Reisterstown (MD) Volunteer Fire Company Heavy Technical Rescue Truck

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The Reisterstown Volunteer Fire Company was running a heavy rescue truck built on a 1992 Peterbilt commercial chassis and two-door cab with a 21-foot box and a side entrance door to a walk-in body.

Although the rig was still functionally solid, its high maintenance costs were taking a toll on the fire company, so members decided to spec a new heavy technical rescue.

Chief Craig Hewitt says the fire company had a number of concerns that it wanted addressed in a new heavy technical rescue. “There is a shortage of truck companies in our area, and we have many three-story garden apartments and some rather large single-family homes, so we needed to carry a lot of ground ladders,” Hewitt says. “We also wanted a front bumper set up for hydraulic rescue tool work; a self-contained compressed air foam system (CAFS) unit on the truck; and slide-out and transverse compartments to hold our rescue tools, struts, collapse gear, air bags, air-operated hand tools, water rescue equipment, and confined space and rope rescue equipment. And, we wanted all that on a Seagrave chassis and cab, because we have had good experiences with Seagrave chassis.”

Ron Willett, sales consultant at DPC Emergency Equipment, who sold the heavy rescue truck to Reisterstown, says it was a first-time customer for DPC, and after the fire company checked out some of Rescue 1’s trucks, the truck committee decided to go with a Rescue 1 heavy technical rescue. “The truck Rescue 1 built for Reisterstown is on a Seagrave Marauder II chassis and cab with seating for six firefighters, five in H.O. Bostrom self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) seats,” Willett points out.

 The heavy technical rescue is built on a Seagrave Marauder II chassis and cab, powered by a Cummins X12 engine and an Allison 4000 EVS six-speed automatic transmission. (Photos courtesy of Rescue 1.)

department

Reisterstown (MD) Volunteer Fire Company

Strength: 15 paid EMT/paramedic firefighters, 70 volunteer firefighters, one station.

Service area: The department provides fire protection, technical rescue, and emergency medical services to the five-square-mile town of Reisterstown, 22 miles northeast of Baltimore, a suburban community made up of single-family homes and townhouses, a large number of garden apartments, commercial, and light manufacturing facilities.

Other apparatus: 2007 Seagrave Marauder II pumper, 2,250-gpm pump, 500-gallon water tank, 50-gallon Class A foam tank, 200-cubic-feet-per-minute CAFS; 1998 Seagrave Marauder pumper, 2,000-gpm pump; 500-gallon water tank; 2017 Road Rescue Dodge Ram 5500 advanced life support ambulance; 2004 Ford F-550 Beaverbuilt rescue support unit; and 2014 Dodge 2500 RAM heavy-duty utility vehicle.

Chad Newsome, national sales manager for Rescue 1, says, “The rescue has a 100-inch-wide, 20-foot-long aluminum body and is powered by a Cummins 500-horsepower (hp) X12 diesel engine and an Allison 4000 EVS six-speed automatic transmission. Wheelbase on the rig is 222 inches, overall length is 35 feet 8 inches, and overall height is 10 feet 7 inches. This rescue has custom rigging points on the body, so in addition to our standard four corner rigging anchors, this truck has four more on the officer’s side and three additional on the driver’s side.”

Because of a shortage of truck companies in the area, Reisterstown had Rescue 1 include a truck company complement of ground ladders in an enclosed compartment accessed from the rear of the vehicle.

 Because of a shortage of truck companies in the area, Reisterstown had Rescue 1 include a truck company complement of ground ladders in an enclosed compartment accessed from the rear of the vehicle.

The rig carries Paratech Gold and Gray struts, Res-Q-Jacks, and interchangeable attachments and extensions on slide-out boards in the L4 compartment.

 The rig carries Paratech Gold and Gray struts, Res-Q-Jacks, and interchangeable attachments and extensions on slide-out boards in the L4 compartment.

The transverse L2/R2 compartment contains a Hypertherm electric plasma cutting system.

 The transverse L2/R2 compartment contains a Hypertherm electric plasma cutting system.

