MN Department is First in State to Purchase Fully Electric Apparatus
By Mara H. Gottfried
Source Pioneer Press (TNS)
St. Paul will be the first fire department in Minnesota with a fully-electric fire truck, the mayor and fire chief announced Wednesday.
Rosenbauer, a design and manufacturing company, has started the build process for St. Paul’s truck and delivery is expected by 2025. It’s planned to coincide with the completion of a new Fire Station 7 on the East Side.
The city is requesting federal funding for the full cost of the truck, which is $1.8 million.
“It brings us all the critical green energy benefits of an electric vehicle, while meeting the high safety and efficiency standards we have for all our fire equipment,” Mayor Melvin Carter said in a statement.
The city’s “Climate Action & Resilience Plan” focuses on achieving carbon neutrality in city operations by 2030 and citywide by 2050. “In addition to furthering climate goals, this investment helps reduce diesel emissions and supports firefighters’ overall health and wellbeing,” the city said in a statement.
The fire departments in Los Angeles, Calif., and Vancouver, British Columbia, have also purchased the Rosenbauer RTX electric fire truck, according to the city.
The truck’s final assembly will happen at Rosenbauer’s facility in Wyoming, Minn.
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