Berenice Garcia
The Monitor, McAllen, Texas
(TNS)

Mar. 21—McALLEN — The fire department here is newly prepared for potential airplane emergencies.

Firefighters and city officials unveiled a new fire truck on Tuesday that will be used to respond to any emergencies at the McAllen International Airport.

The fire department celebrated the acquirement of the E-ONE apparatus during a traditional “push-back” ceremony at the McAllen fire substation #4.

“It’s a tradition for the fire department going back to the 1800s in which the fire engines at the time were pulled by horses,” said Interim Fire Chief Juan Gloria. “With that in mind, whenever a new apparatus arrived to a fire house, the firefighters themselves would bring the truck to the front of the fire station — they would clean it, they would wash it and, by hand, they would push it back inside the quarters to put it in service and that is what we’re going to replicate today.”

The new truck is equipped with a 1,500 gallon on-board water tank and a high extendable reach turret, or H.E.R.T., piercing tip. The truck also has a 2,000 gallons per minute water pump, foam concentrate capacity of 210 gallons, and a dry-chemical fire suppression agent of 500 pounds.

This truck is going to be replacing an older fire unit that’s about 15 years old and it comes with all the usual capacity for water, foam and a few other agents that are specific for fuel fires, of course, specific to airplanes,” Gloria said. “It also has the ability to pierce through the actual fuselage of the plane (so) in the event of some kind of fire inside, it can pierce through it and literally inject water inside for faster extinguishment.”

Gloria emphasized that the truck will not be leaving the airport area as it will exclusively respond to emergencies within the airport perimeter.

“We have a range of different alerts that we may be activated for and so these are the fire trucks that will run quickly to the beginning of the runway as an airplane is coming in with any kind of emergency,” Gloria said. “They’ll be able to chase right behind and be there basically the moment in which the wheels stop; these fire trucks will be right on site ready to either extinguish the fire or to provide personnel for any kind of rescue that may be needed.”

The nearly $900,000 unit was funded by passenger fees collected locally by the McAllen airport and with the authorization of the Federal Aviation Administration.

“A large part of the funding comes from the passenger facility charge which comes as a fee for every ticketed passenger that goes through our airport,” said City Commissioner Joaquin “J.J.” Zamora.

City Manager Roel “Roy” Rodriguez said the city prioritizes serving the community in a way that is cost effective.

“We never stop working for this community, we never stop thinking of how best to serve our citizens and always at top of mind is also ‘How do we pay for it?'” Rodriguez said.

By funding the new truck with passenger facility funds, the purchase is not impacting citizens’ taxes, Rodriguez said.

“And that’s so important,” Rodriguez said. “It’s our job to ensure that everything that we do has the minimal impact to that, always.”

Gloria said the process of getting the new apparatus has taken nearly two years.

“There’s a long process to try to justify the funding request and acquiring the funding, going through the bid process too,” Gloria said. “We’re very happy that it finally became a reality today.”

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To see more, view Monitor photojournalist

The Pawhuska Fire Department has new equipment that it hopes will make rescues quicker and safer, news9.com reported.

The fire department got a new pair of cutters, spreaders and struts that it will use when responding to car wrecks and urban search and rescue calls, the report said.

The new tools will allow firefighters to cut through metal cars or help pry open doors, according to the report. Pawhuska Fire did have a set of these tools already, but those tools were hydraulic and attached to the fire trucks.

These new tools are battery-operated which should make firefighters’ jobs safer and easier.

An INCOG 8020 state grant helped the town pay for the equipment, the report said. INCOG put up 80% of the funding for the equipment while the town paid the remaining 20%.

Without the funding from INCOG, Pawhuska would have had a difficult time buying the new battery-operated cutter and spreader since the set cost about $25,000, according to the report.

Volunteer fire departments across South Dakota will be receiving money for personal protective equipment after House Bill 1127 was signed by Gov. Kristi Noem last week, keloland.com reported.

House Bill 1127 would allocate $5 million in funds to the South Dakota Firefighters Association which would be distributed to volunteer fire departments that apply, the report said.

With nearly 350 volunteer fire departments in the state and at least 15 firefighters at each station, the cost of good equipment gets expensive, the report said.

Over 95% of fire departments in South Dakota are volunteer, according to the report.

PRESS RELEASE

Radville Laurier Volunteer Fire Department has announced the addition of another fire truck.

K & S Potash Canada GP out of Bethune, Saskatchewan represented by Dan Edmonds, Emergency Response & Security Coordinator (pictured in middle), donated the fire truck to the Radville Laurier Volunteer Fire Department after learning of the devastating fire that destroyed the departments machinery and equipment last fall.

