SUNLAND PARK, N.M (KFOX14/CBS4) — Sunland Park officials unveiled a new fire truck on Wednesday featuring a custom-engineered 100-foot tower, in an effort to improve safety for residents.
On Wednesday, the Sunland Park Fire Department officially commissioned Truck 53, a custom-engineered fire truck with a 100-foot aerial tower designed to help with high-angle rescues in the area.
According to public officials, the truck aims to give Sunland Park full autonomy in high-angle rescues, replacing a previous reliance on mutual aid and aging equipment.
“We don’t have a lot of high-rise buildings here in Sunland Park, but we do have a lot of buildings that are inaccessible from ground ladders that we carry on traditional fire engines,” said Daniel Medrano, fire chief at the Sunland Park Fire Department. And this is an example of how a fire department and a community are growing together.”
Public officials also expect the truck’s added capability could improve the city’s Insurance Services Office rating, which could lower insurance premiums for residents and businesses.
The new fire truck was commissioned on Wednesday during a push-in ceremony, a tradition dating back more than a century, where horses would struggle to pull fire equipment into stations after a fire call, so firefighters would push it back inside.
In addition to the push-in ceremony, the fire department gave a live demonstration of the tower’s 100-foot extension and its specialized extraction platform.
Officials said it took three years to add the truck to the department’s fleet. The truck will now be used for frontline service.
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