Fire Chief Dave Humphrey has started what he hopes will be an ongoing tradition with Cochrane Fire Services earlier this morning, Oct. 12.

With Humprey behind the wheel and Mayor Jeff Genung riding shotgun, the bulk of the department's personal pushed its new R151 fire rescue truck into one of the fire hall bays, ready to serve the community. To the best of his knowledge, its the first time the long-held fire department tradition has been celebrated here.

"We still need to maintain the traditions of our heritage. It's how we got here as an organization," says Humphrey.

The addition of this more versatile and advanced fire rescue truck holds many values for the community and for the firefighters, he says.

You can't properly compare it to the 20-plus-year-old dry unit it's replacing, which he referred to as basically a "big toolbox on wheels" with two-wheel drive.

"It's a modern, very futuristic piece of rescue equipment with very futuristic rescue tools to get the job done for the next 20 years," says Humphrey.

It has a 5,000 litre per minute fire pump, fire hose, carries water and foam, crash rescue tools, medical supplies and equipment, a full array of fire and auto rescue equipment on a minimized scale with a four-person cab and four-wheel drive.

"For members, it's the comfort of knowing that they have good equipment and that the community is responsive to the needs of the fire service. In turn, the community can be aware that the fire service is responsive to their needs."

When designing the 35 ft.-long unit they took into account the extreme driving conditions they frequently face.

 "This truck is built for the worse and harshes conditions we could think of. Unfortunately, these incidents don't always happen on perfect days. A lot of the time, we're out in the most inclement weather there is--icy, snowy roads, daylight or dark--and this truck is built and designed to do that work much more efficiently and safely.

The truck and its equipment were delivered under budget at $680,000. It has been on the town's approved capital planning replacement list for the last 10 years.