NEWS

City gets $1M grant for new ladder truck

Posted 11/22/22

By EMMA BARTLETT

A new aerial ladder fire truck will join the Cranston Fire Department's force thanks to a $1 million grant the department received earlier this fall from the Federal Emergency …

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NEWS

City gets $1M grant for new ladder truck

Posted

By EMMA BARTLETT

A new aerial ladder fire truck will join the Cranston Fire Department's force thanks to a $1 million grant the department received earlier this fall from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, as an effort to enhance public safety, according to Rhode Island’s congressional delegation. Fire Chief James Warren said the customized fire truck will be delivered in two years.

While supply chain issues have pushed the ladder truck’s arrival time back, Warren said Thursday that ladder fire trucks usually take 14 to 18 months to build since they are customized for departments. The new 100 -foot aerial ladder fire truck will replace a 20 -year old truck that the department has.

Drivers can often see Cranston’s fire trucks whizzing through the city on their way to emergencies. With constant use comes natural wear and tear and, as the vehicles age, they get tougher to fix and are not as safe. Warren said in 2020, the fire truck with the largest number of runs had 1,745 runs and the fire truck with the least had 784 runs. He said each year the department tests the fire trucks’ ladders for strength and makes sure the hydraulics pass requirements.

Warren said the new truck would be safer, easier to drive and includes custom features to help the department’s firefighters. The new aerial ladder fire truck will be 41 feet long – which is on the shorter end of these vehicles; the department is trying to purchase smaller trucks so it’s easier to maneuver around the city. Custom features include two compartments on both sides of the truck for storage and extraction tools that will allow firefighters to pop open a door quicker. He said the fire truck’s outriggers are smaller compared to other outriggers, which will help in crowded streets. The Fire Department is purchasing its fire truck from the company E-One, which is a popular fire truck manufacturing brand that other cities and towns across the state use; the fire truck where it will be manufactured in Florida.

The total cost for the fire truck is $1,261,910 with remaining funding coming through a line item in the department’s budget. Warren said the city will have to purchase the truck and then Cranston will be reimbursed by the federal government. These trucks are expensive and the prices keep going up. He said the department is looking to lock in on a contract soon since the price of the aerial ladder fire truck has already increased 9 percent.

The new fire truck will be stationed at the department’s Garden City location and the vehicle it replaces will be kept on reserve. The department will also be purchasing an E-One fire engine pumper through bond money which is being built now and should be in by summertime. Warren said he’s happy with the truck and thanked residents for the bond approval that allowed this purchase to occur.

firetruck, ladder

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