Nicky Andrews
Colorado Hometown Weekly
(TNS)

Sep. 27—Move over folks, a bigger and better Boulder County HazMat truck, measuring 30 feet long and 13 feet high, is hitting the streets next month.

The just over $1 million custom apparatus includes a command center, a 45-foot high telescope camera with a 2-mile zoom, two TVs, computers, retractable awnings, counter space and storage, a bathroom, a sink, a mini-fridge and a microwave. SVI Trucks, a custom fire truck maker in Fort Collins, made the one-of-a-kind truck.

Boulder County HazMat Team coordinator and Fire Lieutenant Stew Visser said the new apparatus replaces a 24-year-old truck that was owned by Longmont Fire before it was donated to the hazmat team.

“We’re just upgrading and getting more space and new bells and whistles,” Visser said.

“The new truck is much larger,” Visser said. “It has a command area, so for large incidents they can bring in a number of people for a unified command.”

The Boulder County HazMat team is composed of 100 hazmat technicians from across the county who investigate and mitigate threats posed by hazardous materials, including chemicals; toxic substances; gasses; explosives; flammable materials; weapons of mass destruction; suspicious substances; and radioactive contamination, according to the hazmat team’s spokesperson Shawn Stark, who also is a Louisville EMS captain and paramedic.

The team is its own government agency. Visser said on average, the entire team is called out to help a few times a year, but the individual fire departments respond to smaller hazmat incidents multiple times a month.

There are five other hazmat “rigs,” or vehicles, as well as an ambulance that respond with the entire team, Visser wrote in an email.

Boulder County HazMat Response Authority Board President Dan Higgins, who is also the chief of Longmont Fire Department, said these other vehicles can allow responders to travel between the scene of a hazardous material and the apparatus truck.

“You can always establish this vehicle on a main road and then we do have smaller vehicles that we can take closer, if we needed to,” Higgins said. “The thing about HazMat is you don’t always want to be right on top of the scene. You may need some distance anyway for safety and to stay out of the hazardous environment with your main response vehicle.”

Higgins said the truck will provide a better area for team members to do their work and be more accommodating to different weather conditions. Higgins explained that HazMat work requires a lot of planning and research and a lot of time is spent on the scene.

“Hazmat calls are usually a fairly extended timeframe, about six to eight hours,” Visser said. “Things slow down quite a bit when you deal with hazmat.”

Visser explained that he once was on a scene for 36 hours and the new truck’s bathroom, micr

Compiled by Ron Heal

E-ONE—Hepburn Township Volunteer Fire Company, Cogan Station, PA, rescue-pumper. Spartan Metro Star cab and chassis with 10-inch raised roof; Cummins L9 450-hp engine; Hale Qmax 1,500-gpm pump; 1,030-gallon polypropylene water tank; extruded aluminum body; Whelen warning light package; HiViz FireTech scene lighting package. Dealer: Andy Wallace, Fire Line Equipment, New Holland, PA.

 

PIERCE—Kendallville (IN) Fire Department 100-foot Ascendant aerial platform quint. Arrow XT cab and chassis; Cummins X15 605-hp engine; Waterous S100 2,000- gpm pump; UPF Poly 300-gallon water tank; Command Zone electrical system; side and frontal impact safety system; Duo-Safety ground ladders. Dealer: Dave Polkow, MacQueen Emergency, Whitestown, IN.

KME—Eastpointe (MI) Fire Department aerial platform quint. Predator MFD cab and chassis; Cummins X15 605- hp engine; Waterous S100 2,000-gpm pump; UPF Poly 300-gallon water tank; 102-foot AerialCat midmount platform. Dealer: Chris Payette, Payette Sales and Service, Grosse Ile, MI.

ROSENBAUER—Herculaneum (MO) Fire Protection District pumper. Commander 7011 cab and chassis; Cummins X12 500-hp engine; Hale RSD 1,500-gpm pump; 750-gallon polypropylene water tank; 30-gallon foam cell; Hale SmartFOAM Class A foam system; Will-Burt Night Scan Power Lite 2 Sirion light tower; Duo-Safety ground ladders; IDEX SAM pump control system. Dealer: Brian Franz, Sentinel Emergency Solutions, St. Louis, MO.

FERRARA—Peapack and Gladstone Fire Department, Peapack, NJ, heavy rescue. Igniter cab and chassis; Cummins L9 450-hp engine; 80-inch extra-long cab with 8-inch raised roof and seating for 5; EMS cabinet behind driver’s seat; 18.5-foot walk-around rescue body; Vanair 25kW generator; Will-Burt Night Scan NS2.3-600 light tower. Dealer: FF1 Apparatus, Sparta, NJ.

DARLEY—Skagit County Fire District #5, Bow, WA, Polyvision Quick Attack unit. Navistar CV515 cab and chassis; Navistar International 6.6L 350-hp engine; Darley champion PSMC 1,500- gpm pump; PolyBilt™ body with 415-gallon water tank and integral 25-gallon foam cell; FoamPro S106-2002-01 single-agent foam system, AutoCAFS compressed air foam system; seven storage compartments. Dealer: Neal Brooks, Darley Sales Manager, Braceville, IL.

