County Approves $5.5 Million for Fire Trucks

Carroll County’s FY 2026 budget includes a one-time $5.5 million expenditure to replace aging fire trucks in the Carroll County Fire Department.

Tentatively, the funding will be used to purchase six fire engines, four tankers, and two mini-pumper/rescue trucks from Fouts Fire , a fire apparatus manufacturer based in Georgia.

The final purchasing decision still has to pass through the Purchasing Committee.

Carroll County Fire Chief Jonathan Gaskins gives his presentation to the Budget Committee at their May 23 meeting. Photo by Jesse Joseph

Current State of the Fleet

Fire Chief Jonathan Gaskins presented the need for the new equipment during meetings with both the Rural Fire Committee in March and the Budget Committee in May.

“The average age of our engines is 35 years old,” Gaskins said in his presentation. “The NFPA recommends 15 years for a frontline truck, 20 for reserve. We’re well behind the national average.”

The same is true for the county’s tankers, which average 32 years in age, and brush trucks, which average 30.

Gaskins also reported that the county’s only ladder truck, which is a 1981 model, could no longer be safely climbed by firefighters.

After exploring multiple options, Gaskins has chosen to recommend Fouts Fire, which offers ready-built models that meet current standards while reducing wait times.

Custom trucks from other manufacturers, such as Pierce , could take two to three years for delivery.

According to Gaskins, Fouts can deliver vehicles in six to eight months.

Purchase Details

The purchase will include six fire engines, four tankers, and two mini-pumper/rescue trucks.

The engines will be crew cabs built on Freightliner chassis with L9 Cummins engines. Each will be equipped with a 1,000-gallon tank and a 1,500 GPM pump.

They will also include hard suction hoses, deck guns, and full ladder sets.

The tankers, which also built on Freightliner chassis, will carry 2,100 gallons and have 1,000 GPM pumps, along with drop tanks and suction hoses.

The two mini-pumper units will be Ford F-550-based, and outfitted with 300-gallon tanks, 1,500 GPM pumps, two rear SCBA seats, and seven storage compartments for tools and rescue gear.

Gaskins said the purchase will be the first phase in what he hopes will be a long-term plan to modernize the county’s entire fire fleet.

“If we can get five engines and maybe some tankers now, then repeat the process in five years, and again in another five, we’re looking at a 15-year plan to bring the fleet up to standard,” he said. “We didn’t get this way in one year. We can’t fix it all at once, but this gets us going.”

County Approves $5.5 Million for Fire Trucks

County Commission Approves Nearly $39 Million Budget

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