McAdams recently sought approval for an extended reciprocal agreement that will allow the city to borrow fire trucks from neighboring Sterling Heights, as needed.

The council unanimously approved that request in late August, and last week McAdams said the process of replacing fire trucks is now ongoing. He said the city will likely take delivery of its first new truck -- a 75-foot ladder apparatus that will also serve as a fire engine -- by mid-November. The city is currently finalizing a bid request for two more fire engines and a 100-foot ladder, with an estimated arrival sometime next spring.

"We've got a two-headed dragon here. We're trying to replace what we lost in the inspections and also better cover our city," McAdams said. Failed inspections, including a metallurgical test, took two frontline trucks -- an engine and one of the city's two 75-foot aerial trucks -- and two reserve engines out of service earlier this year. The city has since relied on its four newest trucks, purchased in 2012, and an aging collection of reserve vehicles, pushed into service in a frontline capacity. The stopgap, however, left the city without an actual reserve to cover for routine vehicle maintenance and emergency repairs.

McAdams said responding to calls for service through deep water during the August 2014 flooding likely decreased the operational life of the vehicles that failed inspections. Metallurgical testing reportedly detected rust damage to the frame rails.

Even so, with a normal life expectancy for fire vehicles ranging from 15 to 20 years, the trucks -- all built in the early to mid-2000s -- were likely nearing the end of their days in service anyway.

In the interim, the city has borrowed trucks from Sterling Heights as needed. McAdams said the department is also exploring options for a longer-term arrangement with a yet-to-be-disclosed municipality.

Maryland State Police troopers patrolling Montgomery and Prince George's counties encounter similar situations.

"Since the beginning of 2016, I've had 12 troopers on our Capital Beltway here in the D.C. region struck, and most of them are a result of failing to mover over or slow down," State Police Capt. Daniel Pickett.

Because drivers weren't paying attention or didn't move over, two Maryland troopers may not return to the force because of their injuries, Pickett said.

So firefighters are using their trucks as a barrier on emergency calls to try to save lives, while troopers do what they can to do the same.

"Here in this region we are running an initiative," Pickett said. "And we're targeting move over violations and distracted driving."

The FEMA grant will cover 90 percent of the $304,766 it will take to buy the approximately 80 new radios, Heston said. The council unanimously approved to help with the purchase.

"The radios we have now are analog, you get some signals and it gets scratchy and then that's all you hear," Heston said. "Our new radios will all be digital so it's all state of the art and what's required."

The department took several models of radios and air masks to see which ones worked best for them and Heston said he let the firefighters choose the model.

The new radios have bluetooth and can connect to the new air masks the firefighters will have so the sound from air mask to air mask is crystal clear, which Heston said will improve safety. Right now, he said, talking over the radios with the air masks on is very difficult and hard to hear.

The department will trade in the old radios and any other old fire equipment, which will most likely go to another country, Heston said. Often the old equipment ends up in Mexico.

"It's not the best," said Geering. "This is no way for employees to come to work."

The station was immediately closed and signs were posted outside.

Geering wasn't happy, adding, the situation was an "embarrassment because this is no way to run a fire department."

His biggest concern is response time. He said Station 9 averages four to five calls a day.

Geering said the city of Chula Vista and his department have been aware that Station 9 was in dire need of replacing. Geering said the Chula Vista Fire Department altogether needs between $40 million to $50 million in repairs and replacements.