Schenectady's new Rescue 1 truck hits the streets

Outside compartments make equipment and gear more easily accessible on Schenectady Fire Department's new Rescue 1.

City Fire Department Lt. Brian Heaney walked around the department’s new Rescue 1 truck, pointing out how it differs from the previous vehicle.

“This is the one feature I like,” Heaney said, pointing to a roll-up compartment near the rear of one side. It was a compartment for fire gear, including jackets and helmets. “We can just put it on and we’re gone.”

The department has the standard firetrucks everyone thinks of, with ladders or other direct firefighting capabilities. It also has the rescue vehicle, which is smaller and focuses on medical needs at calls.

The new Rescue 1 marks a departure from the kinds of rescue vehicles the department has used in the recent past.

Here are features of the new vehicle and how some differ from the previous incarnation, according to the Schenectady Fire Department:

– The new Rescue 1 is a converted Ford F-350 Super Duty pickup truck, with double wheels in the back, and is expected to hold up better and longer than the previous Rescue 1. The previous vehicle was a converted Chevy Suburban SUV.

– It’s a quad-cab, so it has four doors in the cab to better accommodate extra personnel.

– The truck conversion essentially turned the vehicle into a box truck. It’s in the style of those used on the 1970s TV show ”Emergency!” according to Capt. Tim Tietz.

– Storage? “It has a ton of storage,” Heaney said. The box has three compartments on either side, with doors that roll up to reveal easy access to what’s inside.

— The back hatch is handy, too. It rolls up to reveal a large tray that slides out, providing easy access to extra air tanks, extinguishers and stretchers.

– Also on in the compartments: A cardiac monitor, airway equipment, splints and other medical items, ”anything that we need to do, EMS-wise, is on that vehicle,” Tietz says.

– The modifications were done by Wilde Fire Equipment Co. of Mayfield.

— Total cost for everything, according to the city finance department: $101,394. That’s about $32,000 for the base truck and $69,000 for the modifications. It was delivered earlier this month.

— It’s now on the streets, the middle compartment door emblazoned with the truck’s purpose ”FIRE-RESCUE” and the rear door with its name: “RESCUE 1.”