By this time next year, Simon the Snorkel truck may be retired.
     The Drumheller Fire Department is getting close to releasing tenders for a new ladder truck. This is to replace its current truck, which has been in service for about three decades.
    Fire Chief Bruce Wade says he and a couple of firefighters attended a demo day to check out what is offered for the apparatus.
    “We kind of finalized what we are looking for and what chassis it is on, and did a test drive,” said Wade. “We hope to have the tender out by the end of the month.”
    He explains there are essentially two manufacturers in Canada that can offer what the department requires.
    They are looking for a single axle truck with a 100-foot ladder capabilities.   It will require a 1,300-gallon per minute pump and seating for six firefighters.
    “One of the things we are looking for, is enough storage for high volume hose so we don’t have to feed it from another truck,” he said. “It would be our first line of attack truck so it would go to any structure fires in town.”
    With the addition of their truck and its capabilities, the department will be able to move its Number 2 Pump to East Coulee, and help build its hall’s capabilities.
    The department has had the Simon Snorkel truck since 1983 and it has the capabilities to fight fires up to three storeys high.
    Wade said while many departments may not have this kind of apparatus, it is valuable in allowing the department to more safely fight structure fires.
    “The way houses are constructed now with sections burning and collapsing, you just can’t put guys on roofs anymore because they are subject to collapse,” said Wade.
    The Department expects delivery would in the fall of next year.