Back to normal, almost

HUNTSVILLE Operations at Huntsville Fire Station No. 2 are close to being back to normal.

Firefighters have not used the station on Sam Houston Avenue since a storm last April flooded the building with up to three inches of rain. Just as Huntsville assistant fire chief John Hobbs said last week, water and Sheetrock dont mix.

The flood caused enough damage to prompt the City Council to approve $150,000 in restoration funds to get the fire department back on its feet.

Costs for the mold and asbestos remediation make up $60,000 of the budgeted money requested, while drainage improvements accounted for $15,000. Another $75,000 was spent on replacing the exterior siding, interior walls, ceiling tile, heating and ventilation duct work and electrical work.

It came through here like a river, Hobbs said while standing at the back of the fire station.

A mobile home park sits behind the station on higher ground where a small retention pond is supposed to collect water. Between a suspected overflow of the retention pond and drainage issues, the fire station experienced its worst water damage in decades.

Fire department officials said the station has experienced water damage dating back to the 1970s and 80s, but never a flood quite like the most recent one that caused mold and asbestos to develop.

In the 1990s, there was a concrete water trough built to help divert water toward the U.S. Army Reserve Center, which sends the water through a pipe and eventually dumps onto Sam Houston Avenue.

Since the flood last year, a two-foot wall was built around the retention pond to help do the same thing. The stations ground level is now three feet higher and sandbags have been carefully placed in the area as well.

Over the years (the retention pond) has filled in, so its useless, Hobbs said. When it rained, the water would come down the hill and then it would pile up. Our drain wasnt big enough at the time. We had five inches of rain in this particular area of Huntsville. So we started doing measures to raise some doors and enhance the drainage with the citys street department.

Read more:
Back to normal, almost