With the help of the Columbus Fire District Trustees, the Columbus Junction Fire and Rescue bought a Seagrave pumper and ladder truck recently, kciiradio.com reported.

With a 75-foot ladder, the truck allows for firefighters to aid in grain bin and ice rescues, as well as reach the third story of buildings and homes, the report said. In the past, the department required help from Washington and Wapello departments for such cases where a ladder was needed.

The truck was also purchased to comply with the National Fire Protection Association, which recommends that working trucks be no more than 20 years old, according to the report.

By Alan M. Petrillo

Perlman Architects of Arizona rose to the occasion to design and build two of the newest Tucson (AZ) fire stations. The challenge? Two different designs with two vastly different site locations.

Tucson Fire has 22 stations staffed by 645 paid firefighters covering 227 square miles and a population of 550,000, running its highest year ever for calls in 2022, at 101,963. “Our old fire stations 8 and 9 were extremely old buildings,” says Paul Moore, Tucson Fire’s deputy chief for capital projects. “Neither had any modern features for firefighter health and safety, no individual dorm rooms, and old HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) systems.”

Moore points out that Tucson Fire needed to expand the size of both stations due to increased call volumes, and the need to protect firefighters from diesel particulate contamination in the apparatus bays, as well as needing decon rooms for turnout gear and equipment, and transition spaces between the apparatus bays and firefighter living areas, typically known as the red, yellow and green zones. Tucson Fire also wanted zoned dispatch for individual dorm rooms in its new stations. Moore adds that both new Station 8 and 9 have badge access restrictions to the entire site, and security cameras on the exterior spaces.

Gerrald Adams, architect at Perlman Architects of Arizona, says Tucson Fire “is one of the more progressive fire departments when it comes to mitigation of contaminates in its stations. Fire Station 8 is a 13,914-square-foot single-story station with four drive-through apparatus bays, (two double-deep and two single deep), 13 gender neutral dorms, four gender neutral bathrooms, a fitness room, training room, firefighter and police offices, an exterior decon shower, decon and equipment room, turnout gear room, dayroom/kitchen/dining area, and support spaces.”