Montgomery County MD

[Pete Muller]

Each individual corporation had the option to provide maintenance for their apparatus. Silver Springs uses Station 16 as their maintenance facility they have a mechanic that was orginally paid for through their budget. The apparatus you photographed at Station 16 belonged to Takoma Park Station 2 which is a single station and may use Silver Springs as their maintenance facility. Other facilities are located at Station 6 Bethesda, Station 21 Kensington, and Station 8 Gaithersburg which also provides maintenance for Germantown Station 29. Rockville uses Station 3 and normally stores reserve apparatus there or Station 33 (Potomac). Since the County has started providing funding and equipment you may see apparatus being repaired at their equipment facilities located in and around Rockville, one on Seven Locks Road near Wooten Parkway and another located along Crabbs Branch Road between Redland Road and Shady Grove Road. Their are other facilities that may now be providing repairs for fire equipment. As for reserves each corporation normally has several reserve units that may be parked at any of their stations. Currently many reserve units are running front line due to the age of the fleet. 37 new pumpers are on order as well as up to 8 aerial units and several heavy rescue squads along with replacement ambulances and medic units. The county is in flex at this time as far as maintenance facilities are concerned, using the corporations existing facilities while they tackle the need for a fire equipment repair center.