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| FASCV Fleet Manager Don Gilbert (left) hands over the keys to Fire Support Unit to San Jose Fire Museum Fleet Manager, Randy Perez |
On Wednesday, September 22, Fire Associates of Santa Clara Valley presented our former Fire Support Unit 3 to the San Jose Fire Museum. The vehicle, most recently used as a reserve Rehab support unit, is a 1981 Dodge Power Ram that was originally a San Jose Fire Department brush patrol. It was donated to Fire Associates by the San Jose Fire Department and has been used as a Fire Support Unit since 2003.
The museum has had their eye on this vehicle for some time. Now, it will become the first and only Brush Patrol in the San Jose Fire Museum's collection. There are a couple of pieces that need to be reinstalled on the rig to make it original, including the hose reel and the red lightbar lenses. Fortunately, Fire Associates held on to the equipment when we modified it to function as a support unit. Fire Associates was able to provide all that equipment back to the Fire Museum.
Work began on Monday to transition equipment and supplies between the former FSU-3 and the Ford F-350 that will now become the current Fire Support Unit 3. Helping facilitate the changeover was FASCV Fleet Manager, Don Gilbert, as well as FASCV members John Whitaker, Bruce Dembecki and Mike Chappel. Lending a hand with the "heavy lifting", were San Jose Fire Museum Fleet Manager, Randy Perez, and SJFM member, Phil Reggiardo. For Rehab power supply purposes, a Honda 5000W generator had been installed in place of the brush patrol's hose reel. During the changeover operation, the generator had to be lifted out of the hose bay and be replaced with the original hose reel.
For the time being, the current FSU-3 will be housed in a warehouse on Quinn Ave. in San Jose. Because it is a diesel rig, it cannot be stored in it's former "home", San Jose Fire Station 26. The station has three full apparatus bays so no spare exhaust extraction equipment is available. SJFD health regulations prevent a diesel-powered rig from being stored in an apparatus bay attached to living quarters without exhaust extraction equipment.
- Photos of the changeover process can be viewed at this link: FSU-3 Changeover