Delivery of the truck was made March 10, 2023.

Accepting the donation from K & S are Fire Chief Byron Labbie (left) and Darryl Ferguson, Deputy Fire Chief (right).

On behalf of the Radville Laurier Volunteer Fire Department, the town of Radville would like to extend its sincere appreciation and is overwhelmed with the generosity of the people and organizations in our wonderful province.

Radville operates a volunteer fire department, which is jointly funded by the Town and R.M. of Laurier #38.

The Scarborough Fire Department received a new pumper in January and will hold a push-in ceremony at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 26, the department said in a press release.

The public is invited to the Pleasant Hill Fire Station where it is assigned.

This pumper is a 2022 Pierce Enforcer, which has a 1500-gallon-per-minute pump. The truck committee has spent a considerable amount of time over the past few years to understand and update the design for neighborhood fire engines. The smaller, more maneuverable design makes newer trucks easier to operate within the town’s neighborhoods. The new Engine 3 pumper truck replaces a 20-year old fire engine, which will run as the spare when frontline apparatus are having maintenance.

The new Engine 3 truck is an almost duplicate design to Pine Point Engine 4 (pictured above) delivered in summer 2021.

Michael DiVittorio
The Tribune-Review, Greensburg
(TNS)

Mar. 22—Verona officials and the Oakmont Volunteer Fire Department plan to use state funding to make way for new vehicles and equipment.

Both boroughs are getting a piece of nearly $400,000 in funds though the Commonwealth Financing Authority and Department of Economic Community Development.

Verona will get $158,625 and the fire department is expected to receive $100,000 in distributions of Statewide Local Share Account grants.

The grants were made possible through the help of state Sen. Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, and state Rep. Joe McAndrew, D-Penn Hills.

Verona will use its grant to purchase a new Ford F600 truck with a new bed, salt spreading equipment and a trailer for a leaf vacuum, borough manager Stefanie Woolford said.

“Having a leaf vac that’s reliable will be wonderful,” she said. “Right now, ours is broken more than it was together.”

There is a borough match of a little more than $17,000 for the grant. The match will be covered through proceeds of equipment sales made last year, Woolford said.

Verona has three public works employees, all full-time.

Details such as what dealership to buy from and when have yet to be finalized.

Fire Chief Joe Flanik said they will use their grant to pay for an addition to their fire department garage, including partial demolition of the existing structure and construction of an addition to extend the length of the garage to house a new ladder fire engine.

The department acquired a 2022 Sutphen Aerial platform fire truck with a 100-foot ladder in October.

It replaced a 75-foot 1971 Mack Aerial ladder truck and a 1996 Pierce Engine.

“Before, we needed both of those apparatuses to do one job,” Flanick said.”We needed the truck to go up in the air and needed the engine to pump (water) for the truck. The new ladder truck had about 25-foot longer reach and it has a pump built in. It can do the same job with a fraction of the manpower needed and a fraction of the time to set it up. You also only have one vehicle to maintain instead of two.”

The bigger ladder also came with about six more feet of truck space to drive and park.

The department worked with Erie-based Oak Valley Construction to demolish a back wall of the station and put an addition to the rear of the building to make room for the truck.

That work was completed in January with an estimated $101,000 price tag.

“We needed the grant to get the project completed,” Flanick said. “We had to do it at the time and it strapped us for cash. We thank McAndrew and his team for getting us this grant.”

The chief said he was unsure about matching funds for the grant. Oakmont VFD has 22 active firefighters.

Statewide Local Share Account Grants are designed to promote projects in the public interest and projects that improve the quality of life of people in their neighborhoods and communities.

“The safety of our constituents is vital, and I’m proud to help support a strong local economy,” said McAndrew via news release. “I appreciate working with Senator Costa, who truly did a fantastic job in supporting the region with these crucial funds.”

State officials also announced Penn Hills was awarded $70,000 in LSA grants earlier this month to be used for the VOPP trail — Verona, Oakmont, Penn Hills and Plum.

Funds will be used for the design of segment two of the Milltown Park Trail extension in Penn Hills, including hiring an engineer to complete the design, engineering, specifications and bid documents to provide for the

By Alan M. Petrillo

The Chadron (NE) Volunteer Fire Department provides fire suppression, rescue and emergency medical services (EMS) to a 650-square mile district in the northwestern part of Nebraska, in the foothills south of the state’s Black Hills. The town of Chadron has 6,000 residents, a population that is added to by 1,000 people daily in the town’s three colleges.

