A MONSTER fire truck is to ride roughshod over heath fires and floods in Dorset.

The £230,000 off-road Unimog will be used all over the county to tackle blazes and major incidents in rural areas.

And not only will it save residents’ lives – it will help to safeguard Dorset Fire and Rescue Service’s firefighters too.

Fleet and engineering manager Mike Dredge said: “We currently have 125 firefighters putting themselves at huge risk in a typical heath fire.

“Firefighters are lugging equipment around and have to walk into the fire. Having to fight aggressive fires with beaters is very exhausting and leaves them dehydrated.

“With the Unimog they’ll be able to start putting out the fire from up to 60 metres away as soon as they arrive on the scene.”

The specialist vehicle, which will be based at Wareham, can carry 5,000 litres of water and has a roof-mounted monitor that can direct large quantities of water or foam at a fire. Its giant wheels can power through 1.2 metres of water.

Around 16 officers will be trained at Bovington to drive the Unimog over rough terrain. The Unimog is based on a French design and travels at a maximum speed of 56 mph.

It was ordered two years ago, took a year to be built and is expected to be brought into full service in around three months.

Chief fire officer Darran Gunter said: “Compared to a standard fire engine, this is unique. There is no other vehicle in Dorset designed for this purpose.”

The launch of the Unimog was combined with a display of other unusual vehicles, including a special events vehicle, a a MAN 4x4 and a small fires unit.

The small fires unit and the other vehicles could be bought by the fire service for use in Weymouth and Portland during the 2012 Olympics.

Mr Dredge said: “We need something smaller to be on site for the duration of the Games rather than a normal fire engine.”