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By EMILY REED | Special to the Reporter

ALABASTER – Staff from the Alabaster Fire Department recently completed some much-needed in-house repairs, helping to save the city thousands of dollars.

 Alabaster Fire Chief Tim Love said a roof leak was discovered earlier this year at the city’s Fire House No. 3 and was an item that was not budgeted for the Fiscal Year.

“We had a roofing company look over the project, but were unsure of the price to repair the existing roof,” Love said. “After conferring with our building department, we decided to build a sloped metal rain roof over the existing roof.”

Love said the department has several licensed tradesmen that also work for the fire department, so they decided to complete the work in-house.

“The total project took two weeks due to the various shifts that work with the personnel with the knowledge to complete the work,” Love said.

A total of 20 personnel were involved in the repair, and the work did not interrupt the emergency services provision the department provides. The projects were completed while the department also answered roughly 400 calls per month and conducted training.

“This was a good thing for our city and department due to our work being high quality, and saving the city at least 50 percent on the cost,” Love said. “We still have some trim to complete but will be completed in the next week. This is just one of the major projects our staff took on this fiscal year to save funds and complete in a timely manner.”

Additionally, staff at the fire department have painted two of the department’s three fire houses and cut, rolled and installed 3,000 square feet of sod the department repurposed from the Patriot’s Park Project to the lawn at Fire House No. 1.

“We are very fortunate to have a dedicated and skilled staff that allows us to take on such projects and save money,” Love said. “Our staff takes pride in their work and their fire houses.”