To assist firefighters in Stark County and seven bordering counties, the Stark Fire Department Rehab Unit (Stark FDRU) recently purchased a truck designed for decontamination.

“This new truck has an on-board shower,” Stark FDRU Chief Steve Clark said. “Firefighters can rinse off, prior to removing any of their gear, to get all the contaminants off of them.”

Like the unit’s other trucks, it also has a hand-washing station, wipes for carcinogen removal and bags to transport gear back to stations. The wipes are meant to remove toxic residue — unlike baby wipes, which Clark said are OK but “tend to just smear the stuff around.”

The new truck was purchased by the North Industry Fire Fighters Association for a discounted price of $12,500. Clark said $25,000 in donations have helped equip the truck, which he hopes to have in operation by Thanksgiving.

 The engine was designed with input from the local fire department and included a number of upgrades, Schelstreet said.

"First, the ergonomics are better as there is more room in the cab," he said.

"The design also features an air bag system that allows the back end of the truck to lower so that the men don't have to reach up so far and can walk right onto the truck. We put two years of study into the specifications of this in order for it to be more efficient and reduce the chance of injuries."

Schelstreet said the engine should see about 12 years of active service, followed by another eight in reserve.

The West Suburban Fire Department hosts an open house this afternoon. They show off their new building that will add storage space and house trailers, equipment and medical trucks. The department has been planning this expansion for almost five years. After receiving the funds for the project, the department is excited to now have more space that will make their response time faster.

"To me, it's gratification, knowing that we're going to be able to help the district, because now we don't have to move equipment out to pull equipment out. to go on calls, we can just drive straight out, and everything's going to be right where we need it to be,” said West Suburban Fire Department Deputy Chief Kay Gober.

Firefighters said it can be hard to move around.

"So it also creates a safety issue walking in tight spaces and backing in these apparatus when people are around," said Asst. Chief Small.

The department says storage is another problem, in addition to a needing a larger meeting space.