As communities are expanding, fire crews are required to respond to more and more scenes located off the main roads. It might be a brush fire down an old, overgrown logging road or a first responder call down a snowmobiling trail. Because conventional fire apparatus are unable to reach these types of calls, your crew needs to find alternative response methods to get to these scenes sooner. In many cases, departments are opting to use UTVs, or drop in skid units, to fulfill this growing need. These emergency vehicles are side-by-side, all terrain vehicles specifically designed to respond to rural fires and other emergencies in hard-to-reach areas.
UTVs are designed for off road usage. Metalfab will work with your department to customize a unit for emergency response use. These units are becoming essential for crews to access locations that traditional fire units are unable to reach. UTVs can be specially designed to respond to brush fires, first responder calls, and a variety of other fire and rescue applications.
The base of each drop in unit is fabricated with a solid aluminum tubing subframe and aluminum deckplate exterior. The entire unit is welded; no rivets are used in the fabrication.
Your UTV skid unit will come complete with a 2-door or 4-door UTV and either a medical package including patient area, attendant area, and backboard storage or a fire package including pump, tank, and storage for one hose. You may also opt for the combined medical and fire package, which includes a patient area, attendant area, fire pump and water tank. Hoses are stored in standard racks; however, limited compartmentation is available for additional storage. The viability of additional storage will vary based on the size and weight of your UTV. UTV skid units can carry up to 75 imperial gallons (90 US gallons) of water.
With every UTV skid unit, you will have the option to tailor the warning light system, audible warning systems, striping and lettering, and the skid unit as one complete package. Metalfab also offers the installation of the warning light system, audible warning systems, striping and lettering, and the skid unit on a department supplied UTV, if desired.
If you decide that a custom UTV skid unit is the right choice for your department, Metalfab’s sales team will meet with you to discuss your team’s needs and work in conjunction with our engineering staff to design and deliver a unit that your department will be proud to call your own.
Please contact us for further information or to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with one of Metalfab’s dedicated sales team members.