Fire Department Requests Lease Assistance for New Engines

The Brookfield Volunteer Fire Department (BVFD) will be retiring three of their older trucks and trading up for two new trucks — a pumper and a tanker. The department has already spent $130,000 to order the new chassis for the tanker and has asked the town to help them borrow the remaining $650,000 needed for the new trucks.

Fire and EMS President Lou Menendez and Department Treasurer and Board of Directors Chairman Bob Nuzzi appeared before the Board of Selectmen (BOS) at their July meeting to request a municipal loan through the town for the $650,000 balance, .

“The municipal leasing program is a new idea,” which allows the department to borrow “at a very favorable interest rate,” between 2 percent and 3 percent lower than borrowing on their own from a local bank, Nuzzi explained in an interview.

The department has little spare room in their budget, according to Nuzzi (after this year’s annual Fund Drive, revenues just sparsely cover expenses), and the added savings could be put toward modernizing the fire house, itself 20 years old.

Saving those few percentage points “adds up to a real chunk of change” over time, Menendez noted.

The BOS tabled action on the request until their August meeting in order to gather more information, including whether a town meeting will be necessary.

The department is retiring three trucks — Tanker 2, purchased in 1987; a source truck active since 1981; and the oldest, a 1956 milk truck that was refurbished in 1978 to become the original “Holy Cow” pumper.

Fire trucks can last as long as they are useful, Menendez explained, though most insurance companies like to see the equipment updated every 20 years. The more pressing issue, however, is getting parts for the older models.

“It’s all about time, not wear and tear,” he said, as parts become harder to find and eventually have to be machined special. “It gets to the point where it’s dangerous.”

Three Retirees, Two New Recruits

The original “Holy Cow,” Tanker 6, has become secondary to the larger, newer “Holy Cow,” which the BVFD acquired in 1991. The older Tanker 6 is still relatively functional, however the load was not properly balanced over the chassis when it was refurbished and the front-end has risen over the years, making it difficult to drive, and its age makes it the most difficult truck to get new parts for.

The source truck, Engine 4, isn’t as necessary as it was before fire suppression was as widespread as it is today. The source truck is packed with 3,000 feet of hose and a strong pump that can remain on for hours on end, ideal for pumping water from nearby lakes or ponds if a hydrant isn’t close by.

“We haven’t had to use [Engine 4] all that often,” Menendez said, “Now that we have about 150 dry hydrants” and the individual fire suppression tanks throughout the commercial district and residential complexes, per town ordinance.

Though Engine 4 hasn’t log many miles on the road, “mileage is not the issue,” Menendez explained, “It’s time on the engine.” The odometer shows less than 3,000 miles, however the engine is 20 years old and at the end of its usable life.

Tanker 2, which has a 1,500-gallon capacity, according to Nuzzi, will be replaced with a state-of-the-art tanker capable of carrying 3,000 gallons.

“Engine 5 is the first guy out the door to the fire… this guy [Tanker 2] is right behind him,” Menendez said, and the replacement tanker the department purchased will take over that spot.

The department will still be able to respond as rapidly and effectively as ever despite declining one in truck count, Nuzzi assured, and in fact, response times should shorten with the new trucks.

“The more modern truck is a lot faster, a lot smoother,” he said. “That adds to [decreasing] the response time.”

“The turning radius on that thing is 800 miles,” Menendez said hyperbolically of Tanker 2. “You almost can’t make it in a 100-foot cul-de-sac without backing up and turning around. These news ones, you can almost drive like a car.”

The BVFD has also analyzed various gear ratios over the years and feel as though the new models will be perfectly tuned for Brookfield’s hilly, switchback roads, Menendez said.

“We can go up Mountain Road with a bit of gusto,” he said.

The specifications for the new trucks have been sent out and the department is expecting delivery in 2012.