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When it came time for new apparatus in Beaufort, South Carolina, department officials opted for All Purpose vehicles.
As explained in a press release published by TheDigitelBeaufort.com, the city was able to purchase 2 of the All Purpose Vehicles at $145,000 each. The department also added a Class A Pumper.
“Switching to the two All Purpose Vehicles is especially important locally because 70 percent of our calls are related to medical issues, and these new vehicles are much more mobile and efficient on the road to get the job done,” [Beaufort Fire Chief Sammy Negron] said. “We have a more effective department with better apparatus, and we saved $765,000.”
Hope it works out for you Chief but from my experience, you won't save anything in the long run and might (in fact) have wasted money on the smaller rigs. There's no question that 70 % + of the workload of most departments in the country today is EMS related. However we do still have fires /rescues/other calls occasionally and when those occur, a two-person mini-pumper will find itself overmatched and the results will not be pretty to watch. The advantage of sending a full-sized rig with its full compliment of personnel is that is capable of delaing with most emergencies, not just EMS responses. The same can not be said of the mini-pumper with two personnel. My guess is that the two mebers needed to staff the mini-pumpers will be taken from the regular staffing on the full-sized rigs, which makes two understaffed units for anything other than EMS responses. After you get caught with your shorts down two or three times, I think you will discover the wisdom of my response here.
Everything old is new again..ChiefBob, my experiences with the mini-pumper were very positive. i have successful fought car fires, brush/bonfires, even a mobil home fire with one. It was even 4-wheel drive, and could go rural/off road. We a combination department, so the fast response from the station personnel while the volunteers responded often made the difference.