It was a perfect storm of location, need, price, and proactive attitude that made Thornbury the ideal spot to build a state-of-the-art fire station that'd serve as a prototype for the rest of the country.

It can survive a magnitude 8 earthquake, can be entirely self-sustaining in a power outage, and helps keeps its 20 volunteer firefighters safe from toxic contaminants found on the job.

But if you ask local firefighters why such a state-of-the-art station would be built in rural Southland, they might say, "Why not Thornbury?"

Fire and Emergency New Zealand assistant area commander for Southland Deane Chalmers said the town had all the factors coming together making it the ideal location for the costly investment: the building was around a half-century old and in "dire need" of replacement. It was also located in a flood prone area below the flood banks of the Aparima River. 

Its own brigade proactively sought and found a new location at the site of an old church past repair, which was on sale at the right price.

A nine-month construction took place after the purchase and the station was handed over to staff in April this year. It officially celebrated its opening earlier this month.

As for feedback, Mr Chalmers said the new station's had an "overwhelmingly positive" reception from the brigade and beyond. 

But alongside all the great reasons Thornbury made for a great spot to serve as a national prototype for the fire station, Mr Chalmers offered an additional reason. 

"If you ask anybody in the Thornbury brigade, their answer to it is, 'Well, why not? Why not Thornbury?'

"Everything lined up perfectly for here."