Volunteer Fire Companies Take Delivery of New Brush Trucks By: Orange County Communications Department
This month, our five local volunteer fire companies will take delivery of the first new vehicles purchased under the equipment replacement cycle created in partnership with Orange County! Five shiny new Vengeant Chevrolet Silverado 4WD brush trucks will soon be in service. Brush trucks are specialized fire vehicles designed to access and fight fires in difficult terrain like forests, fields, and mountainous areas where a larger truck would have difficulty. They are characterized by smaller sizes and off-road capability. These trucks are often used with the “pump and roll” technique, in which the truck drives while spraying water on the fire.
Brush Truck 23 prepares for service with the OVFC. Photo Credit: Orange Volunteer Fire Company Facebook Page
Equipment Costs Have Risen More than 33% Since 2021.
The new vehicles are part of a continuing collaboration to upfit the equipment at emergency response stations across the county through the aforementioned equipment replacement cycle. Components of this effort are listed as projects in the Orange County Capital Improvements Plan under “Volunteer Fire Companies Requests.” The equipment needed to adequately respond to fires and other emergencies is specialized and expensive. In recent years, prices and demand for such pieces have steadily increased. Furthermore, delivery lead times continue to stretch, resulting in longer waits for new equipment. Recognizing this trend, COFEMS and County Administration worked with the Orange County Fire Chiefs Association to establish the cycle in Fiscal Year 2022 (July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022, FY22), and it is updated every year.
While the vehicles will support our community’s strong tradition of volunteer fire service (whose roots go back more than 100 years) equipment is only part of the equation. Barboursville, Gordonsville, Lake of the Woods, Mine Run, and Orange Volunteer Fire companies are recruiting new volunteers. Are you interested in serving the community? Want to maybe get behind the wheel of one of these exciting new trucks? Visit joinocvafireems.org to find out if serving as a volunteer fire fighter is right for you! Want to make a career of it? County of Orange Fire & EMS (COFEMS) personnel are rigorously trained in both fire response and emergency medical service. In addition to their role as the primary EMS agency in Orange County, COFEMS staff routinely respond to fire calls, often working alongside our volunteer companies. View current open positions at orangecountyva.gov/cofemsrecruit. The brush trucks themselves proved the concerning trend. The final cost for each truck was $146,718, up from around $110,000 when pricing estimates were first gathered in FY22. While this particular jump was impacted by lingering supply chain issues following the pandemic, the trend has not improved greatly. While it can’t lower prices, a regular replacement cycle helps corral the problem by planning ahead, placing orders early (one of the best ways to combat price increases), and staying aware of equipment nearing end of service to reduce unnecessary maintenance costs. As the cycle matures, regular equipment replacement will allow the volunteer companies to prioritize fighting fires and serving our communities with reduced worries about aging equipment and how to generate enough fundraising revenue for replacements.
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OCI March 2025
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