The Houston Fire Department has resorted to shuttling firefighters to emergencies in SUVs because reliable fire trucks are increasingly becoming a rarity.
The fire department internal memo, describing the policy, was first released in 2013, but highlights a growing problem that poses a threat to public safety: not enough reliable equipment to outfit the city's fire department. The memo, obtained by Channel 2 Investigates, is still in effect today, and describes the use of so-called "Manpower Units" when main apparatus is out of service for six hours or less.
Chief Sam Pena said last week in an interview with Channel 2's Joel Eisenbaum that switching from a broken fire truck to a presumably better-working reserve fire truck can make firefighters unavailable for emergency service for hours at a time.