Riner Volunteer Fire Department cuts ribbon on new fire station

20,000 square-foot facility had been planned for five years

RINER, Va. – The Riner Volunteer Fire Department now has a new place to park its firetrucks.

The Fire Department officially opened its new fire station along Route 8 on Thursday evening. The new facility was first planned in 2014, but the department did not purchase the land needed for the new station until 2016.

Riner's new fire station is nearly 20,000 square feet, which is double the size of its previous home. Montgomery County Emergency Services Coordinator Neal Turner said the big space will make a big difference for the 35 firefighters in Riner's ranks.

"We didn't have a training facility. We had trucks sitting outside because the bays were full," Turner said. "They had just totally outgrown the existing station."

The Fire Department's old building will eventually house the Riner Volunteer Rescue Squad.