AFD opens new multimillion dollar fire, EMS station at Goodnight Ranch

New fire/EMS station opens in SE Austin

The new multimillion dollar Goodnight Ranch joint fire and EMS station is officially open in southeast Austin.

AUSTIN, Texas - Fire station no. 53 has been in the works for the past six years, according to the city of Austin.

"This is a multi-million-dollar facility that started with a vision in 2018, and has gone through design, construction and now a wonderful grand opening," said Austin Fire Department Division Chief Peter Teliha.

On Saturday, first responders revealed the facility to community members in Goodnight Ranch.

"To really get to meet the first responders one-on-one and to get to know your neighbors is really where we want public safety to go," Chief Teliha said.

South Congress shut down after fire: AFD

AFD crews remain on the scene of a major fire in south Austin that's been burning since Sunday afternoon.

Families were able to tour the new fire station and emergency vehicles, and gain hands-on experience.

"We have fight fire like a pro, where you can sit in the fire truc , you can spray water and knock over a cone ," said AFD Operations Public Information Officer Rachel Lewis. "Kind of get a feel for what we do."

According to AFD, the Goodnight Ranch joint fire and EMS station will improve response times.

"What we like to do within the city of Austin is provide. It's a standard across the country," Lewis said. "It's an 8-minute response time in order to keep up with that we need to put stations on the further outskirts of the city. This is one of the new stations that meets that requirement."