Image Credit: CFJC Today / Chad Klassen

By Ashley Legassic

YKA SAFETY UPGRADES

Kamloops Airport to receive new aviation firefighting truck

Jul 3, 2019 | 6:50 AM

KAMLOOPS — With passenger numbers now above the 300,000 mark, the Kamloops Airport is adding to its safety fleet.

The Minister of Rural Economic Development Bernadette Jordan was in Kamloops on Wednesday morning (July 3) to announce $1.2 million in funding for the airport.

The money will allow YKA to purchase a new aircraft rescue firefighting vehicle. A second truck is needed to accommodate more passengers and the larger airplanes flying in and out of Kamloops Airport.

“This is really all about safety,” said Jordan, who made the announcement on behalf of Transportation Minister Marc Garneau. “And making sure the air passengers are safe, that grounds people are safe, that we’re making sure that people can get to and from where they need to be.”

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YKA Operations Manager Ed Ratuski says with more than 350,000 passengers coming through in 2018, a record for the airport, adding a new firefighting truck is necessary.

“For regulatory requirements, we have to go to what’s called Category 6 ARFF (Airport Rescue Firefighting) coverage,” he noted. “That means another truck we have to have. Two trucks to respond with one personnel in each vehicle. When we go to Category 6, it’ll be two trucks, two airport technicians.”

According to regulations, the second firefighting truck will need to be operational by Feb. 1. It will be similar to the one already operating at the airport with a few more modern features.

“The new truck will be basically, almost a carbon copy of what we currently have,” said YKA supervisor of safety and facilities Tracy Brown. “The difference being that we are doubling our capacity, so we’re going from 1,500 gallons of water to 3,000, 200 gallons of foam concentrate to 400, and doubling our dry chem capacity from 500 pounds to 1,000. That increases our capacity to fight fires. With two trucks, we can maneuver and position ourselves better.”

The airport will fund renovations to add a new bay for the truck.