The Hindu : 64 fire tenders to be acquired soon

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 02, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

64 fire tenders to be acquired soon

By Our Staff Reporter

COIMBATORE, APRIL 1. The Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services Department would shortly get 64 fire tenders for replacing the "worn out" and "over used" ones in the State.

Talking to reporters here recently, the Deputy Director of Fire and Rescue Services, Western Zone, V. Madurapandian, said that the department used to phase out fire tenders based on a number of criteria.

Fire tenders, which were either 15 to 20 years old or those which had attended the maximum number of calls or those which had travelled the maximum kilometres, used to be phased out.

Overused fire tenders in the 281 fire stations across the State would be identified and these 64 would be used to replace them on a priority basis. Each fire tender, including the cost of chassis and body, would cost about Rs. 12 lakhs. Building the body for these chassis had been entrusted with the bodybuilding unit of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) at Pollachi.

To enhance the carrying capacity of the fire tenders (for accommodating more gadgets and water), the payload gross vehicle weight had been increased to 16 tonnes from 12 tonnes.

The vehicle would have more multi-utility gadgets than just fire fighting equipment.

The department was planning to load these vehicles with gadgets for rescuing children who fell into holes drilled for the purpose of sinking borewells. A high-pressure silicon tube (attached to chains) with silicon vacuum discs for lifting children, a tubular camera with a PC monitor for keeping track of the victim even as rescue operations were on, a mini generator of 7.5 KVA capacity, rescue tools (for cutting open metal bodies), electronic siren of two amperes for better audibility on roads to get instant road clearance in the event of an emergency, submersible pumps for lifting water from a depth of more than 28 ft and sophisticated revolving siren lights were also being considered for these new fleet of fire-tenders.

All these proposals were being considered on the basis of "merit, utility and cost" and the Department and the Government would take a decision shortly, the Deputy Director said.

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