Swanton Fire Department to Put New Engine in Service by April
The Village of Swanton recently purchased a 2020 Suphten Fire Engine, manufactured in Urbana, Ohio, to replace the aging 2000 Pierce Sabre model which is in the process of being sold. The new engine is described as “well rounded” by Swanton Fire Chief Anthony Schaffer in explaining its versatility, serving as a rescue vehicle as well as a state-of-the-art firefighting engine.
“The new fire engine will be used as a rescue pumper or rescue engine so it will be used not only for fire related incidents but also for rescues with extrication equipment (Jaws of Life) and other tools like that to get people out of cars or vehicles,” said Chief Schaffer. “It will also be equipped with some HazMat materials and equipment. There’s more compartment space on this truck compared to other trucks we’ve had.”
The Chief also explained that this truck is expected to be on the “front lines” of service for approximately 8-10 years and then serve as a reserve vehicle. “What we’re trying to do here is to replace trucks before their value is so low that we’re not getting anything out of them,” he said. “Twenty years here should be the maximum for a truck or engine.”
The initial cost for the new truck was $509,000, which was a lower price, negotiated when Suphten wanted to use the engine as a demonstration model to display at other fire departments. The demonstration period also allowed for any “kinks” to be worked out and modifications were made to the engine before it was delivered to Swanton.
There is still some more work to be done on the truck before it will be ready to help protect the community. “It will need around $50,000 worth of (additional) equipment,” said the Chief. “A third party is going to be mounting the equipment and designing some of the compartments for organization and ease of use. We’ll be able to store more equipment and make it more functional.”
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused some manufacturing delays in supplying the additional equipment required for the new Swanton Fire Engine 703 to be put into service. Chief Schaffer estimates the truck to be available to the SFD sometime in April.
On the positive side, astute financial planning by Fiscal Officer Jennifer Harkey, allowed for the funds for the new equipment to be budgeted instead of requiring the Village to take out a loan.
Pictured: Swanton Fire Engine 703 set to debut in April
Fulton County Ohio Media 