Even in a modern fire station, some old habits seem to never go up in smoke. On Monday morning in the Coastside Fire Protection District headquarters in Half Moon Bay, the district unveiled two state-of-the-art fire engines in a way that would have seemed familiar to firefighters in the 1800s.
With some help from the driver, staff heaved the 48,000-pound red vehicles backward into the station bay, harkening back to when firefighters had to detach horses from their wooden carriages when they returned to the station. Tradition aside, district staff is excited about the fresh engines and says the fleet should serve the region for the next two decades.
The new engines, identified as Nos. 40 and 41, will replace their older counterparts, which will be held in reserve. Engine 40 will be stationed in Half Moon Bay while 41 will operate out of El Granada.
The latest “apparatus” are designed similarly to the current fleet to help crews transition into the new vehicles. But officials say there are notable upgrades and new bells and whistles, including lower diesel emissions. A key addition is a container for storing toxic or stained clothing outside of the cab, making rides safer for firefighters. The auto extraction equipment, commonly called the “jaws of life,” is now electric instead of hydraulic. Another custom feature for the Coastside engines is multiple anchor points for crews to secure ropes during cliff rescues. Each apparatus can hold up to six people, but three is the norm.
Cal Fire Deputy Chief Jonathan Cox called the new Type 1 vehicles among the best the district can buy in terms of safety, quality and pump capacity. The new fleet has a larger road clearance than the older models built in the early 2000s, creating less wear and tear while on the road, Cox said.
The district ordered these engines capable of holding 600 gallons of water in spring 2020. The district’s rule of thumb is to replace its engines after 15 years on the front line and five years as a reserve. Cox said the district saved money by paying cash for the engines which together cost $1.8 million. The money comes from an apparatus fund the district contributes to each year.
“It’s a good feather in the cap of the board to pay cash and have the best equipment to date,” Cox said.
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