Pros and Cons of rescue trucks

[cdeformanfire]

My fire department has been looking into getting a new rescue truck. We are a big district full of fields and forest areas. Some of the guys would like a rescue/pumper but others say that bigger truck could not make it through the terrain we might encounter. We are for sure looking for atleast a four-man crew cab. Any suggestions? Please give me the Pros and Cons of each type of rescue truck.

[Ambrose33]

Whats the size of your department? How much room in the firehouse? How many extrications/tech rescues do you do? Do u have a rescue now? Pro's of having a dedicated rescue truck is its one big tool box. You can build it anyway or anysize you want it to suit your company. Also your not holding an engine company at a scene for some type of rescue that doesn't need water. Con's if your a smaller company or a town that doesn't get many extrications/rescues it may do more sitting then going into service so a Rescue/pumper will do the job. Pro's of a rescue pumper is you can have an all in one truck. FDNY calls them squad companies and many departments by me have now gone to this concept. One of the best sites to check is FDNY Squad 18. This can be a huge debate especially during tough economic times. If I was on your company I would go look at both types of trucks and see whats the best for you guys

My department has a major highway and several busy roads. We get about 75-100 MVA's a year. So we have a Heavy duty rescue and a Squad company(rescue engine). Also our Rescue we use as our FAST truck at fire scenes. The town next to us is smaller and runs very few accidents has a rescue/pumper and it works perfectly for what they deal with.


-stay safe

[TNFF319]

Are you talking about a brush truck? People call thing by so many names. A rescue wouldn't be of much use on a wildland fire.

[Eng34FF]

My fire department has been looking into getting a new rescue truck. We are a big district full of fields and forest areas. Some of the guys would like a rescue/pumper but others say that bigger truck could not make it through the terrain we might encounter. We are for sure looking for atleast a four-man crew cab. Any suggestions? Please give me the Pros and Cons of each type of rescue truck.

Not sure what type of terrain a rescue truck might not make it through. We have a Heavy Rescue Squad that is pretty large, but will make it most places. There are a few side roads and driveways that we can't make it down, but we don't have many auto accidents in these areas. We also carry a portable power unit for the Hurst tools if a vehicle is far enough off of the road that the cord reels won't reach.