Menlo Park Fire Board to consider donating engine to Maui fire department
Update: In a 3-2 vote, the Menlo Park Fire Protection District Board voted to donate a surplus 2009 fire engine to the Maui Fire Department at its September 19 meeting.
At the Menlo Park Fire Protection District Fire Board meeting on September 19, the Board will consider donating a surplus 2009 Pierce Velocity Fire Engine to the Maui Fire Department.
President Virginia Chang-Kiraly is leading this effort in light of the devastation from the wildfires in Maui.
The public may attend and participate in real-time via Zoom at:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86519457613?pwd=M21kZUFBbWY5SGFtMkFNOTQ2dWYwZz09 Passcode: 122023
Or
Dial telephone number: 1-669-900-6833, Meeting ID: 865 1945 7613, Passcode: 122023
On August 8, 2023, a devastating wildfire ignited in Lahaina with 60 mph sustained winds, burning 2,170 acres, claiming 97 lives, and billions of dollars of damage. The Maui Fire Department lost a fire engine and a brush engine that were burnt over and injured firefighters in the response to the fast moving wildfire.
The Menlo Park Fire District recently put in to service six new fire engines and a new Tiller Ladder truck which is allowing the District to have seven fire engines currently in surplus and preparing for sale/auction. Being in this unique position, President Chang-Kiraly reached out to Menlo Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen to see if this could be a consideration.
Fire Chief Lorenzen reached out to Maui Fire Chief Bradford Ventura to see if they would be interested, of which he answered with a definite yes. This started the wheels moving to see if the logistics would work to ship a fire engine to Maui. Fire Chief Lorenzen, as past Fire Chief for Ventura County checked with some acquaintances at Port Hueneme in Ventura County. He was excited to learn that it looks promising to work with a shipper who will work to get the fire engine on a boat that will ship directly to Maui.