Brandon Martens, Chadron’s chief, notes that the department’s 50 volunteer firefighters responded to 550 calls last year, 40 of them fires of one sort or another, using two Type 1 engines, one aerial ladder, three tenders (tankers), five Type 6 brush trucks, several UTVs (utility terrain vehicles), command pickup trucks, and two ambulances. Martens says the department wanted to get a new rescue truck and turned to Danko Emergency Equipment Company to build the rig.

Dave Knobbe, apparatus salesman for Danko, says that Chadron has been a longtime customer of Danko that provides structure and wildland fire suppression, rescue and EMS services to a wide area. “The department needed a rescue unit that could get into a wide array of different terrain,” Knobbe says. “They were replacing a quick-attack vehicle with a small rescue, and we worked with them to custom fit out the truck to handle their needs.” Wheelbase on the rescue is 169 inches, overall length is 24 feet 3 inches, and overall height is 8 feet 1 inch.

The Mohawk Valley Rural Fire District has reported that two thieves broke into one of its stations and left with equipment, kezi.com reported. 

The burglary happened on Saturday, March 18, at the fire district’s Station 2, which serves as a satellite station for the district, the report said. The two suspects arrived in what appears to be a Chrysler 300, with a dark blue paint job, the report said. The security camera footage shows the break-in occurred just after 9 p.m. 

They were in the building for at least 12 minutes, and most of the equipment was taken from the fire trucks, as most of the doors were left open, the report said. Firefighters became aware of the incident on Monday. The bulk of the Mohawk Rural Fire District is made up of volunteers, so no one was in the station after hours, according to the report.

Not all of the stolen equipment is accounted for, the report said. The district knows it’s missing a Rapid Intervention Team pack along with a number of axes, and maybe even a saw and an extinguisher, according to the report.

A fire official estimated that the equipment was worth $15,000-$20,000. The two suspects are still at large.

“If you know these individuals, this vehicle, or have any information about this event please feel free to contact the fire station or the Lane County Sheriff’s Office,” Mohawk Valley Fire said in a Facebook post.

Mohawk Valley Fire
92068 Marcola Road
Marcola, OR 97454
Open 8 a.m.-5 p.m., M-F

Office: (541) 933-2907

Controlling the Scene Christopher Watkins

Advancing first responder safety is at the forefront of all suppliers within the fire apparatus and emergency equipment industry. It’s a critical mission in both warning and illumination. Every new feature, widget, and innovation that comes out is designed to further enhance the safety of both the motoring public and first responders.

As emergency scenes are made safer with the latest technology and improved product features, suppliers are beginning to take a bigger picture approach to scene safety. It no longer includes just what’s happening on scene; we are now looking at the moments involved in getting first responders to the scene. We’re asking questions like, “How do first responders interact with each other when en route to an emergency?” and “How do first responders interact with the apparatus and other drivers on the road when responding to a call?” We’re asking questions that go beyond traditional visual and audible alerting to uncover new ways to make emergency responses even safer for first responders and everyone else on the road too.

On the technology side, most of us are familiar with “the cloud.” Historically, its primary use for the emergency market was to provide access to information and help fleet managers understand and better manage their apparatus. Telematics, a fancy word used to describe fleet management software that offers a comprehensive view of vehicles and aids in operational efficiency, has been in use since the 1960s. Its adoption into our industry began in the early 2000s and is a commonly found feature in apparatus today and will soon reach the tipping point of becoming a standard part of builds.

As this happens and the connectivity of our market increases, suppliers are using this readily available technology to improve safety in new and innovative ways. Currently, the latest advancements in cloud-connected safety mean it’s now possible for fleets around the country to digitally alert motorists to their presence, incorporate responder-to-responder alerting, as well as control and direct traffic signal priority at intersections, otherwise known as emergency vehicle preemption (EVP).

While every new safety feature is important, that last one on the list, EVP, is a huge deal because we all know that approaching an intersection is one of the most precarious moments first responders face when responding to a call. They are navigating not only the motoring public but other apparatus rushing to the scene as well. Emergency vehicles approaching the same intersection from multiple directions creates an extremely challenging situation. With the latest technology enabled, the driver of each responding vehicle receives a notification that another emergency vehicle is approaching the intersection at the same time, alerting first responders to take extra precautions when clearing the intersection.

Today, through products like Whelen Engineering’s Vehicle Safety Gateway (VSG) and the company’s partnership with Global Traffic Technologies (GTT), intersections can now interact with apparatus by using enhanced precision and GPS data through the Whelen Cloud Platform®, which directly links the apparatus to an intersection. The earlier issue of range limitation no longer applies, as the cloud can communicate directly to the signal from any distance. This new, centralized technology is not dependent on a line of sight to the intersection either, so it’s equally effective around corners.

 

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