The Wallace Fire Department in Nova Scotia, Canada, provides fire and rescue services to approximately 3,100 residents in Cumberland County. The department has 35 volunteer firefighters working out of a single station. The rigs include a 2013 pumper, a 2018 Ford F-550 rescue truck, a utility pickup truck, a fire/rescue utility terrain vehicle (UTV), and a drone. The department had a 1988 pumper that it needed to replace and it chose Fort Garry Fire Trucks to build a new pumper-tanker.

Chief Tom Flynn says the department had a number of features it wanted to see on the new rig, including a commercial chassis, a top-mount pump in an enclosed cab to keep the pump operator out of the weather, a center console in the driving compartment, and a remotely-operated deck gun with an automatic extension riser.

Adam Baldwin, Fort Garry’s Maritimes/Atlantic regional manager, says the pumper-tanker that Fort Garry built for Wallace Fire is on a Freightliner M2 106 four-door 4×2 cab and chassis with seating for six firefighters, four of them in self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) rear-facing seats in the crew cab, a 5083 saltwater marine grade aluminum rescue body, a 350-horsepower (hp) 7.7-liter Detroit DD8 engine, and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission.

He says that the wheelbase on the rig is 257 inches, overall length is 34 feet 7¾ inches, and overall height is 10 feet 7½ inches, while gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) on the rig is 38,600 pounds with a 14,600-pound front-axle rating, and a 24,000-pound rear-axle rating.

Baldwin points out that the pumper-tanker has a 1,250-gallon-per-minute (gpm) Waterous CX pump, an enclosed cross-control (top-mount) pump panel with a crown enclosure, a co-polymer 1,000-gallon water tank, a 25-gallon integral foam tank, a FoamPr

Alia Pharr
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
(TNS)

One late August morning, a man fell about 100 feet down a ravine near the Chattahoochee River.

The trench was in a wooded area behind an apartment complex in Cumberland. The 41-year-old man couldn’t climb out because he’d injured his hip and arm, according to Cobb Fire Department officials. But he could video call 911 to help responders find him.

It was the first time Cobb dispatch and rescue crews used live video from a 911 caller. They had some difficulty accessing the feed at first, the fire department said. But with the help of the dispatcher, bystanders and ultimately the video, rescuers found the man and pulled him out on a special stretcher known as a Stokes basket.

A rescue boat, and then an ambulance, took him to the hospital.

“The integration of video from the 911 caller into the response operations, it was extremely valuable,” said Melissa Alterio, executive director of the Cobb County Department of Emergency Communications. “The fire department is just so grateful for the assistance.”

As land lines become symbols of nostalgia, metro Atlanta’s biggest 911 dispatch centers are spending millions to switch their networks from copper wire to digital, enabling new features such as video feeds and precise location capabilities.

Georgia is lagging behind other states in adopting the new technology, known as Next Generation 911. Alongside increased staffing, it can help improve answer rates that have been dismal in some counties.

After the recent tech upgrade, Cobb’s dispatchers can see a map with the exact location of every cellphone contacting them. In addition to video calls, there is a “silent chat” feature people can use to communicate secretly with 911 during domestic violence or active shooter incidents. The new technology uses artificial intelligence to translate and transcribe foreign languages. It also connects calls to the 911 center faster.

An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation two years ago found thousands of emergency callers across the region were left on hold for significant periods of time when they called 911.

The 911 centers run by three of Georgia’s four most populous counties failed to meet the national standard of answering 95% of calls within 20 seconds. Of those counties, Cobb was the one that hit the mark.

Cobb dispatchers said their new technology also helps them respond more efficiently once they pick up the phone. Before the upgrade, they said, the only independent verification of a caller’s location came from the nearest cell tower.

“We had to ask the callers a bunch of questions and write it all out,” dispatcher Julianna Shetterly said one recent afternoon, after sending wreckers to an accident in Kennesaw where someone was trapped. “Location is absolutely everything.

“Even if the caller isn’t able to tell me what’s happening, if I have their location, I can get some kind of services to them.”

In Cobb, the upgrade has increased the Department of Emergency Communications’ budget by about $1 million per year.

The department plans an expansion to meet the needs of the fast-growing county, which includes Truist Park and The Battery mixed-use development.

Cobb’s 911 department has 160 positions and about 10 vacancies as of last month, Alterio said. County officials would like to hire more dispatchers and a larger technology team, but there isn’t enough space in the Marietta center.

The Cobb County Commission in August approved almost $1.6 million to buy

Joey Oliver
mlive.com
(TNS)

BAY CITY, MI – Bay City commissioners are being asked to approve a $99,615 contract with a Flint-area company to replace the failed heating system at Fire Station 1 before winter weather arrives.

City Manager Dana Muscott is recommending the city hire Goyette Mechanical of Flint for the urgent boiler replacement after the existing 51-year-old system became unserviceable. The current boiler serves as the sole source of heat for the fire station and may not function when temperatures drop, according to city documents.

The measure will appear on the budget for the Monday, Oct. 20, city commission meeting. The agenda can be found online.

Fire Station 1 was built in 1973 with the original boiler still in place until it was deactivated this past spring. Contractors told city staff that future repairs would be impossible due to the unavailability of replacement parts for the aging equipment.

