Mossy Pond Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dominick Rhodes and Assistant Chief Terry Bohannan joined former County Commissioner Gene Bailey, County Commissioner Earl Hunt, and County Commissioner Darryl O’Bryan for the official groundbreaking for the new Mossy Pond VFD building. Heavy equipment was already on the site.
The former home of the fire department was severely damaged in October 2018 when Hurricane Michael devastated Calhoun County and anything in it’s path.
Commissioner Bailey worked with then Senator Bill Montford to secure the $752,065 in capital outlay funding needed for the project. The funding was approved by the state legislature and got the governor’s approval last year.
The following is from the Florida Senate Local Funding Initiative Request from fiscal year 2020-21:
Hurricane Michael severely damaged or destroyed all of Calhoun County VFD locations, with the Mossy Pond VFD facility serving the northwest section of our county as a firehouse and Voting Precinct, suffering catastrophic damage and being rendered unusable. Fire engines, brush trucks, and related equipment are now housed at volunteer firefighters’ homes until new facilities can be constructed. First response efforts are severely hampered due to the lack of centralized operations, the loss and degraduation of equipment and supplies from the storm, and the theft of supplies from multiple fire departments after the storm. In order to better serve the community, the County desires to build a larger, modern, and hardened firehouse capable of housing essential county staff and volunteers during future severe weather events, approximately 3/4 of a mile from the current location. The proposed new location is adjacent to the Mossy Pond Community Center which is also a shelter for the area.
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