Just a week after the deadly Loafers Lodge fire in Wellington highlighted the need for well-equipped fire crews, a brigade has spoken up about the staggering age of its frontline appliance.
The Richmond Volunteer Fire Brigade has a 33-year-old Type 3 Scania fire truck, which the crew describes as “antique”.
The crew had posted about their truck after a Facebook post by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) chief executive Kerry Gregory on Wednesday, who said 27% of fire appliances were past their expected lifespan of 20 to 25 years.
Supplied/Supplied
Richmond Volunteer Fire Brigade relies on a 1997 model that is at least seven years past its recommended lifespan.
Richmond’s frontline truck was sent off for repairs on April 12, but still came back to the station in May with several critical faults, including issues with disengaged gears, “significant” wheel alignment problems and an inaccurate speedometer, among other issues.
READ MORE:
* Firefighters’ ageing equipment didn’t compromise hostel fire response: Fenz
* Inquiry launched into death of two volunteer firefighters during Cyclone Gabrielle
* Move over sausage sizzle, this fire brigade is grazing cattle to keep the hoses on
As a result the truck had gone back to get those issues fixed on Friday.
Chief fire officer Craig Piner said the brigade thought the truck was one of the oldest in the country.
“In our district we’re currently using a 1997 truck,” Piner said.
The station did use a spare, newer truck while the truck was getting repaired, but the spare truck had since been taken to Rotorua to act as a spare appliance for that station.
Piner said there were currently newer appliances that sat at the Richmond station, “twiddling” their thumbs in case the older trucks broke down.
Supplied/Supplied
Richmond has both black and white and coloured photographs of its 33-year-old antique truck.
“We’ve asked through the normal channels, repeatedly, it makes sense for the older trucks to be the spares and the new trucks to be your frontline appliances. But we don’t get an answer.”
Prior to the truck being sent for repairs in April, the truck’s pump twice failed to engage at structure fires, and failed to deliver water to the fire hose. In one of those instances, the structure was a kitchen that 15 people used regularly.
A delay like that could hinder firefighters from getting people to safety, Piner said.
That was the worst type of outcome, Piner said, but if the truck didn’t engage, firefighters couldn’t do their job, and that put not only the community but Richmond firefighters at risk.
The truck also had issues with excessive black diesel fumes coming from the truck’s exhaust pipe. The fumes, which were unsafe and had carcinogen risks, put firefighters and the community at risk. It stopped the crew driving the truck in Christmas parades, for fear the fumes would be a hazard to the community, the brigade’s Facebook comment said.
A spokesperson from FENZ said the organisation was aware of the age of all the appliances in its fleet and was working on upgrading the national fleet as quickly as possible.
“It will take significant investment to improve and replenish the main assets Fire and Emergency has.”
DAVID UNWIN/STUFF
Fire and Emergency’s chief executive defends operations at Loafers Lodge fire
The spokesperson said the organisation had made good progress in procuring new Type 3 appliances with delivery of new Type 3 appliances expected in “volume” from 2024.
“New appliances will go to the busiest Type 3 stations and this will allow us to upgrade the appliances in other stations and retire the older Type 3s in the fleet.”
Richmond volunteer firefighter Simon Childerhouse said he was “more than happy” to support his community with thousands of unpaid hours of volunteer work a year. All he asked of FENZ was that he and his crew mates were supplied with fit-for-purpose equipment and PPE gear, he said.
He said he was surprised to learn that many “career” firefighters refused to work with the older trucks as they were unsafe, yet FENZ was happy to send the trucks to volunteer brigades.
“This apparent double standard is very disappointing, as all firefighters should be valued and treated equally.”
District manager for Nelson Marlborough Grant Haywood said it was paramount that firefighters were supported with the right equipment.
“We are actively working to find a solution. Our service provider is working on the issues raised by the brigade,” Haywood said.
Piner said it was out of complete frustration with the situation the crew publicly raised the issue.
The crew and community deserved better, the brigade’s Facebook post said.
Last year Richmond Volunteer Fire Brigade responded to 325 fire calls.