Phelps said they plan to spend about $390,000 on the new custom-built truck, with the rest of the money being used on equipment for the truck.

“What I’d like to do is get as much brand new equipment and new apparatus as I can,” he said.

Phelps said one reason they need to get their fire trucks custom built is because they need the trucks to fit through the firehouse doors.

The department has to send its 1997 fire engine out for a total refurbishment in November. Although the engine in the truck has relatively low miles, Emery said it needs a lot of different things done to it. The metal will be stripped bare to remove corrosion, and the tank that holds water will be repaired.

All the lights will be switched to LED and meet state Department of Transportation specifications. The truck also will meet National Fire Protection Association standards.

The cost of the work will be about $162,000 to $163,000, about half the cost of purchasing a new truck.

The new truck is a Pierce ArrowXT Tandem truck with a 107-foot ladder. The truck has improved safety features, ladder controls and more features that were not available when the city bought its current truck 25 years ago.

The new truck is 12,000 pounds lighter than the city’s previous one, and it will be able to navigate many tight turns in the city that the current truck can’t.

SAFD Chief Charles Hood said Thursday that while no protocols were broken, the department is considering two products to secure ambulances. Of particular concern, Hood said, is when both paramedics are treating a patient in the back of the ambulance, leaving the cabin open and personnel and patient vulnerable.

One of the devices being considered is a “safety lock” by Kussmaul Electronics which interacts with the ignition switch of an ambulance.

The device allows paramedics to leave the ambulance running without a key in the ignition switch, but turns off the engine if any attempts to operate it are made without the key inserted.  

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