Reeves County is one of the largest counties in Texas. The area is comprised of a landscape of towns, rolling plains, mountains, farmland, and oil wells with numerous storage facilities.
Thanks to the oil industry, the area has seen a great deal of growth in the past several years. Along with the growth comes a higher number of emergencies.
Reeves County Emergency Services Districts 1 and 2 were created in August 2019 to provide fire and EMS services to Reeves County. The districts are a local political subdivision governed by five appointed commissioners and are primarily funded by property taxes.
The districts are responsible for covering 2,626 square miles and approximately 17,000 residents as well as two major interstate highways. “It could sometimes take us 50 minutes to reach the far end of our response district; that is why we are in a constant state of expanding and ordering additional apparatus and hiring firefighters,” explains Chief Ronald Lee. “The growth in our response area has us presently building three fire stations and hiring 30 firefighters, adding to the 24 we already have on staff. Right now, we are basically operating out of trailers until our first station opens in 2023.”
The districts added several Pierce pumper-tankers, a heavy rescue, an Ascendant ladder, and the pumper-tanker with a Snozzle on top. Another Snozzle pumper-tanker and another pumper-tanker are on order.
The planning for the apparatus by the apparatus purchasing committee (APC) took place two years ago. “We came up with the idea of having an elevated master stream that would have a piercing nozzle and FLIR camera installed that we would be able to operate above and over an oil tank battery fire, and by using the piercing nozzle, we would be able to pierce the tank and flow foam directly into it,” Lee says.
Since they used the HGAC Consortium, they were able to purchase from the manufacturer they wanted—Pierce. Pierce already had the specs they wanted and an assistant chief, who is one of the chiefs at DFW Airport Fire Department, had experience dealing with Pierce in the past and helped with the design and build process.
“Our chiefs and officers really liked the Pierce design and quality, so it was really no contest to go with them for the build. Pierce’s local dealer Siddons-Martin was great to work during the whole process; we have experience dealing with them in the past with other Pierce apparatus purchases. Service after all of our apparatus purchases was really great.”
1 Reeves County Fire Protection District Pierce Velocity pumper-tanker with 55-foot Snozzle. (Photo courtesy of Siddons-Martin.)
2 Driver’s side large compartments with various tool mounting. (Photos 2-4 by RCFPD.)
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Specs
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The APC traveled to Appleton, Wisconsin, for a prebuild conference and a final inspection. “There were virtually no problems during the build process,” Lee adds. “Everything went smoothly as far as we were concerned.”
The design they went with was a tandem-axle Velocity cab and chassis with a TAK-4 suspension; no generator was spec’d since the 12-volt system was adequate for their operations. Equipment carried includes light battery-powered Genesis extrication tools, battery-powered Milwaukee hand tools, 14-inch Stihl saws, medical compartments, forcible entry tools, and engine company tools.
Hose carried includes two crosslays of 200 feet of 1¾-inch hose; hosebed capacity off the rear is 1,000 feet of 5-inch, 800 feet of 3-inch, and 400 feet of 1¾-inch hose; and rear interior compartments hold 24-, 14-, and 10-foot aluminum ladders and three pike poles as well as exterior mounting of a 10-foot section of hard suction hose.
3 Rear of the apparatus has ladder and pike pole storage and large compartments on the officer’s side.
4 Side view of the 55-foot Snozzle with piercing nozzle and FLIR camera.
The Reeves County Fire Protection District designed this new Snozzle pumper-tanker and a future build for an additional apparatus for target hazards in the response area. The 55-foot elevated Snozzle with piercing tip and FLIR camera was designed to project foam above and over an oil storage tank or flow foam directly into a tank by way of the piercing nozzle. The vehicle can also be used for vehicle extrication work and as a structural pumper/tanker.
The apparatus was designed with extra-large compartments not only for present tools carried but for additional space for the future. The APC really designed this vehicle with a great deal of thought and ended up with a highly functional piece of fire apparatus that will serve their needs well into the future.
BOB VACCARO has more than 40 years of fire service experience. He is a former chief of the Deer Park (NY) Fire Department. Vaccaro has also worked for the Insurance Services Office, the New York Fire Patrol, and several major commercial insurance companies as a senior loss-control consultant. He is a life member of the IAFC.
