Detroit’s new fire engine taken out of service less than day after its debut

Updated at 8:39 p.m.

Detroit’s first new fire engine in eight years was forced out of service this morning and sent to the repair shop just 24 hours after hitting the streets.

The $500,000-plus Smeal fire engine, the first of 10 expected to arrive in the next few months, had a malfunctioning button on a control module.

“We had a fantastic customer service response from R & R, which came out within 30 minutes to replace the module, which is the top-rated one on the market and used by Smeal, Pierce and other major manufacturers,” Executive Commissioner Edsel Jenkins told us.

Firefighters took the rig, Engine 27, out of service and drove the engine to the maintenance shop near Eastern Market, leaving a section of southwest Detroit, where crew is stationed, without immediate protection.

The rig was placed back in service at 1:36 p.m.

Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration apparently didn’t get the news because this tweet came about 20 minutes after the engine was taken out of service:

Engine 27 was put into service by @DetroitFire yesterday. http://t.co/ptFRirdsj0 pic.twitter.com/RDJ7OpXvoJ

— Mayor Mike Duggan (@MayorMikeDuggan) July 21, 2015

The 10 fire engines were supposed to be on the road by now, but were hampered by a questionable bidding process and hundreds of change orders, which the city has declined to discuss. Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration also would not disclose the cost of the rigs, which were purchased with a portion of a $300 million restructuring loan established by former Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr during the city’s bankruptcy.

Jenkins said today that he expects two more engines to be on the road Friday and another to be in service next week. The remaining are expected to arrive by the end of August.

The city’s aging fleet of engines and ladders trucks is rundown, neglected and unreliable, often breaking down at the scene and delaying response times.

Engine 27 was sent to its first fire Monday evening as two houses burned to the ground at 7891 Medina.

  Apparatus, detroit is burning, engine 27, engines, Fires, mayor duggan, smeal, Southwest Detroit

Steve Neavling

Steve Neavling lives and works in Detroit as an investigative journalist. His stories have uncovered corruption, led to arrests and reforms and prompted FBI investigations.

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