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Grass Valley, CA, Residents Rejoice as Fire Station Reopens after Decade

Jan. 6, 2025

Higgins Fire Protection District Chief Joel Tam said voters passed a benefit assessment tax that allowed the firefighters to return.

Susan Nicol

After a decade of being closed, Higgins Fire Station 22 is back in business for the new year.

Higgins Fire Protection District Chief Joel Tam told FOX40.com:“I’m very excited for the people out here, cause roughly 400 residents just in this area… that we’ll be able to serve.”

Last July, parcel owners voted to pass what the district called a benefit assessment tax of $178 annually, which would help the station to staff it.

Retired Higgins Fire Chief Jerry Good said of the reopening: “a quick response can mean life or death, we don’t only respond to fires but also medical calls. Minutes count…10 minutes, man, you could die from that, from a heart attack or something more severe. Traffic accidents, stuff like that."

About the Author

Susan Nicol | News Editor

Susan Nicol is the news editor for Firehouse.com. She is a life member and active with the Brunswick Volunteer Ambulance & Rescue Company, Oxford Fire Company and Brunswick Vol. Fire Co. Susie has been an EMT in Maryland since 1976. Susie is vice-president of the Frederick County Fire/Rescue Museum. She is on the executive committee of Frederick County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association. She also is part of the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS) Region II EMS Council. Susie is a board member of the American Trauma Society, Maryland Division. Prior to joining the Firehouse team, she was a staff writer for The Frederick News-Post, covering fire, law enforcement, court and legislative issues.