Emergency vehicle arrives at fire and rescue service

CLARE County Fire and Rescue Service took delivery of a new emergency tender vehicle at Shannon Fire Station last Friday.
The new €270,000 appliance, which has been funded by the Department of the Environment, almost completes a fairly comprehensive upgrade to Shannon Fire Brigade. The upgrade will conclude with the delivery of a new water tanker to Shannon Fire Station later this month.
A €1,225,000 extension and upgrade to Shannon Fire Station was completed in May 2009, while the brigade has also benefited from the delivery of a Class B appliance (€280,000) and a pre-owned Class B appliance (€160,000).
Minister Michael Finneran came to Shannon at the time to officially open the refurbished station which included extra bays, a developed drill yard and new accommodation facilities for the crew.
Mayor of Shannon Tony Mulcahy welcomed the arrival of the new Emergency Tender. “I am delighted to see that investment in our local fire service is continuing and that personnel are being delivered the necessary resources to allow them to respond to emergency incidents with maximum efficiency.
“Shannon Fire Station is now one of the best equipped facilities of its kind in the Mid-West. The new facilities, which were completed last year, include the addition of three extra fire station bays, the development and resurfacing of the drill yard and the inclusion of new accommodation facilities for the crew of twelve fire station personnel. Despite the current financial constraints, I would urge the local authority and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to continue to inject the necessary funds to meet the requirements of a modern and efficient fire service,” the mayor said.
Chief fire officer, Adrian Kelly said that the upgrade to Shannon Fire Brigade would help support the development and maintenance of a quality fire and rescue service in Shannon and its surrounds. “Clare County Fire and Rescue Service fleet and facilities are continually being upgraded and expanded. Fire service personnel at Shannon have also participated in a series of countywide training events in recent months, including a tunnel firefighting drill. Last week, fire-fighters from Shannon joined colleagues from throughout Clare and Limerick in a road traffic accident course,” Mr Kelly said.
Apart from the new emergency tender, Shannon Fire Station also host two Class B Fire Appliances, a hydraulic platform, water tanker and a four wheel drive vehicle.
Shannon-based Councillor Patricia McCarthy is a former chairperson of the County Council SPC which deals with the fire service and she welcomed the improvements at the station.
“It’s good to have the new emergency tender in Shannon and that all the improvements have taken place. It is very important that we would be in a position to deal with any emergency or disaster that would happen in the region,” Councillor McCarthy said.