Airway Heights dedicates new engine

On Thursday, Jan. 29, volunteers with the Airway H eights Fire Department welcomed their new fire engine into service, soaping and rinsing the vehicle despite the bitter chill and then physically pushing it inside the fire station in a ritual that’s been performed for more than 100 years.

The traditional fire apparatus dedication ceremony took place with firefighters and family members alike bundled up against a cold that froze the soap to the engine faster than volunteers could wash it off. But the freezing temperatures didn’t seem to dampen spirits as fire service workers and community members celebrated the arrival of the city’s first new fire apparatus in more than 15 years.

The event was a continuation of a tradition that dates back to the 18th and 19th centuries when fire pumpers, or “engins” as they were called in the 1800s, were powered by hand and had to be hooked up to a team of horses for use. A new apparatus often had to travel many miles of dusty roads to reach its final destination, much like the Airway Heights engine’s 1,200-mile journey from Lyons, South Dakota.

Upon the new engine’s arrival, firefighters would unhook it from the horses, wash the journey’s dirt off of their prize and band together to manually push it into its new home.

This careful upkeep was particularly important considering fire departments of the time commissioned famous artists to deck out their rigs with large designs depicting historic events, patriotic scenes and mythical creatures. Local families would rush to see the new apparatus arrive, and gather in droves to watch its inaugural “wetdown and push-in.”

Today, a recreation of this event signifies placing a new apparatus into service. This week marked the first time it has happened in Airway Heights, and city fire volunteers couldn’t wait to take the truck out on its first call.

Fire Chief Mitch Metzger welcomed community members with refreshments and thanked local elected officials for helping make a new fire apparatus possible.

The new engine cost about $475,000 and required three trips to South Dakota starting in May 2017. It features a hose coming out of the vehicle’s tailboard, an equipment configuration gaining popularity among modern fire departments for safety reasons.

The truck is also one of the first “clean cab” engines in the area. Clean cabs are another rising trend in fire vehicle mechanics and keep contaminated turnout gear and equipment out of apparatus cabs and away from firefighters.

“We’ll have no harmful carcinogens in the cab with the volunteers,” Metzger said at the ceremony. “We’re excited to be able to put this thing into service.”

Shannen Talbot can be reached at [email protected].