Palmersville Tanker Restoration Project Completed

The Palmersville tanker restoration project is complete. This project has been a few years in the making and former board chairman and firefighter Gilbert Workman burned the ‘note’. Palmersville Tanker 2 holds 5,000 gallons of water and is now pulled by an international truck chassis. Tanker 2 is in service.

BY DAVID FISHER
david@magicvalleypublishing.com

Palmersville Community Volunteer Fire Department’s tanker restoration project, which was two years in the making, is now complete.
According to Palmersville Fire Chief Joe David Laws, old tanker 2 has a significant story. The 1980s model Mack served as a fuel tanker on an Air Force base.
The department bought the truck and outfitted it to haul water in emergency situations. After several years the department decided it was time for an upgrade.
Chief Laws stated, while designing the truck, firefighters were able to give input on what they thought would work best. This is one advantage of designing and doing all the work as a department.
The 5,000 gallon tank is now hauled by an International chassis that is much more suitable for the task at hand.
“While being a volunteer firefighter is not an easy task, we as a department, believe that this new truck will make our job easier, while serving the community the best way we know how,” Chief Laws said.
“This project is no different. We began this project in February of 2019, and as of February 2023, we officially burned the loan note that allowed us to purchase the truck.
“Firefighters are often pitching ideas to make the piece of apparatus the best it can be.
“To shed some light for those who might be questioning the size of the tanker, as an unincorporated town, we do not have access to fire hydrants as most city departments do.
“In order to do our job successfully, we must be prepared to take larger amounts of water with us because of the extended distance to a water source.
“In the event we respond to a fire and need a lot of water, we must shuttle the water with our tankers from alternate water sources,” Chief Laws said.
“We always want to commend the support that we get from our community. This project would not have been possible without that support.”