IL Fire Department's New Apparatus Arrives; Another Coming
By Sanford J. Schmidt
Source The Telegraph, Alton, Ill.
ALTON, IL—The Alton Fire Department on Monday took delivery on its first brand new firetruck since 2010.
The truck is a custom-built model ferom Precision Fire Apparatus of Camdenton, Missouri. The truck delivered Monday was the first of two new trucks that were ordered by the department about a year ago.
Before the new trucks were ordered, the city had purchased used trucks. They were rotated in and out of the city garage, depending on their needed repairs.
It was time for new fire trucks, according to Alton Deputy Fire Chief Brad Sweetman.
“It’s just a basic workhorse,” Sweetman said. He said the truck cost $445,000, but the city ordered features it needed and declined features it does not need. The new truck includes a 750-gallon tank and a hydraulic generator. It has the ability to pump 1,500 gallons of water per minute and can carry four firefighters in its cab.
The city’s other new truck is scheduled to be delivered in several weeks, Sweetman said. The new trucks are red, as opposed to bright yellow as was the custom a few years ago.
Sweetman said members of the fire department are excited about the new trucks, although the one which arrived Monday will not go into service immediately. Each firefighter will have to go through training on the use of the apparatus before the truck can be employed by the department.
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