Hand-me-downs are a right of passage in many large families but aren’t a great approach to public safety in rural communities. The Alberta Volunteer Fire Department was making do with engines procured from nearby communities when the nonprofit decided to pump the brakes on costly repairs.
Chief Ted Smith spearheaded a five-year fundraising effort to replace the aging vehicle but couldn’t move the needle far enough through annual letter drives, income from ambulance service billings and rental payments from a cell tower located on the property. When his counterparts in Lawrenceville recommended contacting USDA Rural Development (RD), Smith quickly made the call.
RD Area Specialist Peggy Jordan outlined options available through the agency’s Community Facilities Programs and helped the first-time clients navigate the application process to upgrade their ride. Thanks to a team effort, they were able to secure a $843,400 loan in record time.
“New customers have to provide a lot of documentation to ensure that they can qualify for our programs,” said Jordan. “They covered all the bases and didn’t miss a beat. We were able to lock in the funding in just three weeks due to their responsiveness.”
Chief Smith says safety was a major consideration in mapping out specifications for the state-of-the-art truck. Alberta crews run daily interstate calls, logging 1,105 responses in 2023 under hazardous conditions due to the pumping configuration on one side of the truck. Firefighters also provide dual coverage on 92 percent of incidents requiring Emergency Medical Services.
“We’re not buying this equipment just to have something new,” says Deputy Chief Robert Hayes, Sr. “This pumper was built to our exact specifications and has everything we need to respond to a wide range of calls from firefighting and accident extrication to hazardous materials incidents.”
The new acquisition will be the main engine for the department with the 27-year-old second-hand vehicle serving as the backup for emergency calls. Features include a state-of-the-art lighting package and a SAM™ pump control system that runs off an iPad. A bigger cab will also offer more elbow room for up to five responders, a feature that is especially beneficial when they must remain in the truck for extended periods in bad weather.
The number of individual equipment compartments is another great feature that will help firefighters work more quickly and efficiently at each scene. With the previous truck, first responders had to pull out several tools to get to the items they needed.
It’s taken many months to procure equipment to fill those bins through donations from the community and people who’ve directly benefitted from their services. Smith and Hayes say they’ve gotten home improvement store gift cards and recently received a $500 check as a “thank you” from a man who was involved in an accident.
“It’s really a one-of-a-kind vehicle with dual pump panels that offers a safe zone for our first responders no matter where the truck is positioned,” says Chief Smith. “We’re the only civilian volunteer fire department in Virginia to have a truck like this and will use it to help our neighbors through our mutual aid agreements with seven surrounding localities and Fort Barfoot.”
