Jacksonville’s Argyle/Oakleaf community has a new and welcome neighbor, the JFRD Fire Station 61. Located at 7965 Old Middleburg Road South, next to the Argyle Branch Library, Station 61 will protect the rapidly growing region on Jacksonville’s Westside.
JFRD Fire Station 61 will serve more than 200 businesses, approximately 14,300 residences and four schools. The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department officially opened the station on March 6, 2020.
JFRD Fire Station 61
The addition of a fire engine and rescue unit will improve response times in Fire Station 61’s territory
The addition of a fire engine and rescue unit will improve response times in Fire Station 61’s territory. In addition, JFRD Fire Station 61’s presence is expected to reduce property insurance costs for the approximate 5,700 home owners and 100 businesses, located in areas that were previously beyond five miles of a fire station.
Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) first placed Fire Station 61 into service at a nearby temporary location, in October 2018, and soon after, response times in Station 61’s territory decreased from about 9 minutes to about 4½ minutes. That trend is expected to continue, and response times in adjacent fire districts could also improve.
Reduced emergency calls at other fire stations
Previously, Fire Station 31 located on 103rd Street and Fire Station 52 situated on Collins Road, handled most of the Argyle/Oakleaf community demands. With Fire Station 61 in service, the demand on Fire Stations 31 and 52 has already been reduced, by an average of nearly 140 calls per month.
This allows fire apparatus and rescue units based at Stations 31 and 52 to respond within their own territories more often, which also improves those fire districts’ emergency response times.
Enhanced response times
“This illustrates the difference that one fire station can make in response time, workload and of course, lives saved, and property protected,” said Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department’s Director/Fire Chief, Keith Powers.