The Union Township Fire Department will soon enjoy the use of a pair of new fire engines.
The two state of the art pumpers, recently purchased through fire levy funds, will give the fire department more versatility and water volume when fires break out in the township.
“They were made by American LaFrance Corporation in South Carolina,” said Union Township Fire Chief Stan Deimling. “You basically have three types of firetruck. You have a rescue truck, a fire engine pumper which is mostly for carrying and pumping water, and then you have aerial trucks with ladders. They both have compressed air foam systems on them.”
While pricey, the trucks will give the township a leg up against fires, providing a number of options and a great deal of mobile equipment to be used based on what the situation calls for.
“With equipment, they cost about $450,000 apiece,” said Chief Deimling. “That includes the vehicle, hose, nozzles and other equipment.”
In fact, the trucks are still being outfitted and prepared, a process that will take a few weeks, and will only be commissioned after crews have had a chance to train on the new engines.
“The manufacturer will come out and do some initial training, and then all of the firefighters will go through training, driving and operating, on the vehicles before they can be put in service. Before getting the training done and installing all of the equipment, it will probably be 60 or 90 days before we put them into service.”
While the trucks are currently being stored, they will operate from two separate stations once the training is completed and the vehicles are outfitted and ready to run. They will join a fleet of over a dozen different fire and rescue vehicles within the department.
“One of those will be running out of station 51 at Clough and Glen-Este, and the other from the District 10 Station in Withamsville,” said Chief Deimling. “We have six engines, two aerial trucks, a heavy rescue truck, brush truck and an assortment of support and utility vehicles.”