The Wexford Volunteer Fire Co. has come a long way since the days when neighbors fought fires with a bucket brigade.

Now its main station is housed in a new $5 million, state-of-the-art firehouse that will be open for tours from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday at 228 North Chapel Road in Pine Township.

Staffed completely by volunteers, the Wexford fire company is the official fire service for Pine Township. 

The public is encouraged to tour the 30,000-square-foot station and see demonstrations. For the kids, firefighters will be helping them take a seat behind the wheel of a fire truck and handing out fire safety activity bags.

The new station features four bays that can hold trucks up to 100 feet long, administrative offices, a training area and commercial kitchen. It was designed by RSSC Architecture of Wexford. The second floor will house up to 12 live-in firefighters, and the basement has a simulator training area and fitness room.

Wexford VFC maintains a fleet of nine vehicles across three stations. Satellite stations are on Babcock Boulevard beside the Pennsylvania Turnpike bridge and at the township's municipal building on Pearce Mill Road.

 The new station's 7.9-acre site is adjacent to the Village at Pine shopping center, with easy access to Routes 19 and 910. It is equipped to serve as an emergency management center in the event of a disaster, according to Wexford VFC board President Dave Buttermore.

Generators enable it to work as an emergency shelter as well as operating as a communications center.

The fire company outgrew its main station in the Village of Wexford, where it has been located since 1921.