Freeburg (IL) Fire Protection District had an ageing fleet and saw the need to replace a pumper and a tanker that protect its 53-square-mile district with a population of 8,000 residents located in a mix of suburban and rural properties. The ISO 3-rated (Insurance Services Office) volunteer fire department has 31 firefighters operating out of one station and runs 200 calls annually, with no EMS (emergency medical services) component.
The district had purchased a Sutphen SPH 100 aerial platform in 2013, so it reached out to Sutphen, and also E-ONE and Rosenbauer, with an RFP (request for proposal) for a rescue-pumper and a pumper-tanker. The winning bid for both vehicles went to Sutphen, says Hans Mueller, Freeburg’s chief. “We wanted to keep both vehicles as similar as possible in terms of the equipment they carry and where it is located,” Mueller points out, “so if firefighters move from one truck to another, the equipment is in the same place, and the setup is as familiar as possible.”
Brad Cashion, owner of Cashion Fire Equipment, who sold the two rigs to Freeburg, says the rescue-pumper is built on a Sutphen Monarch heavy-duty custom chassis with a 62-inch cab and 10-inch raised roof, with seating for five firefighters, four in SCBA (self-contained breathing apparatus) seats. Wheelbase on the rescue-pumper is 196 inches, overall length is 32 feet 5-1/2-inches, overall height is 9 feet 7 inches, and it’s powered by a 500-horsepower (hp) Cummins X12 diesel engine and an Allison Gen 5 4000 EVS automatic transmission.
The pumper-tanker is built on a Sutphen Monarch heavy-duty custom chassis with a 73-inch cab and 10-inch raised roof, with seating for six firefighters, five in SCBA (self-contained breathing apparatus) seats. Wheelbase on the pumper-tanker is 238 inches, overall length is 36 feet 6 inches, overall height is 9 feet 8 inches, and it’s powered by a 500-horsepower (hp) Cummins X12 diesel engine, and an Allison Gen 5 4000 EVS automatic transmission.
Both rigs have IDEX’s SAM Integrated Total Water Control System, a Hale Qmax 1,500-gallons-per-minute (gpm) single-stage pump, a Hale SmartFoam 5.0 foam system, three 1-3/4-inch hose speed lays in lift-out trays, two 2-1/2-inch hose cross lays, two 2-1/2-inch discharges on the left side, a 3-inch and 2-1/2-inch discharge on the right, a Task Force Tips (TFT) Monsoon 1,500-gpm deck gun with an 18-inch TFT Extend-A-Gun, and a TFT Blitzfire nozzle on a 2-1/2-inch dead load at the rear.
The rescue-pumper carries a 1,000-gallon water tank, a 30-gallon foam tank, TFT battery-powered hydraulic rescue tools in an extended front bumper, and has a 4-inch intake at the rear; while the pumper-tanker has a 2,500-gallon water tank, a 75-gallon foam tank, and a 6-inch intake at the rear so it can be fed off a drop tank.
Both rigs have their compartments covered by Amdor roll-up doors; have Federal Q2B grill-mounted sirens; Brigade 360-degree camera systems; David Clark wired and wireless intercom systems; Federal Signal 73-inch Navigator light bars, mini light bars and traffic advisors; Hi Viz Fire Tech three-piece brow lights, and Fire Tech Guardian Elite scene lights; and Roto-Ray warning lights.
The rescue-pumper carries an Alco-Lite 24-foot two-section extension ladder, a 14-foot roof ladder, and a 10-foot folding ladder, while the pumper-tanker has a 35-foot three-section extension ladder, a 14-foot roof ladder, and a 10-foot folding ladder.
ALAN M. PETRILLO is a Tucson, Ariz.-based journalist, the author of three novels and five non-fiction books, and a member of the Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment editorial advisory board. He served 22 years with Verdoy (NY) Fire Department, including the position of chief.