CLARION, Pa. (EYT) – Clarion Fire & Hose Company No. 1 recently welcomed fire truck number 20 to its long and storied family.
(PHOTOS: Captured by Jacob Deemer/EYT.)
The apparatus, a 2022 Pierce Enforcer Heavy Duty Rescue Pumper (HDRP), was picked up from Glick Fire Equipment Company, Inc., in Zelienople, on Monday morning.
The 98-inch wide body measures 34 feet and 10 inches in length, carries up to 1,000 gallons and can support up to 48,000 lbs. It also carries up to 500 cubic feet of compartment space and includes an eight-person cab.
The HDRP model is one of the most versatile apparatuses used, Assistant Fire Chief Mike Chesterfield told exploreClarion.com.
“The truck’s role and function is probably one of our most heavily used trucks in house,” he said. “This truck can do firefighting, vehicle rescue, road rescue – it’s basically a catch-all truck.”
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recommends that a fire apparatus should be retired every 25 years. Standard pumpers and other various apparatuses can last longer, however.
No. 20 will replace truck No. 16, a 1996 Sutphen Rescue Pumper, which “ran more than most,” according to Assistant Fire Chief Chuck Bartley.
“Historically, it was every 20 years, no matter what, for that kind of truck,” Bartley said. “But, that was way back when, and now the price is so outrageous, you gotta stretch it as long as you can.”
Outrageous is one way to describe the purchase price of an HDRP in 1981 to one in 2022.
According to Chesterfield, the company bought a 1981 Pierce Mack Pumper – still being used by the company, by the way – for approximately $35,000.00, and the new truck is pushing $700,000.00.
Clarion Fire & Hose Co. No. 1 took their 1981 Pierce Mack Pumper to a structure fire in April.
“With (the Sutphen Rescue Pumper) being a 1996, we were knocking on the door,” Chesterfield mentioned. “It’s not like the truck was falling apart or inoperable, but it was starting to show its age. Like I said, we use (the HDRP model) a lot. It goes out on every vehicle rescue, every vehicle accident; it responds to any out-of-town fires. If we go out to assist another company, that’s the truck that goes because it would carry the most guys, and it would have all the equipment we would need to assist. Probably two-thirds of our calls, it goes out for.”
Other models of apparatuses include standard pumpers, brush trucks, ladder trucks, rescue trucks, tanker trucks, and more.
(VIDEO: Take a tour of Clarion Fire Department’s 2022 Pierce Enforcer Heavy Duty Rescue Pumper. Captured by Jacob Deemer/EYT.)
Chesterfield, as well as the entire fire company, are immensely grateful for the help they have received through various fundraisers, investments, and donations. The company’s funds will cover approximately half of the purchase price, with the other half being paid with a loan through the Pennsylvania Office of the State Fire Commissioner (OSFC).
“We’re super excited to have the truck,” he said. “Thank you to all of our donors that helped us get this truck, and for everybody who has contributed to any of the fundraisers, mailers, and all of that.”
As for ole No. 16 (the 1996 Sutphen Rescue Pumper), she has been retired and is up for sale – a credit to the durability of the truck.
“We’re trying to get it a new home,” Chesterfield noted. “It still passes inspection, and is still a functioning apparatus, but it was time for us to do the upgrade.”
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