GALVESTON — Island firefighters have a place to sleep, and island residents have a place to wait for an airplane, thanks to help from the federal government.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is trucking in double-wide trailers to house two Galveston fire stations and a Scholes International Airport terminal destroyed by Hurricane Ike a little more than a month ago.

The new fire stations, which are already set up near the destroyed stations, will help island firefighters respond quicker to daily calls of fires and gas leaks, fire Chief Mike Varela Sr. said.

During the hurricane, more than 5 feet of water flooded Fire Station 5, on 56^th Street and Avenue K, ruining the department’s equipment, furniture and “pretty much everything inside,” Varela said.

Firefighters who normally operate out of Station 5 have doubled up with firefighters at the island’s central fire station, 2517 Ball St. — about 2.5 miles away from their regular jurisdiction.

Station 4, at the airport, was inundated with up to 8 feet of salt water. The firefighters who work there have been answering calls from Holiday Inn hotel rooms, Varela said.

Since Ike slammed into the island, firefighters have responded, sometimes from makeshift stations, to 60 structure fires. Typically, island firefighters respond to only five fires a month, Varela said.

They’ve also worked large numbers of vehicle fires, gas leaks and medical calls, especially since the University of Texas Medical Branch’s emergency room isn’t fully operational yet, Varela said.

The new stations have been connected to utilities but they lack furnishings — firefighters can move in once they find beds, tables, chairs and other furniture, he said.

Airport Terminal

The federal agency will move a double-wide trailer to the airport to serve as the new terminal.

As in the case of the fire station, Ike’s salty tidal surge filled the terminal building with up to 8 feet of water, blowing out the doors and windows and tossing vending machines like toys throughout the building, said Hud Hopkins, director.

One day after the hurricane, the building was still flooded with so much water that Hopkins was able to float his kayak through the building, he said.

Since then, airport crews have gutted the first floor, U.S. Navy crews helped clean debris from the terminal building and the runways, and the McAllen Miller International Airport donated used electric components to light taxiways.

There was no quick fix for the terminal, though, Hopkins said. Those waiting to catch a plane out of Galveston since Ike sit under a canopy tent outside stocked with ice chests full of water, Hopkins said.

The new temporary building will give patrons an air-conditioned place to wait. The double-wide trailer contains four offices, a large lobby and two restrooms, Hopkins said.

It will likely remain in place for nine months as the terminal is renovated, he said.

Texas Department of Transportation engineers have determined the 1959 concrete building is structurally sound. The airport will hire an engineer and an architectural firm to develop a bid package for renovations.

“One of the plus sides of all this is that we wanted to renovate our terminal building anyway,” Hopkins said. “We want to make it more user-friendly, more ADA accessible and make the bathrooms bigger. We renovated it in 2000, but it’s time for a face-lift.”