SPARTAN EMERGENCY RESPONSE—Waller-Harris ESD 200, Waller, TX, three pumpers. Spartan Metro Star EMFD cabs and chassis with 10-inch raised roofs; Cummins L9 450-hp engines; Waterous CSU 1,500-gpm pumps; ProPoly 1,000-gallon polypropylene water tanks; 20-gallon foam cells. Dealer: Josh Gustafson, Metro Fire Apparatus Specialists, Houston, TX.

SUMMIT—Montgomery (OH) Fire Department rescue-pumper. Spartan Metro Star LFD cab and chassis; Cummins X12 500-hp engine; Hale DSD 1,250-gpm pump; 500-gallon polypropylene water tank; Harrison 10-kW generator; rooftop storage and oil absorbent dispenser; confined space/trench equipment storage. Alco-Lite ground ladders. Dealer: Joe Messmer, Summit Fire Apparatus, Edgewood, KY.

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Compiled by Ron Heal

CALIFORNIA

DANKO—Shasta County Fire Department, Redding, four quick-attack units. Ford F-550 Crew Cabs and chassis; 6.7L 4V OHV Power Stroke V8 Turbo Diesel 330-hp engines; Waterous 2515LE Kubota D902-E4B 24.8 HP 150-gpm pumps; UPF Poly 300-gallon water tanks; Whelen CenCom systems; Whelen Liberty lightbars and lighting packages. Sold by Scott Beck, Fire Apparatus Solutions, Rialto, CA. Delivery in July 2025.

FLORIDA

SUTPHEN—Iona McGregor Fire District, Fort Myers, pumper. Monarch cab and chassis; Cummins X10 450-hp engine; Hale Qmax 1,500- gpm pump; UPF Poly 750-gallon water tank. Sold by Clark Green, South Florida Emergency Vehicles, Fort Myers, FL. Delivery in October 2027.

SUTPHEN—Lake City Fire Department SPH100 midmount aerial platform quint. Monarch cab and chassis; Cummins X12 500-hp engine; Hale Qmax 2,000-gpm pump; UPF Poly 400-gallon water tank; Smart Power 10-kW generator; 100-foot aerial platform. Sold by Mark Oakes, South Florida Emergency Vehicles, Fort Myers, FL. Delivery in February 2025.

ILLINOIS

PIERCE—Arlington Heights Fire Department pumper. Impel cab and chassis; Cummins X10 450-hp engine; Waterous CSU 2,000- gpm pump; UPF Poly 750-gallon water tank; 30-gallon foam cell; Pierce Husky 3 Class A foam system; Harrison 6-kW generator; Duo- Safety ground ladders. Sold by Dan Rudnicki, MacQueen Emergency, Aurora, IL. Delivery in October 2026.

DANKO—Hindsboro Community Fire Protection District quick-attack unit. Ford F-550 Crew Cab and chassis; Power Stroke 6.7L 330-hp engine; Waterous 2515LE with 24.8 Kubota engine 150- gpm pump; UPF Poly 400-gallon water tank; Super Single tire package; TFT EF1 Y1-E42A monitor. Sold by Steve Garner, Garner Sales and Service, Cooksville, IL. Delivery in May 2025.

ROSENBAUER—Long Lake Volunteer Fire Department, Pontoon Beach, pumper-tanker. Commander 7018 cab and chassis; Cummins X15 565-hp engine; Hale DSD 1,500-gpm pump; UPF Poly 3,000-gallon water tank; Duo-Safety ground ladders; Rosenbauer EXT HD extruded aluminum body; sealed lever bank pump controls; Rosenbauer 1.0 ladder rack. Sold by Steve Williams, Sentinel Emergency Solutions, St. Louis, MO. Delivery in May 2026.

INDIANA

SUTPHEN—Vernon Township Fire Department, Fortville, 100-foot aerial ladder quint. Monarch custom cab and chassis; Cummins X10 HHD 450-hp engine; Hale Qmax 2,000-gpm pump; UPF Poly 500-gallon water tank; Whelen Freedom IV warning lights. Sold by Andy Herb, Herb Fire Equipment, Powell, OH. Delivery in February 2027.

PIERCE—Jefferson Fire Department PUC pumper. Enforcer cab and chassis; Paccar MX13 510-hp engine; Pierce PUC-NG 1,500-gpm pump; UPF Poly 750-gallon water tank; Duo- Safety ground ladders. Sold by Tim Learned, MacQueen Emergency, Whitestown, IN. Delivery in June 2026.

SUTPHEN—St. Joseph County Fire Territory pumper. Monarch cab and chassis; Cummins X10 MHD 450-hp engine; Waterous CSU 2,000- gpm pump; UPF Poly 1,000-gallon water tank; Waterous Aquis 3.0 single-agent foam system; Whelen Freedom IV warning lights. Sold by Andy Herb, Herb Fire Equipment, Powell, OH. Delivery in May 2027.

SUTPHEN—St. Joseph County Fire Territory pumper-tanker. Monarch custom cab and chassis; Cummins X10 MHD 450-hp engine; Waterous CSU 1,500-gpm pump; UPF Poly 2.500- gallon water tank; 20-gallon foam cell; Waterous Aquis 3.0 single-agent foam system; Whelen Freedom IV warning lights; FireTech scene lights. Sold by Andy Herb, Herb Fire