i’m surprised the squads have not gone to a tandem axle rescue pumper
You’ll never see a tandem axle squad rig in NYC. it really has nothing to do with the size of their firehouse , it’s all about the rig being to long for then to operate as a engine and be “on a hydrant “. FDNY is a “fire to hydrant “operation 95% of the time. So basically the engine belongs ON the hydrant ….not infront of the building … not in the middle of the block …ON the hydrant, tucked in out of the way for the trucks ! THE TRUCKS GET THE FRONT OF THE FIRE BUILDING ! Quite often the engine need/ will park half way up on the sidewalk just to get it out of the way so the trucks can get by. Very old and narrow streets . Double parked car ….cars parked ,way to close to the hydrant and very often car parked ON the hydrant is a real common issue in the five boroughs.
The Squad rigs are about 18” longer then the normal engine company rigs , for additional tool storage. But believe it or not the 18 extra inch make a BIG difference in getting said squad rig ON a hydrant , especially in some very old and tight neighborhoods that most of the squads live in…their first , second and third due engine box’s The squads first job is to be an engine first ….then all the SOC fluff ! When they respond to fires as ” a squad“ the usually will park their rig off the fire block or out of the way, so as to not block anyone out and also not get blocked in and be able to leave and go available asap.