The Saugerties Village Fire Department wants to buy a new ladder truck to replace the 29-year-old model it has now. Fire chief Chris Wade said the old truck lacks the safety features and new technology available on newer models. It does not meet the current codes for new fire trucks, he explained.
The model the department is looking at, a Rosenbauer Viper 75, has a center-mounted ladder rather than a rear-mounted one. Trucks with a rear-mounted ladder must be facing uphill, he said, which increases their setup time, Wade explained.
Blake Garrison, president of Palenville-based Garrison Fire and Rescue Corp., dealer of fire equipment, backed Wade up. “The safety standard is set by NFPA [National Fire Protection Association]. Since the time that truck was purchased in 1991, there have been somewhere between five and six safety standard revisions,” he said.
“Besides the safety standards there have been EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] emissions standards which you probably have dealt with with your highway department emissions,” Garrison added. “This [fire truck] is pre-emissions. This is what in the industry is referred to as a ‘dirty engine.’ The new ones have higher emissions standards.”
A speed control is incorporated for safety, Garrison said. The truck weighs over 50,000 pounds. The new trucks also have sensors that can recognize a potentially dangerous condition such as an overextended ladder and prevent it.
The manufacturer of the department’s truck is no longer in business, meaning that parts are hard to get and expensive, Garrison added.
While many municipalities solicit bids for major purchases, the trend is toward “cooperative purchasing,” through federal or organizational contracts, Garrison said. An organization called Sourcewell solicits pricing and models from various companies and connects municipal purchasers with sellers who may best meet their needs. Garrison said he keeps Sourcewell up-to-date with models, specifications and prices.
Murphy suggested that the next step should be a meeting with Sourcewell.
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