A new vehicle will help fire departments in Greene County save time and hopefully damage when fighting rural fires.

The Jefferson Firefighter Association recently received a $144,000 grant from Grow Greene County Gaming Corporation to purchase a larger water tanker truck, which Jefferson Fire Chief Jack Williams says can be used by any of the fire departments in the county. He outlines the issues firefighters face when responding to rural fires.

“One of our biggest problems for rural fires and some of the small towns is their water towers don’t have the water supply that’s needed. Newer construction houses and some of the newer furniture burns hot and fast, so if we don’t have enough water supply within the first 20-30 minutes, it’s basically a lost cause. And this will bring us 6,000-8,000 gallons of water immediately, which is about eight truck loads that have to run back to town, all in one.”  

Williams points out the average water tankers across the county holds 750-1,500 gallons of water. Despite having a vehicle that can carry more water to a fire scene, Williams says they still need departments to fill it up.

“I don’t think it’ll reduce mutual aid, but it will give us more time because you figure it takes about 40 minutes for a truck to leave the scene, go get more water, and come back. And this truck should be able to fill that gap so it is constantly, you’ve got trucks waiting to dump water.”   

Any firefighter that drives the new vehicle will have to have a commercial driver’s license with a tanker endorsement. Williams notes they are looking to purchase the truck and water trailer soon and it will be housed on the Greene County Fairgrounds.