FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Carl Olson                                                                               

Phone (309) 663-7384                                                               

Central Illinois Regional Airport                                                    

Central Illinois Regional Airport and City of Bloomington Fire Department welcome new Aircraft Firefighting Vehicle

Acquisition of new Vehicle Enhances Safety through Cooperative Effort

 BLOOMINGTON, IL (Thursday, March 19 2009)…The Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal and the City of Bloomington Fire Department will place into service today the newest member of its Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) fleet at a special event scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the airport. 

 Airport and City officials will display the new state of the art vehicle, an Oshkosh Striker 1500 that features a Caterpillar C-16 diesel engine for power, a forward looking infrared camera for superior visibility in smoky conditions and a driver enhanced vision system that uses GPS with high resolution photos to direct firefighters to exact locations on the airfield.  

 “This is an example of intergovernmental cooperation at its best, “said Paul Harmon, Chairman of the Bloomington-Normal Airport Authority. “Acquiring this firefighting vehicle without cost to the City of Bloomington , the airport and the city are able to provide a high level emergency response to the community with this modern and technologically advanced equipment.”

 The new ARFF vehicle cost $720,000 that was 95% funded through a Federal Aviation Administration grant with the remaining 5% paid by the airport.  It will join an Oshkosh Striker 3000 that was purchased in 2002 and replace a retiring 1990 model.  The new vehicle carries 1500 gallons of water, 210 gallons of foam and 500 pounds of dry chemical.  It is engineered to be operated by one firefighter if necessary.

 City of Bloomington firefighters have been trained on the new vehicle and are ready to house it at Bloomington ’s Station 3 on East Empire Street.  It will ultimately be positioned at the new joint use City of Bloomington/Central Illinois Regional Airport fire station located on Old Oakland Avenue that is scheduled to open late in 2009.##