The city of Blytheville is applying for a $1.4 million grant to fund a facility that would serve as both a fire station and storm shelter on West Main Street.
Blytheville Mayor James Sanders said Gov. Mike Beebe's office has submitted a support letter to go along with Blytheville's application for the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management mitigation grant.
"The city of Blytheville is one of the most vulnerable cities in the country for national disasters based on their history of F3-F5 tornadoes, ice storms and their proximity to the New Madrid Fault Zone," the application reads. "During the 2009 ice storm, the city was devastated by the ice storm with no shelter, power and heat."
The application says there is no community duel-use shelter in northeast Arkansas capable of withstanding an F5 tornado or major earthquake.
"Our plan is to construct a needed fire station in the west side of town that is capable of being a short-term shelter for up to 1,000 residents that live within a half-mile radius of the proposed structure," the document says. "The entire fire station will exceed FEMA 361 Standards and will include HVAC, sprinklers, a generator, a kitchen space, restrooms and additional space for an EOC or 911 backup. Additionally, the critical facility will be able to also protect the firetruck apparatus since the bays will also meet the FEMA standard."
It adds that the structure will allow the Fire Department to have some of its administrative personnel in the building.
The proposed site is across from the Roy Head Station on West Main -- the same piece of ground the city bought with the intention of replacing the West End station a few years ago. A new fire station was one of the touted items as leaders campaigned for the 1/4-cent Police and Fire Tax in 2009.
"Over the years, the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management has been providing grants to people to build storm shelters and, in some instances, they have used these storm shelters to double as fire departments," Sanders said.
He said an engineer has looked at the proposed location on West Main.
"We're trying to take advantage of this opportunity," Sanders said.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com