The Fountain Hills Fire Department has added a second brush/attack truck to its fleet stationed at Fire Station No. 2 south of Shea on Saguaro Boulevard.

The new truck will be utilized for brush fire responses, “special duty calls” such as snake calls and mountain/trail rescues. Using the smaller vehicle when practical will save significant wear and tear on the full-sized fire engine pumper.

This new vehicle is a blend of new equipment and reused existing apparatus. It is the combination of a new Ford F550 cab and chassis, and the compartment body and pump from the old brush truck it replaced.

The existing compartment body was removed from the old truck and stripped down to bare metal. New hinges and shelves were installed and the body was repainted and installed on the new cab and chassis.

The fire pump was overhauled and installed. All this work was performed by Rural/Metro Fleet Services at no labor charge. This saved the town tens of thousands of dollars over the cost of a new brush truck.

This places a smaller attack vehicle at each Fountain Hills station. Both are equipped and ready for the wildfire season.

The fire department is also scheduled to take delivery of a new fire engine pumper early this summer. That engine will replace the old pumper posted at Station No. 1, and that vehicle will be placed on stand-by as a reserve engine.