Willett notes that because the fire company wanted a truck company complement of ground ladders on the rescue, Rescue 1 packaged them in a compartment accessed from the rear. He says the compartment holds one 35-foot, three-section extension ladder; two 24-foot, two-section extension ladders; and two 16-foot roof ladders. A storage area above them holds a Stokes basket, a backboard, four pike poles, a Little Giant ladder, two eight-foot-long Paratech struts, and a Paratech monopod kit. Below the ladders is a compartment holding a Ramsey 30,000-pound hydraulic winch and a Warn 9,000-pound portable winch. Winch receivers are on each side and the front and rear of the rescue, which also are usable to mount a monopod for rescue work or as rope tie-off points.

Hewitt says the rescue’s extended front bumper holds two hydraulic hose reels and two preconnected Holmatro CORETechnologyTM hydraulic rescue tools, each with 30 feet of hydraulic hose. “Our L1/R1 compartment is transverse and holds a TRI-MAX 30 compressed air foam system (CAFS); four ceiling-mounted hydraulic reels, two on each side; Holmatro rams, cutters, and combi tools on slide-out trays; a portable hydraulic unit; cribbing; and step chocks,” he adds.

The L1/R1 transverse compartment holds a TRI-MAX 30 CAFS on a slide-out tray on the right side.

 The L1/R1 transverse compartment holds a TRI-MAX 30 CAFS on a slide-out tray on the right side.

The L2/R2 transverse compartment has electric reels at the top on each side, Hewitt says, an area for the driver’s turnout gear, four bottle-type jacks, battery-operated positive-pressure Blowhard fans, a Hypertherm electric plasma cutter, six 12-volt tripods and freestanding LED lights, two fire extinguishers, and toolboxes.

The L3 compartment over the wheel well is filled with cribbing and chocks, Hewitt notes, while the L4 compartment holds Paratech Gold and Paratech Gray struts and rigging equipment, Res-Q-Jack Super X lifting jacks for lifting or stabilization, attachments that are interchangeable between the Paratech struts and Res-Q-Jacks, extensions to use with either system for collapse and trench rescue situations, and a large assortment of straps and chains for rigging equipment and winches—with everything color-coded as to low- and high-capacity weight ratings.

specs

Rescue 1 Heavy Technical Rescue Truck

  • 2019 Seagrave Marauder II chassis and cab
  • Seating for six firefighters, five in H.O. Bostrom SCBA seats
  • 20-foot aluminum walk-around body
  • Cummins 500-hp X12 engine
  • Allison 4000 EVS six-speed automatic transmission
  • TRI-MAX 30 CAFS
  • Ramsey 20,000-pound rear-mounted winch with synthetic line
  • Warn 9,000-pound portable winch with synthetic line
  • Four winch receiver points—front, sides, and rear
  • Onan Protec 35-kilowatt power takeoff generator

The heavy technical rescue’s R3 compartment holds battery-operated DeWalt tools; two rope bags with rope, harnesses, and carabiners; circular saws; a portable band saw; two Sawzall units; two impact guns; and rapid intervention team (RIT) equipment and ropes. The R4 compartment holds Paratech lifting air bags; extra Holmatro hoses; a DeWalt cutoff saw; two chain saws; two gasoline-powered cutoff saws; and an air cart with six SCBA bottles for RIT, confined space, or lifting air bags.

Two long and two short coffin compartments are on top of the rescue, Hewitt says. One long coffin holds water rescue equipment including personal flotation devices (PFDs) with strobe lights and carabiners, throw bags, helmets, and cold water/ice rescue dry suits. The second long coffin holds long-handled tools, shovels, rakes, salvage equipment, and buckets. One short coffin holds rope rescue equipment, harnesses, and hardware, while the second short coffin has three Holmatro pumps and an exhaust fan in it. An electrically controlled Speedi Dry compartment with a vacuum refill function is built into the top rear of the rescue.

Lighting on the heavy technical rescue, says Newsome, includes a Will-Burt 9,000-watt Night Scan light tower, Whelen LED warning lighting, a RotoRay and two Mars lights on the front grille, and 12-volt HiViz FireTech LED scene lighting with one bar on each side and a 72-inch-wide bar across the front of the cab and the rear of the rig.


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.

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