After 25 years of relying on the same aging diesel truck, the Cambridge Fire Hazardous Materials Task Force received a long-awaited upgrade this August when it switched to a new all-electric hazmat truck, the first of its kind in New England, Electrek reported.
HazMat1, as the vehicle is called, came to the Cambridge Fire Department by way of upfitter Rosenbauer. It was originally a tradeshow vehicle built using an International Motors eMV medium-duty chassis.
As a hazmat response vehicle, HazMat1 had to meet an array of specialized requirements, some of which were specific to the individual fire department and service area. It had to carry the thousands of pounds of equipment necessary to respond to emergency calls, including a mobile command post and an onboard electronic research library. It also had to be incredibly reliable since people throughout the region would depend on it to respond to emergency calls.
Luckily, electric vehicles are becoming more powerful and reliable all the time. Navistar Zero Emissions customer onboarding manager Joe Jenkins trained Cambridge Fire about EVs and their benefits before locating the eMV model for the department, Electrek revealed.
"It was a unique situation because this truck was previously a Rosenbauer tradeshow vehicle," Jenkins said, per Electrek. "Multiple eMV's were originally ordered by North Central International, and two ended up with Rosenbauer. The vehicle came to Cambridge Fire fully upfitted and ready to be deployed."
The vehicle has a 135-mile range, a rugged aux system that charges with the truck's main battery, a 33,000-pound gross vehicle weight rating, and a direct-drive electric motor with 1,737 pound-foot of peak torque.
Electrek pointed out one major benefit of going electric with a fire department vehicle: less air pollution exposure for the essential personnel using it. Fire trucks are often left running inside their garages, and even with good airflow, a diesel vehicle exposes firefighters to toxins that an EV simply doesn't, making this a perfect match.
Although this is the first electric fire truck in New England, there are others popping up, including one in Los Angeles. Other industries are also electrifying at an impressive rate.
Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
