Elmhurst officials dedicated the city’s newest fire engine with a ceremony last week that included rituals and traditions that date back to the horse-drawn fire apparatus of the 1800s.
Those rituals include a “wet down,” a ceremonial washing down of the new truck, and a “push in” including firefighters, officials and residents who pushed the new truck (with help from the engine) into its home in Fire Station 2, 601 S. York St.
But there was a lot more to the city’s new Engine 2 than tradition. For starters, the entire $850,000 cost was paid for by a grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, thanks to help from State Sen. Suzy Glowiak, D–Western Springs.
Glowiak, who confirmed at the dedication that the grant covered the full cost, also participated in the “wet-down,” assisting a firefighter with hosing down the new engine.
After welcoming everyone to the dedication ceremony, Elmhurst Mayor Scott Levin told the story of the acquisition and Glowiak’s role, but said it was a very short story.
“We needed a fire engine,” Levin said. “I asked the state senator, ‘Can you help?’ And she said, ‘I can.’ And here it is.”
Levin noted city officials have “a very remarkable and good relationship with our state legislators,” including Sen Glowiak and former alderman and now State Rep. Marti Deuter, D-Elmhurst, both of whom attended the dedication.
Beyond its cost-free acquisition, the new engine incorporates some advanced features and technology, according to Elmhurst Fire Chief Dick Dufort.
“This is kind of a basic engine,” Dufort said after the event, noting the engine was ordered with a mix of old and new technology to add to service life and reduce maintenance costs. For example, cab windows are operated by old-fashioned hand-cranks.
But newer features include a galvanized steel frame, meant to better resist the road salt used on winter streets. Dufort said the new engine does not have a generator, a standard and sometimes high maintenance feature on older engines to power lights illuminating fire scenes. Instead, the engine uses LED lights that run on batteries.
For firefighter safety, Dufort said the new engine has a lowered hose bed, the area holding folded hoses. With the lowered hose bed, firefighters won’t have to get up on the engine’s tail board to pull hoses, Dufort said, reducing chances for slips, falls and other injuries.
Dufort said the new engine, built by Pierce Manufacturing Inc. of Appleton, Wisc., was specified by an apparatus committee headed by Battalion Chief Bill Oeffling. At the end of the yearlong process, Dufort said he and others participated in a final inspection to make sure the new engine met all city requirements.
The new engine replaces the department’s former Engine 2. That engine will now be designated Engine 4 and kept in rotation with the department’s other apparatus.
Graydon Megan is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
