training still will take place at the headquarters.