Portland to get first electric fire truck in Pacific Northwest

You probably no longer blink an eye when an electric car passes by on the road. More novel battery-powered vehicles are soon joining the parade to help operators achieve their sustainability goals. Electric ferries are coming to Puget Sound and hybrid electric airplanes are being tested in Washington. Now, several Pacific Northwest fire departments have ordered their first electric fire trucks.

Portland Fire & Rescue is scheduled to take delivery next month of the first electric fire engine in the Northwest. Last week, the Redmond, Washington, City Council approved an order for an electric fire truck too, which will be the first in Washington state when delivered in two years.

“We are really excited to be part of the unveiling and moving forward into this type of fire engine throughout the country,” Portland Fire & Rescue spokesman Rick Graves said in an interview.

Graves acknowledged there is also some trepidation in the fire service about the incoming battery-powered pumper truck given the high stakes in the profession and short track record of the electric apparatus.

"There are some people that are open arms and can't wait for it and there are some who are looking at it with quite a bit of concern," Graves said.

The builder, Wisconsin-based Pierce Manufacturing, addressed the reliability issue head-on in its marketing materials.