Clarke County unveils Rosenbauer T‑Rex articulating ladder truck at delivery ceremony

Clarke County officials unveiled a new Rosenbauer T‑Rex articulating ladder truck at a delivery ceremony, with an agency official saying the vehicle will expand rescue and firefighting capabilities across the county. “We’re getting a glimpse of our brand new articulating ladder truck,” the agency official said.

The official said the truck — manufactured by Rosenbauer and called the T‑Rex — was completed after a Mayor and Commission vote and that the process from pre‑construction design through manufacturing, inspection and delivery took about a year and a half. “It took about a year and a half of manufacturing,” the official said.

Officials described the T‑Rex’s articulating boom as the main operational advantage over traditional straight “stick” ladder trucks. The official said the boom operates “more like a crane,” allowing crews to reach areas that standard ladders cannot and enabling more complex rescue and firefighting operations. “This articulating boom is more like a crane, which will allow us to do a lot more rescue operations, firefighting operations, and reach unique areas within the county where we would traditionally not be able to get to with our current ladder trucks,” the official said.

The truck’s safety and control systems were detailed as part of the presentation. The official said the vehicle will monitor wind and platform load, control ascent and descent, and include a remote‑control feature so firefighters do not have to be as close to hazardous environments. “It protects our firefighters while doing their job,” the official said. “And it will also prevent us from approaching a building too closely or too quickly.”

Speakers noted practical uses for the vehicle in industrial areas, high‑rise settings and in the narrower streets of downtown Athens, saying the T‑Rex will allow the department to maneuver more effectively in confined spaces. “This truck will really help with firefighting operations and rescue operations in an industrial setting, or a high rise setting, or in our tight community of downtown Athens, smaller streets,” the official said.

The delivery was framed as part of the fire service’s longstanding commissioning traditions. The official described an earlier era when crews pushed new horse‑drawn wagons into stations and said the department continues that tradition in a modern form by formally placing new apparatus into service. “It's going to be used with honor, and it will be used in the performance of doing our jobs to protect lives and property,” the official said.

No formal votes, ordinance numbers or funding breakdowns were provided during the ceremony; the official referred only to a prior Mayor and Commission vote approving the acquisition. The truck was presented as now available for service to protect Clarke County residents and property.