By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Sea Isle City is getting ready to buy a $1.1 million fire truck that will greatly improve its firefighting capabilities and efforts to protect the community.
However, it may take as long as two years before the pumper truck is delivered to the city because of the lengthy manufacturing process, Fire Chief Bryan Moran said.
Moran noted that the new truck will be more powerful than the one it will replace, including the ability to pump more water on fires at a faster rate.
“The new truck will enable us to provide much safer fire services for the residents of Sea Isle,” he said in an interview Monday.
City Council is expected at its meeting Tuesday to approve the fire truck’s purchase from fire equipment manufacturer Sutphen Corp.
As part of the deal, the city plans to trade in a fire department rescue van valued at $55,000 and a fire truck valued at $160,000. The van would be traded in immediately, while the fire truck would stay with the city until later in the year while it continues to be used to fight fires, Moran said.
The fire department formed a six-member committee headed by Deputy Chief Joe Wagner to study the type of new fire truck that would be needed. Moran praised Wagner and the committee members for their hard work.
Sea Isle has a volunteer fire department that is funded by the city. Currently, there are 37 volunteer firefighters.
“We’re just happy that the city was willing to provide us with a new piece,” Moran said of the new fire truck.
Moran explained that the department is going through the process of “slimming down” its fleet of fire vehicles by replacing older equipment with bigger and more powerful models.
He noted that the city doesn’t want to end up with an aging and “ailing” fleet of fire trucks.
“We are slimming down the fleet with bigger and better equipment than we had in the past,” he said.
The new $1.1 million fire truck is a prime example of the department switching to more powerful and more modern equipment.
It will be equipped with a 1,000-gallon water tank and have the capability of pumping 2,000 gallons of water per minute on fires. It will also have a supply of soaking foam to extinguish fires caused by gas or petroleum.
The fire department’s current pumper truck has a tank capacity of 800 gallons and can pump water at a rate of 1,500 gallons per minute, according to Moran.
“Overall, the new truck is going to be a substantial aid to protect the city and residents,” he said.
Sea Isle’s year-round population is about 2,100 residents, but the town swells to between 50,000 and 70,000 vacationers during the height of the summer tourism season. The big summer crowds can put a strain on emergency management and public safety.
With the new fire truck, the fire department will be much better equipped to handle emergencies, Moran said.
Modern fire trucks are essentially pieces of high-tech equipment on wheels. They feature an array of safety innovations that allow fire departments at the Jersey Shore to respond to any type of emergency that may occur – from severe coastal flooding to a major inferno.
In February 2023, Sea Isle firefighters were among the first responders that rushed to the scene of a balcony collapse at the South Tower of the Spinnaker condominium complex. One construction worker was killed when the balcony above him collapsed and crushed him.
