City of Darlington to dedicate new fire truck Feb. 20
The City of Darlington will dedicate the newest member of its fire department fleet next week.
The ceremony will be held at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 20, at Darlington Fire Department, 301 Orange St.
“We are excited to upgrade our fleet with the best equipment to serve our citizens at the least amount of cost the taxpayer,” Fire Chief Pat Cavanaugh said.
Similar trucks can run anywhere from $450,000 to $750,000.
Council finalized the $356,000 purchase in January, and the new 2016 HME AHRENS-Silver Fox rolled into the station on Monday, Feb. 6. Firefighters quickly loaded it with all the gear from the two vehicles it replaces.
“This truck more efficiently performs what the other two vehicles did,” Chief Cavanaugh said. “With all its capabilities, Engine 1 does the same job as those two trucks would do together.”
The vehicle, Engine 1, holds 1,000 gallons of water and pumps 1,500 gallons a minute, and it is designed to reach remote and rugged off-highway locations. The vehicle can carry six firefighters while the others could only safely carry two.
Additionally, the older vehicles, a 1984 and 1986, did not comply with National Fire Protection Association regulations, which recommend removing vehicles from service after 30 years. The upgrade will help improve the City’s ISO Rating too.
It also will cut overhead and the cost of maintenance.
“You couldn’t get parts for the older vehicles,” Chief Cavanaugh said.
The truck has a five-year warranty on the engine, five-year warranty on the transmission, and 12-month warranty on the entire truck.
As part of ongoing process started in 2012 to replace outdated equipment, the fire department has upgraded three vehicles since Cavanaugh took the helm at the station that year. In that time, the City has retired one vehicle that was 40 years old and now two more that were 30 years old.