Tactical Response Vehicle now in use at Malton fire station

The so-called tactical response vehicle (TRV) is the fifth of six that are being deployed across North Yorkshire as older fire engines require replacement.

The vehicles are equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, including battery-powered hydraulic cutters for use in road traffic accidents, which are quicker and quieter, but with the same cutting force as previous tools. They also have LED boards on the rear of the vehicle that can give messages to other road users.

The pump is the same size, but the vehicle will carry slightly less water.

Danny Westmoreland, from the fire service, said: “It’s fractionally smaller and doesn’t have as many ladders - it’s specifically designed to deal with smaller incidents by itself, but it also will form part of the attendance at larger incidents.”

The vehicles have been custom-built to meet the needs of the service. A spokesman for the fire service said the response times for the new vehicles is the same as for the standard fire engines.

The TRVs were formerly the subject of a long-running dispute between unions and management, but now six have been deployed throughout the county. In July, it was reported that the vehicles had reliability issues.

A key point of contention between unions and management was over the staffing of the vehicles - the TRVs are typically crewed by three staff, with normal fire engines crewed by four or five.

However, the fire service has said that the number of on-call firefighters at the stations will remain the same.

The fire service had looked at smaller vehicles, including pick-up or van-style, but the LGV-style was selected to provide “more flexibility with weight capacity and equipment levels.”

Crews have been receiving training on the new equipment. The TRV will commence service at Malton station today (Wednesday).

After the initial rollout of six TRVs, the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is carrying out a six-month evaluation and review.