New Howard Co. Fire Station Saves Lives, Trains Aspiring First Responders

ELLICOTT CITY, MD — Construction on Fire Station 15 should start within the next few months, and once completed, the new facility will offer more than just life-saving services to residents.

Located along the Route 108 corridor in Ellicott City, the $18.8 million Fire State 15 will feature three apparatus bays for emergency vehicles, firefighter bunk rooms, a dayroom and kitchen, a fitness center, support areas for firefighters and classroom space for students aspiring to become firefighters and emergency responders. It also is called the North Columbia Fire Station.

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Thanks to a partnership with the recently opened Career and Technical Education Center by the Howard County Public School System adjacent to Fire Station 15, two classrooms at the fire station will be dedicated specifically to public school students and support the CTE Center's Academy of Health Professions Emergency Medical Technician pathway.

It's the first fire station in Howard County to offer two dedicated classrooms for the EMT program, which will allow more students to be able to enroll. They won't just be learning in a classroom how to be a first responder, but will be able to see and experience firsthand the professionals in action.

"We are extremely excited about the addition of Fire Station 15 on the Board of Education Campus. This new station will be an important investment in public safety. Helping us enhance service delivery, improve response times and provide additional emergency response capacity as call volume continues to grow," HCDFRS Fire Chief Louis Winston said at the August grand opening of the CTEC.

"What makes this project especially exciting is the opportunity to bring our public safety and education missions together under one roof. The new fire station will include two EMT instruction classrooms, allowing us to expand the EMT program from one class to two. That means more Howard County students will have the opportunity to participate in this highly successful program and explore a rewarding career in emergency medical services," he noted.

HCPSS's EMT Academy, a joint program in conjunction with the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services, prepares students to provide basic emergency medical care before a patient reaches a hospital and covers both medical and trauma emergencies. Students receive classroom and clinical experience, and can prepare for the National Registry Emergency Medical Technician exam.

Students must complete 225 hours of required coursework. To participate in clinical experiences, students must be at least 16. They also must complete at least 10 patient-care calls outside the regular school day and meet national attendance and performance standards to complete the program in order to receive the credential.

Students who graduate and successfully earn their EMT certification can continue into Howard Community College's two-year Associate of Applied Science paramedic program.

The construction of Fire Station 15 comes on the heels of Fire Station 12, which opened in 2022 in Waterloo. Howard County's fiscal year 2027 capital budget contains $4.5 million for purchasing land for a future Fire Station 16 in western Ellicott City.