Several years of fundraising and waiting finally paid off for Lower Burrell’s Kinloch Volunteer Fire Company.

Kinloch took delivery of a new pumper truck at the end of April. The company has been raising money for the past two or three years to assist with its purchase, Chief Ted Hereda said.

“It replaces a 24-year-old truck,” Hereda said. “It was getting to the point where it nickel-and-dimed you in maintenance and repairs.”

The new truck cost the department $762,000, Hereda said, noting the increasing costs of equipment for fire and rescue personnel. The department looked at purchasing trucks that cost over $1 million, Hereda said.

“The old truck will be a reserve, and we’ll keep it as backup,” Hereda said. “(The new truck) becomes our primary unit.”

Costs aren’t the only thing increasing — so is the number of calls. With 90 calls so far this year, Kinloch is on pace to surpass the number it received last year, about 200, Hereda said.

“Volunteerism is just down. They’re bringing more companies to calls,” Hereda said.

Kinloch isn’t the only Lower Burrell emergency agency with new wheels.

Lower Burrell EMS took delivery of a 2024 Medix RP-90 ambulance, also at the end of April. Its cost was $155,000, according to Nicole Butler, paramedic supervisor.

The ambulance replaces a 2017 van-style ambulance, Butler said. The new ambulance provides more room for staff and patients and is similar to an ambulance EMS purchased two years ago.

“The other one was aging out,” she said. “It was time.”

Municipal funding

Lower Burrell’s city budget this year included $195,000 to be split between the city’s two volunteer fire departments.

The share to Kinloch is “essentially a down payment” on the new truck, Hereda said. He thanked city officials and the community for their support of the fire department.

“We do a lot of fundraising to pay for the equipment we have,” Hereda said. “Without that support, we wouldn’t be able to have what we have.”

The truck has a service life of about 20 years, Hereda said, and the fire company will be paying it off for the next 15 years.

The city budget also included $88,000 for the EMS service.

“While we do receive funding from the city, we don’t get funding to go toward vehicle purchases and things of that nature,” Butler said.

Rather, the money from the city goes toward employee salaries. Lower Burrell EMS has 24 employees, eight of whom are full time. Eighteen are paramedics and six are EMTs.

EMS crisis

At its May meeting, Lower Burrell Council adopted a document outlining the EMS crisis and solidifying its “official stance” — hoping other communities in the Alle-Kiski Intergovernmental Council will do so as well.

Once approved by interested communities in the intergovernmental council — Allegheny Township, Arnold, East Vandergrift, New Kensington, Upper Burrell, Vandergrift and West Leechburg — the council could present the document as its unified stance while lobbying state or federal lawmakers, Mayor Chris Fabry said.

Lower Burrell, itself, is in a bit of a bind because, as a Third Class City, it is unable to tax to fund EMS.

“The squeaky wheel gets the grease — that’s what we’re trying to do,” Fabry said. “We’re trying to make everyone, as much as possible, be aware that there is a crisis when it comes to funding, and (we’ll pursue) every single avenue that we can explore.”

Butler was pleased that Lower Burrell adopted the document supporting EMS and is hopeful other municipalities will do the same.

“The problem EMS has right now isn’t limited to Lower Burrell,” Butler said. “It’s statewide.”

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