Ferrara Fire Apparatus has delivered nine engines and two rescue-pumpers to the Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service and is finishing up production on an aerial ladder and an air unit for the department.
Corey Moon, Birmingham’s chief, says when he took over as head of the department in early 2020, there was no apparatus replacement plan in place. “We developed a 10-year, five-phase fire apparatus replacement plan,” Moon points out, “with nine engines, two rescue-pumpers, one aerial ladder, and one air unit being the first phase of that plan at a cost of $9 million. We have received the nine engines and the two rescue-pumpers and are waiting on delivery of the aerial ladder and the air unit.”
Jerry Harley, Ferrara’s sales manager, says the engines and rescue-pumpers are powered by Cummins 450-horsepower (hp) L9 engines and Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmissions, with Hendrickson STEERTEK™ front suspensions and Hendrickson air ride rear suspensions. Harley notes the nine engines are on Igniter chassis and LFD cabs with seating for four firefighters, three in H.O. Bostrom self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) seats, while the two rescue-pumpers are built on Igniter MVP chassis with XMFD cabs and seating for eight firefighters, five in H.O. Bostrom SCBA seats and two in fold-down jump seats.
Wheelbase on the engines is 206 inches, overall length is 33 feet 10 ½ inches, and overall height is 9 feet 7½ inches. Wheelbase on the rescue-pumpers is 223 inches, overall length is 45 feet 43⁄8 inches, and overall height is 10 feet 5¾ inches.
The engines and rescue-pumpers have Waterous CSU 1,500-gallon-per-minute (gpm) pumps, 500-gallon water tanks, FRC Pump Boss pressure governors, Akron foam supply systems, and 30-gallon foam cells for the engines and 50-gallon foam cells for the rescue-pumpers, according to Harley. Each rig has two 1¾-inch crosslays, a 2½-inch crosslay, and an 1¾-inch hoseline preconnected in extended front bumpers. The engines and rescue-pumpers also carry Akron Brass 3423 manual deck guns.
1 The two rescue-pumpers carry the same fire suppression equipment as the engines but are on larger wheelbases to allow them to carry more personnel as well as rescue and technical rescue equipment.
SPECS
Ferrara Igniter Engines
- Ferrara Igniter chassis and LFD cabs with 102-inch-wide extruded aluminum bodies
- Cabs with seating for four firefighters, three in H.O. Bostrom SCBA seats
- Cummins 450-hp L9 engines
- Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmissions
- Waterous 1,500-gpm CSU pumps
- 500-gallon water tanks
- 30-gallon foam cells
- Akron foam supply systems
- FRC Pump Boss pressure governors
Moon points out that the department wanted to keep all the major elements of the two models consistent across the platforms for ease of use, so the department went with identical crosslays, preconnects, and manual monitors and 1,000 feet of 5-inch large-diameter hose in the hosebeds. “We have always had two heavy rescue units, but neither of them carried a fire pump,” Moon observes. “We wanted to modernize them, so we created Squad 1 and Squad 10 with our two new rescue-pumpers that combine fire suppression capabilities with heavy rescue capabilities as well as having a lot more compartment space in their bodies. These units can handle structure and other types of fires, extrications, motor vehicle accidents, emergency medical services, structural collapse, high-angle rope rescue, and swiftwater rescue.”
2 The rigs are powered by Cummins 450-hp L9 engines and Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmissions.
3 All the engines and rescue-pumpers have Waterous 1,500-gpm CSU pumps, 500-gallon water tanks, and Akron foam systems. The engines have 30-gallon foam cells, while the rescue-pumpers have 50-gallon foam tanks.
SPECS
Ferrara Igniter MVP Rescue-Pumpers
- Ferrara Igniter MVP chassis and XMFD cabs with 103-inch-wide MVP aluminum bodies
- Cabs with seating for eight firefighters, five in H.O. Bostrom SCBA seats, two in fold-down jump seats
- Cummins 450-hp L9 engines
- Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmissions
- Waterous 1,500-gpm CSU pumps
- 500-gallon water tanks
- 30-gallon foam cells
- Akron foam supply systems
- FRC Pump Boss pressure governors
- 10-kW Harrison generators
- Command Light Knight Series light towers with six-head LED connections
Moon adds that the department set up the crew cabs of the two rescue-pumpers to carry as many personnel as possible, up to eight firefighters. “We participate in the Alabama Mutual Aid System (AMAS), so we wanted our rescue-pumpers to be able to transport a large number of personnel,” he says. “The personnel who work at Station 1 and Station 10 are all certified for rope rescue 1 and 2, vehicle extrication, trench rescue, structural collapse, and wildland firefighting. Besides all rescue and tech rescue calls, our two squads also respond to any second alarm or greater in our district.” Moon notes that the department responded to 73,007 calls in 2022, what he terms “the busiest year in the department’s history.”
Ladders on the engines and the rescue-pumpers include 24-foot two-section extension ladders, 14-foot roof ladders, and 10-foot attic ladders. They are carried in the body of the vehicle in flat fashion on the rescue-pumpers to keep the hosebed as low as possible and on their beams in a compartment on the right side of the hosebed on the engines.
Lighting on the engines and the two rescue-pumpers includes Whelen LED emergency lighting, a Whelen Freedom IV LED bar light, a Whelen Pioneer Plus PCH2 LED brow light, Whelen M9 LED scene lights on the body, and HiViz FireTech LED head lights. The rescue-pumpers also carry Command Light Knight 2 six-head LED light towers and Hannay hose reels with 1-inch booster hose tucked into coffin compartments on top of the rigs. All of the vehicles have Federal Q2B sirens and Federal backup cameras.
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.
