I was just strolling by when I witnessed the roll-off of a strange-looking vehicle. Curiosity got the best of me and now I’m pleased to help announce the newest addition to NVFD’s fire and rescue arsenal: the John Deere Gator All Terrain Vehicle. It’s not your ordinary Gator, as seen on farms and at football games. This one is adapted to fight field and brush fires or to retrieve the injured from difficult-to-reach locations.

As a firefighting vehicle, the Gator carries 100 gallons of water, 5 gallons of foam concentrate and an air compressor. A pump mixes the water, foam and compressed air to make a more effective extinguisher than water alone. The 5 gallons of foam is enough to make 2000 gallons of soaking material.

The brush/field fire unit can be removed and replaced by the MedBed attachment which has a detachable stretcher on one half and a seat on the other. The seat rolls on a track alongside the stretcher during transport for the attendant’s needs. When the MedBed is used, the Gator can carry 3 medical personnel and one patient. The Gator/MedBed configuration will be seen at Brentsville football games and Nissan Pavilion. An especially important role for this area will be the rescue of horse-fall victims, where retrieval by regular vehicles can be difficult.

The Gator is transported by trailer, which also has other necessary emergency equipment. Because it takes several men to remove the brush fire unit, the NVFD is building a storage facility with hydraulic lift.

"We’re really, really happy with it," said NVFD Deputy Chief Andrew Frizzle. The NVFD’s brush fire unit is a 1962 brush truck that still runs but "it’s been giving us trouble. It’s nice to be able to get off the road."

Even though brush fire season is usually mid-March to July, it’s been very dry lately. "Just today (Feb 24), there were 10 around the county," according to Assistant Chief Norman Frizzle. "With low humidity and no rain, everything’s ready to burn."

NVFD purchased this special vehicle through donations, fundraising and Bingo proceeds.

(March 2002)