By Mark Hansel
Northern Kentucky Tribune Managing Editor
The Elsmere Fire Department is looking for a little help.
It needs to replace one of its vehicles, but a new fire truck is very expensive and the department is a little short on funds.
Elsmere Fire Chief Paul LaFontaine said the department received a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that was generous, but less than requested. It left the department with about a $50,000 less than the $400,000 needed to replace the vehicle being taken out of service.
“We don’t really have a big capital campaign going on,” LaFontaine said. “We’ve got about half-a-dozen international business that we service, so I sent a letter asking them if they would help meet the difference and that’s how all of this got started.”
German-based automotive parts manufacturer Mubea, whose North American Headquarters is in the Elsmere Fire District, has contributed $5,000. MazakUSA, the Northern Kentucky-based advanced manufacturing company, has pledged a similar amount, but that still leaves the department about $40,000 short.
Luigi Tiddia, general manager, hose clamps at Mubea, said the company took the lead with its donation, hoping to bring attention to the plight of the fire department.
“It’s all about safety at the end of the day – the safety of our employees, of our community and of our investment,” Tiddia said. “In manufacturing we understand the importance of having the right equipment to do the job, which, in my opinion, they cannot do with the truck they have.”
Mubea recently launched a worldwide “Driven by the Best” initiative that included suggestions from employees on ways the company could improve its service.
“This was our way of giving back to our employees and telling them that we are doing what they ask of us,” Tiddia said. “We want to be the preferred employer and we want our employees to be proud of us.”
Mike Vogt, vice president of human resources for Mazak, said the company also stepped up with the hope that others would follow suit.
“Chief LaFontaine contacted us independently, explained the need, and invited a number of companies in the district over to look at the equipment,” Vogt said. “We could see immediately that it was not capable of fighting a fire you might have in large industrial complex. We have a huge investment here and a fire would be devastating to our operation, so it’s important to us that the fire department has the equipment it needs.”
The Elsmere fleet consists of two engines, an ambulance and a service truck.
The vehicle being replaced is a 1987 pumper that was purchased new by the fire department. One of the options for disposing of the truck is donating it to a museum, which speaks volumes about the need for an upgrade.
“Up until last week, we were still making calls with it,” LaFontaine said.
The truck met all requirements when it was placed into service, but it is not only outdated, it does not fit the new role of the department.
Fire departments, for example, are responding to significantly more medical calls than when that truck was put into service.
“When this truck was designed, they weren’t making nearly as many of those calls, so it was not set up for that,” LaFontaine said. “This was a commercial chassis that the manufacturer made a fire truck out of.”
A bench seat behind the cab initially did not include seatbelts and firefighters riding there are completely exposed to the elements.
The new truck will include an enclosed compartment for firefighters and bucket-style seats that include harnesses and airbags.
The new truck would benefit not only the residents and businesses in the Elsmere Fire District, but potentially, those in other Northern Kentucky communities.
In the event of a large fire, particularly in an industrial complex, LaFontaine said the combined resources of Northern Kentucky departments would be
called in and upgraded equipment would be an asset.
Water is not effective in a fire involving flammable liquids, such as those in use by Mazak and other companies in the region, so foam is required.
The truck being replaced in Elsmere carries about five gallons of foam, but the new vehicle will be able to carry 35 gallons and double the fleet’s capacity.
The Elsmere Fire Department is also now required to maintain two pumpers that can generate 3,000 gallons of water per minute. The truck that is being replaced only pumps 1,250 gallons per minute, but the new one generates 1,500, the same as the other fleet vehicle, which would fulfill that requirement.
Vogt said it is important to help protect Mazak’s investment, but the company has been in Northern Kentucky for 41 years, and has always been a good corporate citizen.
“We have the big things that we support, but sometimes helping the local fire department can have more impact on the community than the larger financial donations we make,” Vogt said.
The new truck is ready for service and it should be delivered the week of June 9. If the department does not receive enough in donations to cover the cost of the vehicle, it will have to secure a loan to pay the difference.
“We’ve even talked about doing some sort of logo on the apparatus from the participating sponsors,” LaFontaine said. “If they want to play a role in this, we would have no problem with that.”
LaFontaine, 50, started out in Elsmere as a junior firefighter in 1979. He became a volunteer four years later and was the first fulltime fireman hired by the district in 1990.
He was named fire chief one year later.
LaFontaine says he knows the work is dangerous but considers it an honor to help keep the people of the community safe.
“It’s the best job in the world, because you don’t know what the next five minutes is going to bring and you are providing a valuable service,” LaFontaine said. “But you need the tools to do the job right.”
To make a contribution, contact Elsmere Fire Chief Paul LaFontaine at (859)342-7505