TELFORD, Penn. -- The 2007 Pierce aerial ladder truck's last job was as one of the fire trucks on the "Rescue Me" television series starring Dennis Leary as a New York City firefighter.
"They were fawning all over it at the factory," said Telford Volunteer Fire Company Chief Ray Fegley.
It wasn't the truck's celebrity status, though, that made the Telford company decide to buy it.
In keeping with a schedule that says aerial ladder trucks get replaced when they're 30 years old, the Telford department planned to get another one this year, but expected to, as usual, buy a used one, Fegley told Telford Borough Council Monday night.
The first truck they considered was a 1989 model that would have cost about $270,000 to $300,000 to buy and upgrade, then could be used for 10 more years.
Another one, a 2002 model, would have cost about $500,000. Then they got a call about the Rescue Me truck.
"It's value, when it was originally ordered, was $720,000," Fegley said. The present value was set at $780,000, he said, but the fire company got it for $587,000.
"Basically, we're getting a brand new truck for a savings of about $200,000," Fegley said.
Originally, the truck was supposed to go to a Texas oil refinery after completing its run on the television show, but that didn't happen, so Pierce put the truck up for sale again, Fegley said.
"They changed a lot of things to meet our needs, at no charge," Fegley said. "Quite frankly, everybody's gonna benefit from this. It's just an incredible truck." The department hopes to have the truck ready to go into service in May. A $150,000 state loan at 2 percent interest is helping pay for the truck, with the rest of the money coming from funds put aside in preparation, Fegley said. Before telling council about the new truck, Fegley also showed examples of other firefighting equipment the department has added in recent years, including thermal image cameras and new radios and breathing apparatus.
"We've been very aggressive at pursuing grant funding," Fegley said, "and we've been very successful."
Starting in 2003, the department has received about $252,000 in grants while having to put up only $11,000 of its own money for the items bought with the grants, he said. That meant the fire company got to keep the money it otherwise would have had to pay out for that equipment.
"This allowed us to buy a new truck, which we're certain we'll get 30 years use out of," Fegley said.
The Telford Volunteer Fire Company covers Telford and portions of West Rockhill, Franconia and Hilltown.
The department gets 48 percent of its budget from the four towns and 52 percent from fundraisers and donations.
In its annual donation drive mailing for 2009, the fire company suggested respondents give a $25 donation, equal to 10 cents for each time the fire company is called out during the year.
Responses to the drive appear to have slowed down earlier this year than last year, but the company does not yet have totals for how much this year's drive brought in, Fegley said.
"Last year, we responded to 250 emergency calls and we averaged 12 people per call," Fegley said.
The volunteer firefighters also put in a lot of time working at fundraising activities or in other community events, he said.
Training programs accounted for another 630 hours.
"Whether you're a volunteer or a paid firefighter, you're expected to be a professional," Fegley said.
The Telford department has about 70 members, 40 of which are active firefighters, he said.
Council member Scott Hillegass said he's grateful for the work done by the fire company and all the volunteers.
"We appreciate what the fire company does for our community and surrounding communities," council member Stanley Nyce agreed. Once word gets out about the new truck's background, it will undoubtedly be getting some extra attention, Fegley said.
"We don't know at this point whether Dennis Leary's gonna show up," he said. Perhaps because of its celebrity status, though, the new fire truck is a bit big headed. It's a half foot taller than the old one, which barely fit into the firehouse, so the fire company's had to raise its doors to make room to fit the new truck in.
Republished with permission of Montgomery Newspapers.
