NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
In cooperation with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the
Navajo Nation Fire Department has begun training to install 8,000 smoke
alarms in First Nations households. See article NFPA Kicks Off Smoke Alarm Project.
Sparky® presenters are needed
to present life safety skills to school children Navajo Nation wide. Click here for more information on how
to obtain a Sparky® suit.
Navajo Nation Council Authorizes Fire Truck Purchase
The 20th
Navajo Nation Council approved a resolution to
purchase six (6) Fire Trucks for the Navajo Nation Fire Department at a cost of $1.5 million. These six (6) fire trucks will
be assigned to Tuba City, Leupp, Indian Wells, Chinle, Fort Defiance and
Window Rock, and will supplement fire trucks currently assigned to these stations. Since the establishment of the
department, their has
existed only one fire truck per district, so when that truck was down for repairs or service, the town, and all its
surrounding communities, were left without fire protection.
The purchase of these trucks comes at a good time, as we
have been expending most of our operating budget to maintain the current fire truck fleet.
Click here to see our current vehicle fleet.
Fire trucks we specified will be built by KME and will
come on an International 7400 4 x 4 crew-cab and chassis. We further specified a 1,000 gpm pump,
1,000 gallon water tank with a compressed air foam system (CAFS) to address a rural and water deficient area.
The CAFS will in essence turn that 1,000 gallons of water into 3,000 gallons of water.
Independent Fire Company of Albuquerque, New Mexico was
awarded the contract. Delivery of the trucks are expected in September, 2007. Check back later to see pictures of our new
fire trucks.
2005 Grant Awarded!
Through the Arizona Department of Homeland Security, the
Navajo Nation Fire Department was awarded a grant in the amount of $385,000 to establish a Hazardous Materials Response Team (HMRT).
The purpose of the HMRT is to respond to and mitigate hazardous materials incidents through direct entry into a hazardous
material situation for identification, containment and control purposes to protect life, health, property and the
environment. Our team is well on its way to become the initial and primary responder to hazardous materials incidents
within the Navajo Nation, and “back-up” and “support” providers to other HMRT - those being the Flagstaff and
Show Low Fire Departments.
With the grant, our department purchased hazardous materials
equipment (containment & identification equipment and protective clothing), a haz-mat trailer and a command vehicle.
We anticipate to begin providing hazardous materials response at the technician level on May 1, 2007.
Check back later to see pictures of our trailer.
2005 Grant Awarded!
Under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) - 2005
Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program - the Navajo Nation Fire Department was awarded a grant in the amount of
$299,440.00 (with a matching of $29,944.00) to purchase fire suppression equipment in the form of supply and attack
hose, nozzles, water and foam appliances and foam concentrate.
Fire hose within the department were surpassing 15
years of service and all of them needed to be replaced. In addition to the dominant use of plastics (these fires burn
hotter, faster and are more difficult to extinguish), the department needed to improve its extinguishing capability
through the utilization of foam.
With the grant, the department purchased 4 inch large
diameter hose to get the most out of the Navajo Nation's low pressure water system, new fire nozzles to obtain better
fire streams, new water appliances so that our hose will be compatible with other fire service organizations, and foam
appliances and foam concentrate to improve fire knock down, rekindles and prevent ignition of flammable liquids.
In the past, foam was not utilized with the department
due to the tremendous start up cost associated with it. With this grant, the department has now outfitted all its fire
apparatus with both Class A (Ordinary Combustibles) and Class B (Flammable Liquids) foam.
W.S. Darley & Co. was the selected vendor for this equipment.
Click here to see a picture slide show of our new
equipment training.
2004 Grant Awarded!
Under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) -
2004 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, the Navajo Nation Fire
Department was awarded a grant in the amount of $246,240.00 (with a matching of $27,360.00) to replace all of
the department's self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). Current SCBA were reaching their 15-year mark within
the department. The department could not find purchase records on these SCBA and as such, it is believed that they
were actually donated making them older then 15 years. Not only was it time to replace these SCBA, firefighter safety
was being jeopardized. Fire Administration received many complaints from the field that the current SCBA were failing,
especially during the winter months.
Self-contained breathing apparatus (pictured right)
are used by firefighters operating in an oxygen deficient and other toxic atmospheres,
such as those found in structural fires and hazardous materials incidents. SCBA basically protects the firefighter’s
respiratory system and allows them to work in toxic environments to protect life, health and property. The SCBA is
comprised of four components – a backpack assembly, air cylinder, regulator assembly and face mask assembly.
With the DHS grant, the department purchased:
- 45 ISI Digital Viking (DXL) CBRN 45 minute 4500 psi SCBA
- 10 ISI Digital Viking (DXL) CBRN 60 minute 4500 psi SCBA
- 65 Spare SCBA Air Cylinders
- 55 SCBA brackets
- 8 Rapid Intervention Kits
- 20 Spare SCBA mask
- 28 SCBA Cases
In FY2004, the department sought for supplemental
appropriations through the Navajo Nation Council to purchase additional SCBA equipment and SCBA compressors.
In the second quarter of FY2005 (our second attempt), our department was granted $336,505.00 from the Navajo Nation
Council. With this supplemental appropriation, the department purchased the following to support the 2004 DHS grant:
- 41 ISI Digital Viking (DXL) CBRN 45 minute 4500 psi SCBA
- 108 Spare SCBA Air Cylinders
- 20 SCBA Brackets
- 34 Spectacle kits
- 37 Spare SCBA head-nets
- 1 SCBA Fit test kit
- 4 Mako SCBA Fill Stations with compressor, fill station, and storage system
FDC Rescue Products of Glendale (Arizona) and
LN Curtis & Son's of Salt Lake City (Utah) were the selected vendors. FDC Rescue Products is the regional ISI dealer
and LN Curtis & Son's the regional Mako dealer.
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