Fayetteville Fire Department to host “christening” ceremony for new fire engine

The Fayetteville Fire Department will host a “christening” ceremony this week for a new fire engine before it is put into service.

Residents are invited to join Mayor Lioneld Jordan and city firefighters as they uncouple the hose, ring the bell and push the new fire truck into the fire house. The event takes place at Fire Station #3 located at 1050 S. Happy Hollow Road at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, July 16.

FFD – Ladder 3

Ladder 3 is a 75-foot heavy duty ladder truck mounted on an Arrow XT chassis with a 500-hp Cummins ISX engine. It is equipped with a Pierce PUC pump capable of delivering 1,500 gallons of water per minute, and a 500-gallon on-board water tank. The truck features a TAK-4 front suspension system designed to make the vehicle more maneuverable than a standard straight-axle truck.
Source: Pierce Manufacturing

The Ladder 3 engine is a “quint” which refer’s to the truck’s five functions: a fire pump, a water tank, a full complement of fire hoses, ground ladders, and a 75-foot aerial ladder.

It replaces a 21-year-old truck that was worn out and auctioned off on GovDeals.com, a government surplus auction company.

City Council members last year approved an $807,000 contract (PDF) to purchase the new truck from Pierce Manufacturing, Inc. of Appleton, Wisconsin.

From a news release:

The Fire Department’s Apparatus Committee developed the specifications for the new specialized fire truck. Committee members Larry Balding, Levi Crandell, Andrew Horton, Eddie King, Ryan Lewis, Winston McGowan, Kevin Murray, James Quinton, Chris Reibert, Willie Watts and Shane Wood spent endless hours in meetings discussing the various options available and “built” the truck from the ground up, on paper. This process and their tireless attention to detail has assured the City of getting the necessary required equipment, at the lowest cost possible.

For more information, call the Fayetteville Fire Department at 479-575-8365.