Kalispell to get new fire engine

The Daily Inter Lake

The Kalispell Fire Department has received a $15,000 grant to purchase a wildland fire engine.

The engine, which is smaller than a typical fire truck, would be used primarily to access dirt roads and navigate the rough terrain where wildland fires most often occur, according to acting Kalispell Fire Chief Dan Diehl.

"That is definitely a hole in our fire protection plan," said Diehl after a small ceremony Wednesday at the department's downtown station. "This is going to help us considerably."

The city has annexed more than 2,100 acres in the last two years, much of it undeveloped grassland, but the fire department's current fleet of engines is geared almost entirely toward extinguishing structure fires.

"And all that area is wildland area … there are no fire hydrants, there are no streets," said Diehl, who estimated the department responds to more than 100 wildland fires within the city limits each year. Many of those fires are caused by vehicles or illegal burning operations.

As the city's budget struggles continue, the grant "couldn't have come at a better time," Diehl said.

Kalispell Mayor Pam Kennedy praised the spirit of public-private partnerships and thanked the Red Lion Hotels Corp., insurance broker Frank Crystal and Co., and Fireman's Fund Insurance Co. for supplying the grant.

"It allows us to be able to purchase something we know we need here in the city of Kalispell but don't have the funds to purchase," she said.

The used one-ton fire engine, which is a little larger than a pickup truck, is being refitted in Missoula and is expected to arrive in Kalispell around April.

"Our local firefighters deserve to be using the best equipment available, and this donation will provide them with another tool to battle fires and protect homes and businesses," Red Lion Hotels risk management director Pat Stapleton said.