The City of Blue Ridge’s 32-year-old fire truck is not up to National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards.
Volunteer Firefighter Kevin Panter spoke to the City Council Tuesday, December 8, about the state of the city’s only fire truck.
Alongside Kevin Panter were Fannin County Fire Chief Larry Thomas and Fannin County Assistant Fire Chief and Mechanic Rob Ross.
NFPA standards state that an “apparatus should respond to first alarms for the first 15 years. For the next five years, be in reserve status for use at major fires or as a temporary replacement for out-of-service first line apparatus. Be retired at 20 years of age, unless the apparatus meets the recommended annual service and acceptance level test and has been deemed in excellent mechanical condition.”
An inspection report of the fire truck from December 3, 2020, states that “taking into consideration that this is a first responder emergency vehicle that has to be operational at all times and dependable at all times, we feel that the age of the truck for an emergency vehicle is too old, and liability should be took into consideration.”
Furthermore, Ross explained the potential dangers the truck poses.
“Basically the difference between what we have sitting out here and a newer truck is that as far as safety as a operator, you’ve got crush zones, seatbelts, shoulder harnesses, airbags, anti-lock breaks, anti-rollover systems, all that,” Ross said. “This truck has a lap belt and a solid steering column, and it has no roll over protection.”
Councilman Mike Panter pointed out the breaks are also inadequate, which Ross informed that they’re 32 years old also.
The breaks take five minutes for the air pressure to build up before it can actually be moved, Ross confirmed.
Mayor Donna Whitener pointed out that a trailer can totally burn in a matter of seven minutes.
Additionally, Ross explained there’s hills in the city that the truck just can’t make it up anymore, and the engine is no longer manufactured, so parts are no longer available.
The water tank could also fail at any moment, Ross said.
The county’s latter truck will only reach the third floor of the up-and-coming hotel on West Main Street, Kevin Panter informed.
“The ultimate goal is not to have a latter truck to reach the very top floor, that’s nice,” Kevin Panter said. “What you utilize the latter, when we have the whole downtown street burning or we have a big building here burning, we have to be able to provide aerial water support into the center of that.”
Kevin Panter added that the old fire truck is also affecting property owners’ ISO ratings.
Councilman Nathan Fitts explained that he reached out to Thomas about the truck in the past and said Thomas said the city could manage without one.
“You don’t ask your police officers to drive a 32-year-old emergency vehicle,” Kevin Panter said to Fitts. “You don’t drive a 32-year-old vehicle. I don’t either. Nobody probably in here does.”
Fitts suggested purchasing a used or newer truck instead of a brand new one, fully equipped quoted for over $350,000.
Councilman Panter pointed out that the money is paid out over 10 years rather than all up front.
“You got a million dollar police budget, and you got $15,000 for the Fire Department that you spend,” Kevin Panter said. “We’re asking for help. We wanna be protected. You’re growing like crazy. We just need help.”
Fitts pointed out that the city has a full-time Police Department and a volunteer Fire Department.
Addressing Fitts’ claim that the city doesn’t experience many fires, Kevin Panter said that since he first presented the issue to the council at an October 20 meeting, there’s been 90 fire calls; however, outside the meeting, he clarified that the city has received 69 calls year to date.
Last year, that number was 81.
“The City of Blue Ridge is twice the size of any little cities around here,” Kevin Panter said. “You need to be providing fire protection whether you pay it, buy a new truck, and we continue on the way it’s been going or you give that money to the county. Something has to happen. We have one fire engine in the city of Blue Ridge that’s the counties. We have that ... ‘88 model sitting out there, and we’ve got a latter truck at the county that’s how old? It’s the mid-90s. That’s what we’re protecting the City of Blue Ridge with.”
Whitener asked if the city could attend a fire class of sorts to which Kevin Panter said they would be “more than happy” to put something together.
Councilwoman Rhonda Haight asked what they could do if the truck was out of commission and a fire were to occur to which Ross said, “We (Fannin County Fire Department) will take care of it.”
However, those trucks could also be out of order or serving another fire at the time.
Haight explained that she wanted to reassure the citizens that they are protected in the event of a fire disaster regardless of the state of the city’s truck.
“They should be (concerned), Rhonda,” Kevin Panter said. “You’re laughing about it. You’re laughing about it, I’m not.”
Haight assured that she was not laughing, but wanted residents to know they’re still protected by the county.