TAMRMS#: B06
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Fire Tanker Vehicle
Notice given by: Councillor Hansen
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BUDGET POSTPONED MOTION:
recommendation
That FIRE 032 Fire Tanker Vehicle be unfunded.
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POSTPONED MOTION ADMINISTRATIVE BACKGROUNDER
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Administration’s Understanding of Intent Motion:
That the new requested Fire tanker Vehicle be unfunded
Operational or Organizational Impacts if Motion is Approved:
Operationally, not providing a second tanker unit would limit firefighting capabilities in areas where there is both a limited water supply (to begin with), and areas where there is limited access to a water supply.
Financial Implications of Motions:
As this project was recommended to be funded through debt financing, there is no immediate impact to the 2020 operating or capital budget. Future years budgets would be impacted as an operating budget related to the debt servicing and operation and maintenance of the vehicle would not be required.
Stakeholder Consultations:
N/A
Background:
At present, the St. Albert Fire Services (SAFS) does not have an accredited Fire Tanker Service which is a recognized equivalency to hydrant protection. With only one Tanker, this equivalency cannot be achieved.
Currently the SAFS deploys its Tanker to over 1/3 of the city. The SAFS, based on Standards of Cover research, has created three zones within the City. These zones are based on where all three current Fire Stations are situated. Within the three zones are divisions pertaining to which are Primary Response Fire Stations, and which are Secondary Response Fire Stations.
Units coming from Secondary Response Stations back up the Primary Response Stations if the presenting emergency deems extra support is needed. A Secondary Response Station also covers other Stations areas should that station be out on a call already. The Primary Stations are identified as 1,2, and 3. The stations that back them up (Secondary Response Stations) are identified as A (Station 1), B (Station 2), and C (Station 3). Note Diagram 1 below.
Furthermore, the SAFS also automatically deploys the Tanker as an initial response unit to various areas of the City should a call occur in that particular area. Note the ‘T’ on Diagram 1. The reason for this deployment is because these are areas within the City where there is limited access to water supply.
Since January 2013 the Tanker has been deployed to 100’s of emergencies within the City and has been actually utilized on 74 of those calls. At least 18 (24%) of the calls were outside the Tankers primary response zone. This means that the Tanker would not automatically be deployed in these areas. The SAFS has been able to identify accurate coordinates for 76% of these incidents (Diagram 1 - green dots).
Diagram 1
Reasons why the Tanker is utilized within the City itself include:
1) Areas of limited water supply (i.e. agricultural lands in west St. Albert);
2) Motor Vehicle Collisions (MVC’s) - depending on where the collisions occur there may not be adequate access to hydrants due to the locations of the MVC;
2) Structure Fires - once again due to location of hydrants compared to location of structure fire; and
3) Any location where there is limited hydrant access - i.e. the Tanker was utilized within Riel Recreation Park (Rainmaker Rodeo Grounds) for a fire for this very reason.
In addition, the Tanker truck also contains a fire pump that fire hose can be connected to. This allows firefighters the ability to actually attack fires utilizing this unit. Situations have occurred where the Tanker was used to fight major structure fires either as support or because a frontline unit was not available to respond.
The following chart shows locations where the Tanker has responded to for structure fires within the City:
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27 Hamilton CR , St. Albert |
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25 Hamilton CR , St. Albert |
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23 Hamilton CR , St. Albert |
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2 Sunset BLVD , St. Albert |
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0 Meadowview DR , St. Albert |
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20 Meadowview LN , St. Albert |
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40 James CR , St. Albert |
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54218 Hwy 2 , St. Albert |
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54218 Hwy 2 , St. Albert |
Here is a breakdown of call types where the SAFS has utilized the Tanker within the City since 2013:
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Incident Type |
Incident Count |
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Alarm Commercial - Unknown |
17 |
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Alarm Residential - Unknown |
3 |
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EMS Fall (10-31) |
1 |
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Fire Brush/Grass |
15 |
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Fire Medical Assist |
1 |
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Fire Other |
1 |
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Fire Sheds/Skating/Outbuildings |
1 |
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Fire Structural |
10 |
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Fire Structural Confirmed |
2 |
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Fire Vehicle |
17 |
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Mutual Aid Fire |
1 |
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MVC No Extrication |
2 |
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Service Investigate Odour or Sighting |
2 |
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Grand Total |
73 |
Having only one Tanker also leads to concerns of when the unit itself goes out of service for maintenance etc. Having only one unit puts the City in a vulnerable position. In situations such as these, outside municipalities are put on notice letting them know that the SAFS may need their Tanker unit should one be needed. This presents separate challenges (stated below).
At present the SAFS does not have the ability to provide a proper ‘Tanker Shuttle Service’. This Tanker Shuttle Service allows one tanker to drop off its contents (the present tanker the SAFS utilizes carries 12,000 liters of water) into a drop tank (which can hold up to 15,000 liters of water) while another tanker goes to the nearest hydrant to collect more water. This allows for a continuous movement of water to an emergency scene. This tanker shuttle program enhances the fire protection grade for insurance purposes in areas without hydrant coverage. St. Albert does not offer this service due to the fact that it only has one tanker. In short, there is the potential for increased insurance rates due to an inadequate fire protection grade.
In addition to having limited access to water within various areas of the City at the present moment, there is also the concern of limited water supply in the proposed future growth areas. Future development typical of an urban area will require hydrant coverage. Until that occurs it is desirable that the City offer a shuttle program that accounts for a continuous supply of water to an event. Without a second tanker St. Albert would not be able to guarantee this type of service. In short, this would mean that some residences will not have the same protection as others.
Currently, the SAFS cannot provide proper flow rates (according to the Fire Underwriters Survey) for ‘Superior Tanker Shuttle Accreditation’ for personal and commercial buildings in the proposed annexation areas. One Tanker provides a flow rate of 745 l/min. Two Tankers would provide flow rates of 1490 l/min. The Fire Underwriters Survey requires flow rates of 1000 l/min for personal properties and 2000 l/min for commercial properties.
In addition, for Superior Tanker Shuttle Accreditation, a water source must be within 5 km from the incident area. Currently, the closest hydrant to farthest north west corner of the proposed future growth area is 6 km away.
Relying on outside agencies to support water tanker service has its challenges for the following reasons:
1) Many of the departments around the SAFS are volunteer departments which means they will have delayed response times;
2) These agencies may be out dealing with their own emergencies;
3) They may have limited resources to begin with; and
4) They charge for services ‘Fee for Service’ - i.e. Sturgeon County charges $615/hr. plus manpower; Edmonton charges $830/hr. plus manpower.
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Report Date: November 21, 2019
Author(s): Bernd Gretzinger
Department: Emergency Services
Deputy Chief Administrative Officer: Kerry Hilts
Chief Administrative Officer: Kevin Scoble