It's red, shiny and has all the bells and whistles. No, it's not Santa's sled -- it's the new fire truck in the Pembroke Fire District.
The truck arrived at the fire station Dec. 8 and Bruce Ross sent over the picture above along with some information about the tanker.
The total cost: $285,000. But, as Ross said, "The payoff for having access to this life saving truck: absolutely priceless to both the firefighters and community."
The 2009 Peterbuilt has a 3,100 gallon tank capacity along with 60 gallons of on-board in-tank foam.
"The truck has all of the latest state-of-the-art LED emergency lighting, including a large directional arrow on the rear of the truck for use on the roadway, especially helpful on Thruway accident scenes, and a Federal Q2B siren to ensure a clear path for minimum response times to an emergency," Ross said.
The truck's equipment includes six SCBA air packs for use on interior firefighting efforts, eight extra air bottles, 48 feet in ground ladders, various hand tools used both in interior and exterior firefighting work, hard-suction hose in order to gain access to water out of a standing water source such as a pond, and a 4,000-gallon portable pond used in remote areas.
It replaces a 1978 International Tanker that held a mere 1,800 gallons of water. Ross said the old tanker carried less equipment and was plagued by an increasing number of mechanical issues.
Crews will undergo pump and driver training and the truck is expected to be put in service in January.
That's a very loud siren.
That's a very loud siren.