Fire Water Tanker Arrives at CKVFD

The Cedar Key Volunteer Fire Department took delivery of a tanker-pumper truck on May 18. The Peterbilt truck chassis carries 2800 gallons of water. An onboard pump can deliver 500 gallons per minute. Alternatively, the full load of water can be dumped into a tank for use by another pumper truck, freeing the tanker to refill and bring another load to the fire site. The dump-refill cycle can provide water at locations well beyond a fire hydrant. The new truck was purchased for $149,174 with Community Redevelopment Agency funds.

Cedar Key's volunteer fire fighters have practiced erecting a dump tank that will be used in conjunction with the tanker truck. The tank can be erected and ready to receive water in two to four minutes according to Fire Chief James McCain. The need for the tanker and dump tank combination is particularly great in the Piney Point area where mater mains cannot deliver an adequate water supply for fire fighting.