Shropshire blazing a trail with new 'state-of-the-art' fire engines
Shropshire's firefighters are pioneering a "new generation" of fire engines, as the first frontline emergency service in the UK to use them.
The Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service is to introduce five new Scania engines to its stations at Telford, Shrewsbury and Baschurch.
Shropshire's assistant chief fire officer Dave Myers said: "We took our first Scania vehicles back in 2006, since when they have been proving themselves as reliable, robust and dependable members of our fleet.
"We are now delighted to be making a little bit of history by becoming the first UK operator of new generation Scania fire engines, and look forward to them giving us and the people of Shropshire many years of excellent service."
Scania is currently training the service's instructors, who in turn will deliver training to the crews. Once training is finished, the vehicles will join Shropshire's 26 other Scania appliances in providing frontline fire-fighting and rescue services.
Andrew Kelcey, head of resources for the service, said: "Safety is obviously a major concern for any fire and rescue service, and the Scania crew cab unquestionably represents the state of the art.
"That, together with the proven quality and performance of the product and the service and support infrastructure provided throughout Shropshire by our local Scania dealer, West Pennine Trucks, are key factors underpinning our decision to continue purchasing Scania."
The appliances' bodywork has been custom built to Shropshire's own specification by Emergency One (UK) Limited.
Martin Barclay, the service's vehicle contracts manager, said: "Due to the rural sparsity of our area, these vehicles have been designed to meet our enhanced rescue pump criteria.
"This includes a 3,000-litre water tank and the ability to carry sufficient fire and rescue equipment to meet our operational needs.
"Some of our rural stations can be operating standalone at incidents and the resources on these appliances enable the crews to operate safely and effectively until support pumps arrive.
"Fully laden, our trucks weigh in at 16 tonnes, making the Scania 18-tonne chassis an ideal option for us."
