The need for a new fire engine was based off the age of an engine that has been in the department’s possession for more than 20 years. To keep the department’s Insurance Service Office (ISO) rating, fire departments are not supposed to have their first response trucks--or the truck that leaves a fire station first--be older than 20 years, said Dempsey Moore, chief of Scruggs Fire and Rescue.
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The new engine will not be the only truck to enhance the department’s fire-fighting arsenal. Scruggs Fire and Rescue also is set to receive a new $381,000 multipurpose “attack” truck, which was purchased through community donations. The truck is being manufactured in Florida and is set to arrive in early December.