As fire departments take on additional roles and provide more services to their communities, they often need to carry a significant amount of additional equipment. This is especially true for some of the support functions that departments now have to handle such as specialized rescues, hazmat containment and large-scale disaster response, which require large quantities of bulky and sometimes sensitive equipment.

Instead of loading down their existing apparatus or purchasing new trucks to perform these support roles, a growing number of departments have found that trailers offer a low-cost, high-capacity, versatile solution that meets many of their needs.

One of the most attractive features of trailer apparatus is their low purchase price. Many departments have been able to add support trailers to their fleet for a fraction of the cost of a motorized apparatus by using an existing truck for the motive power unit. Smaller trailers can be pulled by a utility truck or even a staff vehicle. Many larger units can be pulled by a 1-ton pickup truck. Even if the department has to purchase a new truck to pull the trailer, the overall vehicle cost is usually less than a comparable straight-frame truck with body.

Trailers also provide more space. Because there is no engine, transmission, driveline or rear-drive axles to get in the way, the trailer frame height can be lowered. This results in more interior space and a lower center of gravity than a truck-mounted body with a similar overall vehicle height. And because the trailer frame is lower, walk-in access to interior work spaces is easier.

Trailers also can be more maneuverable than straight trucks. Pivoting the vehicle in the middle by using a hitch or fifth wheel can result in tighter turns for easier maneuvering in confined areas. Smaller trailers can even be unhitched and manually maneuvered through doorways and down the narrow aisles of industrial plants where a full-sized vehicle can't go.

Finally, trailers can give departments longer life than straight trucks. Even with frequent use, trailers often can outlast two or more tractor units and give 20 or 30 years of service. And if the tractor requires major maintenance or suffers collision damage, the trailer can simply be hitched to another power unit without being taken out of service.

Full-bodied design

Trailers come in all sizes and configurations. Small trailers usually have one or two axles and can be as short as 10 feet in length. They are connected to the tractor by simple ball hitches. These trailers often are used for compact rescue units, breathing-air compressors, foam tankers and generator-lighting units. On the other end of the scale, large trailers usually have two or three axles and can be as long as 53 feet. They are connected to the tractor by fifth wheels. These trailers are commonly used for heavy-rescue, hazmat and decontamination units; command and communications centers; mass-casualty incident units; and mobile training facilities.

No matter what length or function, all tractors with a gross-vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or greater that pull trailers for use as fire service vehicles fall under NFPA 1901, Automotive Fire Apparatus. Sections 3.3.39 and 4.2.3 of the 2003 edition of the standard define these tractor-trailers as combination vehicles and list the sections that apply based on their function.

Form follows function

The large amount of interior space afforded by trailers and the flexibility to customize that space into a variety of configurations make them a good choice for many emergency service applications. Here are some examples:

Rescues

The need to carry a large amount of equipment makes rescue units a natural application for trailers. Departments can take advantage of the full width, height and length of interior space afforded by a trailer to customize their equipment storage compartments. Long and bulky items that would be difficult to carry on a truck, such as plywood shoring for trench rescues or inflatable boats for water rescues, can be carried easily on a trailer. And the low, flat floor allows departments to include command areas within the trailer body to coordinate extended rescue operations.

Hazmat

Everything you can say about the advantages of trailers for rescue applications goes double for hazmat units. In addition to carrying the large amount of specialized equipment required, hazmat units have several unique storage requirements. Overpack drums take large and easily accessible storage areas, hazmat suits often must be hung vertically to protect them and bulk absorbent materials are best carried in pull-out bins. Many hazmat units also need stand-up space for research libraries, lab equipment and command areas built into the body — all good reasons to specify a trailer.

Command and communications

Trailers also are ideal for departments that need to provide command and communications facilities to handle large-scale, multi-agency incidents. As with rescue and hazmat units, the low floor height and unimpeded interior space of a trailer provide plenty of interior stand-up room within a low-profile body that can still fit easily into most stations. Trailer-mounted, collapsible communications antennas can enhance communications significantly during operations in remote areas.

Breathing-air compressors

Why shuttle air bottlesfrom a breathing-air compressor at the station to the incident scene when you can bring the air compressor with you? If your department faces the requirement to provide a constant supply of refilled air bottles for use at fires, chemical spills or hazardous-atmosphere rescue operations, then a trailer breathing-air compressor may be what you need.

