After nearly two years of engineering and customization, the Hopkinton Fire Department is set to take delivery of two new fire apparatuses. Interim Fire Chief Gary Daugherty was onsite in Appleton, Wisconsin today to inspect the vehicles at Pierce Manufacturing, one of America’s leading custom fire truck companies.
“They look great,” said the chief. “There are a few tweaks left to make, but they should be quick, and we’re looking forward to putting the vehicles into service.”
Voters at the 2021 Annual Town Meeting approved the purchase of a new truck to replace Engine 4, which is 22 years old this year. The other truck was paid from insurance proceeds; in 2021, while undergoing maintenance at Bulldog Fire Apparatus, one unit inadvertently caught fire and was deemed a total loss. The town has been renting a truck since then.
Working with Pierce, the fire department made several modifications to the chassis to accommodate Hopkinton’s unique requirements. The width of scenic roads, for example, necessitates a narrower body to allow for passing vehicles, and to avoid snow banks. Because there are no fire hydrants in approximately 50% of the town, the length of the truck has to be shorter to increase the turning radius and to account for longer, narrower driveways. They also couldn’t be taller than 9.5 feet, to allow for docking at the Woodville Fire Station.
One of the major benefits of these trucks is that they were engineered to be identical to the platforms in our existing fleet, which ensures fire department personnel have a standard setup regardless of the equipment. It also decreases maintenance costs as the trucks all use the same parts.
“Once the final modifications are made, they’ll be driven to the Pierce dealer in Foxborough,” explained Daugherty. “From there we’ll mount our equipment and begin training the team.”
