A new fire engine rolled off a Steamship Authority ferry in Vineyard Haven Thursday morning and into West Tisbury. It will replace Fire Engine 722, a 1988 Ford, but retain the number 722. The $471,471 apparatus was approved at the 2017 annual town meeting, according to West Tisbury town accountant Bruce Stone. Stone said West Tisbury paid in $460,000 toward the fire engine, and the West Tisbury Firefighters’ Civic Association pitched in another $11,471.
Fire Chief Manuel Estrella III said the new engine will enter service in about a week, once firefighters have had time to train on it.
Bulldog Fire Apparatus owner Jeffrey Mazza described the truck as a rescue pumper and a “true, full-blown, custom fire truck. The first West Tisbury has bought in their history.” That’s why it took more than a year to take delivery.
Mazza said it boasts a L9 450-hp Cummins engine, an Allison transmission, a KME Panther “Predator” cab, and a deck gun mount. Engine 722 can hold approximately 900 gallons of water, 20 gallons of Class A foam, and 30 gallons of Class B foam, he said.
The water pump dispenses water at 1,500 gallons per minute, and is rigged for rear suction to facilitate drafting from pools, ponds, and ground tanks, he said.
Engine 722 was designed with a short wheelbase for maneuverability of small driveways and other tight Island spots, he said.
Edgartown is taking delivery of a custom Bulldog fire truck in August, he said, and Tisbury will take delivery of a more traditional type in late July.
Fire Lt. Brynn Schaffner said the outgoing engine 722 has been traded to Bulldog Fire Apparatus as part of the deal.
The 722 crew consists of Capt. Peter Marzbanian, Lt. Jesse Oliver, Lt. Mark Bettencourt, Manuel Estrella IV, Bruce Haynes, Kenneth Edwards, John Christensen, Granville White, Erik Lowe, Russell Hartenstine, and Marques Rivers.