A NEW, smaller fire engine will be tested for the first time.
South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue have spent more than a year developing a lighter, more agile fire appliance.
The vehicle has been designed to keep the same functionality as a traditional fire engine, but be easier to manoeuvre than the larger appliances.
Along with this, the smaller appliances are cheaper not only in the short-term, but in the long-term as well.
The new vehicle will be staffed the same and it will carry all the necessary equipment required to attend an incident.
Before being released, the vehicle will undergo a six-month period of testing and evaluation on station with crews to identify any minor changes which need to be made.
Training requirements will also be identified for the fire-fighters who will be driving the appliance. Assistant chief fire officer,
Tony Carlin, said: “This next generation appliance has been designed using the expertise and knowledge of a number of fire-fighters and officers and we are very excited to be welcoming it into our service.
“We want to provide our staff with the best available equipment to be able to carry out their work and these new vehicles will give us a much more dynamic emergency response fleet.
"Not only this, but these vehicles cost the service less to buy and run, making the money of the people we serve go further.”
