Using a large parking lot behind a former Plain Street factory, Braintree firefighters last week practiced using their newest piece of heavy equipment – a nearly $1 million fire truck that allows up to three emergency personnel to work from a platform at the end of the vehicle's 95-foot ladder.
The truck was delivered to the department this spring by Greenwood Emergency Vehicles and is being housed at the Highlands station while plans are being developed to expand the station in East Braintree, which is currently too cramped for the large truck.
Last Friday, firefighters took turns working with a representative from Greenwood to raise and lower the ladder to various points on and around the factory. Training Officer Lt. Rich Nigrelli said one of the key benefits of the new truck is the versatility of its platform.
At an accident scene, for example, a police officer could use the platform to take aerial photographs for evidence, Nigrelli said. Additional firefighters can also use the ladder while the platform itself is manned.
Former Braintree Fire Chief Kevin Murphy ordered the platform truck last year. It was custom designed for the department.
The truck cost approximately $925,000, paid for in part by a settlement reached among Braintree, Clean Harbors and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Braintree received $450,000 after appealing a federal decision that originally sent $1 million to Boston despite EPA investigators finding environmental hazards at Clean Harbors' location off Quincy Avenue. The remaining cost of the truck was covered by capital funding approved through the Town Council.
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