By Shelby Stewart
Staff Writer
The Brandon Fire Department now has two new emergency response vehicles, a new Fire Engine at station 2 and a tanker at station 1, replacing two older vehicles. The new vehicles cost just over $1 million.
“We’ll be putting the two old trucks on a couple different online fire truck sales companies for used fire apparatuses,” said Brandon Fire Chief Dave Kwapis.

The old vehicles were 25 years old.
“After 10 years we’re supposed to put them into the reserves,” said Kwapis. “But we don’t beat our trucks up like that. In a city, the wear and tear would be more, but we’re fortunate we can get the 25 years out.”
The two new vehicles come from KME based in Pennsylvania. The new tanker holds 2,000 gallons of water and the engine holds 1,000 gallons. They also have roll-up doors, which will help keep the equipment clean longer.
The biggest change, however, is safety.
“The biggest thing is the safety stuff. It has an airbag safety restraint system,” said Kwapis. “It gives our firefighters protection if the vehicle was involved in an accident. 25 years ago, that wasn’t an option.”
Both of the trucks also have 360 degree cameras so from inside the cab the driver can see completely around the vehicle. The fire engine also has a 10-foot extendable over-head light, which will allow firefighters to see better on night-time calls.

The old vehicles were 25 years old.
“After 10 years we’re supposed to put them into the reserves,” said Kwapis. “But we don’t beat our trucks up like that. In a city, the wear and tear would be more, but we’re fortunate we can get the 25 years out.”
The two new vehicles come from KME based in Pennsylvania. The new tanker holds 2,000 gallons of water and the engine holds 1,000 gallons. They also have roll-up doors, which will help keep the equipment clean longer.
The biggest change, however, is safety.
“The biggest thing is the safety stuff. It has an airbag safety restraint system,” said Kwapis. “It gives our firefighters protection if the vehicle was involved in an accident. 25 years ago, that wasn’t an option.”
Both of the trucks also have 360 degree cameras so from inside the cab the driver can see completely around the vehicle. The fire engine also has a 10-foot extendable over-head light, which will allow firefighters to see better on night-time calls.