New fire station to increase service for the Pimlico community
BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – Residents in the Pimlico community of Berkeley County will soon have improved fire protection.
The Pimlico Rural Fire Department is getting ready to build a new fire station on their property off Old Highway 52, which firefighters say will be able to better serve the many new people living in the area.
“We are beginning construction on a brand-new fire station. It’s our Spring Grove fire station that will serve the Pimlico Fire Service District,” said Chief Kevin Carter. “We’ve been around since 1975. Pimlico Fire Department was established by 12 members and it’s approximately 23 to 25 square miles in a rural and community area with some light industrial. I have been the fire chief here since 2018.”
The last all-volunteer fire department in Berkeley County purchased a small house on 2.68 acres in 2016 as their second location. It was surrounded by woods at the time – now it’s in the middle of multiple neighborhoods.
“The house was owned by a gentleman who thought that it was gonna be hunting land behind it for quite some time, and then they started to develop the subdivision. And since they started to develop the Spring Grove subdivision, the area has grown exponentially. We have four or five new neighborhoods since Spring Grove was established on both sides of Highway 52,” he explained.
Now the department is building the $3.4 million 10,000-square-foot facility.
“We’re gonna be three bays for fire apparatus. We’re going to be housing our new ladder truck, one engine, and a special response unit,” said Chief Carter.
They will also have space that can be used for community meetings. And with better equipment nearby, some people in the area may qualify for cheaper insurance rates on their homes.
“With the larger station, we’ll be able to put in a ladder truck now, which will increase our ISO rating. And that will help our insurance carriers around here to decrease our insurance costs,” he explained.
Chief Carter said they hope to have the new station completed in roughly a year to a year and a half.
