The City of Coatesville announced a $2.9 million agreement to procure two fire trucks over the next two years to coincide with the development of the City’s new fire station, its location and construction to be determined at a later date.
The new trucks will be built by industry leader Seagrave, which was founded in 1881 and is the oldest continuous manufacturer of fire apparatus in the United States. According to Troy Wenger, Sales Consultant at Seagrave, the City selected a fire engine that is designed for structural firefighting. It features a 2000-gallon-per-minute pump that holds 500 gallons of water and includes eight pre-connected handlines and a deck gun capable of flowing 1250 gallons per minute. The second truck is a tractor-drawn ladder truck with a ladder that can extend 100 feet.
“I’m happy and excited for the City and the firefighters who will benefit greatly from acquiring the latest in firefighting equipment,” says Wenger. Preconstruction meetings will be held for each truck in the late summer. Once the City has reviewed and updated specs and drawings, the build phase will begin.
“This much-needed investment in infrastructure helps balance responsiveness to the City’s growing development needs, the safety of our firefighters, and responsibility to taxpayers,” says Rich Troutman, Director of Finance for the City of Coatesville. “The City’s professional firefighters recognized the current equipment has required more maintenance for longer periods of time, resulting in increased repair costs. They formed an experienced team that invested a significant amount of time to research and compare manufacturers, resulting in a solution that will be reliable, appropriate, and makes economic sense for the City.”
“The City of Coatesville Bureau of Fire was established in 1915 and last year responded to more than 1200 fire responses,” says Josh Schreiber, Union President, Coatesville Professional Firefighters and a Coatesville firefighter of 13 years. Currently the City rents space at two locations, one station on Strode Avenue in the West End and the other situated at the Washington Hose Company on 4th Avenue and Lincoln Highway, each staffed by a career firefighter 24 hours a day. Each houses two fire trucks, according to Schreiber. The staff comprises six dedicated full-time, 20 part-time, as well as volunteer fire fighters.
“We took an active role in participating on the committees that determined the best truck replacement plan for the City, keeping in mind the current equipment’s expected lifespan, cost of maintenance and the option that would best serve the City, its residents and the safety of our firefighters,” said Schreiber.
“We recognize that we have to keep pace with our City’s growing needs,” says James Logan, Coatesville City Manager. “We have committed a substantial amount of time and energy to ensure we are getting the best health and safety equipment that will improve our ability to serve our residents. Having reliable vehicles is priority one for our firefighters and residents.”
