Central Sabine Fire Dept. is elated with the recent purchase of a new fire truck, which will provide improved protection for the area while lasting for much longer than previously bought used trucks.
The truck was custom built by Deep South Fire Trucks in Clinton, Mississippi after Chief Scott Gowen shopped around before choosing this company. The truck was built to exact specifications in-house faster and cheaper than the other companies considered and features a plethora of features including a 1,000 gallon tank, crew cab to accommodate multiple firefighters, plus storage for rescue equipment and life-saving devices. The truck also features a 1,500 gallon per minute pump. Deep South Fire also had the new truck ready for service in 90 days, which was needed to maintain proper protection for the district.
“This is the first new fire truck we’ve bought since at least 2008,” Gowen said. “Before this we had used trucks that were up to 30 years old so the benefits of a new truck are immense.”
The purchase was necessary due to an older fire truck being lost in a roll over accident last year.
The new truck took a month to get into service, as the numerous firefighters with Central Sabine Fire required training and a breaking in period. Now, the truck is housed at the newly upgraded fire sta- tion on San Antonio Avenue in Many and ready to roll at a moment’s notice.
The district maintains three firefighters on duty at all times, and each has been trained on this new truck. The National Fire Protection Association recommends four be on duty, but budget restraints feed into how many the district can have at one time.
“We are hurting with volunteer firefighter recruitment, which is common across the entirety of the United States,” Gowen said. “We also have limitations on who we can take in as they must be trained on multiple firefighting procedures.”
He points out that last month in July, they answered a total of 123 calls, most of which were most emergency medical situations.
“We stay very busy,” he states. “We’re always trying to get better and our members work hard toward that constant improvement.”
He invites the public to come see the new fire truck and the improvements to the station.
“We appreciate their support and especially with the millage passing,” Gowen said. “It’s our duty as public servants to do the best we can while trying to lower local insurance rates and respond as quickly as possible to any emergency that comes up.”
If you’re interested in touring the firehouse or seeing the new truck up close, please don’t hesitate to contact Central Sabine Fire at 318256-3431.