Charlotte’s first all-electric fire station is ready for service

CHARLOTTE — For the first time, an electric fire truck will be responding to emergencies in Charlotte leaving from the city’s first all-electric fire station.

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The city held an uncoupling ceremony Tuesday at Fire House 30 where Charlotte Fire and city leaders officially welcomed the new station into service.

According to Chief Reginald Johnson, the station replaces a 35-year-old fire house known affectionately as “Grandma’s House” that the department has long out-grown.

“The new firehouse represents the same commitment now matched with the resources needed for today and the flexibility needed for tomorrow,” he said.

Charlotte’s first all-electric fire station is ready for service

The new station cost $10.3 million to build and includes all electric appliances, a geothermal heat pump system and a rooftop solar array that provides enough energy to offset about 29% of the building’s power.

The station will also be home to the city’s first electric fire truck. Charlotte’s Chief Sustainability Officer Heather Bolick said this truck will serve as a test to see how well trucks like this can meet the needs of the city.

“We definitely want to see this in action,” she said. ”We want to ease in and see how it does and kind of graduate it up."

The truck’s model is called Vector and it comes from Spartan Emergency Response, which has a history of designing and manufacturing emergency vehicles.

According to the designers, it runs on an electric battery and has an electric water pump system that can last for hours 12 or more hours. Should it need additional power, it also contains a backup diesel engine to kick in during an emergency.