Yesterday I packed up the family and headed to Shippensburg for the West End Fire & Rescue Company No.3's "twin" engine housing. The officers and members of West End started the afternoon event with a presentation ceremony followed by the christening of the engines. Members and firefighters from neighboring departments ended the ceremony by pushing the engines into the station.
Two years of planning went into the purchase of the two engines, with emphasis on practicality. The appearance of these rigs leads one to believe that there are a lot of "bells and whistles", but that is not the case! The 2015 Pierce Arrow XT's were designed for "severe service" so you wont find any cloth headliners in the cab. Featuring a low hose bed (check out their website for pics: www.wefr15.com) and ample compartment space, these rigs are set up for basic engine company operations.
Quote:Unfortunately no, but their website has photos. The units were a 2006 KME engine which was sold and a 1995 Pierce Lance which is currently for sale.
The new rigs look great! I don't have any pics of the KME or the Pierce, but I have the following shots of the two rigs they replaced:
Engine 15-1, West End Fire Company, Shippensburg, PA
It must be nice to be able to set up your engines like that. No fans, no vent saws, no auto ex stuff, no cold water gear, no hazmat gear. Just engine stuff. Sigh.
Thanks!! Their rescue squad and the Boroughs ladder companies carry the fans and other specialty equipment, so they didn't see a need to duplicate. The compartments on these engines are not overcrowded and they carry plenty of attack lines....true pumpers. I like concept of a standard engine company, let the special services come in and do their thing.