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Emergency: 911Station, non-emergency: 910-245-43314525 Lobelia Rd, Vass, NC 28394
Burning: normal conditions. Near woods, North Carolina requires a free N.C. Forest Service permit to burn between midnight and 4 p.m. Check for a burn ban before you light anything, and never burn on a windy day.N.C. Forest Service burn permitsUpdated Oct 13

Apparatus

The fleet at Station 23.

Hydrants don't reach every road in the district, so the water rides with us: two engines, a 100-foot ladder, Tanker 236, a rescue, a high water rescue truck, a brush truck, Squad 23 and the chief's command vehicle.

The apparatus bays of Station 23 with the doors open.
Station 23, Lobelia Road. Photo posted by Crains Creek Fire-Rescue.
Engine 232
Engine · 2018
KME
1,500 gpm pump, 1,000 gallon tank, Class A foam
First due to structure fires and vehicle accidents in the district. It carries Hurst hydraulic rescue tools (cutter, spreader and ram), so the first engine at a wreck can start freeing someone who is trapped, Class A foam for structure fires, and medical supplies and an AED. Engine 232 was the first of the fleet painted in the department's black-over-red colors.
Engine 233
Engine · 2014
HME 1871 / Ahrens-Fox 4x4
1,250 gpm pump, 1,200 gallon tank
Structure fires and woods fires, and the department's automatic aid engine for its neighbors. Four-wheel drive takes it down the sand roads and long driveways that stop a two-wheel-drive truck. It carries medical supplies and an AED.
A large American flag hanging from Crains Creek's aerial ladder. Photo posted by Crains Creek Fire-Rescue.
Ladder 23
Aerial ladder · 1996
Seagrave
100-foot aerial, 1,500 gpm pump
Responds on structure fires. A 100-foot aerial puts a firefighter, a hose stream or a rescue above a roof, and its 1,500 gpm pump can supply its own ladder pipe. It is also the truck that visits Vass-Lakeview Elementary for Touch-a-Truck day.
The department's International rescue in front of the station. Photo posted by Crains Creek Fire-Rescue.
Rescue 239
Rescue · 2013
International TerraStar / Maintainer Bodies
A medium certified rescue that also meets the NCRRS requirements for a service truck. It responds to vehicle accidents, structure fires and medical calls, carrying the tools, cribbing and lighting for opening a wrecked vehicle, plus medical supplies and an AED.
Tanker 236, a red Crains Creek tanker, parked in front of the station. Photo posted by Crains Creek Fire-Rescue.
Tanker 236
Tanker · 1994
Freightliner FLD120 / Fouts Brothers
3,000 gallon tank, 500 gpm pump
Water supply. Three thousand gallons is about three times what an engine carries. When the department bought it, Tanker 236 was the first 3,000-gallon tanker in Moore County and the counties around it, and some chiefs of other departments thought it was too big and would cause problems in water shuttle operations. Today there are seven 3,000-gallon tankers in the county.
Brush 235, a six-wheel-drive brush truck with a tank on the back. Photo posted by Crains Creek Fire-Rescue.
Brush 235
High water rescue · 2012
Harsco
600 gallon tank, 250 gpm pump
Mainly the department's high water rescue vehicle. Its six-wheel drive and height get through flooded roads, and it has worked many water rescue operations during hurricanes.
Brush 238
Brush truck · 2023
Dodge 3500 / Carolina Custom Products
250 gallon tank, 250 gpm pump, 10 gallons of foam
Brush fires first. In bad weather it also runs medical calls, and it answers service calls. A pickup-sized brush truck reaches a grass fire fast and gets through gates and trails the bigger trucks can't, and its foam makes the water cling and smother instead of running off. It carries an AED.
Squad 23
Squad
Medical calls and moving people: Squad 23 carries a crew to calls, and takes members to training classes when two or more are going.
Command 230
Command · 2018
Chevrolet Tahoe
The chief's vehicle for daily operations. It carries medical supplies and an AED.

What each truck does is as the department described it in October 2026. Years and specifications not given by the department are from Camel City Fire Photos' visit, shared on the department's Facebook page. An engine-tanker bought in March 2025 is due in February 2027.