BY JIM RITCH, Eastern Shore Post
Like grooms carrying brides over a threshold, Cape Charles volunteer firefighters and members of the town council ceremoniously “pushed” a new pumper truck into its Mason Avenue home on March 20.
Purchase of the truck, which cost $850,000 and is the first new truck purchased in recent years, was made possible by a $250,000 contribution by the town.
The fire department paid $100,000 from its fundraising and borrowed the remaining $500,000.
“We were very lucky to have the Cape Charles town council step up and help out,” said Ryan Peake, treasurer and firefighter.
The new truck will officially enter service in about two weeks after mounting boards and other equipment are installed.
The pumper has a short wheelbase that will allow sharper cornering in the sometimes narrow roads and tight spaces between homes of the historic district and Bay Creek, said Peake.
The construction of 70 new homes in town last year has only added to concerns about maneuvering to fires.
“It’s a big, ‘What if …’” weighing on the minds of firefighters, he said.
The pumper should also be safer to operate, especially because of a back-up camera that can assist in the stowing of the largest diameter hoses used to connect with fire hydrants.
These heavy hoses are sometimes laid lengthwise behind the truck, and its driver backs up as firefighters lift first the end of the hose, then its middle, into the rear of the truck.
The pumper arrived in the nick of time, as brakes on the 26-year-old engine it replaced failed.
Brake repairs were estimated at $20,000, and the decision was made to sell the engine.
“We thought we had Band-Aid time, but it was like putting a Band- Aid on a bullet wound,” said Bell.
In addition to its pump, the engine carries 1,000 gallons of water, enough to start fighting a fire or extinguish a small one.
However, pumping at full pressure could end in as little as five to eight minutes, said Bell.
For that reason, local departments rely heavily on mutual aid.
Tankers and engines in Cheriton and Eastville frequently respond to Cape Charles fires.
In return, the Cape Charles department routinely travels to calls as far north as Machipongo and has driven in recent years even up to Painter.
