It could take years to build a permanent replacement for a Long Beach fire station that recently closed because it was overtaken by mold, fire officials told a sometimes frustrated crowd Tuesday night. The city is trying to set up a temporary station quicker than that, but in the meantime, it may take fire crews an extra minute on average to get to some emergencies, they said.
Top brass from the fire department gave that information as part of an update to residents who filled the Expo Arts Center in Bixby Knolls for a town hall meeting about public safety issues.
Many attendees were particularly irked at the loss of Fire Station 9 in the Los Cerritos neighborhood that served much of Uptown. The station was closed and its trucks and personnel relocated after mold issues resurfaced in the 1938 building.