A New Fire Engine for Jal
By John Earp
Recently, Jal Volunteer Fire Department received a new fire engine. Fire Chief Nick Moody says the new truck will be used strictly as an in-town structure fire truck. The new, custom-built truck replaces JVFD’s 30-year-old structure fire truck. Moody adds, “The nice thing about this truck, it has the capabilities of doing some wildland firefighting, like grass fires,” which will help especially with fighting wildfires on the edge of town which are threatening homes, outbuildings, or businesses. Moody says, “It’s not going to do any major off-roading or anything by any means. It’ll go down a few little alleys, a few little dirt roads that are close to the structures. Other than that, it’s going to be driving away from the fire as it’s coming to them.”
The new fire engine carries a thousand-gallon tank, with a 1500-gallon per minute pump capability when connected to a hydrant. Another important upgrade with the new fire engine includes many safety features, which will improve the safety of the firefighters.
Moody says the new engine, which is a Spartan, was custom built for JVFD in Nebraska, for “just a little under $853,000.” Moody adds, “Again, you can get other companies that are probably $1.2, $1.3 million just because of the name of the company, and they do the same exact thing.”
JVFD currently has five full-time firefighters on staff, with 10 to 12 volunteers rounding out the crew. Moody says, “Five of us doesn’t count for anything. Anytime you have a structure fire, four people is pretty much the minimum and you would like to have more.”
Moody says Jal will be also getting a new grass truck that he hopes will arrive in the spring. He says, “We don’t get a lot of structure fires, but we’re prepared for it [with the new truck]. Another thing we can say is we have four engines that we can use as structure fire trucks now. Moody says the majority of JVFD’s calls are for grass fires, vehicle accidents, and tank battery fires.
Last week, JVFD held a 9/11 memorial with a moment of silence. Moody says, “I said a little word or two. I mean, it wasn’t anything huge by any means. We took our walk and we came back and fed all the guys.” JVFD walked from the fire station on 4th down to Freedom Park and back in honor of all the American lives lost in the horrific Islamic terrorist attack on innocent civilians on that date which should never be forgotten by any who love the United States of America.