FireFighterNation

By Bob Vaccaro
Published Wednesday, February 1, 2012 | From the February 2012 Issue of FireRescue

Since 9/11, the fire and emergency service community has seen a great deal of new deliveries in command vehicles, big and small. The primary reason: Firefighter accountability and radio interoperability have taken on a new meaning in the post-9/11 culture. For many cities, federal grants have also played a big role, prompting metropolitan areas to purchase larger command units.

Regardless of the funding techniques, fire officials have taken incident command to a new level with these vehicles, incorporating technology that gives incident commanders an edge against the dangers of the modern fireground and the demands of all-hazards responses.

In this article, I’ll take a look at two incident command vehicles designed for different department needs.

Combination Command/Heavy-Rescue Unit
The Farmingville Volunteer Fire Department (FVFD) is a typical Long Island fire department. It protects a population of roughly 17,500 in a five-square-mile district comprising numerous strip shopping centers, restaurants, office buildings, schools, condos and apartment buildings, as well as some heavily traveled roads.

According to FVFD Captain Dave Smith, the department began the process of designing a new heavy-rescue truck back in 2008. “Our older vehicle was 27 years old and starting to show signs of heavy use,” Smith says. “In addition, this older vehicle had a great deal of wasted space on board. We decided that we wanted to set up the new vehicle as a command post as well.”

The dual-purpose vehicle would expand the department’s capabilities. “If we have big incidents in the community, we can always call in the Suffolk County Fire and Emergency Services large command unit,” Smith says, “but we wanted our own vehicle to use on a smaller scale and for any special events, as well as structure fires or something that would require an extended operation. In addition, it would be used primarily as a heavy-rescue unit.”

After sending the vehicle specs out for bid, the FVFD chose Pierce to manufacture it, selecting the Velocity cab and chassis. “Our older vehicle was a Lance,” Smith says. “The new Velocity cab we chose was much larger and suited our needs better for the command area.”

In fact, there are two command areas on the vehicle: the main command area located inside the rear of the cab, and a compartment on the driver’s side of the vehicle with a roll-out awning for hot or inclement weather. “When we designed the vehicle with Pierce, we decided to go with an extended cab to fit a flip-down desk and all of the radios,” Smith says. “We presently have four VHF/UHF radios programmed with all of the county fire and EMS frequencies and, for interoperability, all of our neighboring departments’ frequencies. We also have a scanner so we can monitor the police and other local agencies.” The command area on the outside of the vehicle stores identical radios.

The heavy-rescue portion of the vehicle carries 4 x 4, 6 x 6 and 8 x 8 lumber used for cribbing; high- and low-pressure air bags; Hurst tools in the rear and on an extended front bumper; portable and built-in generators; a 24' Little Giant ladder; a 10' A-frame ladder and an attic ladder. It features a Will-Burt light mast with a radio repeater mounted for better reception, Go Jak vehicle jacks and the normal complement of truck company saws and forcible-entry tools. Also included is a small refrigerator used to hold water and Gatorade for rehab.

“We can carry a great deal more equipment on this vehicle than the older unit, plus we have the command capabilities,” Smith says. “The local Pierce dealer, Firematic, did all of the tool and equipment mounting on the vehicle, which enabled us to use space more efficiently and still have room left over.”

The FVFD has used the vehicle several times since taking delivery. “The chiefs have found it very convenient to use the exterior command post,” Smith says.

All Command
The Fort Worth (Texas) Fire Department (FWFD) had a totally different approach to designing its command vehicle. Its 904 career firefighters handle a population of about 800,000 and cover a diverse area of more than 300 square miles of land and water.

The department’s previous command vehicle was purchased back in the early 1990s and was a “first-generation” command unit. “When we began to design the new unit, we met with our committee and, because the vehicle would incorporate a great deal of new technology, we included our IT and radio people as well,” says FWFD Division Chief Tim Hatch.

SVI met the department’s specs in the bidding process, which was a good fit because the FWFD has purchased SVI products for more than 30 years. “We visited the factory two or three times during the build process and picked up some ideas from other vehicles on the line,” Hatch says. “We also identified some corrections that had to be made on the vehicle while it was being built, which saved us some time.”

The vehicle features a Spartan cab and chassis with a body slide-out for added space when the unit is in operation. “One of our main concerns in this area was that we wanted a flat, even floor throughout, even when the slide-out was used,” Hatch says. “SVI accommodated us in this design. Their engineers helped us out a great deal with the design and construction of the vehicle.”

Most of the vehicle’s specs are centered around ease of use and functionality. “Our older vehicle had a built-in bathroom,” Hatch says. “But we decided against that in the new vehicle because we felt that firefighters and others using the bathroom would interrupt operations and that it would also create a great deal of wasted space.”

