As of November 26, a shiny new water tanker truck awaits its first use at the Niverville Fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) department.
The new tanker was delivered to the Town of Niverville for a cost of $580,000 and will replace the old, aging truck that had run its course.
“This [truck] is larger in capacity,” says Mayor Myron Dyck. “So anytime we have an opportunity to throw more water at a fire, it just gives us greater opportunity to save homes, lives, and even pets.”
The tanker, built by Seahawk and Acres Industries, will assist the fire department in servicing areas of Niverville which don’t have the advantage of fire hydrants.
This includes areas beyond the older residential sections of Niverville. The entire industrial park, too, is not serviced by hydrants at this time.
In fact, it’s not uncommon for even the largest fire departments to own tanker trucks. Dyck says the City of Winnipeg, for example, owns tanker trucks for some of their outlying areas where hydrants don’t exist.
“One of the factors in the decision to purchase the new tanker and retire the old was simply age,” says Cyrus Reimer, the town’s communications director. “There is also the need for increased tanker capacity due to the growth that Niverville has experienced over the past few years, especially with the growth of larger industrial businesses in the business park.”
