The Lone Rock (WI) Fire District needed a new pumper and a new tanker to replace two 1982 rigs and decided to merge the functions into a single new pumper-tanker that could carry 3,000 gallons of water.
Lone Rock (WI) Fire District had Midwest Fire build its new pumper-tanker on a Freightliner M2-106 two-door chassis and cab with a Cummins 350-horsepower (hp) diesel engine, and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission. (All photos courtesy of Midwest Fire.)
The pumper-tanker Midwest Fire built for Lone Rock has a Hale RSD 1,250-gpm PTO side-control pump, a 3,000-gallon polypropylene water tank, a 10-gallon foam cell, and a FoamPro 1600 foam system.
“We’re an all volunteer fire department with 34 firefighters,” says Adam Reno, Lone Rock’s chief. “Our district is 89 square miles that cover the village of Lone Rock and three rural townships that contain residential and agricultural areas. There are significant dairy farms in our fire district, with one large milking parlor handling 6,000 cows.”
Reno says that Lone Rock “wanted to replace a 1982 engine and a 1,500-gallon tanker, so we reached out to [manufacturers] about what they could do for us. We then visited our neighboring department of Richland Center Fire District, which had bought a Midwest pumper-tanker three years previously that was very similar to what we wanted. We looked at their truck, talked with them, got referrals, and went with Midwest Fire for our pumper-tanker.”
Lone Rock’s other apparatus includes a 2009 Rosenbauer 3,500-gallon tanker, a 2001 Rosenbauer pumper, a Southeast Apparatus rescue truck, two brush trucks, and an 18½-foot Alumacraft rescue boat powered by a 90-hp Mercury outboard engine.
Brett Jensen, vice president and general manager of Midwest Fire, says Lone Rock knew exactly what it wanted in its new pumper-tanker. “We built them a vehicle on a Freightliner M2-106 chassis with a Cummins ISL9 350-hp engine and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission,” Jensen points out. “The rig has a Hale RSD 1,250-gpm PTO side control pump, a 3,000-gallon polypropylene water tank, a 10-gallon foam cell, a FoamPro 1600 foam system, a 4-inch Storz direct tank fill, tank level gauge, and a rear 10-inch stainless steel Newton dump valve with a 36-inch telescoping chute.” The All-Poly™ body construction includes sweep-out style compartments, ROM anodized aluminum roll-up doors, door-activated LED lighting, compartment vents, and floor dry decking.”
A close-up view of the pump panel on Lone Rock’s new Midwest Fire-built pumper-tanker.
The Midwest Fire All-Poly™ body construction includes Sweep-Out style compartments, ROM anodized aluminum roll-up doors, door-activated LED lighting, compartment vents, and floor dry decking.
Reno notes that Lone Rock “really liked the polypropylene water tank and body because of their lifetime warranty.”
Jensen says that the pumper-tanker has a wheelbase of 226 inches, an overall length of 32 feet 9 inches, an overall height of 9 feet 9 inches, and a cab-to-axle length of 160 inches. Cost of the vehicle is $272,000. The pumper-tanker has three crosslays, two each of 200 feet of 1¾-inch hose, one 100 foot crosslay of 2½-inch hose, as well as full height and depth compartments on the driver’s side and lower compartments on the officer’s side with a Zico hydraulic-over-electric portable water tank carrier over them. “The vehicle doesn’t have any provisions for ground ladder racks or tunnels, otherwise it is set up just like a pumper with a big water tank,” Jensen observes.
The hosebed of Lone Rock’s new pumper-tanker carries 350 feet of 5-inch LDH, 400 feet of 2½-inch hose, and 200 feet of 1¾-inch hose, along with a 30-foot extension ladder and a 12-foot roof ladder.
The right side of the Midwest Fire-built pumper-tanker has a Zico hydraulic-over-electric portable water tank carrier.
However, Reno says that the department carries a 30-foot extension ladder and a 12-foot roof ladder secured on top of the vehicle’s hosebed. The hosebed has 350 feet of 5-inch LDH, 400 feet of 2½-inch hose, and 200 feet of 1¾-inch hose. The rig also has three full SCBA on a tool board in a compartment as well as four spare SCBA cylinders.
Lighting on the Lone Rock pumper-tanker includes Whelen LED warning lights, four Whelen LED M6-V2R scene lights, and two Whelen LED Pioneer telescoping lights behind the cab.
Lighting on the pumper-tanker includes Whelen LED warning lights, four Whelen LED M6-V2R scene lights (combination scene and warning lights mounted flush to the body), and two Whelen LED Pioneer telescoping lights behind the cab. Additional equipment includes a Federal Signal Q2B mechanical siren, a Rearview Safety camera, Kussmaul air and battery conditioner with auto-eject, and Onspot tire chains.
ALAN M. PETRILLO is a Tucson, Arizona-based journalist, the author of three novels and five nonfiction books, and a member of the Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment Editorial Advisory Board. He served 22 years with the Verdoy (NY) Fire Department, including in the position of chief.
