TAMPA, Fla. — The month of March is typically the start of Florida’s fire season. There's lots of hot dry weather until the rain starts coming down again around May.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue just added four new trucks to its fleet designed to attack those brush fires before they get out of control.
“With these we go to the fires. We don’t wait for them to come to us,” said HCFR’s Jennifer Weaver.
The Class 5 “Skeeter” brush trucks were put in service a few days ago just in time for our region’s peak wildfire season.
They’re a welcome edition for folks who live in parts of the county prone to flare ups.
“The response would be quicker, right? It would be less danger to homes. I think it would just give us peace of mind,” said Melissa Cleary, whose neighborhood saw a 125-acre blaze come close to structures in May of last year.
“It would make us feel much better about knowing that we have what we need to make sure that the fire is put out,” said Essie Wilson, who also lives nearby.
The vehicles, built on a Ford F550 four-door chassis, are designed to get where other fire trucks can’t.
Their size and weigh enable them to reach smaller fires faster before they spread.
But they are also powerful enough to plow their way through terrain like Palmetto Scrub and soft sugar sands – where other trucks have had trouble.
“We did our training in the area where we had a large brush fire last year,” said Weaver. “And we did have vehicles get stuck on that one. And same terrain, same area, same situation, no issues at all.”
Each of the wildlands units is armed with a turret that can shoot water and foam, two firefighter hose lines and a 400-gallon water tank.
All of it can be controlled from inside the truck, instead of walking alongside as they used to with older brush trucks. That keeps firefighters safer too.
“We are not worried about turning ankles. The safety of our crew. Getting stuck in mud,” said Weaver, “Any of those things.”
Each of the four Skeeter trucks costs around $188,000.
Hillsborough Fire Rescue traveled to Texas where they were assembled and customized to meet the specifications for our region.
Hillsborough‘s new trucks replace the last generation which had reached the end of its lifespan at around 15 years.
While designed to fight brush fires, the newer trucks, they say, can also help with fuel spills and other hazards where a smaller-sized vehicles can be especially useful.