Station 44 Trucks and Equipment…. « Station 44, The Seaside Heights Volunteer Fire Department

Station 44 Trucks and Equipment….

Station 44, The Seaside Heights Volunteer Fire Department has unveiled the second new truck in 2008. Again, it is an American LaFrance ladder/rescue truck. This truck is different than the 100 foot model seen earlier in the year. The ladder on this truck is 75 feet tall, and there is no bucket. The new truck will be called 4401. The freshly detailed truck arrived on Tuesday November 18th, and was demonstrated to Station 44 members by American LaFrance reps

The official photo of 4405, the new 2007 American LaFrance 100-foot ladder truck recently purchased by Station 44, The Seaside Heights Volunteer Fire Department.

The new American LaFrance 100-foot ladder truck, which has a capacity of 2,000 gallons of water per minute, was delivered on Tuesday January 8, 2008.

Station 44’s new 100-foot ladder truck “towers” over the rest: Station 44, The Seaside Heights Volunteer Fire Department is extremely proud of their new 100-foot ladder truck that was delivered Tuesday January 8, 2008. The new truck is dedicated to the late Dell Hopson, who served as Station 44’s Chief for 32 years. This is long-awaited replacement for a 20-year old ladder truck, which was sold to raise funds to go towards the new 100 foot model. The truck, called 4405 like its predecessor, was built by American LaFrance, and is 12 feet higher than the old 4405, which reached 88 feet. Price tag on this new beauty is $790,000, and all parties involved spent along time comparing trucks and prices before making the final purchasing decision. The new truck was purchased in response to the age of the old model, and also to service all the new tall buildings that have been constructed around the Borough since the early-2000’s building boom that continues to this day. Many buildings, like several of the condo projects clustered in the area between Blaine and Webster Avenues along Ocean Terrace, are built to the current maximum allowable height of 40 feet. Easily towering over the highest buildings in town, the basket of mechanical arm of the ladder fits at least two more firefighters, and elevates much faster and smoother than the old 4405. The long arm also has a far reach over things, allowing easier access to hard-to-get locations, such as the rear building of a deep property, or the buildings along the boardwalk. Extremely proud of the new 4405 is SHFD Engineer Rich Tompkins, who is not only a member of the department, but also a Borough Councilman. Rich was in attendance when the new truck was delivered and demostrated by American LaFrance reps. Proud of all the features of the truck, Rich explained that the truck holds 300 gallons of water, and has a 2,000 gallon per minute capacity. In addition to its large payload of water, the new 4405 also has a Global Positioning System installed, an example of how fire truck manufacturers are including the very latest technologies in their products.

The new truck is dedicated to the late Dell Hopson, who served as Station 44’s Chief for 32 years.

FROM THE 100-FOOT PERCH OF THE NEW 4405 are seen some of the properties the new ladder fire truck was purchased to protect. Many of the recent additions to Seaside Heights can be seen from the photo, including many condo projects, Jenkinson’s Breakwater Beach, and Hemingway’s, to name just a few.