APPARATUS DELIVERIES
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For the Cornish (N.H.) Fire Department, the May delivery of a Dingee Machine Co. pumper—its first new apparatus in two decades —came just in time.
Two months later, the state closed a covered bridge which linked New Hampshire to Windsor, Vt., the primary responder to calls at the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish. Now, Cornish has the first-call responsibility.
Lieutenant Peter Burling cites several reasons why Cornish is pleased with its truck. Foremost, the truck was built by one of the town’s residents— 32-year-old Larry Dingee—who learned how to build fire equipment from his father. Cornish’s truck features a central pump station, automatic transmission, six-person cab, and 1,000-gallon pump with a 750-gallon booster tank.
“It doesn’t matter where the fire is,” says Burling. “With the central pump panel, you can step up, look around, and see 360 degrees.”
Like many rural areas, Cornish is rapidly changing from a farming town to a bedroom community. The Dingee truck was able to negotiate a twisting, quarter-mile driveway to one new home, Burling says; this had been a problem in the past with some of the department’s other apparatus.
Three years of Bingo games helped to pay for the Dingee truck and also to rebuild the fire station, Burling says.
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The Virgina Beach (Va.) Fire Department believes in the worth of its two new Grumman 50-foot Telesqurts; two more are on order.
“It’s a good defensive unit,” says Deputy Chief Fred Quist. “It has a well-balanced pump capacity and is able to get in and out of tight areas within our district with ease.”
The department put the Telesqurts into service in late August at Companies 18 and 4. Equipped with single-stage, 1,500-gpm Waterous pumps and 500-gallon galvinized booster tanks, the Telesqurts also have rails on the booms high enough that they can be used as rescue units, Quist says.
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Photo by Jock WatK ns
This Saulsbury 750-gpm minipumper was put into service in November 1986 at the West Caldwell (N.J.) l ire Department. It replaces a 1950 750-gpm pumper.
The new pumper responds mostly to residential and industrial fires. Its small size and light weight make it more maneuverable than the old one, says Deputy Chief Jock Watkins. For example, it provides easy access to brush fires in the county’s parks and can be driven long distances off the road to handle incidents at apartment complexes that are set far back from the main street. It also can fit into tight spaces that couldn’t be reached with a heavier pumper, says Chief Frank C. Colavito.
The truck is built on a Ford F350 chassis. It has a Ford F350 transmission, a Warner T-19 engine, and a 200-gallon water tank. The apparatus seats five people.
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The Danville (W.Va.) Fire Department accepted deliver)’ of this 1,250-gpm Emergency One pumper in August 1986. It’s an addition to the department’s other apparatus.
This truck is more dependable and reliable than the department’s other pumper, which is a 1975 750-gpm unit, says Firefighter David Mullins. The higher-gpm flow makes the new pumper effective in extinguishing the area’s residential and brush fires.
The truck has a crew cab, so no one rides on the tailboard. The firefighters can don their air packs in the cab, which saves time when they arrive at an incident.
The all-aluminum body makes the unit lightweight and prevents rust. The pumper is built on a Ford chassis. It has an Allison automatic transmission, a Caterpillar 3208 turbo engine, and a 1,000-gallon water tank. It seats six people.
In addition to its two pumpers, the department also operates one 2,000-gallon tanker and one squad truck.
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