A new fire chief has been selected to lead the Spokane Valley Fire Department. The SVFD Board of Fire Commissioners has made a contingent offer to Deputy Chief Frank Soto Jr, pending contract approval by members of the board. Soto Jr. is set to replace Chief Bryan Collins, who will retire on March 1.
- PUB DATE: 1/17/2022 4:00:51 PM - SOURCE: KXLY-TV ABC 4 Spokane

PHOTO: A home near Ephrata was destroyed by fire Saturday night. Grant County Fire District 13 and Ephrata firefighters responded to the area of Road A Northwest and Road 12.3 Northwest for a reported structure fire. Crews arrived to a home full-engulfed in flames, according to fire officials. “Poor accessibility hampered firefighter’s initial efforts but the blaze was soon controlled,” officials added.
- PUB DATE: 1/17/2022 9:23:59 AM - SOURCE: iFiber One News Radio

VIDEOS: Bellevue Fire officials said two people escaped from a home that partially slid off its foundation and collapsed after a water main break and landslide in the Somerset neighborhood. Dozens of residents in the area have been evacuated while experts determine if the area is safe. Jay Hagen with the Bellevue Fire Department said firefighters were called to the 5000 block of 139th Place Southeast for a report of minor flooding near the upper half of the Somerset neighborhood just after 4 a.
- PUB DATE: 1/17/2022 5:49:54 AM - SOURCE: KIRO-TV CBS 7 Seattle

By Alan M. Petrillo

The Roanoke (IN) Fire Department was in need of a new engine and started to look for a new pumper, but its regular apparatus dealer dropped the brand that Roanoke was interested in, and the manufacturer’s sales representative for the brand didn’t correspond with the department, so they started talking to other medium- and smaller-sized apparatus makers.

“We found ourselves talking with Summit Fire Apparatus, and Joe Messmer, Summit’s president, told me the story of the company,” says Brandon Taylor, now Roanoke’s chief and also owner of Taylor’d Equipment Sales & Install. “Summit offered a better price truck for smaller departments, aimed at those working on a tight budget, and I thought they were a good fit for us.”

Taylor says, “So I presented Summit to the fire department as a company to consider, recused myself, and had the department deal directly with Summit’s head of sales, Eric Gausman. I wanted the fire department to make the decision independent of me, and they chose to work with Summit.”

The rig that Roanoke had Summit build is a top-mount pumper on a Spartan chassis and cab with seating for six firefighters and an interior EMS (emergency medical services) cabinet. The pumper is powered by a 380-horsepower (hp) Cummins L9 diesel engine, and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission, and has a 1,500-gallons-per-minute (gpm) Mac One pump, a 1,000-gallon water tank, a Class One Intella tank water level gauge, and two Whelen PSTANK series remote water level gauges mounted externally.

Messmer notes that Roanoke’s firefighters like the idea of a top-mount pump, where the operator is able to see the entire scene. He estimates that top-mounts make up 30-40% of Summit’s pumper market. “While a top-mount gives the pump operator great visibility on a fire scene, it also adds a few feet of length to the pumper, so that’s something a department has to consider,” Messmer observes.