Broken Arrow Fire Department adds 2 new trucks to fleet: 'Best equipment, best technology'

The Broken Arrow Fire Department now has two new fire trucks in service.

The department held a truck washing and dedication ceremony Wednesday to get the trucks ready to go.

BAFD's new fire trucks:

The department says these trucks will replace trucks that are more than 10 years old.

BA Fire says the older trucks will move into the department’s reserve fleet.

They say the fire trucks are identical, and each one is over 10 feet tall, has a 750 gallon tank, and can pump up to 2,000 gallons of water per minute.

How BAFD paid for the new trucks:

BAFD says in 2018, citizens passed a general obligation bond which paid for these trucks.

BA Fire says these trucks were built in Appleton, Wisconsin, and cost just under $1.5 million.

"In 2018, the citizens passed a bond issue and because of that bond issue, we've been able to buy 10 new fire trucks, and these two are the latest in that purchase,” said Chief Jeremy Moore of the Broken Arrow Fire Department.

Broken Arrow City Manager Michael Spurgeon says it takes a long time to get new trucks, and thanked the city council for speeding the process up.

"The City Council approved a request from the fire chief to advance the funding to be able to purchase the vehicle, otherwise it probably would have taken 3 or 4 years longer than we expected,” said Spurgeon.

How long do fire trucks last?

Moore says fire trucks have a lifespan of about 10 years.

"The fire trucks are a big commitment for the city,” said Moore. “We need to make sure our equipment is ready for the citizens in a moment's notice, and so we always want to have the best and greatest equipment."

Message to votes from Broken Arrow Fire:

Spurgeon and Moore say they are both grateful voters passed the 2018 bond issue.

"Thank you to the citizens who continue to support the initiatives of the fire department, specifically the funding, so we can buy new trucks, and so that our personnel are equipped with the most up to date, safe, technology and equipment so they can come out and perform those duties,” said Moore.

"They have traditionally supported our bond propositions,” said Spurgeon. “To purchase these vehicles, each one of them was approximately a million dollars. That's a million dollars of taxpayer's money that will now be put in service to be able to ensure that when the bell goes off, or the call comes in, we're going to have the best equipment, the best technology to be able to get there to address whatever situation that we have."