Haws Run VFD welcomes public to new building

Feb. 03--A year after the Haws Run Volunteer Fire Department moved from a cramped 1960s building to a progressive new structure just down the road, firefighters invite all to come and celebrate.

On Feb. 4, 2016, the move from the department's old building to the new one, just a stone's throw away, began and now they're ready to share the building with others.

Saturday, adults and kids alike are invited to enjoy free hot dogs and hamburgers and a 50/50 drawing at 903 Haws Run Road in Jacksonville from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Firefighters both current and retired will join across a hose to unscrew it in lieu of a ribbon cutting, and kids can see the firetrucks up close and personal.

The building is a huge step up, both in terms of height and air conditioning.

"They got every bit of life out of that building that they could," Onslow County Fire Marshal Brian Kelly said.

Here is what you need to know about the old and the new, according to Kelly, Haws Run VFD Chief David Hill and Assistant Chief Brandon Hansley.

--There are 32 people on the Haws Run VFD roster as of February 2017.

--The department was created in 1966 after hay caught fire and burned down a nearby barn with a brand new tractor inside.

Discussions about creating a new building started on May 1, 2012. After the process began, the department began to work on their Insurance Service Office (ISO) rating, which was a 9S at the time, the minimum required standard to allow a fire department to remain open. After three years of work, the department received a rating of 5, which saves the community hundreds of thousands of dollars.

--The old building left little room for moving and was nearly impassible when the trucks were in the bay. The 3,000 gallon tanker, called Big Bertha, left black marks from the exhaust on the inside of the bay and had to be full of water in order to fit inside. Without the water, the springs made the truck too tall.

--The doors for the truck bays topped out at 9 feet 4 inches in the old building; and when firefighters went to New York to pick up a new truck, they learned it was 9 feet 2 inches at its tallest point. To get it in or out, Hansley said the driver had to "feather" the gas so the truck didn't bounce and hit the ceiling. The new building's entrance height is 14 feet.

--The old building lacked air conditioning or heat, meaning it was sweltering in the summer and freezing in the winter. A large heater in the bay was used to prevent the water pipes from freezing over.

--The old building's office was a glorified walk-in closet that left little space for movement between the desk and filing cabinets. The new building has a large conference room and two offices for captains and chiefs.

--Haws Run strives to save money wherever possible, including buying a used truck from New York that didn't have "Haws Run VFD" on the side for a long time because, Hansley said, people didn't care who came as long as someone did. When Hansley started in 2010, the trucks and tankers model years ranged from 1973 to 2007. They also received free office furniture from old government offices and bought used couches for the lounge room.

--It took nine months to build the new building, which cost $792,000. The department saved over time to put $100,000 down and financed $692,000 with the help of a USDA grant.

--Haws Run is the first to install showers and a dorm room -- a shower each for men and women and a room with three beds -- inside a volunteer fire department building.

--In the lounge room, the lamp is made of an air tank base with blue smoke trailing up the side and the department's patch displayed.

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