Internal Affairs Minister Jan Tinetti has today officially opened East Coast Bays’ new fire station on the North Shore.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand Board Chair Paul Swain says the brand new $8 million station has been strategically placed and designed to be sustainable and cater to the long-term needs of the area.

"The area is mostly residential, with a large new housing development in Long Bay and another large industrial commercial park in Rosedale," Paul Swain says.

"The station’s new site at 984 East Coast Road, Northcross was selected for its convenient access to main arterial routes, and the East Coast Bays fire truck will respond as second truck to Silverdale when required."

"East Coast Bays is a composite station staffed by both career and volunteer crews and the new station has three appliance bays, accommodation and living area, working space for both career and volunteers, training/conference facility, onsite gymnasium, and decontamination facility.

"The station is built to meet Importance Level 4 (IL4) construction standard which means it will remain operational after a major earthquake. It is eco-friendly with double glazing, thermal insulation and drains that collect run off water to be used for training and wash downs.

"The modern building is a huge step-up from what used to be a two-bay garage attached to the side of a 4-bedroom house with a ‘portacom’ alongside that volunteers used to operate out of," Paul Swain says.

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