SANFORD, Fla. — The Seminole County Fire Department will hold a traditional push-in ceremony Friday for its new $1.7 million specialized rescue truck.
Squad 2 is a 42-foot-long Pierce Velocity walk-in rescue vehicle assigned to Fire Station 35 in Sanford. It replaces the department’s current apparatus and will serve as Seminole County’s only heavy rescue truck of its kind.
Often described as a “rolling toolbox,” Squad 2 carries thousands of pieces of equipment used during fires, medical emergencies and complex rescue operations.
The truck supports responses involving hazardous materials, vehicle and machinery extrications, confined spaces, high-angle and rope rescues, trenches, structural collapses and large animals.
“Squad 2 serves as the Seminole County Fire Department’s premier heavy rescue apparatus, providing specialized capabilities for incidents that go beyond traditional fire and EMS response,” Fire Chief Matt Kinley said.
The vehicle includes a climate-controlled interior, seating for five people and a 500-horsepower engine. Specialized equipment includes rope-rescue anchor points, a side-mounted rigging system and hydraulic cutters and spreaders that can be deployed from the front bumper.
Squad 2 responded to 1,013 incidents in 2025. Its most common calls involved gas leaks and odors, vehicle crashes, medical emergencies, alarms and residential fires.
The department’s first Squad 2 entered service in 1994. The new truck is the fourth generation of the specialized apparatus. The previous Squad 2, which entered service in 2019, will become the department’s reserve heavy rescue vehicle.
The push-in ceremony is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Friday at Fire Station 35, located at 201 W. County Home Road in Sanford.
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