CustomFIRE—Forada (MN) Fire Department Full Response pumper. Freightliner M2 cab and chassis; Cummins L9 360-hp engine; Waterous CMPA 1,250-gpm pump; 1,000-gallon polypropylene water tank; slide-in ground ladder and suction hose storage; wheel well SCBA and air pack storage; slide-out compartment tray. Dealer: Wayde Kirvida, CustomFIRE, Osceola, WI.

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Plover Fire Department took receipt of its new Rosenbauer fire engine about two months ago, and since then, members of the department have been prepping the vehicle to hit the streets, spmetrowire.com reported. It was finally service-ready Feb. 2.

The $721,000 vehicle was a planned replacement, as fire vehicles generally carry a life expectancy of 20-25 years, a fire official said.

Engine 1 carries 1,000 gallons of water, can pump 2,000 gallons per minute, and has a rear-mount pump; one of the few in the area, the report said.

Engine 1 comes with a six-person cab with collapsible seats and a lot of custom cabinets designed to hold axes, Halligan tools, chaps, handheld lights, extension cords, and other tools, according to the report.

Walton County first responders honored an old tradition Thursday to celebrate the Walton County Fire Rescue’s two new fire engines, wjhg.com reported.

Push-in ceremonies are a long-standing tradition in the fire service. This tradition dates back to the 1800s when engines were pulled by horses, and the horses were unable to walk backward with equipment still attached. Firefighters would disconnect the engine from the horses, wash the equipment and the horses down, and push the engine back into the station by hand.

As apparatuses were designed and improved, the need for horses faded away; however, firefighters continued to pay tribute to the history of the fire service with the washing down and blessing of a new apparatus.

On Thursday, Walton County Fire Rescue continued that tradition with the introduction of two new engines to the Walton County Fire Rescue fleet.

A county official said they were waiting on these trucks to arrive for over a year, the report said. He added that they are waiting two more years for their next truck to arrive, because the apparatuses have to be ordered at least two years in advance.

Submitted by Chelsea (AL) Fire & Rescue Department

In December, the Southern Vintage Fire Apparatus Association took possession of the Chelsea Fire & Rescue Department’s 1985 Pierce Engine 31.

Engine 31 was purchased to replace a military deuce and a half, which was being used for fire suppression at the time. The department board members cosigned a loan to purchase the truck, which was the first new fire engine in Chelsea.

At the time, there were several active volunteers who attended weekly meetings to train on the operation of the truck. Chelsea became the “Town of Chelsea” in the late 1990s and around the year 2000, the first paid firefighters were hired, in addition to the volunteers.

The Town of Chelsea secured funding to purchase a 2000 model Quality fire engine (Current Engine 33) and the paid firefighters responded on the Quality, while the volunteers continued to respond on the 1985 Ford Pierce.

In the mid-2000s, as Chelsea continued to grow, the 1985 Ford Pierce truck became a reserve truck. It remained in service as a reserve until 2020 when it was removed from service completely.

In its 35 years of service to the City of Chelsea, it ran thousands of calls in the city and with neighboring departments for mutual aid. Over the years, the truck was used multiple times as a caisson for the funerals of many of the original volunteers. Its final act of service was to stand by at the cemetery during the funeral of Fire Chief Wayne Shirley, the first paid fire chief of Chelsea, in August of 2020. Chief Shirley was very fond of this truck as he started his career in the fire service as a Chelsea Volunteer and responded to countless calls on this truck during that time.

While many decommissioned fire apparatus are either scrapped or donated to smaller departments, Engine 31 will be on display at the Southern Vintage Fire Apparatus Association

“It has a legacy of serving our city and those around us, as well as playing an enormous part in getting our fire department where it is today and paying tribute to the ones who came before us,” said Fire Chief Joe Lee. “We wanted something better than that for the ‘85 Engine 31.”

Lee said the department reached out to the Southern Vintage Fire Apparatus Museum in Birmingham, who said not only did they have room for Engine 31, but they came and picked it up themselves.

“Their level of excitement to have it has definitely reassured us that it is in good hands there,” Lee said. “So now, instead of being cooped up in a bay collecting dust, it will serve as a piece of history for not only the fire service but also the City of Chelsea and how far we’ve come.”