Telesquirts

Telesquirts or "squirts" are paramedic engines that carry a hydraulic skyboom on top that firefighters can use to remotely spray water over a fire. The skyboom reaches up to fifty-four feet high. Squirts also carry all the equipment that is carried on trucks and engines. They are usually ran as engine companies at their home stations.

Squirt 61 at TVF&R station 61

Ladder Truck

Ladder trucks are used to reach high places and to spray water over fires. They are usually stationed in dense urban areas were there are many multistory buildings. Ladder trucks carry 45- to 50-foot ground ladders, fire extinguishers, air tanks, power and hand tools, and of course, a big hydraulic ladder on top. These extendable ladders can reach from 75 to 105 feet in the air. These are some of the different types of ladder trucks used in the USA.

Truck 51 at TVF&R Station 50

Rearmount ladder trucks carry 75 to 105-foot ladders that stretch from front to back of the truck. These are the most common ladder trucks around the USA.

Truck 20 at NF&R Station 20 

some Ladder trucks have an attachment on the front end of the ladder called a basket. The basket serves as a platform for firefighters to stand on to give them more operating room.

Truck 51 at Station 50.

Tiller trucks are stationed in areas with narrow roads and alleyways. Any other ladder truck would be to long to turn on these roads, but tiller trucks work like a tractor trailer so it turns as a trailer instead of one long truck.

Truck 3 at PF&R Station 3

To prevent the trailer from swinging out and hitting things, it has a second cab in the back so that the back of the truck can be steered in sync with the front. Firefighter engineers have to be specially trained to drive these trucks. When the driver in the front turns the truck one direction, the driver in the back has to steer the other direction.

Tiller Cab on Truck 3

  

Front view from the tiller cab on Truck 3

This ladder truck is equipped with a small pump that holds 200 gallons of water. It carries a 75 foot ladder on top that can reach 4-5 story buildings. it is much smaller than most ladder trucks because the roads it its response area are tighter and the buildings are closer together.

Ladder Truck at Black Butte Ranch Fire Station

Paramedic Engines

Paramedic Engine 33 

The most common fire truck is the paramedic engine. It carries hoses, medical equipment, and a pump for holding water to put out fires. Over 80% of all fire department calls are medical, so fire engines hold lots of emergency equipment, such as first aid supplies, defibrillators, oxygen masks, and IV equipment. Paramedic engines are stationed at almost every fire station around the world.

Medical equipment inside Paramedic Engine 50

Paramedic engins come in various styles and designs around the world. This engine is equipped with a device on top that can spray water over a building incase of a structure fire. The control panel is in the space behind the cab.

Sisters fire department paramedic engine at station 702

Pump control station

Welcome!

Welcome to All About Fire and Rescue Vehicles! This site is an educational blog about fire trucks and firefighter equipment. Here you will learn about different facts on fire engines such as different types of apparatus and what they are used for, why green fire trucks are safer than red fire trucks, and the difference between fire trucks and fire engines. Have fun!

Ladder truck 51 at Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue (TVF&R) Station 50 in Tigard, Oregon.