Fire Chief Jim Golden tells ABC 33/40 the property owner donated the truck to the city.

"This truck is very special to us. We want to preserve this piece of our community and our fire department's history," Golden said. "We're very fortunate and very blessed to get the opportunity to get this 65 year old fire truck, have it restored, and have it so the community can embrace it and preserve a piece of our community's history." he added.

A local company, Vini's Hot Rod's in Alabaster, has offered to restore the engine, but it's going to be a costly endeavor. Golden says no taxpayer dollars will be used for the restoration. Instead, the fire department has set up a GoFundMe page to collect donations.

The department presented a $38.9 million spending plan for the fiscal year that begins March 1, about a 1.9 percent increase from this year, to aldermen on Monday night.

The estimated $1.2 million needed to buy the two new engines would come from the capital fund, not the city's general coffers. Money from a new proposed 4 percent tax on natural gas would go toward purchasing them, as well as some vehicles for the public works and police departments.

In addition, the fire department is no longer using two of three emergency vehicles bought in 2012 and 2013 to respond to medical-related calls, Helmerichs said, which was their intended purpose. The trucks are not equipped with water or fire hoses.

"For us to use them efficiently, we'd have to hire more people," Helmerichs said. "We cannot replace our engine companies with those."

In addition to discussion of the department's spending plan, aldermen asked about locations of firehouses and the most recent round of recruitment.

“Safety of the public is one of the essentials we provide as local government. We expect the new truck will last for a long time. It will provide a more efficient service to the public,” stated East Alton Mayor Joe Slikwood.

The new apparatus is the sought-out combination of both pumper and light-duty rescue unit, fit with specific “bells and whistles”.

“The deck gun makes operations a lot easier, as its a one-man operation. Before it was a two man task, where a man had get on top of the truck,” said Fire Chief Rodney B. Palmer.

Palmer describes the deck gun as “one of the huge assets” of the new apparatus.

The new deck gun allows for wireless remote control ground operations, versus crew members previously operating the gun manually from truck’s roof. The deck gun spews 1,000 gallons of flowing water per minute and is accompanied by other features including a 1,500 gallon per minute pump and a 750 gallon water tank.

“As it (previous pumper truck) increases in age it increases in maintenance, which is more money. It’s just like a car, combining the two trucks increases safety and decreases fuel costs,” stated Palmer.

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