The tradition of pushing a new truck into a fire station harks back to the days of horse-drawn equipment. Some reports say it started in 1830.
When Barrhead fire department unveiled its latest weapon in battling bush fires on April 4, it decided to honour the old custom.
Fire chief John Whittaker asked assembled county and town councillors to help give the converted fire rescue truck a big heave-ho.
Among those putting their shoulders to the task were county reeve Bill Lee, deputy reeve Bill Lane, county CAO Mark Oberg and town mayor Brian Schulz.
Meanwhile, young firefighter Hielke Vandermeulen took the wheel to guide the vehicle into the fire hall at the industrial park.
The mission was completed quickly and efficiently, without any fuss or breaking a sweat, reflecting the lighter weight of a bushfire machine which has to be very mobile.
Elected officials then toured the fire hall, which has undergone some renovations, and enjoyed a cold cuts buffet upstairs.
The bushfire truck is the result of refitting a fire rescue vehicle, originally acquired in 1997 through the Barrhead Grizzly Trail Fire and Rescue Association, the Wild Rose Foundation and local donations. Firefighters also raised funds themselves through such events as hockey tournaments. It is believed the truck cost about $70,000.
Money to convert the truck came from funds amounting to some $50,000 provided by the British Columbia government several years ago when Barrhead helped out with a major blaze in the Cranbrook area.
“These were special funds, not to be used for anything frivolous,” said Alfred Tauscher, the town’s member of large on the Fire Authority. “We had some of the money left over and decided to refit an old rescue vehicle. It is really a premium unit now.”
“It will be used mainly in the county,” added Tauscher, who was a firefighter for 33 years.
Fire Authority chairman Don Smith said the rescue truck’s overhaul included removing the box which used to contain the “jaws of life.”
“The box was sold and the funds went into the refit,” he said.
Whittaker said the aluminum four-wheel drive truck – known as a RAT (Rapid Attack Truck) – could fit six people and carry close to 200 gallons of water.
“A lot of work has gone into breathing new life into the truck,” he said. “It will be used for fighting bush and grass fires, which are the main types of fire we deal with.”
At the ceremony, Whittaker praised town and county councillors for their help with the fire department.
“Kudos to both councils,” he said.
Whittaker said the tradition of pushing a new truck into a station dated back to the time of horse-drawn carts.
Horses were unable to push carts back into fire stations, which were not the drive-through designs of today. So firefighters unhooked carts from horses and pushed carts back into the station.
