Once struggling fire department now equipped, ready to roll when called

wireready_11-01-2018-09-30-19_05476_caulfieldfd1

Thanks to the hard work of its firefighters and department supporters, the Caulfield Volunteer Fire Department is much better equipped to fight fires than it was eight months ago.

The Ozark County Times reports the fire department, which did not have a reliable vehicle earlier this year, is now serving the community with a reliable pumper truck, a tanker/pumper and a brush truck. In addition, firefighters now have new turnout gear, the protective clothing and equipment needed when fighting fires. The department is also looking to purchase new self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBA).

A story earlier this year in the Ozark County Times detailed a pretty grim reality. The fire department’s main firefighting vehicle, a 2009 Freightliner pumper truck, had a multitude of issues, including the inability to travel more than 45 miles per hour, an air leak in the brake system, water and oil leaks and the fact the vehicle burned an enormous amount of fuel. The truck’s pump was also having issues and had, on at least one occasion, stopped pumping water while the firefighters were battling a blaze.

Chief Shannon Sisney said in February he worried constantly about the state of the truck. He said then the truck was to the point he didn’t even want to train with it, because he was afraid it will fail, and they wouldn’t have a truck at all.

CVFD firefighters were also working with expired turnout gear and SCBAs. Sisney said the expired gear was of particular concern, because after the expiration date, the gear has potentially broken down enough so that it may or may not take the heat and torture it must endure while fighting fire inside a structure.

CVFD ballots were mailed to members earlier this year asking residents if they believed the department should keep the pumper truck and spend money to repair it or trade it in for different vehicles. Sisney said the members voted 93-19 to trade the truck.

Heeding its members’ directive, the department traded in the old truck and purchased two “new” (used) vehicles and five new sets of turnout gear.

The department now has a 1989 Chevrolet Kodiak pumper truck that carries 1,000 gallons of water and pumps 1,000 gallons of water per minute. A fire department official said that although it is an older model vehicle, it only has 21,000 miles on it.

The other truck is a 1993 International tanker/pumper, with 20,000 miles on it, that carries 3,000 gallons of water and pumps 500 gallons of water per minute. The trade-in means Caulfield firefighters can leave the fire station with a total of 4,000 gallons of water, a big improvement over the 1,250 gallons of water their former Freightliner carried.

The remainder of the trade-in value left from the old Freightliner was paired with a little cash from a Memorial Day fish fry fundraiser to allow the firefighters to purchase five new sets of turnout gear with new helmets and new wildland firefighting gear. The department also purchased two new hose nozzles, 400 feet of new hose and a thermal-imaging camera, allowing firefighters to find “hot spots” and, potentially, victims within a fire.

In addition to the two vehicles purchased from the trade-in of the old truck, CVFD secured a 1985 Chevrolet truck from the Missouri Department of Conservation’s fire department assistance program. The program provided CVFD with the base vehicle, and the firefighters converted it to a brush truck.



Photo (Ozark County Times):
Clad in new turnout gear, Caulfield Volunteer Fire Department firefighters stand in front of Caulfield pumper #1, a 1989 Chevrolet Kodiak truck with the capacity to hold 1,000 gallons of water. The fire department was able to purchase two trucks and new gear after Caulfield VFD members voted earlier this year to trade in the 1993 Freightliner truck the department had been using. Firefighters pictured are, from left, back row: Assistant Chief Brandon Watkins and Chief Shannon Sisney. Front: firefighter and first responder David Kingsolver, Capt. Lonza Keaton and Lt. Joey Hedrick.




Photo (Ozark County Times):
Caulfield VFD acquired these two trucks after trading in their old fire truck, which had several issues. The 1993 International tanker/pumper, pictured in front, has a Cummins N14 diesel engine, Allison automatic transmission, a Hale 500-gallon-per-minute pump and a 3,000-gallon water tank on the back. The 1989 Chevrolet Kodiak pumper behind the other truck features a Detroit 8.2T engine, Allison automatic transmission, Hale 1,000-gallon-per-minute, two-stage water pump and a 1,000-gallon tank.







Photos (Ozark County Times):
Caulfield VFD applied for and received a truck from the Missouri Department of Conservation fire department assistance program. Firefighters turned the original vehicle into a CVFD brush truck. The firefighters painted the truck and added components so it can be used to fight wildland fires in fields and wooded areas.

WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI