The Topeka Fire Department is set to add two brand new fire engines to its fleet, KSNT.com reported. A fire official said the new engines may arrive by the end of October.

The vehicles are equipped with up-to-date suspension to handle Topeka’s streets, according to the report. The engines may also need to be adjusted to fit inside local fire stations.

The funds to buy the fire engines came from Topeka’s Capitol Improvement Budget and from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, the report said.

The Mills Fire Department will soon be adding another truck to its fleet after the city bought a pumper truck that should be ready for use by mid-November, OilCity.news reported.

A fire official said the department has been in serious need of a new truck since February, when a drastic cold snap put the department’s frontline pumper out of commission and caused damage to the reserve pumper as well, the report said. Even before that, though, the city had been looking to update the fire department’s vehicles.

The new truck has a 750-gallon tank but won’t be ready for use until mid-November, as the vehicle still needs to have several additions made to it and the details need to be finalized, the report said. It will bring the department’s fleet up to six vehicles, including two brush vehicles and two structure vehicles.

The Ipswich Fire Department is having an open house Saturday, and the department plans to have a very special visitor, thelocalne.ws reported. A 1934 Seagrave fire truck returns home after an almost 90-year journey that saw it owned by MA, VT, NY and WA, the report said.

The truck was recently bought by Ora CEO Stuart Abelson, who wants the rig to go on display in Ipswich rather than get stored in a garage somewhere, the report said.

The owner before Abelson was James Sullivan, a middle-school STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) teacher in Brier (WA), according to the report.

A full list of owners has now been recorded back to 1934, when the truck was first bought by the Ipswich Fire Department, the report said.

The Wheeler Volunteer Fire Department took delivery on a brand new fire truck for their station October 11, WTVA.com reported.

It’s their first new truck in 25 years, the report said.

The volunteer fire department is vital to the Wheeler community both for the insurance benefit of having a fire department, and for safety reasons, the report said.

A fire official said the upgrades on the new fire truck include more modern technology, more storage space, and a foam system that helps put fires out and keeps them out, the report said.

During the October 3 meeting, the Marlborough City Council voted to buy a new tower truck for the Marlborough Fire Department, CommunityAdvocate.com reported.

The city would use a stabilization account as the source for $168,979 for a new Pierce Enforcer 100-foot aerial platform tower truck for the fire department, the report said. 

This request would cover a funding shortfall because the cost of the truck that was purchased through a bid process with the Houston-Galveston Area Council came to $1,712,479. That is above the initial estimate of $1.54 million, the report said.

The total price would include funding for the vehicle, emergency lighting, lettering and all associated tools and equipment to properly outfit a modern tower-ladder truck company, the report said.

The city is paying for the truck with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, according to the report.