Christen Gibson
The Times-Tribune, Corbin, Ky.
(TNS)

Jan. 31—CORBIN — Corbin Fire Department is about four weeks away from a brand new ride. The new fire truck is loaded with the latest technology, custom designed by the Corbin Fire Department and engineers at Southeast Apparatus to make saving lives safer and more effective.

This new fire truck will be replacing their 1998 demo model truck. The new truck has 450 horsepower; a 1,500 gallon per minute (GPM) pump; 1,000 gallon water tank; and custom graphics on it. This is in comparison with their old truck specs of 500 gallons of water and a 1,250 GPM pump.

“There is a huge difference in fire truck technology from 1998,” Southeast Apparatus Sales Manager John Yeager said. “Corbin Fire Department is getting a big upgrade.”

The new custom truck features automatic equipment that regulates itself in comparison to their current truck in which an operator has to do it manually.

“This is the first time in the history of the Corbin Fire Department that we have actually bought a brand new custom truck and had it built exactly how we wanted it,” Corbin Fire Department Batallion Chief James Smith stated.

The hoses are longer and is loaded with a foam technology that helps putting out fires quicker.

“It’s an all in one truck,” Yeager said. “It does rescue and firefighting.”

The Corbin Fire Department is unique as they also respond to medical emergencies — often requiring extra equipment. Their 1998 model truck didn’t have extra space for medical supplies, but this new one has an entire custom cabinet in the back to keep CFD’s medical supplies organized and safely out of the way.

“From the compartment sizes to the layouts, to the shelves it’s exactly how we wanted it,” Chief Smith said. “The truck right now wasn’t really made for that. We had to find places for our equipment and it’s not really organized or put together the best.”

The outside of the truck sports the Corbin gray over red and will have custom vinyl not yet released.

The project in addition to some new equipment cost about $465,000 and has taken about 14 months from design to the final stages.

“Their pricing is almost two years old,” Yeager said. “That truck if you bought again right now has already had a large increase in cost. They are getting a great deal.”

The project lacks the body being mounted on the chassis, the tank installed, connecting the plumbing and electronics and other final touches. Then it will undergo testing before it sees some action.

“When we get done, it should be a really cool hometown Corbin truck built right here in Corbin,” Yeager said.

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Fort Worth police are trying to determine who took off in a fire engine and then crashed it, Fox4News.com reported.

Firefighters, working a medical call at a hotel on the South Freeway Wednesday night, came out of the hotel to find the engine gone, the report said.

They found it about a block away uphill near Interstate 35W and Seminary Drive, according to the report. Tire tracks in the ice showed where the driver lost control and crashed into a pole and a street sign. 

No one was inside the engine by the time firefighters made the discovery. The engine did have some minor damage, the report said.

Special Delivery Alan M. Petrillo

E-ONE has delivered five Cyclone pumpers and two Cyclone 100-foot aerial ladder platforms to the Montgomery (AL) Fire Department, replacing one-third of the department’s apparatus fleet.

Milford Jordan, Montgomery’s chief, says, “We’ve never done a purchase of this size before, so for us it’s unusual and historic. It was all made possible by our mayor, Steven L. Reed, for his strong support and commitment to public safety. The department had gotten behind on replacement of apparatus, and Mayor Reed wanted to get the fleet modernized and allowed us to purchase what we needed.”

Jordan notes that Montgomery had been running straight stick aerial ladders and, prior to placing the order with E-ONE, discussed the differing capabilities of ladders vs. platforms. “We reviewed the pros and cons of each type,” he says, “and decided to go with aerial platforms because of their greater ability in performing rescues and giving crews greater situational awareness. We have a lot of high-rises in town and the downtown is growing with a lot of apartment complexes, so the rescue capability is so much better with a platform.”

Thomas McLendon, president of Sunbelt Fire, which sold the platforms and pumpers to Montgomery, says the E-ONE 100-foot aerial platforms are built on Cyclone chassis and cabs with seating for five firefighters, four of them with H.O. Bostrom self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) seats. The aerial platforms have wheelbases of 245 inches, overall lengths of 44 feet 2 inches, and overall heights of 11 feet 10 inches and are powered by 550-horsepower (hp) Cummins X15 diesel engines and Allison 4000 EVS automatic transmissions.

He says the rigs have Task Force Tips remote-control monitors at the platforms and carry 188 feet of ground ladders, including two 35-foot two-section extension ladders, two 28-foot two-section extension ladders, one 20-foot roof ladder, two 16-foot roof ladders (one of which is on the aerial), and a 10-foot folding ladder on the aerial.