After nearly five years of production, the Britannia-Wilton Fire Department received their second pumper truck. - Andrea Nicholl Photo
By Andrea Nicholl
The Britannia-Wilton Fire Department will become more efficient with a new addition to their fleet.
The local fire service unveiled their second pumper truck on Thursday afternoon, showing off their custom-designed pride and joy.
“It’s about a $600,000 touch to build a truck of this size just because of all the extras that it has on it,” said Aaron Buckingham, captain of Britannia-Wilton Fire.
“This won’t enhance our response times necessarily it just increases the efficiency of what we do when we’re on scene.”
Buckingham says the investment was a “large dollar figure” though it’s one that will keep the residents of Britannia and Wilton safe.
“It’s all about public safety and taking better care of the people we serve, not that we didn’t take great care of them already this is just going to enhance that.”
“We’ve got fairly high density rural development out in our RM,” said Louis Genest, administrator for the RM of Britannia.
“There’s a lot of houses in close proximity to one another as well as a lot of oil infrastructure which creates the need for a higher level of service from our fire department than you would typically see in a rural area.”
The pumper truck, five years in the making, was funded equally by the RM of Wilton and RM of Britannia. Darren Elder, administrator for the RM of Wilton says the truck’s capabilities are priceless when it comes to saving lives.
“From council’s point of view we have been seeing a lot of development over the last number of years so now we’ll be able to look after the area more efficiently,” he said from the Britannia-Wilton Fire Hall on Highway 16.
“Also, it’s just great to support the fire department because the guys are a great bunch of volunteers and we really appreciate what they do.”
The pumper truck was constructed in Appleton, Wisconsin and is equipped with two foam systems, compressed air and as Buckingham explains, can extinguish a blaze with half the water previously required.
“I think the residents of the RMs are happy with their fire department and the dedication and service of our firefighters,” said Elder.