Liberty FD adds ladder truck to fleet

In this photo from May 2020, firefighters stand before Liberty Fire Department's new ladder truck. Pictured left to right are Firefighters Eric Watson, Timothy Gault and Sean Crump, Asst. Chief Steven Grimm, Chief Brian Hurst and Capt. Eric McDaniel.

For the first time in its history, Liberty Fire Department has a ladder truck. The new apparatus, built for the City of Liberty by Pierce Manufacturing of Appleton, Wis., at a cost of $680,000, was delivered late last week.

The truck is equipped with a 75-foot aluminum ladder that allows access or egress for firefighters while combating fires and allows them to reach fire victims at a greater height. Chief Brian Hurst said a perfect example of the department’s need for a ladder truck are house fires where flames are erupting through the roof.

“We had a house fire on Milam Street about a year or so ago. We needed to get water into the roof because there was a big hole with fire shooting out. We wanted to put water in there to control the fire but the only way to do that was for firefighters to climb onto the roof, and that’s dangerous,” Hurst said. “With the new ladder truck, we can reach out over a fire and shoot water down into it. It’s much safer and more effective.”

Capt. Brian McDaniel (pictured) and other firefighters from Liberty Fire Department are excited to welcome a new ladder truck to the department’s fleet.

According to Pierce Manufacturing, the new ladder truck has a water flow capacity of 1,500 gallons per minute and has a internal storage tank of 400 gallons. Water from pumper trucks help the ladder truck deliver a higher water capacity.

The new ladder truck will be outfitted with gear and hoses from a fire engine it is replacing, Hurst said. The new ladder truck should be completely equipped in the coming days.

Hurst thanked the Liberty City Council and Liberty City Manager Tom Warner for being very supportive of the fire department’s need for the ladder truck.

In addition to Hurst, the fire department is under the supervision of Asst. Chief Steven Grimm and Capt. Eric McDaniel.

Liberty firefighters Timothy Gault and Sean Crump (right) try out the seats in the new ladder truck at Liberty Fire Department.
Previous articleLCSO: Husband and wife burglary team sought by law enforcement
Next articleRichard David Dunham “Buster”
Before creating Bluebonnet News in 2018, Vanesa Brashier was a community editor for the Houston Chronicle/Houston Community Newspapers. During part of her 12 years at the newspapers, she was assigned as the digital editor and managing editor for the Humble Observer, Kingwood Observer, East Montgomery County Observer and the Lake Houston Observer, and the editor of the Dayton News, Cleveland Advocate and Eastex Advocate. Over the years, she has earned more than two dozen writing awards, including Journalist of the Year.

2 COMMENTS

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.