The Town of Princeton is getting an impressive new set of wheels – and hoses and ladders – in the very near future.
“ By summer people will see this truck on the streets,” said John Laursen, chief of Princeton’s Volunteer Fire Department.
The new fire engine, purchased from Hub Fire Trucks in Abbotsford, comes with a $375,000 price tag. Area H ratepayers pay one third of that amount, and the balance comes from the town’s equipment reserves.
Currently the department operates two engines, and this purchase will allow the crew to retire its 22-year-old truck to back-up status.
Under standards set by Underwriters Laboratories, fire departments must keep their equipment up to date, under 20 years old, or insurance premiums in the municipalities they serve will rise.
The new truck will be the department’s primary response vehicle. Truck 226 will carry six firefighters and 500 gallons of water. In addition to hoses it has a 40’ ladder, a pump that will produce 1250 gallons per minute, and a water cannon.
The engine is a Cummins Diesel and the transmission is purchased from Allison.
The truck is built to Princeton’s specifications, said Laursen.
“I would say for 90 per cent of the fire departments in the Okanagan, this would be a Cadillac,” said Laursen.
The Princeton Fire Department also has two water shuttle trucks and a 4-wheel drive command vehicle.