Aircraft Rescue Firefighting (ARFF)
 If you get sick at the airport, you’ll likely have several Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) at your side within two minutes—the airport has a full time fire department and every firefighter has Firefighter 1 or Firefighter 2 certification and is a certified EMT.
Besides responding to routine medical calls, ARFF members stand ready to respond to the worst case scenario—a crashed or burning aircraft. To meet this challenge, the men of ARFF use specialized training, equipment and tactics.
The list of equipment begins with fire proximity suits that have an outer layer of heat-reflecting aluminized material. This allows firefighters to work in the extreme heat of an aircraft fire.
This is a drill: ARFF members respond during a disaster drill.
ARFF crews reach distressed aircraft in what you might call Monster Trucks. These beasts are designed to shoot water while on the move. The airport has three of these trucks:
T-1500 Osh Kosh (EZ-5)
EZ-5 has 4-wheel drive and is capable of reaching any location on the airfield within three minutes of the initial alarm. EZ-5 carries water, foam and dry chemical to put out the fire. This truck is armed with a Snozzle—a cone shaped nozzle, mounted on a boom, which can pierce the fuselage to put out a fire inside the aircraft. |
EZ-5 extends the Snozzle.
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Osh Kosh Striker 3000
(EZ-6)
Safety through superior firepower.
That statement sums up EZ-6. This 2009 model is the newest ARFF truck in the airport stable. It packs a 680 horsepower Cat diesel and races down the runway at 70 mph with 3000 gallons of water and 420 gallons of firefighting foam. Six wheel drive. 40 feet long, 12 feet tall, 10 feet wide—its six tires nearly as tall as the average man. Capable of punching through fences and pushing over trees. Yes sir, this truck is all business. Click the photo to get up close and personal.
EZ-6 is our newest ARFF truck
Osh Kosh T-1500 (EZ-4)
This 4-wheel drive truck is capable of reaching any location on the airfield within three minutes of the initial alarm. It carries water and foam to fight the fire.
Engage! EZ-4 attacks the flames with the forward water turret during a
live fire exercise.
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