By Patrick Fox
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Just how do you go about kicking the tires on a fire engine?

Well, first, if it's one of 12 new KME model pumper engines delivered to Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services, you wear steel-toed boots. The tires are 22.5-inch Michelin steel-belted radials.

This $410,000 baby is a sure eye-catcher, from the tip of its front bumper hose down 31 feet 4 inches to its rear. It is 9 feet, 5 inches tall and 98 inches wide at the cab.

Capt. Tommy Rutledge, public information officer for the department, said the county has been in the process of field-testing the new engines.

Their total price tag was nearly $5 million, financed by the special purpose local option sales tax.

"These are bought with SPLOST funds," he said, "so we applaud our citizens for supporting the fire department so we can buy and keep our apparatus current that meet standards and can continue serving our community into the future."

Rutledge and apparatus maintenance coordinator Patrick Hoglem put one of the engines through its paces Thursday.

All new vehicles are tested before being placed into service, Rutledge said. Crews check to make sure each engine meets departmental specifications, inspect for defects, test the water pumps, the siren, the air horn and the handling.

The new engine, decked out in red and black with yellow reflector stripes and two rows of LED taillights, will serve as a primary service vehicle for 10 years.

After that, it is relegated to reserve status as a backup for another five years.

It is an impressive piece of equipment by any measure.

The interior is roomy, but only seats four. Most of the space is taken up with equipment storage, and the console covers a 475-horsepower engine.

Hoglem said the vehicle has a top speed of 65 miles per hour.

While test-driving the engine Thursday, Hoglem noted that all the controls for an emergency run are on the floorboard. There is a pedal for the siren, the air horn, the brakes and the accelerator.

That way, he said, the driver can keep both hands on the wheel, negotiating traffic.

The crowning glory, though, is a remote-controlled deck hose, mounted on top of the cab, which can direct a water spray in any direction.

"We're very fortunate," Rutledge said, "to live in a county where our elected officials run on a public safety ticket, and so far we've seen them meet those commitments."

Copyright 2008 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution