Borough Council Approves Purchase of New Fire Truck

A new Pierce fire truck equipped with state-of-the-art safety features will help make a more efficient organization, Fire Chief Rick Delmore told Hellertown Borough Council during a presentation Oct. 17.

Delmore said the fire truck--which is considered a higher-end vehicle--is also needed by Dewey, which had already responded to 274 calls this year, as of Oct. 17.

Delmore acknowledged that a significant number of those calls were related to , which in late August.

The hurricane's heavy rains flooded basements and streets in Hellertown, and the volunteers from Dewey responded to the emergency by helping to pump water out of homes and by rescuing stranded residents.

However, Delmore said that the truck is fundamentally needed as a replacement for two of the company's current vehicles, both of which are more than 13 years old.

The Pierce truck will have both rescue and fire suppression equipment on it, which will make it more versatile than vehicles the company has owned in the past.

"With limited manpower, we're always looking for ways to make (response) more efficient," Delmore said.

He said he also expects the new truck to be of better quality than the last truck purchased by Dewey.

"I think the previous chief owes me a case of aspirin," he joked. "I think we finally have all the bugs worked out of (the truck) after about six years."

Delmore said that the Pierce vehicle will include safety features such as a hose that is easier to remove, and he explained how it is designed to make falls off it less likely.

Lastly, he said that the vehicle will have a shoter cab but a longer body, "so we're going to have more compartment space to keep equipment."

After Delmore concluded his presentation, a vote by Hellertown Borough Council to approve the purchase was unanimous.

Sale of the vehicles that will be replaced by the new truck will be considered once a "definite delivery date" is received from the manufacturer, Delmore said.