Blaine Hill firefighters ready to try out new attack truck

They have been training on the state-of-the-art vehicle, which was paid for by Olympus Energy.

Elizabeth Township and Blaine Hill Volunteer Fire Department have a new attack truck to fight fires and handle other issues that might arise in the township and surrounding communities.

The $579,699.79 cost of the truck is being covered by Olympus Energy, which put a well pad in the Blaine Hill area of the township, and an event was held Tuesday to commemorate the new vehicle.

Blaine Hill Fire Department got the first choice because Olympus is in its area, but that doesn’t limit the truck from being used in other areas of the township.

Olympus CEO Tim Dugan said this partnership is important for departments like Blaine Hill to thrive.

“We are pretty big in community investment in the communities we operate in,” said Ashley Mikelonis, communication and engagement lead for Olympus. “We understand how critical our first responders are, not just for our operations, but for day to day.

“Most fire companies are facing hardships and lack of funding, so we want to provide a valuable resource like this that can provide some really critical assistance.”

Paying for the truck and providing funding in the township are among the conditions that came with putting in a well pad.

Commissioner Chris Thoma, who spearheaded the project, added that Olympus has been investing in the community and has financially supported fire departments that need it.

Thoma said that it takes a while to get trucks like these, and this one took 16-17 months to arrive in the township. The truck has about $100,000 worth of equipment on it, including radios, hoses, mounting kits, a hose system, touch screen and more.

Thoma called the truck “an amazing asset” for the Elizabeth Township community. He added that it will be a beneficial resource to share with other departments and communities.

“(The truck) is normally a four-year wait. It can handle almost anything,” he said. “Some of our bridges around here are very narrow and the weight is an issue, so you can’t take a big truck on some of these streets. It turned out really nice. This adds something that we don’t have in this township.”

There is also a compressed foam system, used for fire suppression, as well as a water tank, several sizes of nozzles, four-wheel drive and more.

Thoma explained that fire departments have to use foam rather than water on electric cars. Water can also damage houses as well.

Bob Zirkle, assistant fire chief for Blaine Hill, said the truck has a special system with the compression foam, along with an air system that injects the foam into the water. There is a lot of training involved, he added.

Blaine Hill Chief Corey Evans said the attack truck was delivered March 2, and the department had been working on it for a few weeks and going through training.

The truck, which is expected to be in service in a couple weeks, was also displayed for residents at this month’s commissioners meeting. It can shoot water a significant distance, according to Evans, who is excited to use the truck.

“One of the biggest services is it enables us to get into smaller areas of our district where we have had issues in the past with larger trucks getting to,” Evans said. “It will also have a combination rescue tool on it as well as a phone for structure firefighting purposes. It is also easier for everyone to operate.”

Zirkle said the truck came from Wisconsin and is a J Marcoz Emergency Vehicle. The truck was on display at the Monroeville Fire EMS Expo, with fire departments from all over checking it out.

“Around the well pad area especially, those are back roads and that area was never developed over there and that truck is nice and small,” Zirkle said. “We would have a hard time swinging some of our bigger trucks, and hopefully that can get back in there faster.”

Zirkle added that it took a lot of time, effort, meetings and research to get the truck to come to fruition.

“We are the envy of the South Hills and the Mid-Mon Valley area,” he said. “The biggest thing is we can’t thank Olympus enough because essentially we got the truck essentially at no cost. These are million dollar trucks nowadays.”