City

Downtown Fire Brigade

The ladder truck alone makes this one worth chasing down.

Brick Rated Score

4.1/5

Set 60216 · 2019

Pieces943

Minifigs7

Year2019

Set number60216

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The verdict

This is one of those City sets that punches above its theme, and the fire ladder truck is the reason.

It stretches to almost 40cm long with a swiveling turntable ladder, working stabilizers and a light-and-sound brick, and it feels like a proper play centerpiece rather than a background vehicle. The construction-site half is a little odd (you are technically building a demolition scene for the firefighters to respond to), but it keeps 943 pieces from getting samey. If you have a kid who acts out rescues, or you just want the best City fire truck of its era, this one holds up.

Best for: Kids (and parents) who want a big, playable fire truck as the star of a City layout

The full review

What it is

The first time I extended the ladder on this truck and clicked the stabilizers out, I got why kids fall for this set. The fire ladder truck is the whole show. It runs close to 40cm long, the turntable ladder swivels and telescopes, there is a light-and-sound brick to hammer while you race to the scene, and a little pump that shoots a water element. For a 2019 City set at 943 pieces, that is a lot of engineering poured into one vehicle, and it earns the box art. Around it you get a fire helicopter with an opening cockpit and spinning rotors, a small tracked ROV called R.O.S-T3, a firefighter motorbike, and a three-level construction structure with a working crane.

The catch

I will be straight with you about the odd part. This is called Downtown Fire Brigade, but there is no fire station in the box. What you actually build is a construction site with a crane, a fence, a falling lamppost and a porta-toilet, so the firefighters have somewhere to respond. It works as a play prompt, but if you were picturing a proper firehouse to anchor a city block, this is not that. A few of the secondary gimmicks (the tipping lamppost, the little toilet that pops open) feel like filler next to how much love went into the truck. And because it is core City, the parts are almost all familiar bread-and-butter elements.

Who it's for

Get this if the goal is play, especially for a child in that six-to-ten range who wants a big rescue vehicle to push around and a crew to go with it. At its old 100 dollar retail it was strong value, and even now on the secondary market the truck justifies a lot of the ask. Skip it if you specifically wanted a display-worthy fire station, or if you are hunting for rare parts and recolors, because this set is about the theatre of the rescue, not the shelf.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

Building this is a pleasant, low-stress few hours, and the pacing is smart. The ladder truck is the meatiest section and easily the most satisfying, with the chassis, the sliding stabilizer arms and the geared turntable ladder all coming together in a way that feels more advanced than the age six recommendation suggests. The helicopter and the construction structure are quicker, breezier builds that give younger builders some easy wins between the bigger sub-assemblies, so nobody stalls out.

On parts, do not go in expecting treasure. This is standard City fare, which means loads of useful red, white and light-grey bricks, plates and the fire-specific printed elements you would want for the trucks and firefighter torsos. The most notable inclusion is the multi-shooter that debuted across the January 2019 fire wave, and the light-and-sound brick is the real value piece if you like functional electronics in a build. For a parts drawer, the appeal is quantity of common, endlessly reusable elements rather than any rare mold or exotic recolor.

Fun facts

01The set retired around November 2021 after roughly 34 months on shelves, and sealed copies have since climbed well above the original 99.99 dollar retail price.
02The fire ladder truck stretches to about 39cm (15 inches) long, making it one of the largest City fire vehicles of its generation.
03Despite the 'Fire Brigade' name, the set contains no fire station: the buildable structure is a construction site complete with a crane, a fence and a porta-toilet.
04The rescue helicopter carries a multi-shooter element that was new for the January 2019 LEGO City fire lineup.