sa国际传媒官网网页入口

When Isleta Pueblo Fire Chief Leo Tafoya sent a letter to sa国际传媒官网网页入口 Fire Rescue on June 6 detailing his department鈥檚 need for new vehicles, he never could have imagined that a little over a month later he would be standing at the AFR Academy accepting the donation of two fire trucks.

But that is exactly what took place Friday during a ceremony involving the Pueblo of Isleta and the city of sa国际传媒官网网页入口.

鈥淚 cannot believe that it moved this quickly,鈥� Tafoya said. 鈥淚 honestly did not expect them to be this generous.鈥�

The two fire engines being donated are a 2005 and 2006 Pierce Dash, which have both served almost 20 years for AFR. Both are equipped with 500-gallon water tanks and 2,000-gallon-per-minute pumps. Prior to their donation, both of the engines were part of AFR鈥檚 reserve fleet, where they were still maintained by mechanics and pressed into action should another station鈥檚 truck be taken out of service.

The two engines will replace the lone fire engine operated by the Isleta Pueblo Fire Department.

鈥淭hese engines are really going to help out response capabilities,鈥� Tafoya said.

The addition of a second engine also will help Tafoya and the department get one step closer to their goal of opening a second firehouse on the west side of the pueblo.

鈥淥ur community has grown. We have almost 6,000 people and hundreds of homes, and we need to have this kind of emergency response,鈥� Max Zuni, Isleta Pueblo governor, told the Journal.

Zuni thanked sa国际传媒官网网页入口 Mayor Tim Keller and AFR Chief Emily Jaramillo for their support and cooperation during the donation process and stressed the importance of governments and communities working together to ensure public safety for all.

鈥淎ll communities need to talk to each other and get support for first responders,鈥� Zuni said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e very essential to our community.鈥�

The two fire engines are going to require a bit of maintenance before they can be pressed into service, but for what he was told about their condition, Tafoya is confident one can be up and running by the end of July.

The pueblo鈥檚 Fire Department is also going to send a staff member to AFR鈥檚 driving school to learn how to operate the new-to-the-pueblo fire trucks. That person then will train the rest of the department.

Once the trucks have been inspected and are deemed ready for action, all that will be left is to stick on the appropriate 鈥淧ueblo of Isleta Fire Department鈥� decals and press them into service. For Tafoya, that day can鈥檛 come soon enough.

鈥淚鈥檓 ready to polish these bad boys up instead of looking at them,鈥� he said, laughing. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful for everyone at AFR for being willing to help us out.鈥�

Gino Gutierrez is the good news reporter at the sa国际传媒官网网页入口. If you have an idea for a good news story, you can contact him at goodnews@abqjournal.com or at 505-823-3940.