The City of Asheville (NC) recently shared a video and release about the fire department’s tiller truck.

According to the release, Ladder 1 was purchased for $1.2 million back in 2019. It runs out of the downtown station and responds to more than 2,800 calls per year. The ladder extends to 103 feet. 

Designed with increased maneuverability with shorter wheelbases and impressive turning radius, this type of ladder truck allows Asheville firefighters to more safely maneuver through the narrow streets and challenging terrain of the city’s downtown.

Extensive training has been delivered to several engineers across three shifts who are responsible for operating this fire truck. Training includes driving through the company’s first responding area in non-emergency situations to be better prepared and to discover any challenging situations they could encounter prior to an emergency. This type of truck accommodates a greater number of ground ladders with more variety than a typical ladder truck, providing firefighters greater ability to reach more windows and roofs where the aerial ladder cannot. It also has larger storage compartments, allowing the truck  to carry more rescue equipment.

The department purchased its first motorized tractor drawn aerial truck in 1923. Built by American LaFrance, it’s purchase price was $16,100.  

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An historic fire apparatus that once served the city of Brockton, MA, has made its way home, just in time to help memorialize a fire that killed 13 firefighters 80 years ago, according to a report broadcast by WHDH 7 News.

The television station said the 1924 pumper, dubbed Squad A, was used in 1941 to battle a fire at the Strand Theater that killed 13 firefighters including four who rode to the fire on that same apparatus.

The truck had been missing for many years but last year, a fire truck collector from Billerica, who is also a firefighter, contacted a former Brockton fire chief. He told the chief he thought it was the same truck from the Strand Theater.

“The bottom line was, he told me about the truck and I said, ‘You know what that sounds like a Brockton truck,” Galligan said.

After some research confirmed it was indeed the same truck, the local union in Brockton decided to buy it, the TV station reported. The union plan to restore the apparatus, which currently runs and drives and make it a permanent memorial to the fallen firefighters. Next month, it will be displayed outside City Hall to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the fire, according to the report.

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The Holton Fire Department will receive $600,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds from the Kansas Department of Commerce’s Community Development Division to help the city purchase a new fire truck, reports The Holton Recorder.

Holton is one of 32 Kansas communities that will receive $13,864,149 in CDBG funds.

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The Oto, Iowa Volunteer Fire Department is in need of help from the community after arctic weather impacted all of its fire equipment, reports CBS 14 Fox.

The fire department posted to Facebook, “As many have heard, our department had a transformer blow which caused loss of heat and power to our building for an extended time. Our fire trucks were damaged by the water freezing and all must be repaired or replaced. We are grateful to the neighboring departments for helping with coverage and especially thankful for Battle Creek Fire Department for loaning us a pumper so we can be in service during this time. We are asking for your help with donations to help cover the unforeseen expenses. Oto Fire has set up a Venmo account @ Otofire or checks can be sent to PO Box 94 Oto, IA 51044.”

The fire department is getting a truck, on loan from neighboring Battle Creek, until its own trucks can be repaired.

Members of the department still don’t know how much damage there will be. In the worst-case scenario, $1 million worth of new equipment may be need.

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