Photo Credit: Rod PradoNews
The Woodlands Fire Department Station No. 5 officially opens with Dedication Ceremony
The Woodlands Fire Department (TWFD), in partnership with The Woodlands Township and Montgomery County Hospital District, celebrated the grand opening of TWFD Fire Station 5/Medic 24 on Saturday, January 31, 2026 at 8005 McBeth Way, The Woodlands.
View photos and video from the event on the Hello Woodlands Facebook and Instagram pages:
The official opening on the afternoon of Saturday, January 31 included an open house for visitors to tour the new facility. Fire Station 5 is a 21,565-square-foot, modern fire station designed to support the operational demands of a growing, all-hazards fire department. The facility includes 14 individual dorm rooms and 4.5 apparatus bays, providing the capacity and flexibility necessary to support continuous staffing while promoting firefighter health, recovery and operational readiness. Station 5 serves the west side of The Woodlands including the Villages of Sterling Ridge and Indian Springs.
The Dedication ceremony began with a welcome from Fire Chief Palmer Buck and messages from several speakers, including:
- Chairman of The Woodlands Township Board of Directors Brad Bailey
- Vice Chairman Bob Bagley of the Montgomery County Hospital District
- Treasurer Chris Grice of the Montgomery County Hospital District
- CEO Randy Johnson of the Montgomery County Hospital District
- Ricardo Martinez with Martinez Architects
- President of Brookstone Construction Jeremy Stovall
The ceremony also included the Raising of the Flags and special traditions: the Uncoupling of the Hose with The Woodlands Township Board of Directors and the Apparatus Back-In with The Woodlands Fire Department and Montgomery County Hospital District. Read the notes on each tradition below, as printed in the program:
- Uncoupling of the Hoses: Firefighters don’t cut ribbons, they uncouple hoses. The hose uncoupling is an event rooted in fire service tradition that has been used throughout the United States for more than 150 years. The act of the hoses being uncoupled and put away signifies that the station and its firefighters are prepared and ready for their next call for service.
- Pushing the Engine into the Station (Apparatus Back-In): The tradition of pushing an engine into a station dates back to the 19th century when fire engines were pulled by horses. After returning from a fire, firefighters had to unhook the horses from the engine and manually push the engine back into the station. Many times it became a neighborhood function, where ordinary citizens would help in the effort. Pushing in the engine became obsolete when motorized engines went into service. But, in an effort to honor the past and display the importance of teamwork, many stations still practice this traditio when opening a new station or when a new engine comes into service.
The station houses a comprehensive array of emergency resources, including an engine company, truck company, battalion chief, collapse rescue truck, and two emergency medical service units. The EMS component of the station is delivered in partnership with the Montgomery County Hospital District (MCHD), which provides and staffs the medic units assigned to Fire Station 5. One medic unit will be staffed full-time, while a second peak medic unit will be staffed daily to address periods of higher call volume and increased service demand.
The design of Fire Station 5 incorporates best practices in fire station planning, including clear separation of living and operational spaces, modern mechanical systems, decontamination and gear-support areas, and infrastructure to support training and specialized rescue operations. Together, these features support firefighter safety, workforce sustainability, and long-term operational efficiency.
Learn more about The Woodlands Fire Department at https://www.thewoodlandstownship-tx.gov/Departments/Fire.
Source: The Woodlands Township, The Woodlands Fire Department
