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Waupaca County Post

February 2, 2006

New Pumper Arrives at Waupaca Fire Station

By Angie Landsverk, Post Staff Writer

The Waupaca Area Fire District has received a new addition to its department, a Pierce Enforcer Pumper that replaces a 1974 model.

Made by Pierce Manufacturing, of Appleton, the pumper was in production for about nine months, according to Waupaca Fire Chief Jeff Olson.

Members of the fire district picked up the pumper on Friday, Jan. 13.

“We’re not very superstitious,” he said.

The truck was ready before the district anticipated, as it generally takes about 11 to 12 months to produce one.

Olson said the department formed a committee to come up with the specs for the truck. That committee included Olson, Kent Nelson, Chuck Whitman, Kim Nelson and Peter Jungers.

“We probably met five to six times to tweak the specs to what we wanted,” Olson said, regarding the work of those who served on that committee.

The committee worked with the Fire Apparatus and Equipment Co. to come up with the specs for the truck. As a result, the Pierce Enforcer has several features.

“The truck has all the latest safety features for firefighters,” Olson said. “A special feature is a telescoping light tower on top of the truck that is good for lighting up fire scenes or accident scenes or in the event we have a missing person at night.”

Sensors in the pumper’s bumper are another feature, so if it would hit a person the truck would automatically lock up its air brakes, Olson said.

The truck also has a drop-down ladder so that members of the district do not have to climb up onto the truck to get the ladder.

In addition, there is exterior lighting around the entire perimeter of the truck.

“We were able to visit Pierce one or twice to see how it was doing,” he said of the production process.

The cost of the truck was $340,000, and the district did not have to borrow any money to pay for it.

“We’ll probably end up spending $50,000 to $55,000 on equipment for the truck,” Olson said.

The Waupaca Area Fire District is made up of the city of Waupaca and the towns of Dayton, Farmington, Lind and Waupaca.

The fire district set money aside in its past budgets for the truck.

The last time the district purchased a new truck was in 2000 when a tanker was bought. The last time a pumper had been purchased was in 1990.

The new pumper has not been used yet.

“The whole department has to go through training on it,” Olson said. “It’s more complicated than the old ones. There is more time involved in learning.”

Area residents will get a chance to see the truck up close on July 4 during Waupaca’s Hometown Days parade.