The Girdletree Fire Department contacted several apparatus manufacturers to discuss replacing an older wildland pumper. The department had a 1989 Ford F-350 wildland pumper outfitted with a small skid unit that was showing its age. After plenty of research the department decided to have Weis Fire and Safety build it a new quick-attack wildland pumper.

Chief Jimmy Johnson says the department covers a rural area from a single station with one paid full-time firefighter and 35 volunteer firefighters. The department’s apparatus includes a Pierce pumper-tanker with a 2,500-gallon water tank, a 4 Guys rescue-pumper, a John Deere Gator™ fire/rescue utility terrain vehicle (UTV), a Ford F-350 emergency medical services (EMS) unit, and an SUV medic assist unit. “We wanted a new wildland pumper that had ground sweeps, a front turret, a crosswalk, a four-door cab, the ability to carry four self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), and also the ability to run the turret remotely from the cab,” Johnson says.

Mike Weis, owner of Weis Fire and Safety, says the Girdletree quick-attack wildland pumper is built on a Ford F-550 crew cab and 4×4 chassis, powered by a 430-horsepower (hp) 7.3-liter V-8 gasoline engine, with a wheelbase of 179 inches, an overall length of 23 feet, and an overall height of 7 feet 6 inches. Weis points out that the rig has an extruded aluminum body with upper body side compartments, cab step up bars, a Kussmaul battery charger, a Super Single wheels and tires conversion package, custom heavy-duty skid plates, and custom-designed heavy-duty front and rear bumpers.

The rig has a Hale HPX 275-B35 pump that is powered by a Briggs & Stratton 35-hp gasoline engine and delivers 250 gallons per minute (gpm) at 25 pounds-per-square-inch (psi), Weis adds, as well as a UPF Poly® DEF 2C 400-gallon water tank, two 10-gpm ground sweep nozzles under the front bumper, and a Task Force Tips (TFT) Tornado monitor on the front bumper that’s remote controlled by a joystick in the vehicle’s cab.

“There are rear-mount pump controls and also a set of pump controls in the cab of the truck,” Johnson notes. “The driver has the ability to actively fight fire by controlling the ground sweeps and the TFT Tornado monitor. He can start and stop the pump and throttle up and down without leaving the cab. There’s also a backlit water pressure gauge and water level indicator in the cab.”

Johnson says the vehicle has a Hannay heavy-duty electric booster reel with 200 feet o

Shaniece Holmes-Brown
The Hour, Norwalk, Conn.
(TNS)

Sep. 4—NORWALK — One of Norwalk’s fire stations will receive a substantial makeover in the coming year, officials said.

The Land Use and Building Management Committee unanimously voted Wednesday night to authorize $311,200 in funding to Bridgeport-based architectural firm Antinozzi Associates for the design of Fire Station 4 at 180 Westport Ave. It also approved paying the design contingency of $31,120.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Chair Barbara Smyth. “We’ve had a lot of discussions about this fire station over two budget periods.”

Norwalk Building and Facilities Manager Alan Lo said there’s been discussion about how to expand the building to address coverage concerns.

“Generally speaking, there’s a programming need in terms of services to the community and that part of town, as well as the condition of the building,” Lo said.

Assistant Fire Chief Mark Conte said the construction will bring various changes to the organization of the companies within the department.

“I think we’ve come up with a very good, cost-effective design, and we are very excited to get the project moving so we can ultimately relocate our companies throughout the city,” he said. “We’re going to move a ladder truck from Broad River station to the Westport Avenue station to essentially double the coverage and response time there.”

Lo said sometime next week the project will go in front of the purchasing department, and afterward, will return to the committee to approve hiring a construction manager.

He said he anticipated the design will take about six or seven months and expects to go out to bid sometime in spring 2026.

“We would definitely want to get the excavation started before winter comes,” Lo said. “So, I anticipate around September we start construction, and then we get through the excavations period, and then exterior construction before the window comes. That is the schedule.”

He said it takes between nine months to one year to complete construction.

The city previously spent more than $300,000 to conduct emergency repairs at Fire Station 1 on New Canaan Avenue in 2022.

Lo said the city has worked with Antinozzi Associates in the past, most recently to renovate Jefferson Marine Science Elementary School, which was completed in 2022 and was signed-off in June 2024. The $47 million project gave the building many upgrades including: an updated gymnasium, cafeteria and kitchen.

The architectural firm also designed the new Cranbury Elementary School, which was completed in August 2023.

© 2025 The Hour (Norwalk, Conn.). Visit www.thehour.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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