Denison Fire Rescue is drawing up plans to expand with the population, kxii.com reported.

The department released a five year strategic plan and one item on that agenda is plans of building three new fire stations, which would double the number of stations in the city, the report said.

While there are no concrete plans, Fire Chief Kenneth Jacks said fire station four could be in the works in the next couple years, with a fifth and sixth station coming later, according to the report.

Depending on growth and development, according to the strategic plan, fire station number four could be located along highway 75 and 91, the report said.

After years of planning, Oakland Park (FL) city officials are one step closer toward breaking ground on a new $16 million fire station, NewPelican.com reported.

City commissioners recently voted to approve both a construction services agreement and work authorization for Fire Station No. 9 – one of several projects outlined in the city’s comprehensive 10-year facilities plan, the report said.

The existing one-story, 55-year-old Fire Station No. 9, located at 301 NE 38 Street, is slated to be replaced with a new modern facility adjacent to Stevens Field off Northeast 6 Avenue after a citywide assessment determined the need for an upgraded building, the report said.  

Plans for the new two-story fire station include three apparatus bays, state-of-the-art offices for staff and dedicated parking spaces for employees, according to the report.

The station will also be home to the city’s fire administration and fire prevention divisions. Both divisions are currently housed at separate facilities.

Last month, Oakland Park was awarded a $2.5 million grant through the Department of Environmental Protection for the construction of the fire station, the report said.

According to the City of Oakland Park website: Oakland Park is implementing a 10-year Facilities Plan to construct and renovate several facilities aimed at “Building Our 2nd Century.” Sixty-seven percent of voters approved a bond in 2018, which will be used to construct many of the buildings in the Facilities Plan, including City Park, the North Andrews Gardens Community Center, Fire Station 9, and Fire Station 20.

Other buildings to be renovated as part of the Facilities Plan include Park Place at Jaco Pastorius Park, Fire Station 87, and the City’s Municipal Building. Learn more about the bond projects and facilities plan here.

When lithium ion batteries inside electric vehicles catch fire, it can create dangerously high temperatures and, without the right tools, be difficult for fire departments to extinguish, WKBW.com reported.

The battery pack for the cars are inside a metal box, the report said. It can catch fire from overheating or from accidents, and when it does, it is difficult for firefighters to reach the source of the fire and extinguish it. Fires from electric vehicles also burn hotter than regular fires and smoke produced by a burning EV is toxic, according to the report.

Rosenbauer, a worldwide fire solution company, is aiming to make fighting these fires a lot simpler, using the ‘Battery Extinguishing System Technology,’ also known as BEST, to puncture the metal box, the report said.

Ranging upwards of $35,000, this equipment is now catching the attention of fire departments in Western New York, including Cheektowaga, the report said.

With electric vehicles becoming more popular, this equipment is definitely crucial for fire departments, a fire official said.

Blog by Piercemfg.com

Innovative firefighting technology helps ensure firefighters have access to advanced tools and equipment designed to function safely and effectively on the fire ground.

But what about their apparatus?

Telematics improves all aspects of fire trucks, including the way they are built, operated and maintained. Telematics improves fleet maintenance, fleet operations and fleet budgeting by providing real-time asset data. Learn how in the blog post below.

What Are Fire Truck Telematics?

Fire truck telematics provide real-time data on the status of the fire truck. This real time data can help understand the vehicles current state of ‘health’ and can be used to track location and activity and it can be used to forecast or predict service needed on the vehicles.

By predicting or forecasting this information, the department can manage when vehicles enter the service facility, causing less disruption in station operations and supporting a much faster service interval.

For more information, please visit https://www.piercemfg.com/pierce/blog/benefits-of-fire-truck-telematics.