MONTPELIER, Vt. -- Vermont State Employees Credit Union recently pitched in to help the local fire department get newly-refurbished fire trucks.
The trucks used by the Berlin Volunteer Fire Department were in bad shape and desperately needed upgrades. The $354 million VSECU stepped in and provided a business loan that replaced a 1967 open-cab tower truck and a 3,000-gallon water tanker with a refurbished 1978 platform and ladder tower truck. The fire department also received assistance from a combination of a federal grant and local funding.
Ironically, the fire department is located directly across the street from the CU's Berlin branch, said Scott Nichols, business advisor with the VSECU's VBiz office. Nichols said they see the volunteers on a regular basis and were gratified to be able to help the department purchase upgraded trucks.
According to Butch Morrissette, the fire department's treasurer, the new truck's ladder can extend 85 feet into the air while the water tanker can shoot out 500 gallons of water per minute. The new units are custom-built to the fire department's specifications, Morrissette said.
