The Madison (IL) Fire Department protects an area that has some places with either no hydrants or poor-performing hydrants, which means it has to bring as much water as it can to a fire scene. So, when the department decided to replace a 1985 pumper, it chose to have a large pumper-tanker built to meet its special requirements.
Dave Klee, Madison’s chief, says the department’s truck committee developed a specification for the pumper-tanker and sent out for bids that were returned by Precision Fire Apparatus and two other competitors. “Precision met the bid perfectly in all respects,” Klee points out, “so we awarded the bid to them.”
The pumper-tanker that Precision built for Madison is on a 2021 Spartan Gladiator MFD chassis and cab with seating for four firefighters in H.O. Bostrom seats, three of which are self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) seats, and Line-X coating in the cab, says Travis Higginbotham, Precision’s lead engineer. The rig has a wheelbase of 224 inches, an overall length of 38 feet, and an overall height of 10 feet 5 inches, he notes, and is powered by a 600-horsepower (hp) Cummins X 15 diesel engine and an Allison 4000 EVS automatic transmission with an air ride tandem axle rear suspension.
Higginbotham adds that Madison has a large oil refinery plant in its district, so it wanted a pumper-tanker that could pump and carry a lot of water as well as two types of foam concentrate. “The Madison pumper-tanker has a Hale QMax XS 2,000-gallon per minute (gpm) midship pump,” he says, “a 3,000-gallon water tank, a 50-gallon Class A foam tank, a 150-gallon Class B foam tank, and a FoamPro 3012 series foam proportioning system.”
1 Precision Fire Apparatus built this pumper-tanker for the Madison (IL) Fire Department with a Hale QMax XS 2,000-gpm midship pump and a 3,000-gallon water tank. (Photos 1-3 courtesy of Precision Fire Apparatus.)
DEPARTMENT
Madison (IL) Fire Department
Strength: 26 paid on-call firefighters; one station, staffed 8 p.m.-6 a.m. by three firefighters.
Service area: Provides fire suppression, rescue, and first responder emergency medical services to a 17-square-mile suburban/rural district that has a population of 4,600 and includes residential housing, commercial, light industrial, and warehousing.
Other apparatus: 2005 Crimson pumper, 1,500-gpm pump, 750-gallon water tank; 1990 E-ONE pumper, 750-gpm pump, 500-gallon water tank; 2000 E-ONE 90-foot aerial ladder platform; 1999 E-ONE Type 6 brush truck; technical rescue truck and trailer; 2012 National Foam trailer; 2012 Lake Assault 36-foot fire/rescue boat.
2 It has three square Newton electric dump valves and a hosebed that carries 1,000 feet of 5-inch LDH and 300 feet of 3-inch hose.
3 A 600-hp Cummins X 15 diesel engine powers the rig.
About the need for a rig that carries a lot of water and the means to pump it, Klee points out, “Besides the areas with no hydrants or poor hydrants, we also cover the World Wide Technology Raceway that has a very limited water supply and several industries between the river and the city that also have a very limited water supply. When we spec’d the truck, we considered how much water we would need to bring to those places and the staffing we had for the pumper-tanker as well as the volunteer departments around us that are on call with us for mutual aid.”
Klee notes that Madison Fire uses Class A foam on most of its fire attack situations. “We added a Class B foam tank to this vehicle because of an ethanol facility in our district, where we wanted some agent that could be able to handle a situation there,” he says. “We also have a foam trailer in our fleet with 650 gallons of foam concentrate, so our pumper-tanker is set up for structural fire attack, industrial response, tanker shuttle, with hydraulic rescue tools and with rehab equipment. It’s a rig that can do most anything.”
Klee says the pumper-tanker carries battery-powered Amkus hydraulic rescue tools, DeWalt tools, and DeWalt-powered exhaust fans. “All of our battery-powered tools are in the R4 compartment,” he says, “including the rescue tools, saws, lighting, and fans. For this vehicle, we added the first light tower that we’ve had on a city fire truck, a Command Light Knight LED light tower. It’s a great all-around rig that makes quite a few runs, about 400 calls a year, and drives like a dream for its size.”
Higginbotham says the pumper-tanker has two 1¾-inch speedlays and one 2½-inch crosslay above the pump module, a 2½-inch front bumper discharge, three Newton electric dump valves (one at each side of the rear wheel wells and one at the rear), a 4-inch Fireman’s Friend tank fill intake at the driver’s side rear of the rig, and a Hannay reel with 1-inch redline booster hose in a compartment under the rear dump valve.
4 Madison’s pumper-tanker operating at an apartment building structure fire call. (Photos 4-6 courtesy of Madison Fire Department.)
5 The pumper-tanker flowing water during a nighttime evolution.
6 The Madison pumper-tanker has a 2½-inch discharge in its extended front bumper and two 1¾-inch speedlays and one 2½-inch crosslay above the pump module.
SPECS
Precision Fire Apparatus Pumper-Tanker
- 2021 Spartan Gladiator MFD chassis and cab with seating for four firefighters in H.O. Bostrom seats (three SCBA seats)
- 600-hp Cummins X15 diesel engine
- Allison 4000 EVS automatic transmission
- Hale QMax-XS 2,000-gpm midship pump
- 3,000-gallon UPF water tank
- 50-gallon Class A foam tank
- 150-gallon Class B foam tank
- FoamPro 3012 series foam proportioning system
- Three Newton electric dump valves
- Command Light Knight LED light tower
The hosebed capacity is 1,000 feet of 5-inch large diameter hose (LDH), Higginbotham adds, and 300 feet of 3-inch double jacket hose with a Task Force Tips BLITZFIRE™ nozzle connected to a rear discharge above the Firemen’s Friend valve. The pumper-tanker’s ground ladder complement is stored in a through-the-tank compartment low in the rear, just above the mid-step to reach the hosebed, which is raised.
He notes that because the pumper-tanker has two foam tanks, it has an electric foam selector valve as well as a direct fill valve for the two foam tanks. “The department also has the ability to draft from the foam tank to the deck gun using a special foam eductor venturi-effect tip, if they need it,” Higginbotham says.
Klee points out that the department was especially thankful that Precision took care of placing and mounting equipment in the vehicle’s compartments. “We shipped all of the pumper-tanker’s equipment to Precision and then traveled to their factory and spent the day to lay out the equipment electronically, moving things around until we were happy with the results,” Klee says. “Precision was instrumental in putting equipment where we wanted them for our various tasks. Working with Precision was the easiest process we’ve ever been involved in, because, as long as it is safe to do, ‘no’ is not in their vocabulary.”
ALAN M. PETRILLO is a Tucson, Arizona-based journalist, the author of three novels and five nonfiction books, and a member of the Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment Editorial Advisory Board. He served 22 years with the Verdoy (NY) Fire Department, including in the position of chief.
