Lincoln Fire & Rescue unveils new ladder firetruck to help with rescues

LINCOLN, Neb (KLKN) – Lincoln Fire & Rescue on Thursday morning showed off its new ladder truck, which it says will benefit crews in a number of ways.

Officials said the new truck cost about $1 million, which came from federal COVID-19 relief funds.

The truck is one of four in Lincoln that has a ladder built on top to help firefighters get up to high places.

Chief David Engler said adding the truck to LFR’s fleet will provide the tools firefighters need to not only put out fires, but also get inside taller buildings and perform rescues.

“The ladder is certainly important to reach tall spaces and pour water on buildings from the top,” he said. “But one of the biggest features is all the equipment that’s carried on them that’s very specialized that we couldn’t put on every piece of equipment throughout the city.”

Engler said over the past year, LFR has replaced some old equipment, and it’s created a budget to regularly update the fleet before needing to be replaced.

Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said funding these updates is all part of her priority of promoting public safety.

“Back when I was on city council, I got to see the spreadsheet about the health of the fleet,” she said. “And the kind of talking point was that a lot of the fleet was old enough to vote or drink, and we don’t want that. … We want these people to have what they need to keep them safe on the job and have a quick response.”

Engler said there will be another new truck coming later this summer.