The Chillicothe (MO) Fire Department’s aerial midmount platform truck was shipped to Alabama recently for a remount, kchi.com reported.

A remount involves transferring the aerial ladder assembly (including the turntable, ladder, and associated hydraulics) from an older, potentially worn-out or damaged chassis, to a new, modern chassis. This process essentially gives the fire department a “new” aerial truck with updated technology and performance while reusing the existing aerial device.

A fire official said the truck was originally scheduled to be sent to Alabama in the fall, but Brindlee Mountain Fire Apparatus had an opening to begin working on the truck now, which means the truck could be returned to Chillicothe in early 2026, the report said.

A total refurbishment of the truck will cost about $750,000, according to the report.

A fire official said the cost to replace that truck would be in the $2 million to $2.5 million range and would take 3-4 years to receive the truck once the order is placed.

Chillicothe has a smaller aerial ladder truck and, if needed, can call on neighboring communities to bring their equipment to assist, the report said.

The post MO Fire Department to Refurbish Midmount Platform Truck for $750K appeared first on Fire Apparatus: Fire trucks, fire engines, emergency vehicles, and firefighting equipment.

The Temple (TX) Police Department is investigating a traffic accident between a dump truck and a Temple Fire and Rescue apparatus, the department said in a press release.

At around 1:13 p.m., on Monday, July 21, 2025, the Temple Police Department and Temple Fire and Rescue responded to West Adams Avenue and North Third Street for a traffic accident involving a collision between a dump truck and a fire truck from Central Fire Station. The fire truck was on its way to a car fire when it was struck by the dump truck. Both vehicles sustained moderate damage.

One firefighter was transported to the hospital with minor injuries for evaluation. No other injuries have been reported at this time.

This crash is under investigation, and no other information will be released at this time. Anyone with information should contact the Temple Police Department at 254-298-5500 or the Bell County Crime Stoppers at 254-526-8477, where callers can report anonymously. Tips can also be submitted anonymously at bellcountycrimestoppers.com.

The post TX Firefighter Injured in Collision Between Dump Truck and Fire Apparatus appeared first on Fire Apparatus: Fire trucks, fire engines, emergency vehicles, and firefighting equipment.

Special Delivery Alan M. Petrillo

Platteville-Gilcrest (CO) Fire Protection District is an allhazards fire and emergency medical services (EMS) agency that covers a 144-square-mile mostly rural response area that includes two towns, many small farms and ranches, oil and gas wells and pipelines, a railway, and two major highways from two stations with a dozen fire, EMS, and rescue apparatus.

David Aparicio, Platteville-Gilcrest’s fleet manager, says the district wanted to replace a 2001 Type 5 wildland pumper built on an International chassis with a new Type 6 wildland engine. “The International Type 5 had the functionality for our district when we purchased it, but as it aged, we realized we needed a pumper similar to the Type 6 wild-land engine that we were running out of our Station 2 in the town of Gilcrest,” Aparicio says.

Aparicio says the district “reached out to surrounding fire districts to hear about how they suppress their fires and what they use for brush and wildland suppression. Then we approached manufacturers we had dealt with in the past, as well as some manufacturers new to us.”

He continues, “After a lot of deliberation, we decided to have SVI Trucks build our new Type 6 wildland engine. We had used them in the past for parts and repairs, and they refurbished our tender and an older rescue for us. We visited Platte Valley Fire Protection District and examined a Type 6 that SVI had built for them and determined that we wanted a Type 6 similar to the one we already had in our fleet.”

Jason Kline, Colorado and Wyoming sales manager for SVI Trucks, says the Type 6 wildland engine that SVI built for Platteville-Gilcrest is built on a Ford F-550 4×4 crew cab and chassis with a 9-foot aluminum body that has six compartments and is powered by a Ford 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 turbo engine and a Ford TorqShift 10 speed automatic transmission.

“We build the body using formed aluminum channels on the front of the body and between the compartments,” Kline says. “The body is spring-loaded with four springs, two at the front and two at the rear, that help prevent body cracks and damage and allow the frame rails to move independent of the body. In addition, the bottom of the water tank has a 2×4 extruded aluminum tube substructure for added strength and flexibility.”

Kline says the wildland rig has a wheelbase of 180 inches, an overall length of 24 feet 5 inches, and an overall height of 8 feet 2 inches. The Type 6 has a Darley 1-1/2AGE 18V pump system powered by an 18-horsepower Briggs & Stratton small block V-Twin Vanguard engine with pump-and-roll capabilities and a 400-gallon polypropylene water tank, he notes.

Hallie Lauer
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
(TNS)

Jul. 22—With decades-old vehicles languishing away at the city’s repair shop and others limping along on service calls, Pittsburgh City Council wants to know the extent of the problems with the fleet and how much it will cost to upgrade the vehicles.

For years, public safety and other city officials have lamented the status of ambulances, fire trucks, police cruisers and garbage trucks. Ambulances have broken down on their way to emergency calls, police cruisers are well beyond their lifetime, and the older the vehicles get the harder it becomes to repair them.

Despite the influx of money the city received as part of the federal COVID-19 pandemic relief, not enough money has been funneled into the vehicles. If the city started ordering new vehicles today, it would be years before they were on the road.

In an effort to get a better picture of how bad the problem is, Councilman Bobby Wilson introduced legislation Tuesday morning that would require the Equipment Leasing Authority to submit a fleet efficiency report each year by Sept. 1.

Inside the report, the authority will have to include each vehicle, the year, make and model and its mileage, as well as total annual maintenance and repair costs per vehicle.

It also asks the authority to note any vehicles that have exceeded a maintenance cost threshold of 30% the purchase price of the vehicle.

The authority also is tasked with providing cost projections for the next three years and an analysis of areas that have too many or too few vehicles.

“We need to understand what is really going on with the city’s fleet,” Mr. Wilson said in a statement. “Ambulances are breaking down, fire trucks need constant repairs, and the Department of Public Works is recycling functional parts from old vehicles to retrofit ones in current use. Residents, as well as Council, deserve to know how many vehicles are in disrepair and how much it will cost to fix or buy new ones.”

Previously, city officials have estimated that it would cost the city about $22 million annually to upgrade and maintain the entire fleet.

The 2025 budget allocates just $6 million to purchase new vehicles, and five-year projections show that number decreasing over time.

“We’ve neglected the fleet for far, far too long,” Councilman Anthony Coghill said during a meeting regarding the status of the fleet in May. Mr. Coghill also sits on the Equipment Leasing Authority, which is responsible for purchasing the city’s vehicles.

Mr. Coghill has pushed in the past for reallocation of the federal COVID-19 funds to buy more vehicles, some of which the city has purchased but has not yet received.

With the expiration of those funds, increased debt service payments and shrinking property tax revenues, the city is facing lean financial years ahead, with little wiggle room to further invest in the fleet.

The status of the fleet became a flashpoint during the spring Democratic mayoral primary race between Mayor Ed Gainey and Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor.

Mr. Gainey noted that the disinvestment in the fleet is something that happened over years, dating back to when the city was under state financial oversight. Mr. O’Connor, who won the race, made it a campaign point that if elected in the fall, he will make reinvestment into the fleet a priority.

“Maintaining the quality of our vehicles is critical to public health and safety, and the state of our fleet right now constitutes a serious problem, as the City faces financial challenges in the years ahead,” City Controller Rachael Heisler said in a statement.

Council co