The City of Estevan is making a huge investment in the safety of its residents and fire department.
The members of council approved the purchase of a $1.34 million fire truck that will include a T-Rex articulating platform. The new unit will allow the Estevan Fire Rescue Service to battle fires in taller buildings without having to send firefighters into the potentially unstable structure.
Mayor Gary St. Onge said although the new truck comes at a significant cost, it was needed as Estevan continues to grow.
"We needed it for more than one reason," St. Onge said. "We didn't have a ladder truck. It could replace a pumper as well, and I think our people realize with the number of four storey buildings and the fact that you have to get up on top of those, some of our firefighters were concerned about their safety."
Deputy fire Chief Dale Feser said the T-Rex will help the department out in a number of ways but most importantly it will give them a much needed aerial option.
"We believe it is desperately needed with the four-storey combustible housing going on in the city and it looks like it is going to continue on to accommodate the influx of people moving to the city," Feser said.
"Currently we are relying on ground ladders to reach a lot of these elevated places that could possibly have a fire or someone in need of rescue, so this is light-years ahead of where we currently are in providing safety for our firefighters as well as the general public."
Feser noted that when fully extended, the T-Rex arm is 110 feet long. At the end of that arm is a basket that can carry up to four firefighters. He said the fire service and members of council were given a demonstration of the T-Rex's capabilities earlier this year and all involved came away impressed.
"We had it staged up over at Trinity Tower and we were able to set the platform down right next to the truck. The firefighters were able to board and we set (the basket) down on the roof of Trinity Tower complex and still had some room to play with."
Feser said another feature of the T-Rex and the accompanying truck is its versatility. Along with the arm, the unit also has a pumper that will allow the department to use it in all types of situations.
"We will be able to work from a safe platform at elevated heights and we are not relying on the integrity of the roof. Even when it is no longer safe to have men on the roof, we can provide ventilation from a safe platform," said Feser who noted the arm can be operated by a joystick on the bucket or by an operator seated at the bottom of the arm.
"It will double as both an engine, which needed replacement in the future here so it will double as an engine replacement as well as an aerial rescue device.
"It also has applications for structural collapse and water rescue. We are able to extend that boom 30 degrees below grade safely. It's a pretty universal truck. We are getting something that will be good for quite a few different applications."
The fire service will have to wait awhile before they get their new unit. Feser said it will take roughly 13 months for the unit to be constructed by Rosenbauer Firefighting Technology at their factory in Minnesota. However, once it arrives Feser feels it will be the envy of fire departments throughout the province.
"We will be the only department in Saskatchewan that has an articulating platform truck of this nature. The City of Regina has looked at this particular model but it just didn't meet what their demands were. We are hosting the fire chiefs conference here in the spring of 2014 and they will have it on display for sure."
