Ageing fleet: Auckland fire truck held together by wire after quick-fix

An Auckland fire truck was being held together by wire after a quick fix by an on-call mechanic.

Firefighters have labelled their vehicle fleet “old and unreliable” as news emerged of an Auckland fire truck being held together by wire.

New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) vice-president Martin Campbell said the high-reach ladder truck broke down at a fire call last night, with part of the exhaust bracket breaking off due to “wear and tear”.

“The on-call mechanic came last night and did an emergency repair,” he said.

“From 8pm last night to about 9am this morning, the truck was being held together by wire.”

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said that with the agreement of the crew, a mechanic made a temporary repair overnight so the appliance could continue to be used safely if needed.

Part of the exhaust bracket on an Auckland fire truck was fixed with number 8 wire by a mechanic.

The appliance was taken into the workshop for a permanent repair this morning, the spokesperson said.

Relief vehicles are typically used by Fire and Emergency to replace fire trucks that need a longer-term repair.

“Our Auckland high-reach aerial relief vehicle has been in the workshop for repair,” the spokesperson said.

“We expect to have this relief aerial appliance returned to the fire station for operational service this afternoon, which will return Auckland to its normal number of high-reach aerials.”

Campbell said the repair was “a bit of Kiwi ingenuity” from a mechanic who repaired the truck with number 8 wire, but showed the ongoing issue firefighters were facing with “old and unreliable trucks”.

The Auckland fire truck fixed with wire attended multiple jobs throughout the night.

Last night, the damaged fire truck responded to multiple jobs, but these were mostly alarm activations, he said.

“If the truck had been called out to the North Shore or South Auckland, that wire could have broken and fallen off,” Campbell said.

“It would have meant the truck couldn’t be used in a fire.”

Two weeks ago, a pair of firefighters had to be rescued from a North Shore fire after their aerial unit malfunctioned while they were suspended in the air, battling huge flames and toxic smoke.

Campbell said the truck involved in the North Shore fire had been put out of use until an investigation was carried out into the fault.

“We do have five new aerial trucks on the way, but they’re still potentially six to eight months away,” Campbell said.

“Even then, that’s only going to maintain our status quo, it’s not going to help the long-term fleet.”

More relief trucks were needed so mechanics could carry out the proper preventive maintenance on the current fleet, he said.