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Today, Mayor Tory and Toronto Fire Services Chief Matthew Pegg unveiled North America's newest and tallest piece of specialized firefighting and rescue equipment. The Bronto Skylift articulated aerial unit, nicknamed “Tower 1” by Toronto Fire Services, can stretch up to 70 metres/230 feet – approximately 23 storeys high – making firefighting in high-rise buildings a lot easier.
The arm of Tower 1 extends from the rear end of one of the Toronto Fire Department's large trucks, and swoops over the vehicle, resembling the tail of a scorpion, and can reach out and up to help fight fires up higher than was possible before. Tower 1 reaches double the height, in fact, of Toronto’s next tallest aerial apparatus that can reach 11 storeys. The new vehicle will provide Fire Services "with much-needed operational versatility and extra protection in a “vertical city” that is expected to continue to grow in height and density over the coming decades" according to Mayor Tory's press release.
“It's no secret that Toronto is getting taller, you can see the evidence throughout the downtown skyline and beyond of the many cranes at work," said Mayor Tory. "Having firefighting equipment that can ensure the health and safety of residents living in high rises and the firefighters who attend these buildings just makes sense.”
The truck will be stationed downtown at 207 Front Street East, close to where there is a great density of high-rise buildings, but the vehicle can naturally be dispatched to wherever in Toronto "it may needed to help with fighting fires, search and rescue, industrial emergencies, rope rescues such as at the Scarborough Bluffs, and more" according to the press release. Staff are already being given specialized training for the apparatus.
“The addition of this 70 metre articulating aerial platform into Toronto Fire Services fleet represents a significant enhancement to the already world-class levels of fire protection services provided in Canada’s largest and most diverse city," said Chief Pegg. "This resource will become even more important as Toronto continues to become increasingly vertical and dense in the years to come.”
A "master stream" high-volume nozzle attached to the platform at the end of the arm is capable of spraying up to 3,800 litres of water per minute.
Tower 1's arm will also give Fire Services new abilities to get above shorter buildings and also to work around obstructions overhead that frequently complicate firefighting in the denser parts of the city.
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