Pamplin Media Group - Fire district buys shiny but used ladder truck

2022-08-20 03:48:56 By : Ms. Tina Yuan

Jefferson County Fire and EMS spent $125,000 to buy a used 1998 41-foot ladder truck, and another $16,000 to ship it from Penndel, Pennsylvania.

Fire Chief Jeff Baker says the district needs to replace its 1984 Pierce Telesquirt.

At 38 years old, the Telesquirt has surpassed the 15-year expected use in a front line position, and even the expected 25-30-year life span of a fire truck on reserve status.

"Think of how much technology has increased since 1984," said Blake. "This (1998 model) by far has more capability."

The current ladder truck isn't considered safe by today's standards. "It doesn't even classify as a ladder truck," said Blake.

By comparison, the new rig has a safer, enclosed cab, a better seatbelt restraint system, higher handrails on the ladder and a longer ladder, 105 feet long rather than 50 feet for the current truck.

The longer ladder gives fire fighters the reach to attack fires in the taller buildings in the district such as the Erickson museum, the Yarrow apartments, some buildings at Bright Wood and the Albina asphalt plant. A D V E R T I S I N G | Continue reading below

In addition to taller buildings, the "water tower" effect gives firefighters the ability to put water on fires that are offset from the street.

Even though the 1998 truck is 24 years old, the Penndel Fire Company, a volunteer operation, didn't use the rig very much. It has only 28,000 miles on the odometer, and only 3,200 hours of use. Blake says most engines of this age would have more than 10,000 hours of use.

"There's a tremendous amount of life left in this apparatus," said Blake.

Blake's plan is to have primarily volunteers staff this new truck, using it as a volunteer retention tool.

This will be the second truck the agency dispatches to local fires, and if called out to mutual aid in other districts, volunteers will take the ladder truck to those call-outs. A D V E R T I S I N G | Continue reading below

"We're adopting a model used by East Coast fire companies for more 150 years," said Blake.

The Pennsylvania truck loaded onto a trailer Aug. 18. Blake expects it to arrive in Madras by Aug. 29 or 30.

He's planning six weeks for training, certification and relabeling the truck, and expects to put the truck in service by mid-October.

The district might sell the old truck or donate it to Warm Springs Fire and Safety, if they're interested. Blake thinks at this point the truck is a collector's item worth about $10,000.

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