NORWALK -- Members of the Norwalk Fire Department were flying high Wednesday at Volk Fire Station, as they showed off the newest addition to the team: a fire engine equipped with a 100-foot-long ladder, the longest ladder the department has. The new engine cost $750,000 to build and went into service Wednesday at 8 a.m. Fire Chief Denis McCarthy said it will last about 20 years, and he is grateful for the "huge investment on the part of the city." Fire trucks and ladders like this one fill a crucial need for any city fire department, he said, allowing firefighters to rescue people trapped on high levels and ventilate buildings. The ladder beats its 1985 predesessor by 12 feet, and the truck boasts increased safety features like air conditioning so windows can be closed and ears shielded, and an enclosed rear seat for firefighters to ride in. The old engine had a more dangerous open "jump seat," said Scott Plank, the mechanic that designed the new engine. "Luckily we never had it happen," he said, knocking for good luck, "but it's a common accident for people to fall off. (The new one is) a lot safer and more efficient to operate." Firefighters excitedly noted that the new ladder is faster and smoother than older models. It can extend to its full length in 45 seconds. "You don't think 100 feet's a lot, but when you get in it it's like, 100 feet is pretty high," Plank said. "A lot of thought goes into ... trying to customize it to Norwalk's needs." The new, improved model, which was funded over two fiscal years and took about one year to design and build, increases water carriage to 400 gallons -- up 100 from what it used to be -- and has stronger pumping capacity. "We can get to the top of pretty much any building here (except 50 Washington St.)," said Firefighter Tim Reardon, who was riding in the box at the ladder's top. Reardon explained that the box has a self-leveling feature, and both the firefighters in it and one running the boom from below -- on the truck -- can control its position. The lower operator takes care of the larger movements and gets the box in the general vicinity of where it needs to be, then the upper ones can do smaller adjustments if needed. There are two hoses in the box, one on each side, so two firefighters can work at once. They always go up in twos in case one gets in a bad spot, Reardon said. "You never want someone doing something alone at the fire service." The new engine is the first purchase under the department's new plan that forecasts a vehicle replacement schedule of frontline service every 15 years and reserve status for fire pumpers every five years. The Fire Commission passed a resolution approving the plan unanimously the same day, after the phrase "to the extent reasonably foreseeable" was added at Mayor Alex Knopp's -- a commission member -- suggestion, to clarify that the schedule is not "an iron-clad policy." In other business, the commission resolved that the department prepare a strategic plan to be submitted in November addressing many other major operational issues, including those mentioned in the recent Matrix Report on the department, such as personnel, employee manual, training, and health and safety. Training is a weakness in the department, McCarthy said, with expectations at each rank lacking clear definition, and he plans to remedy that. While he doesn't plan to hire any more firefighters until 2006, he said it is important to interest minorities and women, who are vastly underrepresented in the department, in the job in the meantime.

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