Funding for the vehicle came out of the FWFD’s normal apparatus budget. “We really did not have to skimp at all,” Hatch says. “Because we wanted interoperability for our entire city, we installed numerous VHF/UHF radios with satellite communications, telescopic cameras, new software and telephones. We can offer all other agencies working space in the unit, either together with our department or in segregated areas.

The vehicle responds out of Station 8, which is centrally located in the city; it is dispatched for all second alarms or Level 2 hazmat incidents. “A shift technician responds with the unit to the scene and meets up with a shift commander,” Hatch says. “Both will set up the unit for the incident commander at the scene. The shift technicians all have a great deal of knowledge of the software, satellite systems and radios on board.”

The FWFD recognizes that such highly technical equipment requires documentation. It created standard operating procedures (SOPs) governing the vehicle’s use, and is presently working on developing a functional command manual.

“So far the vehicle has worked out well, with virtually no problems,” Hatch says. “We have used the unit at the Texas Motor Speedway twice for NASCAR Sprint Cup races. We have roughly 250,000 people attending for these three-day events.” The vehicle has also been in use at several fires.

Not So Different After All
These two fire departments—one all volunteer, one all career—chose command vehicles almost as different as the departments themselves. Yet in both vehicles, interoperability takes precedence, and the vehicles feature functional space and cost-effective design.

If you’re planning a command vehicle purchase, it’s time to think out of the box. Remember to include specialists in radios, software and satellite communications and operation when speccing the vehicle. It will save you a great deal of stress when the vehicle is being built. Most importantly, create SOPs on how and when the vehicle will be operated and provide adequate training for all members who will operate the unit.

FWFD Command Vehicle Specs

• Body: SVI 24' long, 3/16" formed aluminum body, 485-hp Caterpillar C13 engine, Allison 4000 EVSPR transmission, 6" extended “extreme duty” bumper, seating for two people in the front of the cab, 25-kW Onan PTO-driven generator, rear bumper-mounted Will-Burt mast with Pelco camera, HWH hydraulic stabilization/flat-floor slideout system, satellite TV dish with two receivers.
• Streetside exterior: VMUX multiplex electrical system, 3,000-watt Xantrex ProSine 3.0 inverter/charger, HWH hydraulic pump and controller.
• Curbside exterior: Generator gauges, 100A shore power inlet and transfer switch, 120-volt load center, storage areas.
• Conference room: 5'8" hydraulic flat-floor slide-out wall, SMART Board with Dell computer, two bench seats, magnetic whiteboard, A/C unit, O/H speakers, inverter controls, 120- and 12-volt lights, touch-screen video routing panel, network and power ports.
• Curbside command area: 10'8" hydraulic flat-floor slideout wall, SMART Board, two LCD monitors, two desktop consoles, network and 12-volt power ports, touch-screen video routing panel, 120-volt lights, O/H speakers, file cabinets, Herman Miller chairs, magnetic white boards.
• Streetside command area: 10'8" hydraulic flat-floor slideout wall, LCD monitors, two desktop consoles, network and 12-volt power ports, file cabinets, Herman Miller chairs.
• Cab command area: Three magnetic white boards, map storage, lateral file, network and 12-volt power ports, touch-screen video routing panel and LCD monitor, O/H cabinets, 120-volt lights, A/C unit.
• Technology equipment: 0.96-meter TracStar data satellite dish, Cisco routers and IP phone system, wireless access point (WAP), Telular digital cell system, Bosch digital DVR surveillance sytem, exterior patch panels (audio, video, data and voice), AMX touch-screen A/V routing system.

Farmingville Volunteer Fire Department

• 2 stations; 130 members
• Apparatus: Four engines, one tower ladder, one heavy-rescue, one mini-rescue, one brush truck, two ambulances, one fire police van, one rehab vehicle and two first-responder vehicles

Fort Worth (Texas) Fire Department

• 42 stations in six battalions; 904 civil service members and 45 civilian members
• Frontline apparatus: 37 engines, 10 quints, four trucks, six ARFF vehicles, 13 brush (4 x 4) units, two utility/light and air vehicles, two water tankers, one command unit, one hazmat/rescue squad
• Reserve apparatus: 10 engines, five quints, one command unit
• Responses: Over 82,000 incidents annually, 60% related to EMS
• Training: At a minimum, all civil service personnel are trained as EMT-B. The department operates as a first responder, with patient transportation provided by a third-party contractor.
• Specialized response: aircraft rescue firefighting, dive team/swift-water rescue, technical rescue, explosive ordinance disposal, and hazardous materials

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  Bob Vaccaro

  Bob Vaccaro has more than 30 years of fire-service experience. He is a former chief of the Deer Park (N.Y.) Fire Department. Vaccaro has also worked for the Insurance Services Office, the New York Fire Patrol and several major commercial insurance companies as a senior loss-control consultant. Vaccaro is a life member of the International Association of Fire Chiefs. Read Full Bio

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