Gainesville city leaders and area residents gathered Thursday to unveil a new fire engine designated Engine 1 at Gainesville Fire Rescue Station 1.
The engine replaces the station’s current Engine 1, which will now become a backup truck. The old truck averaged nearly 2,000 calls annually over five years.
Gainesville Fire Rescue District Chief Adam Hinton said frontline engines typically serve for 10 to 12 years before becoming backup vehicles.
“This is a replacement for Engine 1,” Hinton said. “Our current Engine 1 that this is replacing will become a backup truck.”
Emergency One, a company that manufactures fire trucks and emergency vehicles, built the new engine in Ocala, and it comes with updated technology and equipment for firefighters. Hinton said the truck is designed to be more reliable and gives crews additional space for the supplies they need while responding to calls.
“It’s the latest technology,” Hinton said. “It’s typically more reliable, so less repair time.”
The engine also has backup cameras, additional space for hoses and other equipment, and can carry up to 750 gallons of water.
Mayor Harvey Ward said the new engine represents a broader commitment to area residents.
“What it means to me is that we are investing in public safety in this community,” Ward said.
The new engine is the third fire truck the city has brought in this year. It was described as not only a piece of equipment but an investment in the community.
“We know that more than half of that (the general fund) every year is dedicated to public safety, either Gainesville Police Department or Gainesville Fire Rescue,” Ward said. “And then we use other capital funds to be able to purchase fire trucks.”
Hinton said several engines were due to be replaced around the same time, after the department experienced a backlog in fire engine replacements that was affected by multiple factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
The unveiling also continued a tradition that dates back to before fire departments used motorized vehicles.
Neighbors and firefighters pushed the new engine into the station bay, following the days when firefighters had to manually move hand-drawn hose carts and horse-drawn steam engines into firehouses.
For some area residents, the event was also an opportunity to get a closer look at the equipment and meet the firefighters who use it.
Lisa Frucht brought her granddaughter to the event after seeing information about it online. She said her granddaughter loves fire trucks and was excited to get inside the new engine.
“She was so excited to get in the truck and see it all,” Frucht said. “So it was really great for her.”
Frucht said having a new engine in the community also gives her peace of mind.
“I’m thrilled because, you know, it means that the guys will be safer, we’ll be safer,” she said.
Ward said the engine is ultimately a tool firefighters use when someone in the community needs help.
“What they’re doing is sitting here preparing for when that bell rings so that they can be at your house, at your apartment, at your place of business, within three or four minutes to save a life,” Ward said.
The new Engine 1 will serve from Gainesville Fire Rescue Station 1 at 525 S. Main St. in Gainesville.