“There is no good that can come from these incidents unless we make a positive change.”

The words were spoken by St. Paul (MN) Fire Chief Tim Butler as he stood next to Lisa Kline, the daughter of Margaret Kuehn, whose life ended tragically in June of 2009 in nearby St. Paul neighborhood when she was struck and killed by a St. Paul Fire Department ambulance. The event was an emotional press conference held last Tuesday.

Butler, along with members of the Kuehn family, stood inside Station 8 to makr a milestone both those involved in the tragedy of 2009 and fire departments around the country.

St. Paul Fire Captain Jovan Palmieri, along with Mike Brusseau of BackSafe Systems, Inc. presented Butler and the St. Paul Fire Department with the first of what promises to be over 70 lifesaving back-up systems that will prevent another incident like the one that took Kuehn’s life.

At the time of the accident, Palmieri had already been working on a device to allow a spotter to stand well behind a fire truck or ambulance and wirelessly transmit a signal to the driver that his backup path was clear. After Kuehn’s death, Palmieri enlisted the help of electrical engineering students at Minnesota State University-Mankato. Over the course of several years, the new system called “The Guardian” by BackSafe Systems, is being installed in emergency response vehicles around the country.

New Safety Device for Fire Trucks Could Save Lives

“There are hundreds of people who are backed over and killed. There are thousands injured every year,” said Palmieri. “And a lot of the people getting backed over are the spotters that the driver knows they’re back there.  They just lose track of them in the mirrors and the person trips behind the truck and falls down or slips on the ice they’re not able to tell the driver to stop in time. So this will give them an instant stop signal if something like that were to happen.”

BackSafe Systems President Mike Brusseau presented the St. Paul Fire Department with a Guardian device with serial number 1 for it to use in the very firehouse that is home to the rescue vehicle that struck Margaret Kuehn.

“I’m very honored that they remembered my mom, and it’s still in their thoughts and they’re doing this in her honor to help preventing this in the future,” said Kline after accepting the unit’s handset from Brusseau. A moment later, she handed the handset to Butler.

As Butler motioned to the large fire apparatus behind the press conference podium, he announced that the system had already been installed in the truck on display, which was to be the first of more than 70 St. Paul Fire Department rescue vehicles now slated to have the Guardian by BackSafe Systems installed.

“We are in the business of saving lives, not taking them,” Butler said.

BackSafe’s Brusseau says the technology can be used for more than just fire departments and is excited about the lifesaving capability of the small on-dash screen and orange handset device. According to Brusseau, the Guardian is already getting the attention of multiple industries such as public works, warehousing, trucking, and construction.

The Eden Prairie,

Coxreels introduced the new roller bracket assemblies for the Challenger Series. The function of the roller bracket, as it is on other models such as the 1125-Series and the 1175-Series, is to assist in guiding the hose during both extension and retraction. The roller bracket assembly is available only in a 4-way upper roller format, due to the compact size of the Challenger platform.

For 12” disk Challenger models, the roller bracket assembly is available for 8” wide drums and 12.5” wide drums. For 17” disk Challenger models, the roller bracket assembly is available for 8”wide drums, 12.5” wide drums, and 18” wide drums.

Coxreels® has remained steadfast and focused on manufacturing high quality professional grade hose, cord, and cable reels since 1923. Offering a full product line serving the industry in every channel and application, Coxreels® takes great pride in designing, building, and supporting all of their products right here in the U.S.A.

For further information on Coxreels® roller bracket assemblies, contact Customer Service at (800) 269-7335 or visit www.coxreels.com.

Coxreels Offers New Options for the Vacuum Series Reel

Coxreels Offers Custom Products for Any Application

Coxreels Offers a Variety of Stainless Steel

Coxreels 'Exhaust' Spring-Driven Reels Provide Necessary Ventilation for Any Application

Coxreels Introduces Switch Box for Motorized Hose Reels

Coxreels Announces Expansion of Current UL-Approved Products

Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company (Midwest Fire) announced that the company’s Vice President of Accounting and Business Manager Darcie Johnson made Prairie Business Magazine’s 40 Under 40 List. The award recognizes 40 of the top business professionals under the age of 40 in the Dakotas and western Minnesota. The list is made up of entrepreneurs, industry experts, executives, and nonprofit and community leaders. The selected 40 are honored in the December issue.

 Johnson has been employed at Midwest Fire for three years and has more than 15 years of accounting experience. She once served on the council and as treasurer for Beaver Valley Lutheran Church in Valley Spring, South Dakoa. Her more recent accomplishment has been receiving her Master’s degree while working full time as VP and a mom.

 “I was astonished to make the list,” said Johnson. “I attribute my success to having a supportive family and mentors. I look for opportunities to acquire more knowledge and never turn down a challenge. At Midwest Fire I work behind the scenes to ensure our staff have the tools needed to serve our customers with amazing customer service. Whether its keeping employees happy to retain the most skilled builders for the fire apparatus or supplying the sales team and project management technology to provide quick customer service and a smooth build process, I’m zealous in my efforts to carry out Midwest Fire’s vision of providing our firefighting customers a high quality, best value product and superior customer service.”

 “I’m elated to have a member of our team make the list,” said President & Chief Executive Officer of Midwest Fire Sarah Atchison, “Johnson played a prominent role in the company’s success and we are proud of the progress she has made growing herself professionally. It is an honor to work alongside Johnson.”

Midwest Fire President and CEO Sarah Atchison Named Executive of the Year Finalist

Midwest Fire Named Manufacturing Awards Finalist

Midwest Fire Makes Prairie Business Magazine 50 Best Places to Work List

Midwest Fire Sponsors 2015 Fire Officer of the Year Award at Minnesota State Fire Chiefs Association Conference

Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company Reaches New Sales Milestones

Prairie Business Magazine Names Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company CEO Sarah Atchison to the Top 25 Women in Business

Nesquehoning, PA––KME, a member of REV Group, announces that that the Orange County (CA) Fire Authority has tagged onto its 2015 bid and order and has purchased an additional six 101-foot tractor-drawn aerials (TDAs) and 10 custom pumpers to join dozens of KME’s already in service.

Tag-on’s such as these are often part of a long-term purchasing agreement that allow customers to increase safety, efficiency, and cost for multiple years while minimizing the expense and delays of repetitive procurement processes. 

The TDA tractors will be KME Severe Service™ cabs with 10-inch raised roofs and Cummins ISX-15 550-hp engines. The aerials include 1,500-gpm pumps, 300-gallon water tanks, and AerialCat™ 101-foot ladders with prepiped waterways. These tandem axle units have an equipment capacity of double the NFPA requirement for an aerial ladder.

The pumpers also include Severe Service cabs, Cummins ISX-12 450-hp engines, 1,500-gpm pumps, 500-gallon water/10-gallon foam tanks, and galvanneal steel fire bodies with customized shelving and compartmentation.

The Orange County (CA) Fire Authority is a regional fire service agency that serves 23 cities in Orange County, California, and all unincorporated areas. The OCFA protects more than 1,680,000 residents from its 71 fire stations located throughout Orange County.

For more information, visit www.kmefire.com.