Work underway on new Kaikoura station

Kaikoura brigade members turn the first sod on the site of their new fire station

Blessings and sunshine provided a positive start to the siteworks for Kaikoura’s new fire station earlier this month.

The existing station is over 50 years old and suffered substantial structural damage during the Kaikoura earthquake in 2016. Built close to the shore, it is also vulnerable to tsunami so rebuilding in the same location was never an option.

Sited well out of the tsunami zone, and built to IL4 standard, the new station will be a safe facility for the Kaikoura Volunteer Fire Brigade and a touchstone for the Kaikoura community’s resilience to future emergencies.

Over $5 million of the funding needed to build the new station has come from the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund. It will include three appliance bays along with decontamination, storage and BA filling facilities, operations and training rooms, an office, kitchen and ablution / decontamination facilities. There will also be a resource garage.

Kaumatua Brett Cowan (pictured below) from Te Rūnanga O Kaikoura was joined by Mayor Craig Mackle and local brigade personnel to bless the site on 5 May, enabling the start of ground remediation work on the site. The new station is scheduled to be open in mid 2022.