Lights and power

Many natural disasters are going to result in a loss of electrical power to the area. To maintain operations through the night and provide basic necessities for the affected population, a mobile source of electrical power and lighting is required. Trailer-mounted generator-light units can assist rescue operations at the scene of collapsed structures, as well as be positioned to provide power at medical clinics, evacuation shelters, supermarkets, gas stations and other critical facilities. The same units can be used to provide light for incidents in remote areas where operations may continue through the night.

Foam

You can't fight flammable liquid fires with plain water; you need foam, and lots of it. Departments faced with significant fires involving flammable liquids can use trailer-mounted foam tankers to supply pumpers with large quantities of foam concentrate. Foam trailers are equipped with engine-driven transfer pumps, and some have large monitors permanently mounted to the trailer to deliver high-volume foam streams.

Medical supplies

Whether it's a natural disaster, a terrorist attack or a passenger plane crash, departments may have to deal with mass-casualty incidents. In those cases, a mobile cache of medical supplies and equipment is necessary to treat injuries on the scene. Many airports, hospitals and regional emergency agencies have mass-casualty incident trailers ready to transport medical supplies and equipment where they are needed.

Decontamination

Exposure to chemical, biological and radiological agents can result from industrial accidents; terrorist activities; or incidents involving trucks, trains or ships. Affected personnel, both civilian and those in the fire service, need to be decontaminated on scene before further treatment is initiated. Mobile decon units include changing rooms, showers with onboard water supplies and water heaters, dressing areas, air filtration systems, and all other equipment required to safely decontaminate personnel and contain the hazardous substances.

Training

Departments that can't afford to build their own training facilities or that are located too far away from other sources of training can benefit from mobile, trailer-mounted burn rooms and other training units. These units can be purchased and operated by regional fire agencies or by private companies. In either case, they offer realistic fire and rescue training under controlled conditions.

Other fire service applications for trailers include rehab units, large smoke ejectors, rescue boat transporters, fire investigation units, public-education displays and others.

No matter what the application, trailers can provide departments with low-cost, high-capacity vehicles that have the versatility to perform a variety of support roles. As many departments will tell you, it's a solution that makes sense for them.

Manufacturers

The following manufacturers build a variety of trailers for emergency service applications.

Advanced Containment Systems (decon, command, rehab)
713-987-0336

Air Systems (breathing air)
800-866-8100
www.airsystems.com

Aluma Tower Co. (communications antenna)
561-567-3423
www.alumatower.com

Andax Environmental Corp. (decontamination)
800-999-1358, www.andax.com

Bauer Compressor (breathing air)
757-855-6006
www.bauercomp.com

CompAir Mako (breathing air)
352-732-2268
www.compairmako.com

Featherlite Trailers (hazmat, command, medical)
888-584-0357
www.fthr.com

Fireblast 451 (training)
909-277-8319
www.fireblast451.com

Fire Wagons (foam, hazmat, rescue, command)
972-243-3307
www.crashrescue.com

Foster Rescue Products (rescue)
866-762-8600
www.FosterRescue.com

Hackney (hazmat, rescue, command)
800-763-0700
www.rescueleader.com

Kidde Fire Trailers (training)
800-288-3973
www.kiddeft.com

Mohawk Ltd. (command, training)
800-225-6642, www.mohawkltd.com

Odyssey Automotive Specialty (medical)
800-535-9441
www.odysseyauto.com

Phoenix Fire Training Systems (training)
800-776-5976
www.flashovertraining.com

Pierce Mfg. (hazmat, rescue, command)
920-832-3000, www.piercemfg.com

Port-A-Cool (rehab)
800-695-2942
www.port-a-cool.com

Rosenbauer America (rescue)
605-543-5591
www.rosenbaueramerica.com

SVI Trucks (hazmat, rescue, command)
888-784-1112, www.svitrucks.com

United Plastic Fabricating (foam)
800-638-8265
www.unitedplastic.com

Wells Cargo (hazmat, rescue, command)
800-348-7553, www.wellscargo.com

Will-Burt (lights)
330-683-7015
www.willburt.com