Emergency vehicles reaching age limit in Pocatello

There’s no doubt that Pocatello’s Fire Department has the fire trucks and ambulances to take care of a situation today – it’s just that it might be time for some replacements.

Currently, the fire department has five firetrucks and three ambulances on ‘frontline’ status. There are also four ambulances on ‘reserve’ status. A fire truck is on ‘frontline’ status for no more than 10 years, for an ambulance it’s no more than three to four years.

Assistant Chief Tom Sanford told us that their emergency vehicles are reaching their age limits, but their budget can’t fit a new fire truck in it.

He said, “We have engine three, ‘frontline,’ that’s five years old. We have engine two, ‘frontline,’ that’s eight years old. We have ladder one, which is six years old and we have ladder five that’s five years old. So, you can see, for awhile, we haven’t bought a fire engine.”

To help offset maintenance costs, the fire department has hired a full-time mechanic for their vehicles. They’ve also gotten a couple grants through State EMS to help fund for new vehicles.