Despite Population Growth, Ankeny Fire Department Still Swift to Respond to Emergencies

As Ankeny continues to grow at a rapid pace, , public services often feel the pressure to expand as well to keep up with the growth.

However, the Ankeny Fire Department continues to do well with the resources it has, according to a recent report by KCCI Channel 8 in Des Moines.

When a fire breaks out in Ankeny the goal is to have the first crew on the scene within 8 minutes, Ankeny Fire Chief Rex Mundt told KCCI. Taking a number of factors into consideration, the department meets that goal 89 percent of the time. Eighty percent is the requirement.

The response time in surrounding communities like Ames is 5 minutes and West Des Moines is 6.5 minutes, the article said. However, those cities also have more fire stations.

Right now, Ankeny only has two, the second of which just added fire service in 2011.

Here's what the fire reponse situation when the second station opened:

Ankeny's second fire station is now in full operation with round-the-clock fire service in addition to its existing emergency medical services.

Station No. 2, which first opened in 2009 and is located on the city's south side at 665 SE Oralabor Rd., now has nine full-time firefighters along with its EMS crew, the city of Ankeny announced earlier this week.

Fire Chief Rex Mundt said the expansion of services comes at a critical time when the city has seen a 68-percent increase in its population within the last decade, according to 2010 Census data.

Mundt told KCCI a third fire station will likely be added in the next three to five years.

"We are exceeding in meeting our challenges because of the quality of firefighters and fire medics. They turn out the trucks and turn out the ambulances in incredible time," Mundt told the television station.