Michigan Fire Department Combines Functions into Rescue-Pumper

The Harbor Springs (MI) Area Fire Department, which covers a 100-square-mile area in Emmet County, including the resort community of Harbor Springs on the north shore of Little Traverse Bay on Lake Michigan, wanted to replace an older pumper and older small rescue truck with a single unit to perform both fire suppression and rescue functions. The department found what it wanted in a rescue-pumper built by Spencer Manufacturing.

John Cupps, Harbor Springs’s chief, says the department wanted a vehicle that not only combined fire suppression and rescue but also carried more water than its existing pumpers as well as more compartment space. “We were replacing a 1995 KME pumper and a 1998 utility box rescue truck and wanted a multifunction vehicle with a 1,000-gallon water tank and lots of room for our rescue tools,” Cupps says. “I had been designing the truck in my head for a couple of years and presented my ideas to Steve Buckner at Spencer, who told me Spencer was building a similar truck for the Haring Township (MI) Fire Department.”

MODEL TO FOLLOW

Buckner, direct salesman for Spencer, notes that Harbor Springs also wanted a rescue-pumper that had as short a wheelbase and overall length as possible and a tight turning radius. “When we met with them, we determined that they wanted a short Type 1 pumper that carries a 1,000-gallon water tank with enough compartment space for all their rescue equipment yet has the overall length as short as possible,” Buckner says. “They looked at Haring Township’s rescue-pumper and liked it but made some changes to the lighting, added a roll-up door over the pump panel, and modified the interior of the crew cab.”

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