Every Fire Engine in America probably has a water cooler on board.
I make my driver dump the water from the previous shift and add half ice and half water to it. How many times have you seen someone simply just add water to the previous shift's leftovers to fill it up?
Instead of water some guys like to put Gatorade or another sports drink in there. Water, IMHO, is the best hydration tool on the fireground. If the guys want Gatorade, after a job, then we hit the mini-mart or 7 eleven.
The amount of sugar in those sports drinks, will delay gastric emptying, continuing to allow dehydration. We use a simple solution and dilute the sports drink, to get some of the electrolytes replaced but no delay in getting it where it needs to go.
