Basseterre, St. Kitts, January 29, 2016 (SKNIS): The recent purchase of two fire appliances from Rosenbauer America signals the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis’ commitment to offer the best to the men and women of the St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Services (SKNFRS), who put their lives on the line every day.
That message was shared by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of National Security, Osmond Petty, as he addressed fire officers who assembled at the Basseterre Fire Station on Thursday (January 28) for the commissioning of the vehicles. The custom-built appliances were designed with multiple capabilities to respond to municipal and off-road fire and rescue emergencies.
“The two fire trucks were manufactured to the highest standard by Rosenbauer America … and were acquired through their local agents Indocom Ltd. based in Trinidad at a cost of around EC $2 million,” Mr. Petty said. “The acquisition of these trucks is a continuation of Government’s fleet renewal initiative for the St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Services and the main purpose of such initiative is to replace and upgrade the ageing fleet of fire trucks with modern, state-of-the-art vehicles, in line with the technological advances and overall development that is taking place in St. Kitts and Nevis.”
The local fire department has a long history with Rosenbauer stretching back 16 years. Matt Kraner works for Rosenbauer America as an export technician and came to St. Kitts to train fire officers on the features of the new tenders. He said that his company supplies orders to countries around the world including Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica and Columbia.
He credited David Beard from Indocom, who worked with local officers to get the specifics of the design right and mentioned the 04 Engine which is assigned to the Sandy Point Fire Station as an example.
“They needed a short wheel base to get around some of the streets,” said Mr. Kraner. “They also have the high terrain so we needed to have a truck that was kind of higher up with lots of ground clearance but able to have as much water as possible to fight those brush fires or the other fires in their district. I feel these two trucks will definitely help the St. Kitts fire department to be able to address the needs of the public, whether it be rescue response or fire response. I feel that with these trucks that they will serve them [the public] quicker, much better, to help save life and property.”
The other fire appliance, Number 03, is assigned to Basseterre.
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