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| Thirty-two Pierce wildland trucks have been purchased by Bureau of Land Management through NFEP |
The Pierce wildland all-wheel drive pumpers are built to BLM 667 and 667M specifications and are designed as initial attack engines.
Pierce Manufacturing Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation company, announced it has sold 32 Pierce wildland firefighting trucks to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) through its National Fire Equipment Program (NFEP). An initial fleet of 19 pumpers will be delivered this month to BLM units in Idaho, Utah, Oregon, and Nevada. A second, recently placed order of 13 pumpers will be delivered in early 2011. The vehicles will be used for both mobile attack firefighting, as well as structure protection in urban interface situations.
"Wildfires are enormously dangerous and destructive, and are one of the biggest challenges facing the fire service today. They can destroy homes, ravage the environment and take lives," said Jim Johnson, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Fire & Emergency. "The BLM is a national leader in fighting wildfires, and having the right trucks, tools and equipment is vital to their mission. We are proud Pierce wildland pumpers are playing a role in their efforts."
"These vehicles would typically be used by our initial attack engine crews as Type 4 wildland engines, but, with this latest Pierce delivery, six of the units will feature a new auxiliary pump that is capable of generating 150-gpm at 250-psi.," said Elden Alexander, National Fire Equipment Program manager for the Bureau of Land Management, whose responsibilities include oversight for all BLM wildland fire equipment design. "This makes them more versatile, Type 3 vehicles – and it represents a great deal of input from state fire program managers, field level equipment users and the fire equipment industry."
Bureau of Land Management is a leader in national wildland fire management efforts |
The Pierce wildland all-wheel drive pumpers are built to BLM 667 and 667M specifications and are designed as initial attack engines that can reach fires in rough terrain before they threaten homes and lives. Each is built on a durable four-wheel drive chassis with maximum approach and departure angles and underbody clearance. Each features a 750 or 850-gallon water tank and a 20-gallon foam tank. The vehicles offer an auxiliary pump and foam system with true pump-and-roll capability to attack fast moving wildland fires.
Alexander added: "The BLM employs an aggressive style of direct attack firefighting, and these units are engineered for both effective mobile firefighting capabilities, as well as pumping multiple lines for structure protection in urban interface situations."
The BLM, a leader in national wildland fire management efforts, undertakes a broad range of activities to protect the public, the natural landscape, wildlife habitat and national recreational areas. The NFEP has comprehensive oversight responsibilities for all BLM wildland fire equipment design, development, contracting/ procurement, distribution, and maintenance. The NFEP is located in the Office of Fire and Aviation Division of Fire Operations at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. The NFEP is responsible for providing short-range and long-range planning, program management and leadership, guidance, coordination, and evaluation for national fire equipment development and procurement in the Bureau. The NFEP represents the Bureau in all aspects of fire equipment activities with interagency and international partners.
The BLM firefighting fleet consists of approximately 578 pieces of dedicated wildland fire equipment that protect 245 million acres of BLM lands. The BLM assists seven other Federal land and resource management agencies in fire management.