The city received four sealed bids in October after posting the project on BidNet Direct in September. Proposals ranged from Goyette Mechanical’s low bid of $99,615 to a high of $255,468 from Great Lakes Air Mechanical.

• Public Gets First Look at IA Fire Station Renovations
• Rogers (TX) VFD Receives New Pumper from Energy Company
• CA Passes Ban on PFAS in Turnout Gear

Under the city’s Responsible Contracting Ordinance, Goyette Mechanical received the highest composite score of 66 in the evaluation process. The Flint company is located at 3842 Gorey Ave.

The city had budgeted $84,000 for the fire station boiler replacement in fiscal year 2026. The remaining $15,615 will come from the Fire Services Building Maintenance Account through postponed projects or projects that come in under budget.

The replacement addresses a critical infrastructure need as Bay City prepares for colder weather when reliable heating becomes essential for fire station operations.

©2025 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit mlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The post MI Fire Station Needs Urgent $100K Boiler Replacement, Officials Say appeared first on Fire Apparatus: Fire trucks, fire engines, emergency vehicles, and firefighting equipment.

Fawn Grove is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, near the Maryland border. It is part of the York–Hanover metropolitan area, covers 33 square miles, and has a population of 12,000. The Citizens Volunteer Fire Company (VFC) is 100% volunteer and operates out of one station. Its response area includes numerous towns and villages, has a large school district, and several strip shopping centers.

Scott Dixon, chairman of the Citizens VFC truck committee that designed its newest apparatus, states, “Our response area has virtually no fire hydrants. Our firefighting operations have us drafting out of various lakes in the area. There are some areas that have 5- to 25,000-gallon cisterns that we can draw water from as well. So, our fire company has a history of drafting for the most part.”

The fire company looked at several manufacturers for the design of a new rig. “We had a fondness with International since our first fire truck was a 1937 International, and the truck that this new piece replaced was a 1987 International/Pierce. International has always given us great service, so we wanted to go with them again for the cab and chassis.”

The fire company tries to replace apparatus at the 30-year mark or close to it. The department has a capital reserve fund for apparatus that is made up of funds from the borough and township plus some fundraising the department does.

It was time to replace the 1987 rig, so the department went out to bid and received three bids for the purchase.

The committee decided to award the bid to 4 Guys Fire Trucks. “4 Guys had refurbed several of our other apparatus through the years, and we were happy with the quality of their work,” Dixon said. “Another plus was that they are also located in Pennsylvania, and it made travel easy for our committee members to visit the factory several times for inspections.”

Delivery time was just under two years. “It would have been sooner, but it took longer to get the chassis from International,” Dixon said. “The size of the new apparatus is really not much different than we had with the older rig. We just made some user-friendly adjustments such as an air prime, update to lighting, and a larger 1,500-gallon-per-minute (gpm) pump.”

The new apparatus will be used primarily to establish a draft site, if needed, for operations.

The truck will also be used for brush fires as it has two booster lines with 200 feet of 1-inch hose, as well as drafting, and can be used in hilly terrain when it snows. “Some of our re

SUN PRAIRIE, Wisconsin (Oct. 14, 2025) – Emergency response departments supporting rural communities across Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin received $605,998 to fund much needed equipment and technology upgrades. Through its Fund for Rural America, Compeer Financial awarded the 160 Emergency Response Equipment Grants to help volunteer fire, rescue and ambulance departments improve their operational efficiency, safety and response times.

Rural volunteer emergency response departments are struggling to service their communities due to fewer volunteer first responders, outdated personal protective equipment (PPE), increases in service requests and rising costs for essential equipment. Grants like these from Compeer are one way departments can continue to serve and protect their local communities. Due to budget constraints as volunteer departments, they are heavily reliant on public funding, grants, donations and local support to fund needed equipment, gear and training.

“For first responders to give their best, they need to be equipped with the proper tools. We recognize the challenges volunteer emergency response departments face with funding, and we hope these grants help give them the life-saving equipment necessary to effectively respond to critical situations,” said Karen Schieler, manager of Compeer Giving at Compeer Financial. 

Six themes emerged from applications for this year’s grants:

1. Communication Equipment: Many rural areas experience cell coverage gaps, making communication difficult especially during multi-department responses when time is critical. Departments requested upgraded radios, pagers and communication systems to ensure reliable communication with dispatch, law enforcement and other emergency departments.
2. Safety and Protective Gear: Many departments are using PPE, such as helmets, boots, gloves and turnout gear, that no longer meet safety standards. New gear will help ensure the safety and confidence of firefighters, improve operational efficiency, and help retain and attract volunteers by providing a safer working environment.
3. Specialized Rescue Equipment: Rural communities experience rescue scenarios, including grain bin rescues and wildland firefighting, that are different than those in urban areas. Departments requested modern tools like thermal imaging cameras, gas detectors, rescue struts and extrication tools to improve speed, safety and effectiveness in these unique and other emergency situations.
4. Medical Equipment: Many rural areas experience long ambulance response times. Upgrades to medical equipment like LUCAS devices, vital signs monitors and CO₂ detectors were requested to improve patient care and outcomes. 
5. Ventilation and Lighting: Firefighters encounter numerous challenges during calls in rural communities. Departments requested new battery-powered ventilation fans and LED lighting to improve efficiency and safety by reducing smoke damage and improving visibility during operations.
6. Training Equipment: Much like their PPE, training equipment has become outdated. Departments plan to purchase new